"Mud Spades" Mount Between Tractor Duals To Boost Traction

"Mud Spades" Mount Between Tractor Duals To Boost Traction TRACTORS Tires/Wheels 23-5-20 It creates enough traction to pull a tractor through more mud than a big 4-WD can handle," says Richard Willette, Medford, Minn., about the home-built "mud spades" he made for his Deere 4320 2-WD tractor. The steel mud spades are welded to a hexagon-shaped, 1/2-in. thick steel wheel that bolts to the tractor's wheel rim and hub. There are six mud spades. Each consists of a length of channel iron with a telescoping length of rectangular tubing inside it that digs into the ground between the dual wheels. Each piece of channel iron has a series of holes spaced 2 in. apart, and each piece of tubing has a matching set of holes. The rectangular tubing is held in place by a set screw attached to a steel rod. The rod is inserted through a loop welded to the top of the channel iron. To adjust the depth of the tubing Willette loosens the set screw and pulls it out, then slides the rectangular tubing in or out. "They give me traction like you wouldn't believe and make a huge difference whether I'm plowing or harvesting peas or sweet corn," says Willette. "I can mount them between the duals of any tractor or on the outside of single wheels. I can set them to run up to 1 ft. deep so they penetrate the subsoil which is hard and firm, providing the push to go ahead. If I'm in mud and take them off one side of the tractor, the tractor will turn right around in a circle. "I can set them to go only 1 in. deep in the winter for extra traction on snow or ice or pull them all the way in for road travel. The tubing goes into the ground at a slant so it doesn't put a lot of stress on the set screw. They're built very heavy - rocks won't bend them" Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Richard Willette, 6500 270 St. E., Medford, Minn. 55049 (ph 507 455-1831).

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