tire changing question

[gerard]

I plan on changing the position on my rear tires. L2500DT (11.2-24 R1's, unloaded) They're set at the narrowest setting which is about 40 inches and I noriced they can be set further out (50 inches) by undoing the outer rim and reattaching on the outside flange. My question is how heavy is the unloaded tire going to be and am I going to be able to muscle it into place after I get it off or am I going to be using levers and things to get it lined up. ie Is this a two person job or can a 38 year old 170 lb person witha good back do this by themselves? I think this should greatly enhance stability and I have some slopes that would be more than adequate to roll over my tractor. (Which I REALLY don't want to do, especially since I just installed my Tiltmeter!! ))

 

[Anonymous Poster]

Where did you get your Tiltmeter?
Thanks

 

[gerard]

Go to tiltmeter.com, bought on line. I got the model taht read from 0-25 deg slope. It's $45, large and easy to use, and after feeling what a 20 deg slope is like I cannot understand needing the meter that goes uo to 45 deg! I wouldn't even go to 25 so I'm happy with my selection. (PS the only thing I did since I'm a wuss and didn't want to drill holes in my new tractor to mount it was used some plastic ties, works fine and if they were off I'll use a velcro attachment. Can't see drilling holes in perfectly good sheetmetal if I can avoid it!

 

[W5FL]

My dad just moved the tires back in on his tractor. They are filled and weigh about 800# per tire. He is 85 yrs old and about 130#. He laughed and said not to lay them down flat and just move them very slowly! /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

Leave a private message for Muhammad to get the actual weight of your tires. They are probably about 200# or so per tire. Jack the tractor and block it very carefully that NO lifting of the tire is necessary. You will also need to move the left tire to the right side to keep the tires rolling in the same direction. The lug nuts are pretty tight on tractors! /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

 

[gerard]

thanx, will try tonight. (Of course now that you out out there how your 85 year old father changed LOADED tires unaided I certainly won't be able to disclose any problems I had doing UNLOADED ones!) But why would he want a narrower profile? Only advantage I can see is smaller turning radius. Seems like I'd rather have greater stability....

 

[W5FL]

Good Question. His idea of a narrow profile is about six feet! They were set to over 7 feet wide. /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

He is very understanding of my mistakes, though. I was telling him one time about people not getting enough exercise and he said he didn't need to exercise - he just worked! /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif I still cannot follow him around all day. Hope I am in 1/2 that condition when I am his age.

A couple of years ago, working by his self, he put the tractor in the garage, winched the tractor to a "strongback" in the ceiling, and proceeded to split the tractor and put in a clutch in his garage. /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

 

[Bird]

Wen, I agree with your dad; all my life I've said that joggers and folks who go to gyms to work out just simply don't have enough work to do.

And Gerard, I don't think you'll have any problem with unloaded tires of your size. Wen's dad has a tiny bit bigger tractor./w3tcompact/icons/wink.gif

Bird

 

[gerard]

Wen/Bird,
OK, did the tires last night. Once the lugs were broke it was pretty simple and the weight wasn't what I anticipated. I was able to lift the tire pretty easily. (I figure it at about 125lbs or so) Breaking the lugs was another story! Had to put a torch to them to expand them a little. They were on so tight the grade 5 nuts had actually scraped into the rim. Looked like a hell of a lot tighter than 160lbs which is what the specs were. No way I was able to get them back on that tight. Just have to check them regularly. (AND buy myself a breaker bar)

 

[jdkid]

Hi Gerard
yep i'd spred them out a bit too .like wen said just make sure you have them running the right way be for puting them back on (red faces all round when that happens)as for being a two person job 1 is best (ever been in a 3 legged race?) even my tires 580/70r 38 i can move around alright but with 2 it's like ya have 2 left feet and 10 thumbs oh yea when putting it back on have someone on the jack to lift or drop it a bit
cya
JD Kid

 

[Bird]

Gerard, obviously I can't say for sure, but I think it's a pretty safe bet that those lug nuts were not supposed to be that tight. Some mechanic either didn't know just what his impact wrench would do, or more likely just wanted to be sure they were tight enough that there was no way they were going to come loose accidentally so he overdid it. I've even seen tire men twist lug bolts in two just to make sure they were tight enough; they usually don't even think about the possibility of getting them too tight.

