Kubota L4400 nail in rear tire

Gordon Gould · Nov 10, 2013

Degolyerent said:
That is a tube, the tire is very heavy be careful.

Yes - Think 400 lbs or more.

DK35vince · Nov 10, 2013

Sorry,
But it sure looks like a tube.

sdfarmin · Nov 10, 2013

DK35vince said:
Sorry,
But it sure looks like a tube.

Ok - thanks all. Will probably call a tractor repair guy next week.

whis · Nov 10, 2013

I believe its tubeless most tubes have a nylon nut

troutsqueezer · Nov 10, 2013

If it was me, I'd take the easy road first. Rotate the tire so the hole is on the top and plug it. Then fill with air until it's back to normal pressure. Rotate the tire so plug is towards the bottom and watch for leaks. If none, you're good to go.

sdfarmin · Nov 10, 2013

whis said:
I believe its tubeless most tubes have a nylon nut

This looks like brass, so maybe I'm good to go after all.

sdfarmin · Nov 10, 2013

troutsqueezer said:
If it was me, I'd take the easy road first. Rotate the tire so the hole is on the top and plug it. Then fill with air until it's back to normal pressure. Rotate the tire so plug is towards the bottom and watch for leaks. If none, you're good to go.

This was my initial inclination, but I did not want to screw anything up given that I'm not familiar with ballasted tires. I guess it's not as straight forward as I thought to figure out if the tire is tubed or tubeless. Since the nail and the valve are on opposite ends, I'll plug it first, then back up so that the valve is on top and refill with air and watch for leaks as you suggest. Let's see how it goes. I'm all for the easy solution if possible. Thanks!

Gordon Gould · Nov 10, 2013

Interesting problem.
To answer the tube/tubeless question maybe you could go over to the other side. Put the valve stem at the top and loosen the nut pushing the valve stem in a little. You should get an answer real quick if it is tubeless.

I would think the plug might work weather it is tubed or not tubed since the tire is tubeless capable. Wouldn't the bead just seal on the rim with a hole in the tube and the tire plugged. The flat would be fixed but you might not want your ballast to escape the tube depending on what it is.

sdfarmin · Nov 11, 2013

Gordon Gould said:
Interesting problem.
To answer the tube/tubeless question maybe you could go over to the other side. Put the valve stem at the top and loosen the nut pushing the valve stem in a little. You should get an answer real quick if it is tubeless.

I would think the plug might work weather it is tubed or not tubed since the tire is tubeless capable. Wouldn't the bead just seal on the rim with a hole in the tube and the tire plugged. The flat would be fixed but you might not want your ballast to escape the tube depending on what it is.

I like the idea, only to find out that the right tire has a different valve stem:

Comparing this one to the one in post 7, I would venture to guess that this is tubed while the problem tire in post 7 is tubeless. Anyways, I did the repair with a plug and it worked!! I waited until tonight and just checked it, and no leakage! I did trim the stubs, but I just wanted to show the repair in progress and the offending nail.

I definitely know more about ballasted tires today than I did 2 days ago. Thanks!

dex3361 · Nov 11, 2013

I have an L4400 Kubota with the R1 ag tires and it is a tubless tire. I have several plugs that have been in for a few years. when I plugged the tires it just rotated the hole to the top and plugged it. I did not remove the glycol/ water mix.