Argo rubber tracks compared to Adair

[North Country Tough]

You fellas with experience in both I want to hear the good and bad,I have a chance to pickup a low use set of Argo rubber tracks at a real decent price,but are they worth buying,my use of these tracks would be winter only and the rare time for muskeg,what you say.N.C.T

[Obsessed]

Ive had a chance to play with both types of tracks as well as almost every other type of track made for these machines and in my opinion, if you are looking to run them on your 750 EFI Avenger and mostly in winter conditions then you will probably love the top of the line Argo track. It is an excellent all around track and will do most things well. Wear and tear on your machine is a bit more of a consideration and knowing how to set the machine up for that track system and properly installing them will go a long ways toward minimizing damage to your machine. Also...Argo rubber tracks are very popular and if you can get a set cheap you will have very little trouble getting rid of them if they dont get you where you need to go.

Just my 2¢ worth :-)

[North Country Tough]

Thanks for your thoughts,Iam researching the correct procedures,I had a set of super tracks that I bought in 88,stretched them and put them on the Avenger,that said I went to Frontier tires rather then the stock Avenger tire due to the fact that I dual it up for summer use and if I had of dualed the Avenger tires it would not fit in my enclosed trailer,so when I put the supertracks on the Frontier tires being wider took a beating so I sold those tracks.Since my only use of tracks is winter Iam leaning towards the Argo rubber tracks,In the summer where I use the machine I have no issue with getting stuck in its present configuration,and I use it extensively in the water transporting substantial loads the added flotation of the dual tires is a must so tracking it up in the summer is not necessary.I was pleased with my old Argo tracks again winter use they lasted well and personally I had no issue with them so Iam going to give these new ones a try,as you said they wont be a issue to sell if Iam not happy.N.C.T

[Obsessed]

I bet youll love them....i actually like to configure them for the 24x10x8 argo tire as it ends up saving 130 lbs over the rawhide llls that your machine came with and a reduction in gearing of about 4% which is also nice. Best of luck and I luv the pics of your 8x8 with duals and outboard...very cool!

Tim

[North Country Tough]

I bet youll love them....i actually like to configure them for the 24x10x8 argo tire as it ends up saving 130 lbs over the rawhide llls that your machine came with and a reduction in gearing of about 4% which is also nice. Best of luck and I luv the pics of your 8x8 with duals and outboard...very cool!

Tim

Thanks Tim,Iam going to give them a try they are on route,never even thought about the extra reduction,one question for you I see where they say to reverse the tire direction on the middle two do you do that whats your thoughts.

[sherman]

tracks or tires

while we are on the subject of tracks - I have a question how do putting another set of tires on making it a 12 x 12 work in snow and mud compared to tracks. do you still have to put bearing cages on or not any advise would help

[North Country Tough]

while we are on the subject of tracks - I have a question how do putting another set of tires on making it a 12 x 12 work in snow and mud compared to tracks. do you still have to put bearing cages on or not any advise would help

Sherman nothing beats tracks in the snow or bottomless bog,as far as adding tires I built my spools twenty five years ago,now you can by them on line from a couple different places,basically long studs on the axles,on goes the first tire with lug nuts,on goes the spool on the extra long studs bottoming on the lug nuts then you nut the spools on,and put the outer wheels on, that's it,as far as performance in mud excellent the big advantage is the ability to span deep ruts so bottoming out is rare,I have had my machines in some real tuff cattail swamp and had no issue,but there are conditions where tracks are the best I just do not run in to this where I spend all my time,as far as snow pretty fair in low snow conditions 8 to 10 inch past that not so good,not sure what you mean about bearing cages,but what I will say is this set up is tough on the machine,if you have a Argo with the 11/4 solid axles with bearing extensions on front and rear axles its not bad if not it can be real hard on the machine.Iam a maintenance fanatic and keep everything tight and greased and I get around a thousand hours out of bearings on the outside and every once and a while the inevitable happens and a axle needs to be replaced.As I stated the biggest benefit to me is the increased stability and payload in water this is where dual wheels for me shine the brightest pretty much double the load in water and then some.N.C.T

[sherman]

N.C.T thanks for the info. the bearing cages I guess I miss understood so you just put the wheel on and then the extension which I understand is about 5 inches long then bolt rim on then the second set of tires correct? with tracks what do you do - do you need the extensions to set your tire out before you put on the tracks? and you say should use solid axles at least front and rear?? please explain cause I'm trying to learn thanks for your time and knowledge. P.S. what about the plastic tracks good or bad?

[sherman]

sorry meant to add I have a max ll 1991 with hollow axles which will need to be changed out

[North Country Tough]

N.C.T thanks for the info. the bearing cages I guess I miss understood so you just put the wheel on and then the extension which I understand is about 5 inches long then bolt rim on then the second set of tires correct? with tracks what do you do - do you need the extensions to set your tire out before you put on the tracks? and you say should use solid axles at least front and rear?? please explain cause I'm trying to learn thanks for your time and knowledge. P.S. what about the plastic tracks good or bad?

