Ballast Wheel weights

Boondox · Feb 4, 2001

I want my tires loaded, but with five dogs I have concerns about them getting into the anti-freeze if a valve stem should get ripped off. Anybody out there use lead weights or that new foam fill I've heard about..?

Pete

Yearning for a bigger tractor!

Bird · Feb 4, 2001

Pete, I haven't used it, but know of a dealer who uses the foam in his rental fleet. He told me it was about $500 for the tires on a B7100. And I don't remember the exact price now, but went with my brother-in-law to see what it would cost to have the foam put in his old Ford 8N and it was more than the tire cost at that time; nearly 6 years ago.

Bird

Anonymous Poster · Feb 5, 2001

Pete,
Have you done a search on TBN for RimGuard?

Non-toxic(and won't sterilize your soil) beet "juice" product...weight similar to calcium/very-low freeze point, etc.

HTH /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif,

Larry

bpence · Feb 5, 2001

There are a few posts around that deal with using bar-bell weights on rear tires. I use them and they're easy to install or remove, inexpensive to buy, and readily available. You can easily add 100-150 lbs per wheel. Might so a search on wheel weights.

Bob Pence

Anonymous Poster · Feb 5, 2001

PETE,
I PUT 275# ON EACH WHEEL OF MY B2710 USING BARBELL WEIGHTS. WORKS VERY WELL.
FRED

Harv · Feb 5, 2001

I PUT 275# ON EACH WHEEL

Wow, Fred! /w3tcompact/icons/shocked.gif

That's like 6 45-pound plates! Any chance you got a picture of that?

BTW - my L2500 manual recommends a maximum of 185 pounds of wheel weights per wheel. What's it say for a 2710? And does anybody know what these limits are based on?

Inquiring minds want to know... /w3tcompact/icons/crazy.gif

Anonymous Poster · Feb 5, 2001

Re: Wheel weights/Good buy!

Good question, Harv.

I was wondering the same thing about the (similar but different weight) limits shown in my 4700 manual.

Maybe it has to do with all that mass tearing out the 4 "bolt-hole" attatchment points thru the wheel "web"!? It seems that "impact" loads from bumps, etc., could cause some terrific stress on that 3/16-1/4 inch metal.

Any other ideas?

I've got some 4' thick x 12' square blocks of tool steel (!) that I'm planning to make mounting brackets for.

Each weighs 180 lbs. Plan to put 2 (360 lbs,) on each rear wheel.
They will still be inside the wheel-recess, and so won't "stick-out" to snag things. [May just use 1-per-side, though, since the specs. call for a max of 2 (110 lb) wts., or 220 lbs. per wheel. My tires (Michelin XM27) are already 75 lbs (each) heavier than stock R1s, so with one block I would have 255 Lbs. /wheel over "stock".... probably should stop there!]

Got them for <25 cents per lb. at Boeing Surplus in Kent, Wa., near Seattle. Such a deal!! /w3tcompact/icons/laugh.gif They had about 10 left as of 2/3/01. ...weren't moving real fast!

The guy said it was worth about $5 per lb. That's about a 95% discount. Seems Boeing wastes nearly as much money as the US govt.

Have 4 additional to use for front or rear-mount ballast (720 lbs.)...or 6(1080 lbs.) if I only use 1 on each rear wheel. Any extras make great "anvils" or killer-supreme paperweights! /w3tcompact/icons/shocked.gif

(Also picked-up 3 welded 2x2 box-tube metal work-bench frames-to-kill-for, 8 ft. x 3 ft. x 32" high (no tops), painted, wired for elec, plumbed for air, that must weigh 400 lbs apiece, for $15 each.... they've got a heck of a salvage yard!!)

It pays to look around!

Larry

markcg2000 · Feb 5, 2001

Re: Wheel weights/Good buy!

I was going to let this slide, but I just couldn't....
I've got some 4' thick x 12' square blocks of tool steel

feet? /w3tcompact/icons/wink.gif/w3tcompact/icons/blush.gif

mark

DFB · Feb 5, 2001

Re: Wheel weights/Good buy!

I wondered about the stress around the bolt hole too. When I mounted my wheel weights I reinforced the area using flat washers between the bolt head and the rim. I had to get my own bolts/nuts washers for the 4100 because the wheel bolt kit from JD uses carriage style bolts and the 4100 has round holes

Some wheels are designed to use carriage bolts so you don't have to hold the bolt from turning when you go to tighten things it up.

DFB

Bird · Feb 5, 2001

Harv, I haven't seen any mention of wheel weights in the B2710 manual. It says front end weights should be limited to 275#, and then says "Add weight to rear wheels if need to improve traction or stability. The amount of rear ballast should be matched to job and the ballast should be removed when it is not needed. The weight should be added to the tractor in the form of liquid ballast." Can't you just imagine using liquid ballast and removing it when not needed?/w3tcompact/icons/laugh.gif But their chart for calcium indicates a maximum of about 207# per tire.

Bird

Anonymous Poster · Feb 5, 2001

Re: Wheel weights/Good buy!

Mark,

Yeah,... It's just that the "Smith system of measurement" uses "feet" that are 1/12th the length of conventional ones! /w3tcompact/icons/laugh.gif

Thanks for catching my typo... they can be fun to play with, though.

Let's see.. 180 lbs. per 1/3 cu. ft. -- 4x12x12(feet) = 576 cu. ft., x3=1728(3rds), x180(lbs. per 3rd)=371THOUSAND and 40 lbs.!!....PER TIRE!! (IF I did the math right)

Guess I better stick with just 1 weight per side /w3tcompact/icons/shocked.gif

Larry
( but a measly 3000 lbs. or so in my loader sure isn't gonna tip this baby over!!)

