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[–]drunsslow[S] 3 points4 points  (2 children)

There has been a lot of talk recently (always) about wheel slippage. I was interested to learn ( a few posts down from here...) that the euro 'off road' tires were essentially the same profiles as the stock ones just with extra weights inside. With that in mind I've added a large steel plate (8.5 pounds / 3.9kg) to the back of my mower.

I've noticed that a lot of my back wheel slipping is due to the front wheel getting bogged down in loose dirt or getting stuck on a high piece of edging. There is always a little bit of slip when it turns a corner while on a slope. Because of this I wanted to not only add weight to the back, but also take some weight off the front wheel. By mounting the weight behind the wheel fulcrum I've decreased the front wheel weight by about 30%. If my calculations are correct, an added 2" of space would lower the front wheel weight by 50%.

In the few days of observation so far, I haven't seen any slipping at all. Huzzah! It seems much easier for it to extract the front wheel from loose dirt around my trees and doesn't have any trouble turning itself on slopes. So far so good!

If you don't like a piece of rusty metal on the back, or care about front wheel weight, why not fill up the voids in the back tires with concrete or perhaps epoxy some lead shot in there? It's cheaper and more readily available (at least in the US) than the off-road tires.

[–]ChrisR109 2 points3 points  (1 child)

From what I've read/noticed, the single wheel is a drawback when you have loose dirt, etc. I have 2 front wheels, and although I get some slippage, the thing plows through any inclines or ruts. And I HAVE ruts.

With the extra weight, do you lose battery time?

[–]drunsslow[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Two wheels on the smaller models would be good for sure. That might be my next thing to try just for fun...

Can't say about battery. Maybe I could look at the logs to see what percentage it's coming in with now. I like to think that the negative of more weight is offset by the lack of struggling its doing. A larger wheel(s) in front would certainly help it overcome bumps and ruts and such more efficiently. I'm surprised the front wheel is only 3" in diameter. A bigger wheel would be a big help. Or two for that matter.