Mounting tire chains

[MinnesotaEric]

I put chains on one tractor yesterday, there are lots of ways to mount chains I thought I would share the easiest way I have found to do so.

1) lay the chains out with the outside, the ground contact side facing up
2) tie a short cord to the side chains, the length will depend on your tire size, on mine I end up with a V shape about 3 feet.
3) back up to your chain, take the cord and hang it on the tire treads.
4) drive forward slowly, stopping to spread the chain out on your tire.
5) continue doing this till you have rolled the chain up on the tire and have working room at the rear of the tire
6) your chain should be well centered on your tire and have very little slack.
7) fasten your chains.
8) step back and check out your work

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This is the easiest way I have found to do chains, if you are doing this in a shop and can jack up a wheel it works good than also.
On the smaller tires I have jacked them up and chocked the other side to do this, then simply kneel down to do the fastening.
If you find that your rope V is to long when the chain is started up simply stop and leaving your other cord on run a new V and snug it up remove the old and continue. Using this method one person can install heavy chains on large tires. Without straining and hurting themselves. If you take your time after using this method a few times you will find that after your chains are laid out and untangled you can mount them in well under a half hour each with help spreading the chains accross your tire and telling you when to stop it's even easier and you are not fighting with the weight of the chains when fastening the side links.
The shorter the V that works for you the easier to line up and fasten the side links with all the slack taken up by the chains, no fuss no muss.

This is most certainly not the only way, but it is the easiest way I have found.

Lou

I have no idea why these pictures all rotate when I post them.

I put my chains on over a period of a month because I was able to find good excuses to ignore the tire chains. Made it super-easy to pace myself (heh, not really). If you count how many times the hammer moves, that is how many links I had to change to fit just one chain.

 

[LouNY]

Did you consider disconnecting the hooks going tothe side chain and shortening them a link or two on each side.
Also when I use a clevis in the tire chains I try and rotate the excess up so the clevis pin is on the end of the link.
My tires are a bit larger then yours and i think that makes them a bit easier to chain up,
I very seldom use any thing to tightnen them up, I just pull the center chains together and put the clevis in them.
Then I fasten the side chains and then pull the center chain out and down to the side chain and secure them.
Then if too loose I will try and get an another link in the side chains.

 

[dnw64]

I put my chains on over a period of a month because I was able to find good excuses to ignore the tire chains. Made it super-easy to pace myself (heh, not really). If you count how many times the hammer moves, that is how many links I had to change to fit just one chain.

Wow, lot of work!

BTW, the manufacturer of my chains (OFA) tell you to not get them too tight - and actually provide a picture showing there should be some chain hanging slack. See at about 1:30 in this video:

 

[LouNY]

Well heck Sunday morning just sitting here drinking coffee and reading this, started watching the different chaining up videos.
Some good ones and then so many filled with miss advise and showing the harder ways to install chains and the obsession of some with getting the chains tight.
Many of them working way to hard for what should be a moderate job.

 

[grsthegreat]

I never have installed mine tight. Never have had any issues ....ever. I do have a set if tensioning springs on mine and that helps prevent any issues i feel.

 

[MinnesotaEric]

Wow, lot of work!

BTW, the manufacturer of my chains (OFA) tell you to not get them too tight - and actually provide a picture showing there should be some chain hanging slack. See at about 1:30 in this video:

I do have some slack and I showed that slack in the video. What I clearly needed to do was get the inboard chains to stop rubbing on and grooving my steering knuckles or the knuckles would quickly break and fail. I thought I made that point repeatedly and clear.

I guess I did not.

The tightening of the chains was because I made each chain about ten links too long after narrowing the chains so they wouldn’t screw up and destroy my steering knuckles.

 

[MinnesotaEric]

Did you consider disconnecting the hooks going tothe side chain and shortening them a link or two on each side.
Also when I use a clevis in the tire chains I try and rotate the excess up so the clevis pin is on the end of the link.
My tires are a bit larger then yours and i think that makes them a bit easier to chain up,
I very seldom use any thing to tightnen them up, I just pull the center chains together and put the clevis in them.
Then I fasten the side chains and then pull the center chain out and down to the side chain and secure them.
Then if too loose I will try and get an another link in the side chains.

