KNOW YOUR PRODUCTS
JULY 1961 PAGE 3
Firestone Tires Handle Farm Chores With Ease
TheyVe Quality-Proved
In Columbiana Testing
“Daddy, come look,” cried a lad when he first saw an
old steel-wheeled tractor exhibited at the county fair. Sure
enough, it was a strange sight to today’s youth, but there
are many farmers who can still remember the back-break
ing job of putting those “steel mules” through their every
day chores.
In the early 1930s, the clang
ing of more than one million
steel-wheeled tractors could be
heard across the land. The
pounding and jiggling left the
man in the driver’s seat worn
out even before the end of a
day’s work.
It was in 1932 that the farm
got a new look. Harvey S. Fire
stone, himself a farmer’s son,
took the first big step in realiz
ing his dream to “Put the Farm
on Rubber.” He was aware of
the shortcomings of steel wheels,
and launched the series of
Ground Grip tires in that year.
Mr. Firestone took the balloon-
tire principle of low pressure
and wide area and to it added a
chevron-tread design. As time
went on the tread design was re
cut to a wider, deeper chevron
for greater traction and alter
nate bars were connected in
forming the Ground Grip pat
tern.
IN TIME, all types of farm
implements were provided with
Firestone pneumatic tires, and
Mr. Firestone’s goal to put the
farm on rubber was realized.
Firestone today has a wide
line of farm tires for both trac
tor and implement. Tires vary in
size and design and each has a
specific job to do.
The company’s newest tractor
tire is the All-Traction Utility.
Designed for the utility tractor,
this tire offers double the tread
life on hard-surface roads, a
smoother ride with reduced vi
bration and bounce, needed trac
tion for off-road jobs and shock-
fortified cord body for greater
resistance to impact breaks.
The All-Traction Utility has
shorter, wider traction bars and
greater bar stability. The bars
are curved with flared openings
for positive cleaning. This tire
has 58 per cent more tread-con
tact area and 6-ply construction
for tough industrial jobs.
ON MOST farms using Fire
stone tires the first-line All-
Traction Champion or the sec
ond-line Champion Ground Grip
will be found on the rear wheels
of the tractor.
The All Traction Champion
has a strong cord body and a
stronger bead than any farm tire
on the market today. Firestone’s
Rubber XF, the longest wear
ing rubber used in Firestone
tires, goes into this tire as well
as all 100-level, rear-tractor
tires, giving up to 50 per cent
longer life.
Firestone’s curved-and-taper-
ed traction bars give a sharper
initial bite and deeper penetra
tion into soil. Flared openings
release soil easily for positive
self-cleaning.
An extra layer of rubber
covering the inside of the tire
gives added protection against
cord separation and tube chafing
caused by extreme flexing which
occurs while operating under
overload or low pressure. This
exclusive rubber liner extends
the life of the Firestone cord
body as much as 33 per cent
over those with partial or no
liners.
The Champion Ground Grip is
a top-quality replacement tire
with a 100-level look. Also in
cluded in Firestone’s line of
farm tires are special-purpose
rear tires such as the Champion
Spade Grip and the Champion
Spade Grip Open Center. The
increased tread depth of the
Spade Grip makes them good
workers under adverse condi
tions such as wet rice and cane
fields.
THEY ARE made with extra
high, curved traction bars that
bite deeply into soft ground
with a powerful pulling action.
All-Traciion
Ulility
All-Traclion
Champion
Champion
Champion
Guide Grip
Guide Grip
3-Rib
2-Rib
i
Implement
I \ ‘^
LARGE OR SMALL—Whether on Ihe 200-plus
horsepower giant (above) or the 5-hp garden
tractor (right). Firestone farm tires are able to
do the job. The large tires are new 23.1-26, 12
ply, All-Traction Champions that provide four-
wheel traction and load-pulling requirements for
a plow 11 feet wide. On rear wheels of garden
tractor are Firestone's Town & Country tractor
tire. It gives top traction, yet is gentle enough
for lawn use.
Huge chunks of mud fall cleanly
from the tapered openings be
tween the traction bars as the
tires pull through soft ground
that would bog down and stop
conventional tires. The strong,
pyramid-like bars are braced to
give them even greater strength
and longer life.