And while I've never twisted a lug bolt in two, I have twisted several other bolts in two, stripped a few threads, rounded the head on bolts, etc./w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

Bird

 

[gerard]

Gotta agree with you Bird, think they were put on way too tight. Since they have lock washers anyway I don't see them loosening up too easily anyhow? They were probably put on with a 1 inch air impact that puts out like 900 ft lbs or something! Anyhow since I don't forsee ever wanting them at the narrow position again it's something I don't have to worry about near term. PS my offer still stands about shipping you some rain! LOL

 

[W5FL]

Now you see why I want a 3/4 inch impact wrench. /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

 

[Anonymous Poster]

Hate to be ignorant, but on this I am. Is there really a frontwards and backwards to ag tires. I've seen them mounted both ways with the lugs "pointing" towards the front when they are at the bottom of rotation and towards the back. Visualizing the tread under the tire it seems like mounting them what would be conventionally termed as backwards would provide more force going forward, or is just a mud throw off ability that is lost. I notice my BX tires have rotational arrows on them.

It came to my attention reading the comments on narrow vs wide and the advice to switch the wheels left and right but no mention of demounting the tires first. Or maybe switching them left and right was because they were going to be reversed.

If you have your tires remounted for some reason by a regular tire store (they can usually only handle the fronts) you mention to the guy tactfully without being insulting about the direction, long ago I had a tire guy put one on "backwards" I didn't even notice it until another guy said, "why is your front tire on backwards?"



And to Wen, I always wanted to get one of the 1" impact wrenches, I didn't have the suggested air flow to operate it but alway kidded my friend who worked with me that I wanted one but reason I didn't was that I didn't want to see him spin around like a propellor on a jammed bolt (he's height/weight correct, I'm not...)

 

[Bird]

Yes, del, there is a direction ag tires are intended to turn, and I thought all of them had an arrow on the side showing the proper direction; at least my Goodyears and Firestones do. But I'll have to admit that I don't know exactly what difference it would make if you put them on backwards, other than perhaps not being as "self cleaning" in mud.

Bird

 

[Thomas]

del,
I believe when mounting the thread in a certain derection does make a differents,
less damage to the ground also traction.
Also like bird written self cleaning.

Heck give it a whirl and see what you like the best. /w3tcompact/icons/wink.gif

Thomas..NH

 

[MJB]

Del.. There certainly is a difference between forward and backward on ag tires. I currently use an old Case DC-4 tractor (about 5500 lbs) with a rear grader blade to move snow in the winter and do some dirt grading in the summer. There is just no comparison in the amout of traction the tires get in opposite directions. I ended up getting tire chains so that I would be able to do some pushing in reverse. My uncle has a little Ford 4x4 tractor with a rear scoop bucket and he turned one of his rear tires around backward so that he could get some more traction in reverse. That said, I have seen some tractor pulls where they will turn both rear wheels around, but I only see this when they are pulling on asphalt or concrete. For most uses it is just best to keep the direction arrows pointing forward. MJB

 

[ejb]

Haven't read all of the other response to your post, but I would think one eprson should be able to handle this just fine....just today I had to remount a tire on my JD5410, it weighs somewhere around 1000-1200 pounds, and me and one other person did manage to man handle it off the ground and up to the axel(with no equipment other than a breaker bar and some wood cribbing)...it wasn't easy, especially since it was about 95 degrees and near 100% humidity, but we did it....so if two people can do this, I say one person should be able to do yours.

Good luck.

 

[Rowski]

del

On our plow truck we run a Nokia Hakka 10. This tire is a mud and snow tire. The "blocks" are arranged so that the tread void creates chevrons like the lugs on an Ag tire. The tire when rolling in the forward direction is digging (pushing the snow away from the center so the tire can dig to more solid ground). When backing up (tire rolling backward) the snow is pulled inward toward the center of the tire. I get much better traction going forwrd. This is what the tire was designed to do. But, in backing up on snow coverd ice it is an advantage becuase the tire does not dig it "holds the snow under the tire (going easy on the throttle). Hope this helps.

My intention (in my next thought) is not to start any arguments. I do not believe the rotation does not have an effect on the cleaning ability of an ag tire. First the void on an ag tire is very large compared to lug so the mud is really falling of the tire. This is also depended on the type of mud, like clay may stick both in both directions. Second the ag tire is not turing fast enough to throw the mud off. Hope I didn't start anything too big.

Derek

Tractor is almost ready for delivery.

 

[Hawgee]

If you think about the tracks on a doser, they are square to the direction of travel. Max traction for both directions. Look at the old steel tires of yesteryear and you will see why they cant the tread, to prevent side slippage on hills. The trade off is the best foot forward. Chains for snow and ice or deep mud and logging debris. I see the R4's slipping a little more than the R1's on a side hill.

On changing the big ones, I've coppied the logging friends idea of jacking the rig up and down to match the tire on a lubed piece of plywood to slip it off and on. If you are putting on a tire with larger OD, (size or inflation difference) you jack rig up or down to meet lug bolts. Less back strain. /w3tcompact/icons/cool.gif

"What is a weed? A plant whose virtues have not yet been discovered."
Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882)