Making my own tire chains

[Bspring]

I have a JD 3320 with R4s that is about worthless when the ground is wet. I either need to go with R1 tires or put chains on the R4s. I priced chains and was shocked at what they wanted for them. Why can稚 I make my own? I have done this before on our lawn tractor and they worked great. I would just buy a roll of chain measure it out and weld it up. Is there any reason this would not work on my tractor?

 

[JB4310]

Factory chains are hardened, only the cross links not the side stringer, to reduce wear, if your only using them in dirt/mud should be OK but would not last long on paved surfaces, even the hardened ones wear pretty quickly. You could use those repair links instead of welding, that would speed things up.

They do make a huge difference, I mostly use chains in snow but was recently using my 2 WD tractor in the woods with new v-bar chains 4 link spaced, the ground was very greasy after some flooding rains, I was surprised how good it went pulling logs and pushing tree tops through the mud, I'm sure it would have gotten stuck just driving in there with out chains.

I know about the shock of the cost of chains at the dealer, mine wanted close to $500. for a set of rears.

I got a killer deal on chains I found through Graigslist close to my town, guy owned an auto parts warehouse and had several pallets of surplus chains, I walked out with 5 pails of chains for $150. had to mod some but others were perfect fits. Made 3 sets of large rears, and 4 sets of fronts and garden tractor rears.
I looked and looked, asked everyone for used chains, couldn't find anything but got lucky with this find, there's still pallets of chains there but it's in CT.
Good Luck, JB.

 

[bobodu]

Made these for my Wheel Horse. Cost about $30.

 

[DanD78]

If you go to a place that sells equipment to city and county road departments you can buy cross chain links in bulk. You re-use the side chain and replace the cross chains. The chain is hardened and you can put the link you want to cut in a vice and snap it off with a pipe wrench by twisting the link. They also make a tool that looks like bolt cutters to spread and clamp the links that attach the cross chains to the side chain. We have done this for years to keep chains made up for dump trucks and a road grader to push snow.

How do you have room for chains on the rear? I have the large R-4s on my 3320 and you can't even stick your hand between the tire and the fender. I am going to have to make a set of wheel spacers to get chains to fit.

Dan

 

[jimgerken]

Before you start building, check out:

Tire Chains by TireChains.com

They are very reasonably priced.

 

[mwb]

I made my own set for my Ford Ranger many years ago. I was too cheap to buy twisted link chain so I bought 1/4" straight and twisted each one by hand (more time than money ). If I did it again I wouldn't bother twisting the links - apparently the straight links work better than twisted (for traction not wear). They worked very well and I have no problem with wear on the softer steel but I never use them on pavement. They are now permanently installed on my old Suzuki SJ410.

You could make your own; the hardened chain is nice but may not be necessary if you don't run pavement. I think the price from tirechains.com is pretty good, hard to match the price buying the parts yourself - it's the shipping (and import to Canada for me) that would cost too much.

 

[JB4310]

How do you have room for chains on the rear? I have the large R-4s on my 3320 and you can't even stick your hand between the tire and the fender. I am going to have to make a set of wheel spacers to get chains to fit.
Dan

Not sure about the 3320, but on my 4310 you gain about an inch or so by reversing the wheels, just enough to get a safe clearance for chains, there are some hydraulic lines very close so you do have to be careful.

 

[LBrown59]

I've made several sets of chains for my old bolens garden tractor out of old car chains.
Don't have a cent in them and work just fine.

 

[atgreene]

You will definitely want these if you are doing it with the traditional cross links. Welcome to Labonville.com - Logging Supplies and Safety Apparel

You can find them cheaper sometimes, but after you swear and cuss and skin a few knuckles you will wish you had some.

The other option is s-hooks to connect chain to the side chain. These are great as they allow chain to rotate and wear evenly on all sides. Prevents the edges from wearing in one spot before the rest of the chain is worn out.
Available here: Parts For Tire Chains

 

[B8FISH]

Just as an FYI--I've got the large R4's on my 3320 and have a set of chains from TireChains that fit with no problem--and greatly increase the traction and usefulness of the tractor in the winter.

 

[David Devuono]

I too have made chains for my garden tractor and front and rear on the kubota. This photo shows the rear chains on the Kubota made with no special links (#30 chain). No paved roads in my area and not much wear in past 5 years of use. Paid under $1 a foot, though only needed 1/4 chain on the subcompact.

 

[CrazyQ]

Made these for my Wheel Horse. Cost about $30.

I have been looking everywhere for rings to add to my ladder chains. Where did you find/how did you make yours?

 

[bobodu]

I made them.Just drilled a hole in a piece of flat stock and clamped that in the vise. Stuck the rod through and I kind of developed a rhythm so they came out pretty uniform. You can also just clamp two bolts upright and not have to fish the loop out of the hole. Even better would be to weld a 3/4" nut to the side of a 5" pipe. Slide a 1/2 X 24" "cheater pipe" over your round rod and stick the rod through the nut. Of course,this would only be practical if you can walk around the big pipe!!

 

[CrazyQ]

I made them.Just drilled a hole in a piece of flat stock and clamped that in the vise. Stuck the rod through and I kind of developed a rhythm so they came out pretty uniform. You can also just clamp two bolts upright and not have to fish the loop out of the hole. Even better would be to weld a 3/4" nut to the side of a 5" pipe. Slide a 1/2 X 24" "cheater pipe" over your round rod and stick the rod through the nut. Of course,this would only be practical if you can walk around the big pipe!!

What diameter is the rod...I was think about #6 or #7 rebar but I don't think I could muster up the testicular force required to bend 3/4 or 7/8" dia. around an 8 inch pipe without heating them cherry-red.

 

[bobodu]

I used 3/8 inch rod I got free from work. Almost everything in a dry cleaning plant hangs from the ceiling and when things get changed, it's often easiest to start with fresh rod.

 

[alltoys]

Made these for my Wheel Horse. Cost about $30.

Those are an excellent set of chains. In the trucking industry when I drove we called them Super Chains. Running through the mountains with a set of B-Trains they were a necessity. Much better than the cross over link type chains.

 

[bobodu]

I'm halfheartedly thinking about welding in some eyes and mouths so the rings make smiley faces wherever I go!!

 

[Eagleview]

Huge Mountain Lion paw prints would be better . That would keep the weekend warriors off your land .

They are the best set of chains i have seen , well done .

 

[bobodu]

Bigfoot prints!!
With the tracks from the front wheels...it'd look like Bigfoot was here....pushing a wheelbarrow.

 

[Iplayfarmer]

I like the smiley face idea! Or, put letters in each ring such that they spell a word as you drive. How many rings are on each tire?