Mounting 20.8-38 on 16 inch wheel

Mitch

Our Farmall 300 came with 12.4x38 tires, and when it came time for replacments we went to 13.6x38. Bear in mind by this time we had a 560 and 656 thus 300 had graduated from field work to pulling loaded silage and hay wagons on mainly hard roads. About 3 years later we replaced the rims for 1" wider. The difference pulling on hard roads was noticable, in the field it was not noticable

I remember one of the first modern day tractor pulls that came to our area. I didn't pull my 1066 as it was 60 miles away with duals and earning $700. per day. However in that pull was a 966 that came from factory with 18.4x38. His main competition was another 966, and a Deere and White about the same weight and hp. These guys were all good operators and came very close, with the first 966 I mentioned coming 1st. These guys were so close, any minor slip could have changed the results. That put the heat on for everyone to do better for next year. The guy with the 966 changed tires from 18.4 to 20.8. As he started into heavy part of pull the tractor started to vibrate and in time with tread slippage on track. This got so bad he backed off 30' short of his pull the year before and settled for 4th. I talked with him afterwards, he said the vibration in the cab was so bad he thought the tractor would explode. Wider rims to match the 20.8 tires cured that problem.

I somehow suspect that tractors working tillage in loose soil conditions will not notice much difference. I do know that in the 60s, 70s and 80s buying new tires, tire manufacturers were quite adamant on that rim size. First they didn't want an under size rim to embarass their tire. They also voiced concern on improper rim size causing premature tire breakage.

Another factor is type of work. I know in my own case, pto horse power was the big demand on just about everything my tractors did. Tires tend to last much longer under those conditions. Yes, I pulled a 25' cultivator and a 22" disk but it was always done with 4 tires.

Thanks for the comments. I am considering trying to either find some 18" wheels or finding some 18.4s for my 16" wheels. It will be very difficult ot beat either deal that I got on my current wheels and tires. The tires were pull offs from a local farmer and the wheels were given to me by a retired farmer.