Tipping a tractor

[Bird]

MJB, you're sure right about getting flats fixed promptly, and cleaning the wheel when you do. A neighbor who bought an old used Oliver a few years ago discovered that it had calcium in the tires and he's had a few flats (which got rid of the stuff), but he had to buy a pair of wheels last month because the valve stem holes in the wheels had corroded until the holes were far too large. And since the entire wheels were severely corroded, he decided to not try to fix the holes by welding.

Bird

 

[JerryG]

The page on wheel weights is www.his.com/~msimpson/tractor/index.htm. When you get there go to the hackers page. I made a set like his, but I didn't use 25 lb. weights. I have 24 inch wheels, so I used 50 lb. ones. If you need the measurements on the weights they are. 25 lb = 3/4" x 12" and the 50 lb = 1 3/4" x 18". Well, anyway that is what the ones from Wal-Mart measure. As far a cost goes, I spent about $350 for 8 weights and the brackets. That's a lot cheaper than a dealer for 400 pounds of wheel weights. JerryG

 

[MJB]

Bird.. I had an old 1952 Case DC-3 tractor with calcium in the tires. For those not familiar with these they are about the size of a Farmall M or John Deere A. Mine had 15.5-38 rear tires which were loaded with calcium. The right side tire started to seep calcium through the valve stem while it was just sitting in the yard. I dont know exactly how long it had been leaking but it was probably not more than a few weeks. The valve stem hole was completely rusted out to about the size of a silver dollar, and that was through good thick 1952 wheel steel. /w3tcompact/icons/shocked.gif You really have not lived until you have tried to wrestle a tire of this size loaded with calcium onto a trailer to take it to the shop./w3tcompact/icons/frown.gif Seeing how corroded the rim was on the inside from this tiny leak I was very concerned that if I had not noticed the leak when I did the rim may have rusted out enough for the tire to just blow right off./w3tcompact/icons/shocked.gif I know I will never put calcium in a tire again. The non toxic anti-freeze is more expensive and not a heavy as the calcium but it is worth it to me./w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

 

[W5FL]

If you do not want to fill the tires with water/antifreeze (non/toxic) then I would check with several dealers about after market wheel weights. The Kubota wheel weights seem to run about $1.00 or so per pound and the after market ones were considerably less expensive. The price quoted to me was for #512 wheelweight 214 pounds for $130.00.

 

[ejb]

Re: Tipping a tractor/ calcium chloride

I may be wrong about this, but I thought you could get away w/out using tubes and the reason was the calcium chloride wasn't corrosive until it was in contact with the air, and since theoretically the tire is sealed, it wouldn't cause any corrosion, under normal circumstances...that said, I have calcium chloride in my tires, AND have tubes installed, and wouldn't recommend it any other way.

 

[ejb]

Re: Tipping a tractor/ calcium chloride

Just came across the link dealing with tractor rollover injuries...interesting reading:

http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/nasd/docs2/as25800.html

 

[MJB]

Re: Tipping a tractor/ calcium chloride

EJB.. Tires loaded with calcium are not completely filled with fluid. Typically the tire is turned so that the valve stem is at the top of the wheel and the fluid is filled up to this point. The rest of the space is then filled with compressed air to bring the tire to the correct inflation pressure. Even if there was not any air in the tube the moment the calcium leaked out and came in contact with the rim, corrosion would begin./w3tcompact/icons/frown.gif They should call that stuff "Liquid Steel Dissolver"/w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif MJB

 

[W5FL]

Re: Tipping a tractor/ calcium chloride

Now you are going to just have to decide who to believe. Kubota has a whole section in their owners manual on filling tires with Calcium. Firestone has a section in their Farm Tire book on the same subject. Neither even mention anti-freeze (non/toxic) filled tires, yet all of us seem to recommend against Calcium Chloride except in Tubes and there are some reservations then. /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif I would have filled my tires with Calcium Chloride if it had been available simply due to the weight available at low cost and realizing that leaks were bad. I have not had a leak in a rear tire in many years on my place, so I would have taken the chance. Now they are filled with water/antifreeze (non/toxic) and I sure wouldn't change them, but the cost is a little higher.

 

[Bird]

MJB, the neighbor I was talking about bought the old Oliver used and knew it came from up north somewhere, but he didn't know it had ballast in the tires, and the first puncture he had was while he was mowing the road right-of-way next door and when he saw a stream of what he thought was water coming out of it, he pulled up on the grass in front of my shop. It was 2 years before any grass grew back in that spot./w3tcompact/icons/frown.gif And we used the front end loader on the Kubota to put the tire & wheel on a trailer for him to take it to town and get it fixed (and of course, the B7100 I had then could not pick it up, but I was able to lift and push with the little tractor and get it on the trailer)./w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

Bird

 

[pdxman]

I've been checking all of my possibilities as far as adding more ballast to my tractor since I had it on its side. One being that I probably should have my tiller on when doing loader work or some other 3 pt weight (the home made concrete 3 pt sounds like good idea). I did call a tire business up here (Oregon) and they do offer calcium c @ .65 cents a gallon. They thought my tires would take about 9 gals each and add 110 lbs per tire. I do not think the tires currently have tubes. I am still debating whether or not to fill the tires. Safety is my main concern right now and I want to do whats best. The calcium chloride issue does answer some questions to my childhood in the mid-west...we used to get tractor tire tubes from farmers to use in the lakes and rivers for floating. Always used to get a hell of a rash on some. These probably had Cal ChL in them and we didn't even know about it.