I needed to narrow the chains, not tighten them.

 

[LouNY]

I needed to narrow the chains, not tighten them.

What I was saying is to remove a couple of links on the section of chain that runs down to the outside rim chains,
that will effectively narrow your chains with less work and the center grip chains would have stayed spread further apart.
I am refering to the hooked links that fasten the traction cross chains to the outside or rim chains.
It's a bit late to do so now.

 

[dnw64]

I do have some slack and I showed that slack in the video.

I did watch most of the video, but must have missed that.

When I saw showing a little slack slack was when you said that you were going to try and get it out. Also that you had put the chains on with 0 air pressure so that they would tighten when you re-inflated. Not trying to be critical, just put some additional thoughts out there. If you don't feel you need them, please ignore.

 

[MinnesotaEric]

I did watch most of the video, but must have missed that.

When I saw showing a little slack slack was when you said that you were going to try and get it out. Also that you had put the chains on with 0 air pressure so that they would tighten when you re-inflated. Not trying to be critical, just put some additional thoughts out there. If you don't feel you need them, please ignore.

For video editing reasons, some things are out of order, like my opening scene. The big idea is that I’m narrowing the chain to fit my front wheels because the OEM wider configuration was sawing into my steering knuckles. When narrowing the chains, I also made the chains way too long. The chains are heavy enough that I used a small binder to take up the slack. I also used four shackles on each side to secure the chains together and fencing wire to secure everything.

I’m amazed at the second-guessing going on given that now the chains fit perfect, work perfect and while loose enough to move a little bit, clear the steering knuckles even on turns while in four wheel drive which tends to try to walk the chains into the steering knuckles.

Guys, I’m a master mechanic. Cut me some slack.

 

[grsthegreat]

For video editing reasons, some things are out of order, like my opening scene. The big idea is that I’m narrowing the chain to fit my front wheels because the OEM wider configuration was sawing into my steering knuckles. When narrowing the chains, I also made the chains way too long. The chains are heavy enough that I used a small binder to take up the slack. I also used four shackles on each side to secure the chains together and fencing wire to secure everything.

I’m amazed at the second-guessing going on given that now the chains fit perfect, work perfect and while loose enough to move a little bit, clear the steering knuckles even on turns while in four wheel drive which tends to try to walk the chains into the steering knuckles.

Guys, I’m a master mechanic. Cut me some slack.

whenever i post anything here theres always someone chiming in telling me i did it wrong. i just dont care anymore.

luckily my front chains miss the steering knuckles, but if they didnt i would shorten them up without thinking twice about it. Like you said they dont need to fit perfect, they just need to not destroy the tractor.

 

[MinnesotaEric]

What I was saying is to remove a couple of links on the section of chain that runs down to the outside rim chains,
that will effectively narrow your chains with less work and the center grip chains would have stayed spread further apart.
I am refering to the hooked links that fasten the traction cross chains to the outside or rim chains.
It's a bit late to do so now.

Removing links on the side wouldn’t help whatsoever.

 

[LouNY]

Removing links on the side wouldn’t help whatsoever.

OK, you are not understanding what I am trying to explain.
When I get out and about tomorrow I will try and get a couple of pictures to show what I am talking about.

 

[LouNY]

OK, you are not understanding what I am trying to explain.
When I get out and about tomorrow I will try and get a couple of pictures to show what I am talking about.

I got to thinking no need to get more pictures, just do some editing and marking up a couple of existing pictures;



If you enlarge these pictures you will see the links and hooks I am referring to circled in red, I only circled a few of course they all have to be done.
Over the years I have modified several chain sets for different tires,
when I needed to narrow a chain I will open up the hooks that hold the cross chain to the side chain,
then remove how ever many links I needed to equally on both sides inside and out and reinstall the hooks.
To widen a set of chains again I'd remove the hooks and add the required links to both sides and reinstall the hooks onto the side chains.
I do have a set of tire chain pliers which makes undo and reclosing the hooks much easier.