Developed and built to deliver
maximum traction on extremely
loose soil, the Firestone All Non-
Skid tractor tire is highly ef
ficient in orchards or farming
areas v/here sandy or volcanic
ash soils exist. The tread design
provides extra flotation and pre
vents side slip on slopes. Because
of the closer spacing of the trac
tion blocks on the All Non-Skid
tread and the larger area of sur
face contact, this tire provides
smoother roadability and longer
wear on hard surface roads than
can be expected of tires with
bar-type treads. For that reason,
tractors that are used a great
amount on highways are often
equipped with All Non-Skids.
Firestone All Non-Skid tractor
tires are especially adapted to
golf course operations. They
take a good firm grip on sod and
uneven terrain. Because there
are no sharp biting edges on the
All Non-Skid tractor tires they
do not damage fairways or leave
imprints.
Firestone tires for garden
tractors are of the same high
quality and are made with the
same basic construction features
as Firestone farm tractor tires.
Open Center tires are available
for garden tractors and a new
Town & Country Tractor tire is
also offered by the company.
COUNTERPART of the large
rear tires are front tractor tires
made by Firestone. Varied in ap
pearance, the front tires are de
signed for general and special
Guide-O-Matic
Single Rib
All
Non-Skid
Nylon
Farm Tire
Leading the line is the Cham
pion Guide Grip in both two-
rib and three-rib models. The
design gives up to twice the
wear of old-type designs, steers
easier and cleans better under
all conditions. Built-in deflector
strips protect sidewalls and
beads from coarse stubble,
sticks, sand and dirt, and protect
rims from impact damage.
Less expensive than the
Champion Guide Grips is the
Guide Grip, highest-quality tire
built for the replacement mar-
strength. Tread is made of
tough, long-wearing rubber.
The Rib Implement Tire is
specifically built for free-rolling
farm equipment, such as wagons,
trailers, plow wheels and com
bines.
Five circumferential ribs in
sure against side slipping and
enable the tires to grip on side
hills and banks. Because the ribs
run in a fore-and-aft direction,
they offer a minimum of rolling
resistance and a maximum de
gree of directional stability.
0
0
A Firestone employee's knowledge of products which his
company manufactures encourages pride in his work and
helps to keep the quality of Firestone at the high level
it is today.
This is the third article in a series presented by the News
of Gastonia, in an attempt to explain uses and advantages
of the different lines of Firestone tires. In previous articles
we have dealt with passenger, truck, bus and other trans
port tires. Next feature will deal with racing tires.
Champion
Spade Grip
ket. The Guide Grip has the
same design as the Champion
and many of its advantages. It
will outwear any old-type re
placement tire.
Special-purpose front tires in
clude the Champion Guide Grip
Single Rib designed to give ex
cellent turning control and easier
steering in mud. This tire is a
perfect running mate for the
Champion Spade Grip in rice
and cane field operations.
Specially designed for better
steering where land is bedded
or ridged is the Guide-O-Matic
which eliminates tire reversing
procedure and extends tire life.
Its heavy construction resists
scuffing and cutting in stubble
fields.
Among the Firestone line of
farm tires are models intended
for use on implements. The pow-
c r implement tires such as the
Power Implement and Non-Di-
rectional Implement are design
ed specifically for machinery
that is operated by power de
rived through the rotation of
the wheels in contact with the
ground.
THESE TIRES have the Fire
stone Ground Grip tread which
gives them the traction neces
sary to develop operating pow
er. Implement tires have Shock-
Fortified bodies for greater
Built with Firestone Rubber
X, they offer longer wear in
field and over-the-road service.
The Shock-Fortified bodies in
sure resistance to impact and
thus, longer life. The new Nylon
Farm Tire is designed for the
same type of use as the Rib Im
plement Tire. The Nylon Farm
Tire has a passenger-type tread
design and gives more wear on
trailers and wagons than other
free-rolling tires. Its strong con
struction and long tread life
make it a good tire to use on
wagons that are to be pulled on
the highway.
A real worker on the farm is
Firestone’s Planter Tire. Doing
the work of a hundred skilled
hands, the pneumatic rubber tire
molds newly-planted soil firm
ly against the seed, covers the
fertilizer and provides a uni
form blanket of pulverized
earth with its convex tread
mark.
WHEN INFLATED from 6 to
10 pounds pressure, the tire
cushions the shock of hard clods
and not only decreases dust
while planting in dry soil, but
also goes through wet, early-
spring soils without balling up,
as in the case with ordinary
steel wheels. In cushioning the
—Ends on page 4