How to best select your construction tires
Through the lens of the past, the present and future of tires
With many construction tires available on the market, it seems daunting to know when to select a certain type of tire for your machine, along with the kind of tread design you should opt for. In this article, our construction tire expert provides the top things to consider when selecting your construction equipment tires, through the lens of tires evolution.
Evolution of Solid Tires and their role in construction
When it comes to the evolution of off-the-road tires, 50 years ago there was the start of solid rubber tires with heavy compaction and energy to move these tires. However, solid tires have evolved tremendously and now contain two to three phases/stages in terms of tire construction, ensuring that they provide a certain level of comfort and performance. For this reason, solid tires are suitable for operations that can’t afford downtime and have applications that go on very hard debris, this includes waste transfer stations, glass recycling, demolition and scrap metal.
In the construction market, solid tires are best on machines that are working in buildings that contain metal slags, even potential fire hazards, or anything sharp that could cut a tire easily. In this case, a solid tire is more durable than pneumatic tires because it can withstand deeper cuts and is maintenance-free. However, solid tires have higher heat buildup compared to pneumatics in most cases due to its completely solid design. Therefore, it restricts the amount of distance applications can travel.
Construction tire treads and designs
To simplify things, a tire tread design starts with a lug, or a bar, for better traction, manufacturers make the lugs perpendicular to the tire, similar to a D9 track. However, for the lug to grab and grip the ground, manufacturers have to consider how many lugs to go across a tire, at what angle, should they be separate, come together at the center, sweep back?
Modifications are based on the application and what main jobs an equipment is generally used for; aggressive tire contains more lug to void ratio, or the space between the lugs. Application that contains longer wear usually has closer lug to void ratio for application that go on snow. For example, a “L5” pattern on a tire, which is usually designed for heavy-duty applications in quarries, contains less lug-to-void ratio.
If there’s a change in the design, manufacturers are considering factors such as scrubbing, how fast the lugs are wearing on the road, soil and hard-packed surfaces. Therefore, even within a certain type of tread pattern, such as an “L5”, manufacturers have to consider creating changes on the tire design to enable maximum protection against scrubbing, ground contact and even footprint.
Pneumatic tires for construction equipment
When tire manufacturers developed tires with air that can carry most of the load, it transformed the industry. Starting with bias ply tire, it contained a fabric overlapping the casing, with a tube inside to carry the air, which is about 60% of the load with the tire carrying the remaining 30-40% load. This then changed when manufacturers figured out that they can take a butyl liner rubber product and insert it inside the tire, we no longer have to rely on a tube to carry the air.
Then everything changed with the birth of radial tires, they have capability to have 90% of the load be carried by air and maybe only 10-20% by the tire. For example, a 29.5-25 size tire can have the same overall diameter but do four to five different jobs on a machine: going on tire, dirt, picking up rocks at an aggregate and working in tough terrains in a quarry. All of this in addition to reducing fuel consumption since when inflated properly, radial tires are easier to move forward.
As the tire industry continues to evolve with more advanced radial tires and engineering, such technology and design are coming into the construction market, which primarily uses bias tires. For a skid steer or a backhoe to experience the same benefits as mentioned above for a 29.5-25 radial tire, contractors will start considering switching from bias to radial to increased fuel economy, operator comfort, better performance and tire life.
How do radial and bias tires wear differently on construction equipment?
Due to its design, a radial tire usually has longer, more consistent, squared/rectangular footprint, whereas a bias ply tire usually has an oval shape footprint. For this reason, radial tires wear the same front to back and side to side, whereas a bias tire wears out in the center. In addition, manufacturers make construction radial tires with an all-steel design, meaning that the tire casing has steel cords, and more steel cords underneath the belts below the tread. This heavy-duty design enables radial tires to tackle more aggressive jobs as they are now more puncture-resistant, in addition to improved operator comfort compared to bias tires.
What is the biggest enemy that destroys tires, regardless of tread design and tire type?
Regardless of the type of tire or its tread design, heat is what destroys tires. Excessive heat buildup is usually what destroys tires. Therefore, on pneumatic tires, always ensure proper air pressure so that heat dissipates properly, in addition to having the proper inflation pressure for the right load. If you have a solid tire, ensure that your local dealer and manufacturer understand your machine’s main job, its speed and total distance it travels. Solid tires are usually equipped on machines that travel short distances at slow speeds.
Listen to the full podcast (20 mins) to get more tips:
For more tire tips to maximize your operation, check out our technical bulletin.
