quick tire cutting - antique tractor pull · pdf file©2015 by zack peterson and podium...

©2015 by Zack Peterson and Podium Finish, LLC – www.antiquetractorpullguide.com 1

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In preparation for the pull at Scappoose, Oregon on July 18th, the Case 200’s tires were sharpened using a cutting disc from ME Miller Tire Co. in Ohio. Ideally these all metal cutting discs that rip through rubber quickly should be used with an air operated tool in order to vary cutting speed. In the interest of time, an electric 4-1/2” grinder was used instead since most of the touch up was not deep cutting. On this particular day the temperatures would be near the century mark by afternoon, so an early start with all of the protective gear was ideal. A full face mask with ventilator, long sleeves/pants and heavy gloves keep the rubber off skin and protect against the disc should it stray too far from the tire. The tires are an older set of 13.6-28s that are 45 degree BF Goodrich and are nothing special but serviceable until a better (or taller) set comes along. The cut put on the tires is a top cut, which means only the top and back side of each lug are cut.

Quick Tire Cutting

The idea is to taper the lug at a tangent angle to the casing of the tire so that it meets the bottom of the next lug. With very little tread left in the middle of these tires, cutting into the casing itself could also gain a bit of lug height. If done right, top cutting tires will make a dramatic difference for the better in the way a tractor hooks.

Case 200 with new decals, ready for tire cutting


Quick Tire Cutting (cont)

At right is shown the tire cutting disc that is made out of metal. These discs are by far superior to any hardware store bought sanding disc because they do not plug and stay sharp. In fact, a single disc could be used to cut 2-3 sets of tires. This set of tires is fairly worn, so total cutting time was a little over an hour for both tires.Below right shows the mess tire cutting makes which is why this type of work is best done in an open area or on gravel to make cleanup easier. Do not cut tires indoors or inside a shop because rubber dust can go everywhere and may become a fire hazard.

Rubber Hog type tire cutting disc

Notice how the lugs look wider toward the middle

due to uneven wear.


Quick Tire Cutting (cont)

The finished cut is shown below. These aren’t the best tires because of the uneven wear in the center of the tread, but they are serviceable. The tractor was driven a across a dry concrete floor and notice the dust pattern on the bars of the tire. Ideally, the front edge of each lug should contact all the way across the bar as shown in the lower right picture of a top cut 15.5-38.

13.6-28 top cut tire, notice most of each bar contacts on the front edge, but it’s

not quite perfect.

15.5-38 top cut tire, notice each bar

contacts evenly on the front edge.


Feeling Hot, Hot, Hot

This summer has been relentlessly hot in the West. Although summer is the dry season in the west, soaring temperatures and dry conditions have wild fires burning out of control, rivers at all time lows and harvest yields low and early. For tractor pulling, this means systems go and the days have been brutally, if not dangerously hot. This year’s Scappoose, Oregon pull in mid July landed on one of many heat waves with temperatures a little over 100 degrees. Generally this is alright for tractor pulling however tractors that may have cooling problems need to be carefully monitored. One of these is the Massey Harris 101 with the 265 Chrysler flathead. Those engines feature a cooling tube that runs the length of the block to distribute coolant to all cylinders. Typically this sheet metal tube disintegrates over time, which causes the engine to run hotter than usual and cool down less quickly. Since the Massey 101 was outfitted with the 265 engine it has always run a little hot and was in need of a cooling tube. Careful attention to the temp gauge has helped while running it at pulls and generally cooler air temperatures haven’t been a problem. This year’s Scappoose pull proved to be the breaking point – literally. The tractor was entered in only 3 hooks for the day – 3500# 6mph, 3750# KOH and 4000# 4mph. The first hook went well although the 100 degree air temperature made cooling difficult. The tractor eventually cooled off enough to run the 3750# King Of the Hill and actually won the class, the last good thing to happen that day. With little time between the end of the KOH and the beginning of 4000# classes, the 101 did not cool properly. By the end of the 4000# hook the power started dropping off, there was significant blow by, the engine began to ping and the temp gauge was pegged on the high side. Even though the tractor was still running at the end of the hook, something was definitely wrong. Lifting the side shields back in the pits revealed a blown head gasket. The coolant was leaking down the left side of the block. The Massey 101 is now down.


Feeling Hot, Hot, Hot (cont)

The silver lining of the day was indeed the KOH class because the competition was very tough. The track at Scappoose was a long one at nearly 400ft and the Massey 101 had the longest pull of the day at 404ft and beating 2nd place by 17ft.

Tire marks left by the Massey 101 at 404 ft.

Attempt to cool the engine with side shields open. Lesson learned, with an

engine rebuild coming in the future.


Feeling Hot, Hot, Hot (cont)

The other tractor brought to the pull that day was the Case 200 after the tire cutting in the morning. Since the only other pull it had been to was Benton County in the Spring, I was anxious to hook it again to see what it was capable of doing. The nice part about the Case is that it runs cool because it has a 160 degree thermostat in it and a stock radiator with mechanical fan. The 100 degree temperatures didn’t affect the tractor at all and it ran well. The competition was few, as it only ran against one other tractor at 3000# 6mph and ran uncontested at 4mph. The good news is that the tire cutting helped immensely. Where the tractor wanted to spin the tires easily in the Spring, it hooked in the sticky river bottom track at Scappoose. In 2nd gear direct range it had plenty of power, capable of going almost 5mph at full throttle down the track. For the 6mph class I went up a gear to 1st gear high range and there was a tough spot in the track that did pull the engine down near the end, taking 2nd place to a well built Oliver Super 66. All things considered, the day was a complete success for the Case and a clear stepping stone to where it needs to be.

Case 200 and

Farmall 200


The Great Moline Show

This year at Antique Powerland’s Steam Up show in Brooks, Oregon the featured tractor was Minneapolis Moline. There is no official Moline club in the state of Oregon, however a handful of collectors hauled in enough iron to make a good display for the public. Since most of our tractor collection is Minneapolis Moline, we decided to make the 45mi trip to the show grounds to exhibit 10 tractors. It was a lot of work both before and after the show to move so many tractors, but the display was outstanding with 42 tractors total.

G704 (1 of 123 built) and G1000 Wheatland 335 puller

UBE Special Diesel and U-302 Gas


The Great Moline Show (cont)

M602 Hi Crop (1 of ~10 built)

Jet Star II Diesel (1 of 113 built) and 4 Star diesel (1 of 92 built)

Ava and Grandpa with the Twin City KTA

G707 Diesel (1 of 415 built)

Early GT bought at the show. 11 came home!


Coming up…

• The D12 emerges

• Engine run

• Massey 101 build update

• And more…

I want to hear from you! If you have

feedback, requests or information you

would like featured, please send an email to:

[email protected].

August Newsletter available 8/26/15

John Deere 60 at Scappoose with custom chrome stack. Gotta be worth at least an extra 50hp!

quick tire cutting - antique tractor pull · pdf file©2015 by zack peterson and podium...

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