Turf growers are lifting and dispatching, harvesting, and fertilising. Grounds teams are hard at work renovating sports pitches between seasons. Golf courses are focused on maintaining surfaces to stay consistent throughout the summer peak season.

In all these cases, machine setup matters. One part of the turf operation that is critical is wheels and tyres.

Whatever machine you’re running, whether it’s tractors or turf harvesters, the way your equipment meets the ground directly impacts what happens to the soil and surface underneath. And when that same surface is your end product, it matters!

 

The Problem with the Wrong Setup

Using a tyre that’s too narrow, running the wrong pressure, or working with a wheel combination that doesn’t give the right clearance or load capacity can mean you start to see:

• Unnecessary compaction
• Turf stress/damage
• Poor ride quality and reduced machine efficiency
• Higher fuel consumption
• Longer time on the job

In renovation or harvest work, these problems are amplified, because the ground is already under pressure. Once damage is done, there’s no quick fix.

 

What We’re Seeing

We’re currently working with turf growers, contractors and golf course teams. Typically this means there are a wide variety of applications to consider – harvesting, renovating, drainage, fertiliser spreading, etc.

The correct setup for these applications isn’t just about choosing the lowest pressure tyre available, the cheapest, or even the most expensive. To get the right solution, we need to understand:

• Application
• Ground pressure
• Time spent on road vs field
• Required clearance for each machine
• Interaxle Ratio
• The need to protect the turf during sensitive stages of growth

In most cases, we’re specifying wider section tyres to distribute load, wheel combinations with the correct offset suited to the machine, and a wheel setup that will cope with the speed and weight of modern turf machinery.

 

Removing Guesswork

We like to remove the guesswork.

That’s why we use our own testing facilities to make sure manufacturer data is correct for the job in hand. Often technical data is measured when the tyre is at nominal pressure, and the characteristics are quire different when used correctly in a turf application.

By working directly with owners, operators, and manufacturers, we help ensure the wheel and tyre package is right — taking into account clearance, load, speed, and application.

We also understand that in the turf industry, downtime is expensive and equipment must turn up ready – which is why we’re focused on supplying not just the right specification, but the lead time, finish and support when you need it.

Talk to Us

If you’re working in turf and need help with setup, whether you’re looking to improve performance, protect surfaces, or just make sure you’re not doing unintentional damage, we’re always happy to talk it through.

Contact Us on info@bwt.uk.com or 01371 832310 today!