Learn Why New VF Tyres Will Help 1000’s Of Farmers Improve Their Yield

Article written by Bush Tyres

VF Tyres and the 3 Questions farmers will be asking at this time of the year:

• Is it necessary to change the tyres and wheels on my tractor if I am pulling a trailed crop sprayer?
• Is it better to keep my original wide tyres because it is easier not to change the wheels and tyres?
• Should I change to narrow row crop tyres to avoid damaging my crops?

The same question applies to operators of self-propelled sprayers, mounted sprayers, and fertilizer spreaders.

You may think that there is only a slight difference in the width of agricultural tyres, but depending on the size of your farm, the difference in terms of crop yield will be noticeable. Spraying requires numerous trips across your fields and the impact in terms of soil damage and crop damage will be significant.

Wide tyres are better only in certain conditions, but the effect of wide tyres will depend on the tyre technology used. The original wide tyres, and particularly low-pressure VF tyres (very high flexion technology) would be suitable during the first spraying operations at the end of the winter season. In this situation narrow row crop tyres which require higher inflation pressures and do not have a large contact area with the ground will be less suitable.

For all fertilizer applications before sowing, the use of wide low-pressure VF tyres has many advantages. High load capacity, low-pressure VF tyres have flexible yet robust casings capable of carrying heavy loads, allowing the use of larger sprayer tanks and wider booms.

Working at pressures as low as 0.8 bar, VF tyres help avoid soil compaction and the formation of ruts during fertilizer applications and soil preparation prior to sowing.

VF tyres do not require pressure adjustments during cyclic operations and can operate at the same inflation pressure with a full or empty sprayer tank.
Standard non-VF tyres are not suitable for spraying during the wet season, as compaction to the lower layers of soil will be significant. It will then be necessary to use a subsoiler to repair the damage to the soil at the end of the season.

Avoid additional costs and loss of time with VF tyres more suitable for spraying in wet conditions.

The effect of a low-pressure VF tyre working at 0.8 bar will be very different from that of a standard technology tyre which will require inflating to at least 1.6 bar to carry the thousands of litres of liquid transported in the sprayer tank, or more if the sprayer is equipped with wide booms which will create a significant load transfer to the rear axle.

When using standard technology tyres, you will have to adjust the inflation pressure according to the load on the tyres which is not easy with the variable load caused by the tank being frequently emptied and re-filled which changes the load on the tyres by thousands of kilos.

Wide standard technology tyres will have to operate at high inflation pressures to carry the weight of the full sprayer tank at the start of the spraying operation, plus the load transfer when you extend the sprayer booms. The damage to the soil and to seedlings will be considerable with a loss of yield linked to the areas affected by the tyres.

The Ascenso VDR 2000 comes in a range of sizes, suitable for self-propelled sprayers, trailed sprayers and tractors:

• VF 540/65R30 VDR2000
• VF 540/65R30 VDR2000
• VF 600/60R28 VDR2000
• VF 600/60R30 VDR2000
• VF 600/65R28 VDR2000
• VF 600/65R28 VDR2000
• VF 600/70R30 VDR2000
• VF 650/65R38 VDR2000
• VF 650/65R42 VDR2000
• VF 710/60R38 VDR2000
• VF 710/60R42 VDR2000
• VF 710/70R38 VDR2000
• VF 710/70R38 VDR2000
• VF 710/70R42 VDR2000
• VF 710/70R42 VDR2000
• VF 800/70R38 VDR2000
• VF 800/70R38 VDR2000

During the spring season if conditions are not too wet, or in the summer fitting narrow row crop tyres will have less impact on the soil surface during spraying operations. Unlike wide tyres which crush the crops, narrow tyres have less impact on the soil and allow young seedlings to develop correctly throughout the field. In addition to being easier to drive between the rows of crops with narrow tyres compared to wide tyres, the limited width of the footprint in the soil with narrow tyres reduces the number of plants damaged as well as the impact on your crop’s root system.

If you are pulling a trailed crop sprayer with your tractor, to reduce the impact on the soil surface and damage to plants, the sprayer and the tractor should be fitted with the same width of tyre and the sprayer tyres must follow in the same tracks between the rows as the tractor. To further reduce the impact on the soil when using a trailed sprayer, you should make the tractor as light as possible by removing any weights or ballast as it is not traction that is required, but consistent forward speed. By making the tractor lighter, you reduce rolling resistance and the impact on the soil.

The bout-width when spraying is important for soil preservation. The larger the bout-width, the fewer passes the tractor or sprayer must make to complete the area, so the least amount of soil will be compacted by the tyres. Using the largest self-propelled or trailed sprayer that is practical with a tank capacity of up to eight thousand litres and a boom width of up to fifty-five metres would allow you to save time covering the area to be treated while reducing the number of passes across the field.

The manufactures design narrow row crop tyres to cope with the diverse types of stress and opposing forces. The manufactures construct the tyres to carry a heavy load with a small contact patch with the ground, while maintaining sturdiness and stability.

Ascenso’s VDR 900 VF radial tyres have been designed to carry 40% more load than a conventional radial tire, or the same load at 40% lower pressure.

• These tyres have been designed with stronger lugs with a large contact patch that gives excellent traction with the unique and innovative design of Ascenso’s mud breaker technology self-cleaning characteristics which decreases slippage, delivers lower fuel consumption, and increases overall productivity.
• Steel belts offer puncture protection and distributes uniform ground pressure which helps reduce soil compaction and crop damage.
• Reinforced sidewalls and bead zones offer increased casing stiffness to carry higher loads. The more radially stiffer tyre makes it possible to transition from field to road and vice versa without adjusting the inflation pressure. At the reduced pressure required for field use, the tyre can also run at full speed on the road yet deliver the same fuel efficiencies as a standard tyre at road pressure.

Narrow row crop tyres are clearly the best solution for spraying, simply to be able to pass between the rows without damaging the plants. The impacted surface area in your field will be smaller and there will be almost no negative effect on your productivity. The investment will be profitable compared to the work that a standard tyre can do. If you take it one step further and choose a high-tech narrow VF tyre which allows you to work with low inflation pressures, to use a high-capacity spray tank and wide booms, you will see a significant improvement in productivity.

The Ascenso VDR 900 and VDR 2000 tyres come in a range of narrow row crop sizes, suitable for self-propelled sprayers, trailed sprayers, tractors  used for spraying and other inter-row operations:

• • VF 580/85R42 VDR 900
  • VF 380/90R46 VDR 900
  • VF 520/85R46 VDR 900
  • VF 320/90R50 VDR 900
  • VF 380/90R50 VDR 900
  • VF 420/95R50 VDR 900
  • VF 480/80R50 VDR 900
  • VF 320/90R54 VDR 900
  • VF 380/105R54 VDR 900
  • VF 380/80R38 VDR2000
  • VF 380/85R46 VDR2000
  • VF 380/95R38 VDR2000
  • VF 420/85R34 VDR2000
  • VF 480/80R46 VDR2000
  • VF 480/95R50 VDR2000
  • VF 480/95R54 VDR2000

Bush Tyres have many years of experience in supplying wheels and tyres to suit all makes and model of tractors, sprayers, harvesters, trailers and implements. We can supply standard size tractor wheels, row crop wheels, wide and flotation wheels, wheels for turf tyres and dual wheels. We also stock a wide range of replacement implement wheels. Contact your local branch for advice and recommendations on how to convert to row crop tyres, flotation tyres, VF tyres and turf tyres.

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To find out more about our range of VF Ascenso Agricultural Tyres visit Ascenso UK and learn how our VF tyres can increase your yield and efficiency.