Arisun Rubber Tracks and What Makes Them a Top Choice for Heavy Equipment

Two quotes arrive for the same track size on the same machine, with the same photograph of the same moulded belt, and one is a third cheaper than the other. Nothing on either listing tells you which one has the steel cord that will still hold its pitch after a hard season, or whether the joint was vulcanised properly. That is the real problem with shopping for Arisun rubber tracks, and it is not solved by picking the cheaper listing or the dearer one - it is solved by asking for the specification and the records that back it.

Last updated: October 5, 2026

This guide covers what an Arisun rubber track is built from, why this class of aftermarket track exists at all, how to verify one before you pay, what it costs per operating hour on your own numbers, and where even a correctly built track still fails.

What an Arisun rubber track is

Arisun rubber tracks are aftermarket tracks sold through distributors and parts specialists rather than fitted at the machine factory, and they are used on excavators, skid steers and compact track loaders across construction, agriculture and mining. The construction is the part worth understanding, because it is what separates one aftermarket track from another.

The belt combines multi-layered rubber compounds with precision-formulated steel cords. The outer tread layer uses wear-resistant rubber chosen for service life, while the inner core layer holds the track's shape and distributes load evenly across the rollers. The result is a track that damps vibration, keeps traction through tight turns and uneven surfaces, and resists slipping when the machine is working at an angle. Arisun tracks also use anti-deterioration technology intended to resist cracking and chunking under extreme conditions.

Fitment is the second half of the story. Arisun tracks are engineered as a precision fit for machines from Caterpillar, Bobcat, Kubota, John Deere, Case, Komatsu and Takeuchi, which is what lets a fleet manager or a service company replace a set without adapting anything. That compatibility claim is about the three dimensions that define a track - width, pitch and link count - so it is a measurable statement rather than a marketing one, and it is the first thing to confirm in writing.

Why this class of aftermarket track exists

The demand is structural. Infrastructure development, urban expansion and mechanized farming all push the same requirements onto machines: more traction, less disturbance to the ground they cross and a longer working life before a set has to come off. Under those conditions the track stops being a consumable you replace quietly and becomes a line in the operating budget.

In North America the pressure is concentrated in construction-heavy regions - Alberta, Texas and Arizona are the usual examples - where contractors want performance that rivals original equipment tracks at a more competitive cost. The engineering answer to that demand is the compound and cord construction described above: a track that holds up under heavy loads, in hot climates and on difficult terrain, without the OEM price attached. Some of the least forgiving ground is found in the Canadian west, where sand and mud change the picture again - the case for Arisun tracks in sand and mud terrain follows the same thread.

How to verify a rubber track before you pay

None of the following requires a laboratory. It requires a supplier willing to put specifics in writing, and it is the difference between buying a specification and buying a photograph.

The cord specification. Ask for the steel cord type and the number of metal inserts. This is the structural core of the track: it is what keeps the belt from stretching out of pitch, and it is the first thing a cheap track compromises. The tread specification as ordered. Pattern, purpose and rubber depth, stated for the set that will ship to you, not for the product family. The joint, and how it is checked. A vulcanised joint is a process, and processes are the first thing to be rushed under price pressure - ask how the joint is made and how it is inspected before the track leaves. A cut section or a sample. A track supplier who can show you a cross-section of the belt, cord layer included, has answered most of the specification questions in one object.

Three further items belong in writing on any order. The fitment cross-reference - your machine, its width, pitch, link count and the part number, named individually. The warranty terms as a period plus an operating-hours cap, whichever comes first, with the freight responsibility spelled out for a claim. And the published temperature band for the compound, because a rubber track that stiffens below the range it was formulated for will crack at the shoulder rather than wear out, and the boundary is a number the manufacturer holds.

Where a supplier answers these from documents, the track is a known quantity. Where the answers drift into the quality of the brand, that is the answer.

Matching the track class to the job

The useful comparison is not brand against brand - it is construction class against duty cycle. The same moulded size is built in more than one specification, and paying for the wrong one costs money in both directions.

Where the machine works	What to specify	What the wrong class does
Finished surfaces, landscaping, utility trenching	Flat or smooth tread profile, standard reinforcement - traction comes from the compound, not from lugs	An aggressive lug pattern marks the surface it was bought to protect
Mixed ground: gravel, mud, broken rock	Multi-bar tread, reinforced cord package	A standard belt reaches the cord early and stops holding pitch
Abrasive ground, demolition debris, sharp rock	Thicker tread with more rubber depth, heavy-duty reinforcement	Chunking and shoulder cuts shorten life far more than any other single factor
Agricultural equipment on worked soil	Smoother tread profile to limit soil compaction	A deep lug pattern compacts the ground the machine is meant to cross without harm

Two rules sit above the table. The tread should follow the ground, and the reinforcement should follow the duty cycle rather than the price: a standard belt on a machine that works demolition debris every day is a false economy, and a heavy-duty belt on a machine that loads trucks in a paved yard is money you will never wear back.

