Farmers who’ve switched from tires to tracks all seem to miss one thing: air. Tracks jolt man and machine, while tires let farmers ride on a cushion of air.
“Air supports the tractor,” says Firestone field engineer Wayne Birkenholz. “A tire is nothing more than a rubber container holding air.”
Ideally, farmers could buy implements with inflatable rubber tracks, which would provide their typical superior traction and flotation and also a better ride. However, manufacturers haven’t yet figured out how to mass produce reliable pneumatic tracks. In the meantime, they build agricultural radials that flex laterally for a bigger footprint and solid rubber tracks that create a longitudinal footprint.
Mitas of the Czech Republic came up with the novel idea of having their PneuTrac tire flatten out longitudinally to create a mini-track footprint instead of squishing out sideways like all other agricultural tires.
