tire chains

bob vaillancourt · Sep 19, 2013

hey all. have a problem hope someone can help . tractor chains that i bought for my tractor a few years ago had a twist in the side chain . its where the cross links are bent on to the side chains. side chains have a twist and when i try to turn the link that the cross link is attached to it puts more of a twist in the side chain . i remember that they were this way when i bought them. and put them on one winter up north of my state of new Hampshire. now my tractor is back home in the southern part of my state for some summer repair in my garage. last thing to do before i bring it back up north for the winter was to put on the tire chains and their lies the problem of the twisted side chain.e fore i decide to pry open the side links and try to take the twist out i thought i would ask you folks those cross links are made out of 3/8 round stock. would probably have to heat them up just to bend them .hope some one can help thanks a lot bob in n.h.:dance1::dance1::dance1::dance1::dance1:

bigtiller · Sep 19, 2013

Go to tirechain.com and buy a $95 pair of pliers. Get the one with 33 inch handles. Easy, simple and fast.

Large Repair Pliar

crazyal · Sep 20, 2013

I've clamped them in a large vise so I could open and then close the link. But it's not easy and sooner or later I'll buy the large tire chain pliers.

dave1949 · Sep 20, 2013

I have 3/8" chains, they are tough as heck and hard too. The pliers would have to work really well to do much with them I think, but have never tried it.

If you can't get the twist out, you can cut that link out with a grinder and replace it with a screw together quick link. They hold up pretty well.

tirechain . com does sell replacement parts, including the hook link that goes from side chain to cross-tire section--if that is what is twisted.

kco · Sep 20, 2013

Large chain pliers work well for modifying 3/8" chains. I used them to modify my DUO's as shown in this thread:

http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/...chains-planned-modifications.html#post3177625

dave1949 · Sep 20, 2013

kco said:
Large chain pliers work well for modifying 3/8" chains. I used them to modify my DUO's as shown in this thread:

http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/...chains-planned-modifications.html#post3177625

Thanks, I missed that thread. It's good to know.

dieselcrawler · Sep 21, 2013

I had some tire chains for my puckup a few years ago that I was sure had a twist... but after carefully laying them out on a smooth surface and laying each link down as it should be, it turned out that they had simply gotten pulled thru themselves. It was as simple as pulling the chains thru the hole created by the side chains and cross chains at the point of the twist in the proper direction. Just takes some time to check closely... well worth it before you go opening links. Likely you will find a twist in the cross chain as well as the side chain close to it. Or maybe both side chains... take your time.

Good luck... chains are awesome. With chains front and back on my 4x4 pickup there is no such thing as snowed in... at least where I am!

IXLR8 · Sep 21, 2013

I had a similar issue, twist in chain I couldn't figure out how to remove. Before I spent any time trying to unbend/rebend the links. I did what dieselcrawler did. I laid them out on my driveway and very carefully aligned all the links and finally found where a side and cross link were twisted. I fed the chain back thru to untwist it and it all fell into place.... no need to fight with bending the links.

RedNeckRacin · Sep 21, 2013

Be careful with tirechains.com "HD" pliers. I bent the snot out of the jaws working on my 3/8" tractor chains which they claim to use them every day on. I tried to get them replaced ( I bought them specifically for this task and only had them a few days) and all I got was an offer to sell me the jaw at full price.

bigtiller · Sep 21, 2013

RedNeckRacin said:
Be careful with tirechains.com "HD" pliers. I bent the snot out of the jaws working on my 3/8" tractor chains which they claim to use them every day on. I tried to get them replaced ( I bought them specifically for this task and only had them a few days) and all I got was an offer to sell me the jaw at full price.

You bent them? I figured the weak part was the thin spreading side and probably would break before bending. Mine worked just like advertised and the only down side was that I didn't get my moneys worth before the job was finished.