What a set costs per operating hour

Track price on its own tells you almost nothing, because the number that decides whether a set was worth buying is cost per hour worked - and that number is arithmetic you can do with your own records.

Build the model from three numbers. Assume, for the example, that a budget set costs $1,400 and a premium set costs $1,800 for the same fitment, that a swap takes four hours of a two-person crew at $95 per hour, and that your machine runs 800 hours a year. If the budget set reaches 1,200 hours and the premium set reaches 1,800, the budget set costs ($1,400 + $760) / 1,200 = $1.80 per hour and the premium set costs ($1,800 + $760) / 1,800 = $1.42 per hour. The premium set wins - but only because of the difference in hours, which is the assumption you should trust least and verify most, since it is exactly the figure a seller cannot prove and a record of your own previous sets can.

Substitute your own purchase prices, your own labour rate and the hours you actually recorded on the last set. Then add the two costs the arithmetic above leaves out: ground restoration where a failing track marked a surface, and downtime on the day the track failed rather than on a day you chose. On machines working tight schedules, those two lines move the total more than the difference between the sets ever does.

Where even a correctly built track still fails

Specification is necessary and not sufficient. Four conditions shorten the life of any rubber track, whatever is moulded into it.

Tension. A track run loose slaps against the undercarriage and can derail; a track run tight takes the sprocket, idler and wheel bearings with it. The correct figure is the machine's own, and both sides need checking because they rarely match. Cuts and abrasion. Rebar, glass, broken concrete and sharp rock damage the belt in ways no compound resists indefinitely, which is why the abrasive-duty class exists. Temperature. Below the published band for the compound, rubber stiffens; a track that has been sitting in hard frost should be brought up to temperature gently rather than put straight into a full turn under load. And mismatched fitting: some machines can run rubber or steel depending on the site, but running one type on each side is not a way to do both jobs at once.

One further limit is worth stating plainly. "Compatible with Caterpillar" is a fitment statement covering width, pitch and link count - it is not a claim about how the belt behaves on your ground. Fitment and duty cycle are separate questions, and only the second one tells you which specification to order. The same applies to the material itself: rubber and steel tracks are built for different ground, and no rubber compound turns a rubber belt into a steel one.

Applications where this class of track earns its price

Agricultural work is the clearest case. On worked soil, the value of a rubber track is that it limits compaction, and compaction is what costs yield - a smoother tread profile and the right ground pressure matter more here than tread depth. Road builders and forestry contractors come at it from the other side: they need high tensile strength and a belt that keeps working through mud, gravel and uneven rock without premature wear or derailment.

Compact track loaders on abrasive surfaces want the opposite of the agricultural specification - thicker tread patterns with more rubber depth - while machines that spend their life on finished ground want a profile that leaves no mark. Getting that part right is worth more than the brand on the sidewall, which is why the questions in this guide start with the specification and end with the specification.

This article is part of the rubber tracks guide, which covers how the size code works, tread patterns, compounds and buying a set in Canada.

FAQs

Are Arisun tracks good?

They are built to a specification that compares with the aftermarket's better tier: multi-layer rubber, formulated steel cords, a wear-resistant outer tread and an inner core that holds load distribution. Whether the set in front of you is good depends on whether the supplier will put that specification, and the batch it was made in, in writing - which is a test any track brand can be held to.

Is Arisun a good brand?

A brand name is a promise about consistency, not about a single belt. Judge it the way you would judge any aftermarket track: on the cord construction, the tread specification as ordered, the joint method, the fitment cross-reference and the written warranty terms - a period plus an operating-hours cap, with freight responsibility named.

How long do rubber tracks last on an excavator?

Long enough that the honest answer depends on you: the ground the machine works on, the tension it is run at, the number of sharp-edged loads it crosses and the hours you record. That is why the useful reference is your own previous set rather than a general figure - keep the hours, the terrain and the dimensions of every set you fit, and after two sets you will know your own expected life better than any published number.

Who manufactures Arisun tires?

Arisun is a brand distributed into the North American market rather than a label owned by a machine manufacturer, and the tracks arrive through a distributor network. If the manufacturing origin matters to your procurement, ask your supplier for the factory information, the batch or mould record for the set shipped, and, where relevant, the documentation that accompanies an import - all of which a distributor can request on your behalf.