rear tire flat--advice needed

[HCJ]

I have a rear tire flat on my Kubota M 6800 and it is loaded. My dealer loads the tires with antifreeze not CaCl. I am trying to decide if I should have my dealer come out and pick up wheel and repair it (I have no idea what he would charge, he's closed today) Or I can remove the wheel, slide it onto a trailer (yeah, I know it will be unbelievably heavy) and take it to a local tire shop where they will fix it for free (he owes me a favor) But he can not load the tire, so I will have to do that myself. Or third option, trailer the tractor 20 miles to my dealer. If I load the tire I will need to buy the stem/hose adapter from tractor supply. Any advice or tips??? I am leaning towards doing it myself (with several friends to help roll the tire) How much antifreeze and what type should I use. Only gets in teens occasionally here. And yes, I know there are opinions on the use of antifreeze, but since that's what's in the other wheel, that is what I plan to use. I do not have a loader or any way to lift it, but I have moved a rear tire in my truck before (before liquid loading) and had no trouble sliding it off and rolling it in place. What does a dealer usually charge to pick up a wheel, fix it and reinstall it?

 

[Hooked_on_HP]

If the tire is tubeless plug it on the tractor.
Bill

 

[Thumper & Buttercup]

On our larger tractors like our 1066 we have a tire company come out to the farm, they will jack up the tractor and pump out the fluid and take the tire half off the rim.

They then fix the tire or install a new tube and then put it back on the rim and pump in the air/fluid. I went to wheel weights a few years ago and none of our tractors have fluid in them. Hope this helps.

 

[HCJ]

This tire is not tubeless. I will call tomorrow to check on a price for on-site repair, but I fear it's going to be pretty steep. If I take it off, load it, and drive it to the tire repair center, it will be free. It's not going to be easy, but it will save some $.

 

[texasjohn]

if you, like me, are a do-it-yourselfer, then this is your chance to go get all those things you need for a job such as this... chains, winches, ramps to trailer, hydraulic jacks, a BIG dolly so when the tire flops on its side you can load it on the dolly (heavy duty caster wheels) and still move the thing.

spend for these items now, I tell myself, and you have them for every next project that comes along... amazing how often this turns out to be good advice, for me, at least. And, over time, I sweat less and less as my collection of auxilary supplies and tools increases.

cost this time around will likely be same, perhaps slightly more than having someone else fix the tire.... but you are set for next time.

I took off a tire (let all liquid out BEFORE taking it off axle) and loaded it onto a trailer to take it to get it fixed. It was HEAVY and all I could do to load it onto the trailer... don't think it is possible to load it fully filled with liquid... weight of liquid in my current Kubota tire is about 500 lbs ...and then there is the weight of tire and rim itself.

Net...hydraulics, levers, ramps, pulleys, gears, winches, wheels are there to help with a project like this...but you gotta start with the right stuff or it won't work.... think it thru given your situation and you will figure out a way

example... can you position tractor and trailer such that tire kinda falls onto the trailer in such a way that a winch will complete the job??? just a thought.

 

[CurlyDave]

To me, several people rolling a loaded tire is an accident waiting to happen.

Drain it into a container before you take it off. At least no one gets killed that way.

 

[AKfish]

I really believe that this is one of those occasions when it "really pays to pay someone else"!

My rear tires hold 55 gallons of fluid "each"! That's about 500lbs of liquid anti-freeze. I'm guessing that your 62hp Kubota has got even bigger tires than 17.5L x 24's.

The time and hassle and danger to yourself (or anybody helping) can't be worth the $250 (guesstimate) you'd have to pay a tire guy to come out and fix it.

Best of luck.

AKfish

 

[HCJ]

Happy ending!! I drained the fluid out of the tire, jacked it up and placed jack stands under the tractor. Two of us rolled it off and with the help of a 4-wheeler, slid it up on a landscape trailer. Had a tire repair shop replace the tube and they loaded it into my pickup. Litterally rolled it off the back of the truck and let it fall. Then we rolled it back to the tractor. The hardest part was aligning the lugs. It would be nice to have some sort of rollers to place it on so it could be rotated easily. Finally we got it in place. Now I just need to load it with fluid. Nice thing is it was free.

 

[Thumper & Buttercup]

Glad you got it done safe, a couple of the old farmers have made small electric pumps for pumping out the fluids, he said you've got to put some oil on it right away when your done.

