Jubilee Tractor wheels are leaking

ValNelson

New User
The rear wheel on my '53 Golden Jubilee is leaking fluid (clearly the tires are filled with a liquid), and after so many years the wheels have begun to rust. My plan is to have someone (Les Schwabs) sandblast and powder coat the rims. Unfortunately it is very expensive to have them come out and pull the wheels, so I really need to get the tires/wheels to them but I'm worried they will be too heavy for me to remove. What does a tire filled with liquid weigh? Will I be able to do this by myself? Other options? Thanks in advance!!
 
Depends on tire size and what is in there, but 225-300lbs each plus tire and rim will get you close.
 

My 53 had 14.9x 24 on it. The 64 4000 I am rebuilding has the same size tires on it but their wore out. The 64 tractor I picked up
for parts had the same size and in better shape, so when I swapped them I weighed them. the old ones weighed 215 and the
newer ones 635. Don't know what is in them, don't really care as
as they don't leak, yet.
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I did one last year. I removed the wheels from the tractor and with my son's help stood them up against posts and removed the centers and drained the CaCl and yes, it will kill grass. Once drained and the center separated they aren't too hard to handle.
 
How did you drain the calcium? Just pull out the pin in the valve stem? The local tire shop pumps the stuff out - and then removes the wheel from the tractor. Can I let the calcium rain onto my gravel driveway? Thanks!!
 
If you are anywhere it gets below 32F in winter for any length of time, your tires are filled with a Calcium Chloride solution to prevent freezing.

There will be anywhere from 225-350lbs of liquid in each tire depending on the size of the tire, and how full it is. My range is based on 11.2x28 to 13.6x28 tires. Overall you are looking at weights of 400-500lbs including tire, rim, and ballast.

http://www.messicks.com/blog/post/Liquid-Tire-Ballast-Chart.aspx

You will not be able to handle them by yourself and get them into the truck without a hoist or a tractor with a loader.

Ideally they should be drained of liquid before you remove them from the tractor. I suspect Les Schwab will take one look at the tires and say, "W-T-F are we supposed to do with these?"

Hindsight being 20/20, you should have addressed the leaking IMMEDIATELY. It is very likely that your rims are shot, and will need to be replaced. After sandblasting there will be many holes.
 
My experience in dealing with corrosion in industry is that any time you sandblast rusty metal due to salts you are driving the salts into the clean metal and it can't be removed. The metal may look clean but will start to corrode under new paint. Better off getting new wheels and getting rid of the calcium chloride. If you need the additional weight use cast iron.
 
yeah, I just pulled the valve stem out. didn't get ti all but made them manageable. as for the driveway, I guess it depends on where you live
 
I have to agree with "wgm" in his response. I have a tractor I restored and the rear tires leaked CaCl solution out and the rims were corroded. The guy I worked with on the restoration told me had just one tractor he learned this lesson on. He had sandblasted the rear rims and prepared them diligently for primer and finish coating. The corrosion bled through the paint and they had to replace the rims. He won't do this again. I think you better plan on starting from scratch on those rims.
 
Do not take the tires and rims off the tractor, take them the whole thing. It is so much easier to fix and work on rear tractor tires while they are on the tractor. Spent 20+ years doing them.
 
(quoted from post at 10:50:43 09/13/17) My experience in dealing with corrosion in industry is that any time you sandblast rusty metal due to salts you are driving the salts into the clean metal and it can't be removed. The metal may look clean but will start to corrode under new paint. Better off getting new wheels and getting rid of the calcium chloride. If you need the additional weight use cast iron.

WGM, that is an interesting hypothesis but I am not buying it. Push salt into steel by hitting it with grains of blast media? Sorry, it ain't happening. I will tell you what does happen. Any steel that has advanced rusting, or corrosion, whatever you care to call it, is going to have pits. Pits will be of a wide range of depth and width. some will be deep enough with a small enough bottom that the blast media cannot possibly clean out the very bottom.There will be a little rust there that is trapped under the paint that will eventually come back out. I have had it happen in just two years from when blast. The solution is proper application of phosphoric acid to neutralize the rust.
 
If they are already standard 6 loop rims and rusted badly, I'd
replace them. If they are the original "hat" rims that aren't made
anymore, I would spend a little more time trying to fix them.

This is a "hat" rim with 11.2 x 28 tire on one of my Jubilees.
11.2 x 28 would be the modern (non-radial) equivalent of original.
I have 13.6 x 28 tires on 6 loop rims on another Jubilee.
They are loaded with Chloride and do not leak.
Chloride doesn't rust rims. Leaks + procrastination rusts rims.
I would put the 13.6's at close to 600 lbs a piece with center.
I can roll them around by myself, but no way I could pick one
up if it ever fell over. Hopefully they never fall over on top of me.

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When you get the wheel off the tractor roll it a little ways away from the tractor on level ground without any rocks or bumps. When you are rolling a heavy wheel, going over one rock or bump will throw the wheel to one side or another, not good. Then screw the big valve core out with the wheel rotated so the valve core is on top. Now drop the wheel flat on it's face on the ground with the valve down toward the ground and walk away. Come back in a half hour and the majority of the fluid will be out of the wheel and on the ground. Then you can pick up the wheel and roll it away.
 
"It is so much easier to fix and work on rear tractor tires while they are on the tractor."

Yes, that is definitely true in many cases. When my tire guy
comes out, he doesn't take the rim/center off the tractor.
Simply jacks it up, takes the fluid out and takes the tire off.

But him coming out is a rare occasion. Most of my tractors have
tires less than 14.9 x 28, so I can move/handle them myself.
I replace with my spare tires and rims when needed and end up taking
him a trailer load of rear rims and tires to repair, maybe some fronts too.
I pull the trailer around back where he tells me to and just drop the trailer.

I'm in no rush. He gets to them when he can and calls when done.
He has big farmers and other customers to take care of; I'm small potatoes.

They are a full service shop. Car, pickup and truck tires plus
repair on all of the above. They even fix motorhomes there.

I'm pretty sure he wouldn't appreciate a half dozen of my small
tractors setting there in his way at a time.
I do see tractors there a lot, but usually one at a time.

If I were going to take the whole tractor in, I'd be sure to
arrange that in advance so he and I were on the same page.
 

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