Harv · Feb 5, 2001

Bird -

These 'Bota manuals seem to be a never-ending source of entertainment. /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

Although skimpy in many areas, it treats wheel weights and liquid ballast separately (see attachment).

Also, the workshop manual says specifically to not fill the front tires. Not that I was ever planning on doing that, but what do you suppose that is all about?

Bird · Feb 5, 2001

Harv, that's a very similar page to my manual, but you've got 24" tires and I've only got 16" ones, so mine makes no mention of wheel weights. And a year or so ago, I wondered about the admonition against putting ballast in the front tires; right after I had filled mine with water and anti-freeze, and if I remember right (which you wouldn't want to bet on) someone on the forum (one of the Kubota dealers or mechanics) said something about binding gears if you operated it in 4WD on a hard surface, so I didn't worry about it. However, when I ripped a valve stem out of the right front wheel, pushing a brush pile, and lost all the liquid ballast out of that front tire, I took it out of the other one also.

Bird

DFB · Feb 5, 2001

Harv,

Can't say if any of this info can be applied to 'Bota owning, but in my manual under Determing Maximum Front Ballast John Deere first cautions not to overload the tires and then says; To extend drivetrain life, and to avoid excessive soil compaction and rolling resistance, avoid ballasting for continuous full power operations at ground speeds below 4.4 mph. (or 7 km/h for you metric guys)

DFB

Anonymous Poster · Feb 5, 2001

Fred,

Not for nothing.... but don't you kinda get a "wobble" going top speed? How did you mount and space them on the wheel so they'd be somewhat balanced? I know we're talking a tractor tire here with "275lb." wheel weights and not an automobile tire with "2 oz." wheel weight... but it's seems a little dangerous... /w3tcompact/icons/crazy.gif

At least an "overpriced" factory designed wheel weight mounts somewhat symmetrical onto the wheel.

I'd love to see a picture of how these things are mounted. I'd had to see you hurt yourself.

john_bud · Feb 5, 2001

Harv,
I saw your attachment and looked up the same section in the Grand L owners' manual. Guess what? Same spec. 185 lbs per wheel maximum. I am guessing, but it must have something to do with the strength of the steel wheel itself or the torque loading on the bearings. The liquid ballast in the tires can go up to 585 lbs per tire, so it's not the raw weight!

Hmmm I wonder what the real story is...

John Bud

bpence · Feb 6, 2001

I put a post in the Photos Forum on 12/06/2000 (B7100 - wheel weights) that shows the brackets I made to hold bar-bell weights on our B7100. They've been on the tractor since last fall with no problems. Through all the bouncing around and spinning of tires that happens in snow removal, nothing has loosened up. I run up and down the road between neighbors near top speed. The photo shows the set up for 2-25 lb weights per side. I use a longer pipe nipple to install 4-25 lb weights per side for most usage. The weights don't wobble or move. Best of all, the whole set up was easy to build and inexpensive. If you have larger wheels, you could probably go to 50 lb weight plates vs. 25 lb plates. I just didn't have room.

Bob Pence

Anonymous Poster · Feb 6, 2001

HARV,
THAT'S (5) 25# + (3) 50# BARBELL WEIGHTS TO BE EXACT. THEY EXTEND OUT PAST THE RIM 4". THEY HAVE BEEN ON THE TRACTOR OVER A YEAR AND I HAVE NEVER HIT OR BUMPED ANYTHING WITH THEM. ( I KNOW THEY ARE THERE AND OPERATE THE MACHINE WITH THAT IN MIND)
A 1/2" FLANGE PLATE WAS MADE WITH THRU HOLES FOR THE WHEEL STUDS. A 1" NUT WAS THEN RECESSED AND WELDED IN THE CENTER OF THE PLATE. THE WHEEL STUDS ARE THEN REMOVED, THE PLATE INSTALLED OVER THE STUDS AND HELD ON WITH THE WHEEL STUDS AND NUTS.
BECAUSE THE WEIGHTS HAVE A 1" BORE THEY SLIDE OVER THE 1" THREADED ROD NICELY AND ARE THEREFORE CENTERED.THE OUTSIDE NUT HOLDS ALL THE WEIGHTS ON. THEY HAVE NEVER MOVED NOR HAVE I EVER HAD TO TIGHTEN THEM.(NO WOBBLE!)
I USE TO HAVE A COUNTER WEIGHT ON THE 3PH BUT FOUND IT MORE TROUBLE THAN IT WAS WORTH WHEN WORKING BETWEEN TREES AND SMALL PLACES.
FRED

Harv · Feb 6, 2001

Fred -

That sounds like quite a setup. I'm sure many of us would like to see a picture. /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

Thanks for the detailed explanation, but YOU DON'T HAVE TO SHOUT! /w3tcompact/icons/shocked.gif

Sorry -- that was meant to be humorous sarcasm about your all upper-case message. /w3tcompact/icons/blush.gif

Anonymous Poster · Feb 6, 2001

Fred,

You may make a believer out of me yet! /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

I had visions of these barbell weights "just plain bolted on" wherever they may fit on the wheel. Sounds like a pretty inexpensive setup.

Rear wheel weights (or loaded tires) add stability to a tractor, but I would still use some ballast on the 3-pt. hitch. Using a 3-pt ballast takes some stress off the front axle and tires and can actually "increase" your loader capacity. On a smaller wheelbase (compact) tractor, it's even more pronounced.

If you get a chance, post some pictures. I'd love to see them.