Ballast Wheel weights

[Car Doc]

Looking for an application if there is one that uses a rear wheel weight that is held on by 6 bolts to fit to a Yanmar tractor with 11.2 x 24" wheels.

The bolt hole centers are 11 3/8" that the weights would be held on by and the holes are 11/16 (17mm), and the center hole inside dia would have to be 8 3/8" to clear the lug bolts, the outside dia could be as much as 18" depending on the design.

JD 110# weights are held on by 4 bolts or at least the ones I have found do, I really would like a direct fit. I would also like weights in the 100-150# range each if possible.

I am not interested in liquid ballast or building a weight out of iron/concrete etc unless its absolutely the only way. I plan on taking them on and off seasonaly and want a nice looking addition for my tractor like factory parts.

thanks for any help.

 

[California]

I've had my eyes open for the same thing since I bought my Yanmar in 2003. Haven't seen any yet. Good Luck!

I visited a machine shop the other day and got an idea.
They had a cutting torch that ran on rails on X/Y axis (left-right-close-far) guided by an optical system that looked straight down at an outline of the intended cut, drawn on paper. Whatever you could draw, it would cut. And the cuts it made were very clean, nearly as good as a bandsaw.

It seemed like that machine would be the ideal way to cut donut weights out of flat stock. With its optic guide it can cut circles as well as straight lines, in fact the first test piece they made with it followed the outline of a large open-end wrench.

For estimating purposes: I just got rid of a 3/8 steel plate which weighed 15 lbs /sq ft. So a few layers of weights cut on such a machine from say 1/2" plate, would be easy to set in place and could give the intended weight.

I think the only way to get the weights you want is to have Deere etc weights drilled for you, or have weights made in a machine shop on a cutting machine like I described.

 

[rhett]

Debating the idea also. The conclusion I came up with is to cast a pair out of Lead, heaviest by volume at an affordable price. To have Cast Iron one's made at a foundry would cost more.

I think I will wait and add weight when I build a Full Roll Cage / FEL and place lead ingots at the center line as part of the lower Roll Cage braces trying to lower the overall center of gravity. Of course the design will allow easy removeall any / all components.

I agree with California about finding some pre-made, whatever you find more than likely will need to be modified to fit, if you find them.

 

[California]

Maybe some engineer can analyze this for us, but it seems to me that metal weights to resist rollover force should ideally be mounted at the outer edges of the rear wheel rims to provide the best anti-rollover leverage.

This wouldn't be practical unless your wheels already have lugs there (adjustable-width rim/disc wheels), but it suggests that stacked donut-weight rings may be the best practical method.

Following the same reasoning I concluded that my oversize tires filled 50% with water (160 lbs per side) is the lowest CG ballast available for my YM240.

 

[California]

For my other Yanmar, the YM186D I bought recently, I put water in the little 9.50 x16 rear tires up to the 11:00 position (65-70% fill??). This feels stable on side slopes but doesn't do much for traction. They still dig holes if the mower snags something.

I had an idea for the 186D that obviously needs some more thought: Buy a couple of wheelbarrow tires (no tubes or rims) with an OD to match the ID of my rear wheels. Cast wire-reinforced concrete into them, and include threaded studs to match the holes in my wheels that are intended for weights. This should be relatively clean, they shouldn't scratch up the rims or shed concrete debris like I expect pure concrete weights would. Clearly this concept needs a little refinement before practical application!

Has anyone tried cast-concrete wheel weights?

 

[rhett]

Using a tire is a great idea to be used as a casing for concrete. Concrete might also give the weight Car Doc is looking for. I only suggested Lead because of cost and weight by volume advantages.

Cement, Portland = cuft 94 lbs
Concrete, Gravel = cuft 150 lbs
Steel, rolled = cuft 495 lbs
Iron, cast = cuft 450 lbs
Lead, cast = cuft 708 lbs

 

[California]

Another 'Mad Scientist' thought:

A matched set of used engine flywheels might be the cheapest source for wheel weights. You would need to pay a machinist to cut the center opening larger, along with drilling the attachment holes, but at least the materials cost should be at scrap prices. After the ring gear (starter teeth) is removed from a flywheel (it's simply a press fit) and the flywheel is painted, it should look pretty decent.

 

[Kays Supply]

I took a strap of steel and pipe and made a shaft that would use two lug nuts to hold the strap and the pipe was centered on the strap. I found 50# bar bell weights and slid two or three on each side. and then put a pin through the pipe to keep them on. It worked great on my tractor. It was very easy to remove some or all if needed. A friend took his wheel off and layed it on it's side. He put all thread rod and double nutted it in the wide set holes in the wheel. He put poly sheet in the wheel and put concrete in the wheel. When it set he removed the concrete and pulled the poly off. Then put the weight back using the rod and nuts. It worked as well as mine but was harder to handle , all in one piece. It was probably the cheapest of the two.

 

[Car Doc]

Thanks for the replys guys!

The 50# bar bell weights Kays Supply mentioned sounds like the simplest if I can find the weights cheap enough it would be easy to install!

I have since talked to a metal fab shop here and found out like California had suggested they have a big gas or plasma pattern torch set up that will cut up to 3" thick steel.

I researched it and found out an 18" circle 1" thick with an 8 3/8" hole out of the center weighs 52.6 lbs roughly and I could easily get 3" thick of material per wheel and not hardly even go outside the physical edge of the wheel so wouldnt be catching on fences or my knees etc and that would give me the 150# I want on each wheel.

I could easily put 11/16" (17mm) by 5" or so bolts in the wheels and double nut them to the wheel so they would be like studs where I could just hang the weights on and use a nut on each "stud" to hold them on.

I have no idea what 6 - 1" thick by 18" plates will cost yet but will get back here with that info if and when I get it figured out I may be able to find cut outs at the scrap yard also.

Quite frankly I am afraid it could get expensive with steel as high priced as it is and the shop wants $66 an hour to run their pattern torch but it sure would be nice to have added traction this winter for moving snow with out carrying a weighted box on the 3 pt.

Car Doc

 

[Jim2]

I'm getting some weights set up on my 2402D (11.2 x 24" wheels) right now. I found 6 45lbs. weights off Craigslist for $150. I'm setting them up similar to the way that Kays Supply did. I've got some smaller 58lbs. cast weights bolted to the bar already, and I plan on using those weights as well. I'm going to have the smaller weights pointed in towards the tractor inside the dish, and have the larger weight-lifting weights on the outside. I'll have 193lbs. on each side plus the weight of the hangers.

Jim