req tips for wheel removal and installation for spacers

disney · Nov 15, 2016

Good morning. Please let me begin by stating I have spent a couple of hours trying to find tips for the part of actually removing and reinstalling the rear wheels when installing spacers. Almost everything I could find were pics before, after wheel was off (with just the new spacer on the axle), and after pics... Makes sense as I am sure all hands were too busy to take pictures when removing/ installing them. I understand the wheels are heavy, and to be careful. They are not loaded on this tractor but according to deere the rims on the 110 tlb are stronger (heavier) than the ones used on the farm versions, and the tires are also heavier. Ironically the service manual gives the weight of many of the components, but fails to mention the weight of the rear wheel/tire combo... not that I plan to actually pick it up. My general plan was to break the bolts loose, jack it up take weight off, but not really lift it up, loosen bolts enough to allow me to hammer/pry wheel off of hub, then remove bolts and hopefully roll away tire. Next install spacer (with loctite) then roll tire back, and mostly reverse procedure. I was hoping I could use the tractor to rotate the hub to match alignment with wheel. tire size is 17.5x24 (4ft tall) so please don't compare to installing spacers on lawn and garden size tractors. How many people does this really take?

I have one other option maybe... I do have a pallet jack, but it is a narrow one (only about 20" from outside to outside, leaving only about 7" of gap between forks) once tractor is jacked up, would I be better off to stick the pallet jack under the tire, and go that way. I would worry about the tire falling off, or tipping the pallet jack sideways since the pallet jack is so narrow.

As always any advice is appreciated.

andy1981 · Nov 15, 2016

Well I just swapped my rear tires around yesterday wich are loaded 17.5 x 24 . I used a jack and two jack stands, one on each rear axle housing, I would not do this without supporting the rear of the tractor on both sides of rear axle as the tractor will want to tip from side to side because of the front axle pivot point. And the rest is just bull work, if your tires are not loaded you should be able to lift the tires onto the hub with a big prybar under the tire. Only jack it up high enough that the tires are barely off th ground.

RedNeckRacin · Nov 15, 2016

Sounds like a solid plan to me. My FIL and I swapped my 16.9-24 loaded tires on my Deere. They were a bear but I just left the tractor in neutral and jacked up each side of the rear axle with bottle jacks. We were able to line things up by rotating the inner dish by hand to get the bolts all started, then snugged them down. If the tire starts falling over, Let it go. I personally would forego the pallet jack unless you were going side to side, and even then, its one more thing moving to complicate things.

motownbrowne · Nov 15, 2016

I have done the loaded 13.6x28s on my Kubota a couple of times. It got a lot easier when I learned about using a "grease board". Basically, in my experience, getting them off was easy, but reinstalling was a bear. So, I took the wheels off, and when I was ready to put them back on, i put a piece of plywood that was liberally smeared with axle grease under the tire. That made it 10x easier to reposition the tire as needed to align the studs. I also employed a long pry bar. I did it myself, but if at all possible, enlist a friend.

dickfoster · Nov 15, 2016

motownbrowne said:
I have done the loaded 13.6x28s on my Kubota a couple of times. It got a lot easier when I learned about using a "grease board". Basically, in my experience, getting them off was easy, but reinstalling was a bear. So, I took the wheels off, and when I was ready to put them back on, i put a piece of plywood that was liberally smeared with axle grease under the tire. That made it 10x easier to reposition the tire as needed to align the studs. I also employed a long pry bar. I did it myself, but if at all possible, enlist a friend.

A grease board! Now there's a nifty tip if I ever heard one. Thanks. It just proves that you can learn something new every day if you're paying attention.

motownbrowne · Nov 15, 2016

dickfoster said:
A grease board! Now there's a nifty tip if I ever heard one. Thanks. It just proves that you can learn something new every day if you're paying attention.

Nifty indeed! Changed the job from an hour per side to about 20 minutes. Also, a lot less sweating and swearing. I can't take credit for it though. I learned it on TBN. Glad I could pass it on, though.

herringchoker · Nov 15, 2016

When I used to change wheel seals on heavy trucks (where you pull the whole dual wheel/tire/hub/brake drum assembly as a unit off the spindle), my version of the greased board was two kids crazy carpets (flexible plastic sleds) with a little oil between them. Real slick...ha! ha!

mad_planter · Nov 16, 2016

I tied a tow strap around it and then to the roll bar of the tractor so if it started to tip it couldn't fall all the way over. Makes it way easier to get it upright again and also cuts down on the possibility of someone getting pinned by it.

motownbrowne · Nov 16, 2016

mad_planter said:
I tied a tow strap around it and then to the roll bar of the tractor so if it started to tip it couldn't fall all the way over. Makes it way easier to get it upright again and also cuts down on the possibility of someone getting pinned by it.

That's a pretty good idea. I had to swap mine side to side to maintain tread direction, so it wouldn't work the whole time, but once you get close, that'd be a good safety precaution.

I did have one tip while I was moving it to the other side. I got out of the way just fine, but it was NOT easy getting it back up again!

powerscol · Nov 16, 2016

Are you working on a smooth concrete floor that is level? Local agg tire shop uses the pallet jack all the time. They take them off and put them on using it - but they have had a lot of practice. When you install the spacer, use some non seize stuff on the back, and same for the tire rim - that way they are not rust welded down the road. Good luck. You do have a helper dont you - this is a two person job - especially for safety.