TIPS ON...
Gears:
Your main objective
when it comes to gearing a puller is to reduce the load on the motor, which
means lowering the motor/gear ratio.
While there are
endless ways to gear your puller (aside from being limited by class regulations),
worm gears seem to work the best for giving the most ratio reduction in
the least amount of space.
To get started,
here's an example of a reliable gear arrangement for a Pro Tractor or 2WD:
Tires:
This
may sound silly, but you do NOT want a lot of traction. First, pullers
are NOT allowed 'magna-traction' (defeats the purpose). Second, with good
traction off the line, your truck or tractor will hop... or worse... simply
pull the front up along with the pick-up system.
Leave your tires
'slightly' dirty so that the tires can 'spin' off the line.
Weights, Balance, &
Hitch height:
Repeat
after me..."The sled is not my enemy, it is my ally".
Place all
added weight as far forward as possible on your puller... this includes
the motor. Now, use the SLED as your rear 'traction' weight. This is done
by adjustment of the Hitch (hook). The higher you put the hitch, the more
the sled will weigh the rear (experiment... you'll see what I mean).