tires on garden tractor

On a two wheel drive 10 HP lawn tractor, would there be any advantage/disadvantage to putting correct size agricultural bar tires on the front?

The tractor has them on the rear. I"ve seen them on 4WD tractors.

Opinions?

The reason why those tires are called "Agricultural" is because they were developed for the purpose of giving a tractor maximum traction in cultivated fields where deep, soft ground is encountered. Lawn tractors are not designed to be used in deep, soft ground conditions, so the tire industry developed at turf tire that would provide reasonable traction on grassed areas but would not do damage to the grass when the lawn tractor was steered sharply to the right or left.

4 wheel drive tractors are not normally used as a primary grass cutting machine but they can be equipped with turf tires on all four corners if the owner wants a 4 wheel drive lawn cutter.

Yes.... you could put Ag tires on the front of your lawn cutter and they would improve your ability to turn the tractor quickly on wet, slippery grass when moving along at a brisk pace. But on bone dry grass that is rooted in sandy or loamy soil, the bars would have a tendency to tear out the grass during sharp turns.

You don't say that you have a problem looking for a solution so I assume that you are just wondering whether your tractor would be improved by installing Ag tires on the front. My opinion is no. I can see that you might have need for the Ag's on the rear but you haven't justified the need for them on the front.

If you"re looking for something to provide a little side bite, alot of people will go to Tri-Rib tires. They give it that big farm tractor look, and they don"t damage the lawn as badly as ag tires would. The downside is sizes are somewhat limited, and prices can be $$$. Firestone, Deestone, and several others make the most common in garden tractor size.

If you want a high flotation tire with ribs, there"s a company called Vredestein. They make a V61 tire that has 5 ribs. Better for flotation, and also a little lighter on the lawn. Again, they"re just slightly offsized.

Here"s some I found on a google search.
http://bit.ly/z8JwZs (4.00 Tri Ribs)
http://i52.tinypic.com/2q0rfyp.jpg (V61"s)
http://bit.ly/xl3WyU (Firestone Tri Rib)

People put them on the front, usually turned backwards, for plowing or blowing snow. Gives you more bite. I used them on my last Ingersoll cause the standard tire that came on them is okay for mowing but not worth crap when blowing snow.