weights

Has anyone had experience adding wheel weights to a Zero turn? I really like my new mower but traction is very bad.

You don't say what you are using and not apples to apples but try loading water and see if it helps' If it does, load with something good like beet juice. These rear tires on my Kubota are well over a hundred #s each.

Beet Juice STINKS...

RV antifreeze or -20 washer fluid is the go to here for loading tractor tires of all shapes and sizes.

It does smell, but on small tires is heavier. Max weight is the key but I just don't like CaCl. I
have washer fluid in my Funk.

My zero turn has 24-12.00x12 tires In some pretty lame turf tread pattern, The good news is they slip so much they are wearing fast, they give terrible Traction climbing slopes. Every other garden tractor I own has or will have 23 degree Firestone lugged tires on it soon but they don't have anything close enough to a 24-12.00x12, a taller or shorter tire will change the angle of the mower deck and then I'd have to mess with the deck lift linkage to make it mow properly.
I've seen older, early zero turns with a real shallow 45 degree tread lug that would give more Traction than my turf tires. I've mowed with Cub Cadets since 1963, mostly with turf tires that slipped, spun and tore up the grass, when I put my first 23-8.50x12 Firestone lugs on the spinning stopped even on wet grass. My 982 Cubbie has 26-12.00x12's, it really never slips! And all the bare spots the turf tires made healed up. I've searched AMAZON and they have a variety of tires in the 24-12.00x12 size which seems to be THE size on most zero turns.
I'm not sure I'd try to add weight. The little hydrostatic wheel motors on zero turns are sized to just push & pull the mower. Maybe make sure your gas tank is full, my mower has two 7-1/2 gallon gas tanks, one over each drive wheel. Probably for a reason.

(quoted from post at 13:32:59 04/17/23) Beet Juice STINKS...

RV antifreeze or -20 washer fluid is the go to here for loading tractor tires of all shapes and sizes.

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When does it stink?
When there is a leak not take care of?

I don't know where you live, but here in NC the ground is so wet that a zero turn will slide where in more dry times it won't.

Check with your dealer. loading the tires or adding weights will put extra load on the hydraulics and most makes I am familiar with don't recommend it. Adding fluid or weights either one may void the warranty on the hydraulics. That is because you are requiring more force to get the mower going and more force to stop it too.

22X11.00-10 on it, Ferris ISX 700. I was stuck Saturday on a slight down hill grass was damp, ground dry. I couldn't move just set and spin,didn't even dig a hole. Of course it has solid center wheels so drilling would be required for weights.

Loading the wheels or tires will make the ride rougher. Experience here. Leo

I know it's a different animal but I don't see why it wouldn't work for a zeroturn too. My garden tractor and snow blower traction sucked. Even with tire chains. Weighing over 1200 lbs you can imagine pushing it while in a snowbank. Took the 150 lbs of weights off the rear wheels and placed them on a home made fixture 4 ft behind. In effect adding 300 lbs to the rear traction wheels and lifting 150 lbs off the front. Traction problem solved. Just remember you have a tail.

The shallow V treads are likely chevron tread.

https://www.amazon.com/24X12-00-12-4Ply-Chevron-Tire-Carlisle/dp/B005C46WME

If operator weighs 125 you should be able to add 300 or so without worry of causing driveline overload.

(quoted from post at 22:22:01 04/16/23) Has anyone had experience adding wheel weights to a Zero turn? I really like my new mower but traction is very bad.

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unny you should bring this up. I was just noticing recently that my neighbor's 42" Toro has a big cast iron weight bolted to the very back of it. Appears to be a factory piece. I'm wondering if it would improve traction and make it steer better to add one to my Husky.

Get yourself some 2 ply, 5 PSI max rated ATV studded snow tires (ebay has plenty at great prices) in the same size as is currently on the mower rear. Air up till the bulge (like you have with a radial) sticks out about 1/2-1......air pressure will be in the low single digits. Only thing you need to do is to pay attention when on soft ground in making turns and reversing.....don't get too frisky with the steering paddles.......you'll get used to being easy with turns and reversing.

I mow my pond banks which are 30* with my 61 Ferris 700 with canopy and me at aboujt 220# vertically and have no problems with traction. Going up is a no brainer. going down, take it slow so that you aren't going too fast when you get to the bottom and want to turn and go back up...too fast and you tear up turf. Been doing this for years......no weights other than what I indicated above.

The weight of the mower is on the rears going up but its on the fronts coming down......that's why you have to take it slower going down.....isn't that big of a deal....you'll get used to it.

The other benefit is that if your place to be mowed is like my farm....dry cracked clay in the summer for a lawn, you get a soft ride and that is a very big deal for me.


I started years ago with bar treads, like tractor F1s but they slid sideways and were hard riding being 4 ply with stiff sidewalls and the sharp corners tore up the lawn no matter how careful you were.