The SEMA and APEX shows took place in Las Vegas between November 3 and November 6, 2008 this year and RUD Chain had booths at both locations. As a distributor for RUD Chain, I felt that it was important to take out some time and make the trek up to Vegas to meet up with them. I have been conversing and transacting business with RUD Chain since December of Last year and this was my first opportunity to meet them face to face. Unfortunately, I only had one day which was on November 6, 2008.
Included in these pictures from left to right are Steve Blood, Dave Sims, Brian Nettles (me), and Cindy Kaiser. In the second photo we once again have Steve Blood and Rick Ransom.
Steve Blood’s expertise is the RotoGrip. As I do not deal with the Rotogrip, I had never before been in contact with Steve. However, he was really fun to talk with. He is a true midwestern outdoorsman who loves hunting and fishing. Being someone who loves the outdoors, working for a company such as RUD Chain just seems like a perfect fit. David Sims is the Non-Skid Regional Sales Manager located in Sparks Nevada. He handles all of the sales at that facility. Cindy is my primary contact in Iowa. I would say that 90 percent of the sales made on this website go through Cindy Kaiser. She is very knowledgable and easy to work with. The small world aspect about working with Cindy is that she grew up about 15 minutes from our location in Orange County but now works in Iowa. Rick Ransom is the Non-Skid Product Manager. He calls the shots for the distributors whenever there is any type of problem. Two other people who I would have hoped to meet were Katie Elsbury and Natalie McFarlane. Natalie is their controller and was there one day earlier but had to return to Iowa the day before I got there. Katie had to stay back in Iowa to keep things running. Katie is a 12 year veteran with the company and is one of the most technically savy of all people with the company.
To make the visit, I had to leave home at 6:00 am and returned the same evening getting home about midnight. The trip was well worth it.
At the display, they were showcasing the Rotogrip as well as the Centrax. They were also showing off their shoe chains - a very simple rubber loop with a small chain on it. All you have to do is pull it onto your shoe and it will help prevent you from slipping on the ice. They convinced me that I need to add this product to the website. Give me a couple of weeks and I will put it up.
Tire Chain Dealer has decided to move it news link out of the personal blog of Brian Nettles and make it an integral part of the Tire Chain website. The news link is put together using Wordpress Software.
We look forward to making all news regarding our tire chains available through this new media.
We are pleased to announce our tire chains website has now added the entire suite of tire chains that are sized for Graders, Loaders, and Scrapers manufactured by RUD Chains onto our online catalog. Furthermore, we feel it important to note that all of these chains for this heavy equipment have been priced at an attractive 20% off of the manufacturer’s list price.
Quite often we get requests for the 10mm sized tire chains for heavy equipment. Obviously, this is the size of chain that is accepted in the industry as a tire chain that works well for this equipment. We would like to point out that there are actually five styles of tire chains that are sized for this equipment.
Grader and Equipment Tire Chains
These ladder style of chains are the low cost version for this equipment which is made out of China for RUD Chains. The price of this set of tire chains ranges from between $265 and $1,050 depending on the size. Link diameter ranges from 9 mm to 14 mm also depending on the size. You do have the option to purchase and add additional cross links if desired.
10mm Alloy Square Grader and Diamond Square Grader
These chains are assembled in the US and are made with a very strong alloy steel. They are offered in either the ladder style or the diamond style. Additionally, the ladder style comes in 4-link spacing; however, it can also be purchased in 2 link spacing style. These chains cost more than the China made chains; however they are a much stronger and sturdy chain more suitable for longer wear.
Of course both chains come in a link size of 10mm. The weight of the ladder style chains ranges from 126 lbs. to 255 lbs. per set and are priced from $680 to $1,465.
The weight of the diamond style chains ranges from 175 lbs. to 235 lbs. per set and are priced from $1,020 to $1,200.
RUD-profi Alligator
The Alligator style of chains was manufactured in Germany with high quality square links assembled into a mesh pattern. The width of the the square links ranges from 7-8mm. These chains are reversible and offer a smooth ride. The weight is between 101 lbs. and 246 lbs. per set. The price ranges from $1,965 and $3,820 depending on the size.
RUD-profi Bison
These chains are the most heavy duty chain available for equipment in the most extreme conditions. Not only are they made from the finest quality alloy steel, the links have an additional cross link between the links. The diameter size ranges from 9mm to 11mm and the weight per set ranges from 262 lbs. to 502 lbs. The price ranges from $3,475 and $7,460.
If you have any questions about our tire chains for graders, loaders, and scrapers or questions about any of our other models of tire chains, please give us a call at (949) 690-2960.
Late last January, I think everybody was surprised when the stock of the RUD Grip chains were becoming depleted. Already certain models where out of stock and not available for purchase anywhere in the US or Canada.
The primary reason for the shortage was that RUD simply underestimated the huge demand for these chains. In preparing for the season, they had doubled the inventory that they had ordered the previous year and it still was not enough. While I am totally unaware of the numbers, I suspect that RUD is probably preparing again for another record sales of the popular GRIP 4×4 model.
To me, it is no surprise that these chains sell so well. Today, many auto parts stores stock their shelves up with tire cables. Sure they are convenient and inexpensive, but just consider the safety factor. Most people buy their chains hoping that they never have to use them. But just in case you do need to use them, wouldn’t you rather have a diamond patterned fairly thick chain then just some little cable with rollers on them? Also, wouldn’t you want to have something that is easy to install?
It is mid August right now and I just received word from the folks at the RUD warehouse in Hiawatha, Iowa that they now have in stock all models of the Grip 4×4. The timing couldn’t be better to me as I am already starting to get orders coming in online at http://tirechaindealer.com.
