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clooney
09-29-2000 16:49:14
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Re: Changing Rims in reply to Frank, 09-28-2000 20:45:05
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Frank, this might be long. The first thing to do is take pictures of the rim to center position, rivet looks & weld position. Then set the rim flat on the cement & measure the height to the center from both sides(write it down with a little sketch) Then look inside the rim in the center where the tube goes & find & clean the rivet ends (they will be swaged flat & are hard to find) you will probably have to wire brush or sand or sand blast the areas (look for the rivets on the outside & find them on the inside) once found drill a hole 3/4 way through them (be careful you don't want to drill too deep as it makes them harder to get them out) a 1/4" hole will do, then use a bigger drill bit & drill the swaged inner end off (inside the tube area), then use a punch to drive them out. Once all the rivets are out (I think there are 3 in each bent part of the center that touches the rim) carefully grind the welds from the edges of the center where they are welded to the rim, then drive the center from the rim, if the center won't come out easily cut the old rim to split it. Once the center is out clean it & de-rust it, then take a file or grinder & lightly remove the burr & raised spots at the old rivet holes (be careful not to remove too much metal so you don't lose the tight press fit of the center, once the center is cleaned up you have to drive it into the new rim. Take the measurements you have from the old rim & make 4 wood blocks that will stop the center at the correct height when you drive it in (it might be best to make the 4 blocks to fit the old rim before you take it apart) Making sure the valve stem is on the correct side drive the center in using a wood block on the top of the center & drive it evenly all the way around until it hits the 4 wood blocks, try to get it as close as possible to straight & as close as possible to the original position, then bolt it on the tractor & spin the rim (with the engine if possible)if not by hand, use a cement block or some other heavy object to hold a china marker or other form of marker to mark the high spots on the rim (move the block in towards the rim a little at a time until it just starts to mark the high spots on the rim, then use a block of wood or rubber mallet to tap (more like drive) the rim in at the high spot until it spins as straight as possible (note: the new rim probably isn't perfectly straight so it will be hard to get it perfect) just get it as straight as you can (if you spin the original before taking it apart you will see it isn't perfect either), once you have the rim straight put a small tack weld the at each of the 4 places it was originally welded (just a small one at each spot), then re-spin it and re-check runout, once you are sure it is straight go ahead & weld the 4 original places just as like the original. Now there are a couple of ways to rivet the rim to the center but you will have a hard time trying to drill the holes from the center side & you won't be able to line the holes up from the tube side so the way I do it is to CAREFULLY (with a mig welder) puddle weld the holes from the center side to look like big spot welds, then use a right angle sander to smooth the welds out, then you will be able to see the welds from the tube side (the welds will leave nice blue circles on the inside of the rim), then I center punch & drill 3/8" holes from the tube side all the way through to the center side, then I use a 45* hole chamfering (sp?)tool (but you could probably use a big drill bit) to open the holes on the tube side to look like the original 45* counter bore (caution don't drill too deep) then I use 3/8"X1/2" long round head rivets (the last time I did a rim I couldn't find 3/8"X1/2" rivets & had to cut longer ones down to 1/2" long)..... Now the fun part starts----- Find yourself a piece of railroad rail about 2-3' long & with the rounded top of the rail up drill a 5/8" hole in the top about 1/2" from the end & about 3/8" deep (use a rivet as a guide to make the depression in the rail), now place the rail on top of your work bench, table or other place at least a couple feet off the floor & let it hang over the edge a few inches, now clamp, nail or somehow attach 2 2X4's about 2-3' apart & running vertical from the top of your bench to the floor (they are used to rest the bottom of the rim against as the top of the rim rests on a rivet in the depression of the rail) "if this isn't clear E-mail me", now adjust the rail in or out until the rim sits perfectly vertical & the bottom of the rim sits against the 2X4's, now lay a heavy object (I use a bag of sand) on top of the rail or bolt it down to the bench. At this time the wheel should have a rivet in the hole at the top & the rivet should be in the depression in the rail & the rim should be stable (if it is you did it right), now I use an air chisel with a 1/2" straight shank bit in it (looks like a 1/2" straight punch) to set the rivets but you could use a hammer & punch to do it, the air chisel does a great job but don't use it early in the morning if you have any neighbors that live closer than a mile from you!, once the rivets are all set use a grinder or sander to smooth the rivets where the tube sits so you don't puncture the tube when it is re-installed...I have had good success using this method & the rims look like production when done. If you have any questions re-post or E-Mail me.
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