 

[flusher]

Happy ending!! I drained the fluid out of the tire, jacked it up and placed jack stands under the tractor. Two of us rolled it off and with the help of a 4-wheeler, slid it up on a landscape trailer. Had a tire repair shop replace the tube and they loaded it into my pickup. Litterally rolled it off the back of the truck and let it fall. Then we rolled it back to the tractor. The hardest part was aligning the lugs. It would be nice to have some sort of rollers to place it on so it could be rotated easily. Finally we got it in place. Now I just need to load it with fluid. Nice thing is it was free.

Glad it worked out for you.

A few weeks ago I had to remove the 11.2-28 rears on the 1951 Minneapolis Moline BF tractor that I'm restoring. It had both wheel weights and were water filled (don't need antifreeze around here). Used the engine hoist to remove the weights.

I drained about 11 gal out of each tire. I suspect there's a gallon or two still in the tire

Then had to cut the heads off the six thoroughly rusted 5/8x4" fine thread bolts holding the rim onto the center part of the wheel.

Even with the outer rim only, those tires were a real handful to move across the shop. They're leaning on the rear tire of the 1964 MF-135 diesel which has 16" dia rims on the rear.

What size are the rears on your Bota? TractorData has them at 7.50-16. That doesn't sound right for a 70 hp (engine) tractor.

 

[Soundguy]

7.5-16 sounds like a FRONT tire for a 70hp tractor. IE.. that's what my ford 5000 has on its front.. etc.

soundguy

 

[Farmwithjunk]

For a relatively small investment, anyone can assemble the tools needed to pump fluid in/out of tractor tires. It's well worth the trouble. One flat where you don't loose all the fluid will pay for the pump, ect. There's nothing like the convenience of being able to pull the tractor in the shop (garage?) pump the tire down, SAVING ALL the fluid.

I bought a small "chemical pump" from WW GRAINGER. The volute is stainless steel and the impellor is rubber. 110V with standard garden hose hook-ups. Two 15' long 1/2" garden hoses. A couple 55 gallon plastic barrels. (I do a few bigger tires now and then) And the NAPA valve stem adapter. I even bought a plastic tool box that holds all the "kit" I assembled. Total investment is around $100. A typical 13.6X28 tire takes about 15 minutes to pump down and MAYBE 20 to fill.

A "BEAD-CHEATA" bead breaker, 4 tire irons, a tire hammer, and a few spare tubes/patch kit, and there's my ability to fix my own tires when I need it, NOT at the convenience of a repair man or tire vendor.

Most recent "experience", I noticed fluid shooting out of a nail hole in a tractor tire. Pulled 'er in the shop, jacked the tractor up, pumped fluid out, broke bead, pulled tube, patched tube, re-installed, aired up, let air out, pumped fluid back in, inflated to proper pressure, and was back to working again in just over 1 hour. If you value time, or depend on having equipment that'll be ready to go without downtime, having your own tire repair tools is a BARGAIN.

 

[Soundguy]

A "BEAD-CHEATA" bead breaker, 4 tire irons, a tire hammer, and a few spare tubes/patch kit, and there's my ability to fix my own tires when I need it, NOT at the convenience of a repair man or tire vendor.

Ditto that 100%... Owning a few tire irons and tire-sledge and the pach and spares kit. has saved me numerous trips to town when I hit a nail or sharp stick or bone. Happened this past weekend, fixing it was faster than the trip to town! cheaper too!

soundguy

 

[HCJtractor]

For a relatively small investment, anyone can assemble the tools needed to pump fluid in/out of tractor tires. It's well worth the trouble. One flat where you don't loose all the fluid will pay for the pump, ect. There's nothing like the convenience of being able to pull the tractor in the shop (garage?) pump the tire down, SAVING ALL the fluid.

I bought a small "chemical pump" from WW GRAINGER. The volute is stainless steel and the impellor is rubber. 110V with standard garden hose hook-ups. Two 15' long 1/2" garden hoses. A couple 55 gallon plastic barrels. (I do a few bigger tires now and then) And the NAPA valve stem adapter. I even bought a plastic tool box that holds all the "kit" I assembled. Total investment is around $100. A typical 13.6X28 tire takes about 15 minutes to pump down and MAYBE 20 to fill.

A "BEAD-CHEATA" bead breaker, 4 tire irons, a tire hammer, and a few spare tubes/patch kit, and there's my ability to fix my own tires when I need it, NOT at the convenience of a repair man or tire vendor.