To those of you considering getting the Grip chains, buy early. Don’t wait until January to get your chains. You may be too late and once again stuck with those lousy cables that you didn’t want to buy anyways.
We have now made three videos designed to help people see exactly what it takes to install tire chains by RUD. Why tire chains by RUD? That is because we are the owners of a tire chain website called Tire Chain Dealer which sells RUD tire Chains.
Grip 4×4
The first movie we made was with our Honda Ridgeline where we installed the Grip 4×4 chains. Now, keep in mind, this movie was made in June in Southern California. Rest assured, there is no snow or ice in this video. Nevertheless, it is always recommended that you try on your tire chains before you really need them.
I want to say don’t be confused about the ease of installation. These chains go on quickly once you know what you are doing. It took me over ten minutes to figure it out the first time just following the instructions. But now that I have gotten it down, well now it takes about 2 minutes to install.
Also, I like the diamond pattern of these chains which by all means has got to be better traction than the traditional ladder style of chains. Many people like to point out how the diamond shape gives better sideways traction so you won’t slide so much sideways during turns or on slanted roads.
One or Two Sets
You will also find a lot of websites out there trying to sell you on the need to have two sets, one for the back and one for the front. Sure it is nice to have two sets; however, the need truly depends on your environment. Most people use them only for emergencies when trying to get to the slopes or to their vacation spot and in most cases the one set of chains is all that is needed. My initial belief was that there would be two cases where having two sets ought to be seriously considered. If you have a 4 wheel drive vehicle and you desire to take advantage of your 4 wheel drive functionality, then having a second set would be beneficial. Also, if you have a rear wheel drive vehicle, you may want two sets as well, the rear so you can move and the front so you can steer. However, it is very important that you check your owners manual before buying that second set. For example, my owners manual for the Honda Ridgeline states as follows:
Mount tire chains on your tires when required by driving conditions or local laws. Install them only on the front tires. Do not use chains on the rear tires.
Thats enough convincing for me. My Honda Ridgline is 4 wheel drive and I only need one set…not two.
Tire Cables
The next movie that I made was with the flimsy tire cables. Tire Cables are cheap. They retail for about $30 plus. I remember the first time I saw tire cables, I just kind of chuckled and felt nervous for the person wearing them. I just wanted to ask him, “Are you really safe with those things?” After thinking about it, I could see how tire cables could be useful for someone living in the city that wants to get home right after or during a big storm. They certainly beat not having anything at all, and they are not as hard on the asphalt. But still, after trying on the Grip and seeing how easy it is for them to go on, unless you are really pinching your pennies, I would not buy the cables. You should get the Grip model instead.
Now if you do go with the tire cables anyways, I do recommend you put a pair of gloves into the box for when you do need to install your cables. In the movie, I installed them using my bare hands in 80 degree weather. It was hard on my hands to pull up the cable to secure it into the securing device. I really had to yank on it. Now just imagine if this were 10 degree weather and you didn’t have gloves on. I am quite confident that there will be some profanity coming out of your mouth on that day.
Compact Grip
The last movie we made was the compact grip. These chains are very similar to the Grip 4×4 except that they are made for smaller tires. The chains are virtually the same - except I ran into one significant difference. Comparatively, the tensioning chain of the Compact Grip ran a lot longer than did the tensioning chain for the Grip 4×4. With the Grip 4×4, I simply ran the tensioning chain through the yellow loop and hooked it onto the blue chain across the tire. With the compact Grip, I had to route the yellow tensioning chain through two yellow loops and then around blue chain to continue taking out the slack.
Rudmatic, Classic V, Kantenspur, or German RUDs
Why are there so many names? I don’t know. I know I got confused when first learning about these. I will just call these the Rudmatic Classics. The Rudmatic name is typically for the passenger vehicles and the Classic V is for Trucks and SUVs. They are virtually the same thing, just sized differently for your vehicle type and tire size. These are the chains that originally put RUD on the map.
The Rudmatic is sometimes called German Ruds because they are actually manufactured in Germany using high grade Chromium Alloy Steel which is a much higher grade metal than you are going to find in other chains. Not only will these chains last a long life, these chains don’t take up as much room because the chain is smaller making it attractive to vehicles whose front tires set uncomfortably close to the suspension bar. One example of this is the Land Rover LR3. Just place your hand behind the top of the front wheel and you will know what I mean. You can barely squeeze your hand behind the wheel. They make this chain for both small and very large vehicles including buses.
Centrax
The last Tire Chain style I want to mention here is the Centrax. Now I have not personally used this tire chain yet, I could see how this one would be attractive to professionals. The only chain that is easier to hook on would be the rotogrip which just requires flipping a switch. The centrax simply snaps onto an adapter that is prefitted onto a lugnut. Fit the chain to the outer portion of the tire, snap the center attachment into the lugnut fitting, and clamp down on the center latch. When you start driving, the chain pulls itself onto the wheel. It is pretty cool.
Now for me, someone who wear jeans to work, the Centrax would not be appealing. However, if I were wearing a suit to work every day, I certainly would not want to be doing a lot of bending over and fitting tire chains on the dirtiest part of my car just before giving some big presentation. That is who the Centrax caters to. If getting dirty is just not an option, and you can afford these superior chains, then by all means, you will be grateful for the advancements made by RUD here.
Rud makes chains for multiple uses. We not only have chains for cars, trucks, and SUVs, we also have chains for industrial equipment, tractors, and ATVs, buses, graders and more. If you don’t see the chains you are looking for on the site, then don’t hesitate to call us to see if they do indeed have exactly what it is that you need - (949) 429-8730.
Go have some fun in the snow. We will see you there!!!