This would have had the effect of moving the side chains up and away from your steering knuckles.

 

[MinnesotaEric]

OK, you are not understanding what I am trying to explain.
When I get out and about tomorrow I will try and get a couple of pictures to show what I am talking about.

I understand exactly: you're suggesting shorting the chain length/diameter that drapes on the sidewalls and I'm telling you that wouldn't do or help anything.

Think it through:

I showed a photo of the chains in the video. These chains place the forest links at the edge or nearly at the shoulder of the tire tread. Being too wide for the tire's tread alone requires narrowing the chains, let alone the excess drape where the inboard chain saws into the steering knuckle that at least twice in the video I showed the damage from my first attempted use.

Why won't your idea work? Draw a circle. Now draw a straight line between any two points on the diameter of that circle. Now ask yourself, if that line is closer to the center of the circle or further from the center of the circle than the original diameter of that circle? That's right, the line is closer. Now consider that if I have a chain that cannot clear the steering knuckle, do I want a smaller diameter or a bigger diameter circle? That's right, I want a bigger diameter circle so the chain can clear the steering knuckle.

So I have too wide of spacing for the studded links on the tire, and I need a bigger diameter circle on the drape in order to clear the steering knuckles, so what should I do? Seemed clear to me that I should narrow the chain. The directions for the chain came with directions explaining that narrowing or widening the chain may be required since the same part number chain "fits" multiple wheel sizes.

Notice how much better the center chain studs set on the tire tread once that chain is narrowed. Also, note the hardened hooks are not intended for opening up and closing but the clasps with the roll pins are intended for adjusting the chain.

 

[LouNY]

Eric I have narrowed many chains that way shortening the cross chains raises the OD of the outer chains which would help to clear your knuckes,
you are correct in that it would not have narrowed the spacing of the traction chains on the tread.
Have a good day.
Lou

 

[MinnesotaEric]

Eric I have narrowed many chains that way shortening the cross chains raises the OD of the outer chains which would help to clear your knuckes,
you are correct in that it would not have narrowed the spacing of the traction chains on the tread.
Have a good day.
Lou

Lou,

I now see what you were suggesting. Fair enough. The provision on my style of Tallon chains is poping the roll pins on the clevis, not the way you're suggesting. My side hooks are closed and opening them would require grunting, hammering, and likely my acetylene torch to heat the hook links up so I could open them enough to move up the sides.

At any rate, your suggestion, if followed, would have solved the clearance issue that I detailed in my video, but not the poor fitment of my studded, traction chains that I admittedly glossed in my video, but was a concern to me. While it is obvious we missed each other's suggestions, it is all good because now somebody searching the internet down the road will see two different ways to try in order to narrow his or her tire chains if needs be.

 

[LouNY]

I have one advantage in that I have scratch built a few sets of chains,
and I have chain pliers.
Tire Chains-tool-Pliers-732
I can go through a set of chains and un clamp the side chain hooks in a matter of minutes and then I can cut the links as needed and reclamp easily.
The chain pliers are a handy tool to have around as it can do so much on all styles of chains.

 

[RjCorazza]

I have one advantage in that I have scratch built a few sets of chains,
and I have chain pliers.
Tire Chains-tool-Pliers-732
I can go through a set of chains and un clamp the side chain hooks in a matter of minutes and then I can cut the links as needed and reclamp easily.
The chain pliers are a handy tool to have around as it can do so much on all styles of chains.

I don't even use my chains and consider a chain link tool to be essential !

 

[MinnesotaEric]

I have one advantage in that I have scratch built a few sets of chains,
and I have chain pliers.
Tire Chains-tool-Pliers-732
I can go through a set of chains and un clamp the side chain hooks in a matter of minutes and then I can cut the links as needed and reclamp easily.
The chain pliers are a handy tool to have around as it can do so much on all styles of chains.

I have one of those tools, it is about three feet long. My concern is the hardened chain and again, noting my chain is different than yours, the manufacturer explaining how to adjust the chain by removing the roll pins, moving the links, and reinstalling the roll pins.