Most recent "experience", I noticed fluid shooting out of a nail hole in a tractor tire. Pulled 'er in the shop, jacked the tractor up, pumped fluid out, broke bead, pulled tube, patched tube, re-installed, aired up, let air out, pumped fluid back in, inflated to proper pressure, and was back to working again in just over 1 hour. If you value time, or depend on having equipment that'll be ready to go without downtime, having your own tire repair tools is a BARGAIN.

I agree that it is better to learn these repairs! What is a bead-cheata and where do you get this? I saw a bead breaker on Gemplers site but it was over $500. Is breaking the bead on a tubed tire that difficult? On a rear tire (such as a 16.9-30) that I have, do you replace the tube while the wheel is still mounted? Of course, after jacking it up and securing with a stand. Is resetting the bead a problem? I would assume with a tube, it seats easily. I just bought the valve adapter to refill the tires with fluid.

I always hear of the dangers of installing tires. I would think if one does not overinflate, it should not be dangerous. Am I wrong here? Of course when a tire this big is removed, the sheer weight makes it dangerous. I would rather replace the tube while the wheel is still on the tractor.

 

[Farmwithjunk]

I agree that it is better to learn these repairs! What is a bead-cheata and where do you get this? I saw a bead breaker on Gemplers site but it was over $500. Is breaking the bead on a tubed tire that difficult? On a rear tire (such as a 16.9-30) that I have, do you replace the tube while the wheel is still mounted? Of course, after jacking it up and securing with a stand. Is resetting the bead a problem? I would assume with a tube, it seats easily. I just bought the valve adapter to refill the tires with fluid.

I always hear of the dangers of installing tires. I would think if one does not overinflate, it should not be dangerous. Am I wrong here? Of course when a tire this big is removed, the sheer weight makes it dangerous. I would rather replace the tube while the wheel is still on the tractor.

Bead Cheata. Well worth the cost.
5500 Bead-Cheata [Shoup Manufacturing Company]

It's handy when you start the tire back ON the rim too. Get the bead started and use the Bead Cheata to hold it there. I wrote it off as a gimmick until I used one. I bought my own the very next day.

I don't take the rim/wheel off the tractor while doing a tube repair. No sense in it. Too much time, too much work, too much lifting that way.

Use common sense, take your time, be carefull.... Use a GOOD jack.

Tire repair can be dangerous for some. Sharpening a pencil is dangerous for some....

 

[Farmwithjunk]

Ditto that 100%... Owning a few tire irons and tire-sledge and the pach and spares kit. has saved me numerous trips to town when I hit a nail or sharp stick or bone. Happened this past weekend, fixing it was faster than the trip to town! cheaper too!

soundguy

The first year after I bought my farm, I was clearing ground still, and I got more'n my share of flats. I kept track of time spent and MONEY spent with hauling tires/wheels to a shop or having them come to me. That was 1971. The numbers were staggering back then. I'm sure they'd be absolutely nuts now days. And the inconvenience of having to meet someone elses schedule to get something back on line. It would be nice to pay someone to do ALL my tire work, but then I'd need ANOTHER job to pay that bill....

And there's nothing better to take your aggressions out on than a big ol' heavy tire.

 

[AKfish]

They say that we're a "product of our environment". I'd guess that holds true in my case..

Growin' up in the Dakota's it was a long ways back to the shop and I was always told to never drive on a leakin' tire but "shut 'er down" right there (or at the end of the field) and get help.

We usually had a truck come out to the field and fix 'em right there. They were always filled with CaCL and nobody wanted a "catastrophic failure" with that stuff all over in the ground...

Glad to hear you got everything taken care of.

AKfish

 

[Conservation]

Is it safe to say that the fluid in the tire that is lower than the level of the stem is going to be on the floor? If it is tubed, I guess you could leave that fluid in and patch carefully. There is no doubt in my mind that I will be fixing my own tires first. I started wtih a plug kit, and now there is no stopping me!

 

[Soundguy]

Yep.. hard to get ALL the fluid out.. depending onthe tire or the tube you can get *most* out if you use a syphon straw.. but in general.. there will be some spillage.

be sure to wash all metal parts down hit with cacl ballast.. also good to clean up and paint insides of the rims if you use cacl ballast. less metal contact the better..

soundguy