New website offers ag tire advice

DES MOINES, Iowa (Aug. 3, 2016) — Tire and agricultural equipment dealers perplexed by the growing complexity in ag tires have a new source of information — a website to help them sort it all out.

The new site is the work of James Tuschner, a 23-year tire industry veteran who's marketing director for CFI Tire Service of Des Moines. Formerly with Alliance Tire Americas and Denman Tire Corp., Mr. Tuschner joined CFI Tire in 2013.

AgTireTalk is designed to help users understand how choosing the right tires will lead to better performance, ride, traction and yields, according to CFI Tire. It also covers critical issues such as flotation, fuel economy, sidewall identification and tire size options.

Mr. Tuschner writes a blog on the site that explains why ag tires have become increasingly sophisticated and application-specific, such as to handle soil compaction issues, larger tractors and implements, higher equipment speeds and prolonged road service.

“With ag tires becoming increasingly complex, we saw a need to simplify, or take the engineering jargon out,” Mr. Tuschner said.

“Our research found that many of the ag tire questions being asked on Internet were being answered from sources outside the industry.”

Mr. Tuschner stressed that AgTireTalk doesn't promote specific products. Instead it focuses on providing information on selecting the best product for an application.

Mr. Tuschner anticipates using social media — primarily Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram and Google+ — to help build awareness with growers and dealers.

The site allows users to submit questions to tire industry experts and share tips and advice with their peers.

Some blog topics posted on agtiretalk.com include:

• How do IF and VF ag tires affect yields?

• Improving yields by fully disbursing the weight of the equipment, thus reducing tire ground pressure and thereby decreasing soil compaction.

• Understanding tire aspect ratios and how to choose the best tire for a specific application.

• What is a flat plate measurement and how does it affect flotation, traction and yield?

Those interested can contact Mr. Tuschner directly via email at [email protected].