The inner wheel bolts on as normal,the studs are replaced on the existing axles with studs about three inches long,so when the inner wheel is on and tight then the spool goes on the spool has holes in the plate that match the wheel bolt pattern so it slides on over the extended studs and bottoms on the inner wheel lug nuts and is held in place by nylock nuts, the spool is about a foot long and has studs on it to mount the outer wheel,I will be pulling the wheels off for a service and get it ready for tracks I will shoot some pics and post them and it will be real clear to you then.As far as what do to prep for tracks lots of compressed air,off with all wheels and on with custom made stud extenders and Argo wheel spacers and one tire per axle and wrap the tracks its a all day affair,plastic tracks stood up for me well but again it was mostly winter use,Iam not very knowledgeable about the Max models you would have to post up your intentions on the Max forum and get some opinions from the Max guru,s.N.C.T

[sherman]

N.C.T. thanks that helps a lot and yes pics. would be great. when I get tracks they would only be used for snow since that would be better then adding extra wheels. will be waiting for picture show. Sherman

[Obsessed]

Thanks Tim,Iam going to give them a try they are on route,never even thought about the extra reduction,one question for you I see where they say to reverse the tire direction on the middle two do you do that whats your thoughts.

As far as I know the engineers at Argo are not real clear as to why they ask you to do that on their rubber track kit, but from my own experiance playing with them in deep snow, it does seem to help clear debris out of the inside of the track before it gets pinched around the back tire.

most important requirement is to get the tires circumferenced and put on in the right location before you attempt to run the tracks.

Tim

[Obsessed]

N.C.T thanks for the info. the bearing cages I guess I miss understood so you just put the wheel on and then the extension which I understand is about 5 inches long then bolt rim on then the second set of tires correct? with tracks what do you do - do you need the extensions to set your tire out before you put on the tracks? and you say should use solid axles at least front and rear?? please explain cause I'm trying to learn thanks for your time and knowledge. P.S. what about the plastic tracks good or bad?

sherman...just to help clarify a few terms to help you with these converstations...

(ARGO) BEARING EXTENTIONS ...is a part specific to the design of an argo which is a heavy duty aluminum casting that simply moves the outer bearing on a front or rear axle out another 4 5/8" so that the distance between the inner and outer bearing is greater for stability, and the amount of axle hanging out past the outer bearing is shorter for increased strength....this is a standard feature on the higher end models and an options on most of the lower end models...a few of the models actually come with them on the front axle, but not the rear...argo does not offer this upgrade on middle axles

(MAX AND MUDD-OX) BEARING CAGES....this is a steel cage that holds a third bearing which gets bolted to the frame and creates a new outer bearing to function the the same as the axle bearing extention above and helps increase strength of an axle assembly with out axtually relocating the normal outer bearing...these two mfgs do offer that upgrade on all axles including the center ones and if you are going to push the tires outward for a track application anyway, then they can actually tie all of those cages together with a new outer frame rail that in effect creates a third frame rail on the outside of the tub and helps hold everything together

WHEEL EXTENTIONS (all mfgs)....a sold extention that bolts to the end of an axle in place of the wheel and then allows the wheel to be remounted directly to it a little farther outward than it would have been in the stock location...these devices come in a few different designs from several different sources and are usually either 2.5" on an argo, or approx. 3", 4" on a max, or 5" on a mudd-ox.....you can get them in custome sizes for other applications

DUAL WHEEL ADAPTERS....this device is pretty similar to the wheel extentions, but is usually 10-12" long and actually bolts to the outside of the current wheel and then sticks out far enough that you can bolt another wheel on to it.

TRACK TUNERS...a unique device that is similar to a solid wheel extention, but is not solid and instead allows the wheel to rotate and freewheel.... when used in the middle locations on a rubber track system it is designed to reduce chain windup caused buy slightly different sized tires on the same machine

hope this helps

Tim

[North Country Tough]

As far as I know the engineers at Argo are not real clear as to why they ask you to do that on their rubber track kit, but from my own experiance playing with them in deep snow, it does seem to help clear debris out of the inside of the track before it gets pinched around the back tire.

most important requirement is to get the tires circumferenced and put on in the right location before you attempt to run the tracks.

Tim

Thanks Tim,yes today I dumped the duals and are in the midst of a good lower body wash and check and service the outer hull bearings,tomorrow I will size tires and do a location chart,the tracks are here so full steam ahead.N.C.T

[North Country Tough]

N.C.T. thanks that helps a lot and yes pics. would be great. when I get tracks they would only be used for snow since that would be better then adding extra wheels. will be waiting for picture show. Sherman

Sherman pics on gallery tires, tracks,wheels.Cheers