Anyone ever made their own wheel weights?

[Uncle Buck 246]

I wondered if any of the regulars here ever made their own wheel weights? I am not talking about poured concrete, brake drums filled etc. I am talking about turning a set out of steel on a lathe. I have about settled on making my own front weights. I figure to make a set for both the front and back side of each rim and mill out the space for the valve stem. drill them out and bolt them clear through.

 

While I am at it I figure to put on a set of tri ribs and fluid fill them. If that isn't enough to give me the steering I want I will next look at fabricating up a holder and bolting a stack of steel to the front, but I am hoping the tires, fluid and weights will be enough to give me better control steering.

 

I don't want to do the roller chain thing. So back to my original question. Has anyone here lathe turned their own wheel weight set for their tractor? I found nothing doing a Google search on the subject.

[AMC RULES 37,125]

Flip your rims, put the valve stem on the inside. 

Save youself some work, and clean up the design of your weights. 

[smoreau 658]

Many have made them with lead from melting old wheel weights, Dukes got a thread on this when he made them for his 520 snow chucker.

 

 

 

 

found it  

Edited February 8, 2014 by smoreau

[roscoemi 245]

I have a set on the rear of mine made by the original owner who was a machinist. There is a smaller set to bolt to the outside of them that I may make into front weights in the spring. With the rears loaded and the bigger weights, I have no traction problems. I can get some pics and measurements over the weekend and post them for you if you want.

[Uncle Buck 246]

I have a set on the rear of mine made by the original owner who was a machinist. There is a smaller set to bolt to the outside of them that I may make into front weights in the spring. With the rears loaded and the bigger weights, I have no traction problems. I can get some pics and measurements over the weekend and post them for you if you want.

I ended up finding a heavy set of rear weights clearance at Sears so I have the back end covered. I am planning on making only the front weights.

 

I would still like to see pics of your weights, that sounds cool.

Edited February 8, 2014 by Uncle Buck

[Uncle Buck 246]

Flip your rims, put the valve stem on the inside. 

Save youself some work, and clean up the design of your weights. 

Won't matter in the end because I plan on making weights that fit both the front and back sides of the rim and then bolting the front weights through the rim and to the weights on the back side of the rims so either way I will be milling out a slot to accommodate the valve stem, but thanks for the tip anyway!

[AMC RULES 37,125]

Interesting idea too, can't wait to see 'em.  

[Uncle Buck 246]

Interesting idea too, can't wait to see 'em.  

It won't happen overnight, I work slow, so so slow! LOL

[AMC RULES 37,125]

Good  work is always...

well worth the wait. 

[bewford 21]

I bought some steel plate that was already cut into rounds, then just drilled the mounting holes in them, they are about 50 or 55 pounds 1 and half or so thick if I remember right

[ericj 1,578]

you know everybody is always talking about the front tires pushing on their tractors, well on weds  i was plowing 1 1/2" to 2" of sleet and frozen rain with a 96 Chevy diesel p/u with a western snow plow at work and that was pushing the front of the truck enough that i was at least counter steering if not just plain going broad side through the first pass. my point is it don't matter what you plow with under right conditions you will have some front end push.

  i learned a long time ago that when i had 6" or 7" of wet heavy snow that i wanted to push i just switched to a 42" plow instead of a 48" or just kept the blade straight or both. now i have a 44" 2 stage blower on a 520-H that i will NEVER get rid of. it never seems amaze me on what it will do. i only keep my mtd pos walk behind snow blower for clean up duty or in case god forbid some thing happen to me and the wife and kids would have to remove the snow. they could handle it better and they wouldn't plow half of the yard as i do lol

 

 

 

eric j   

[Uncle Buck 246]

you know everybody is always talking about the front tires pushing on their tractors, well on weds  i was plowing 1 1/2" to 2" of sleet and frozen rain with a 96 Chevy diesel p/u with a western snow plow at work and that was pushing the front of the truck enough that i was at least counter steering if not just plain going broad side through the first pass. my point is it don't matter what you plow with under right conditions you will have some front end push.

  i learned a long time ago that when i had 6" or 7" of wet heavy snow that i wanted to push i just switched to a 42" plow instead of a 48" or just kept the blade straight or both. now i have a 44" 2 stage blower on a 520-H that i will NEVER get rid of. it never seems amaze me on what it will do. i only keep my mtd pos walk behind snow blower for clean up duty or in case god forbid some thing happen to me and the wife and kids would have to remove the snow. they could handle it better and they wouldn't plow half of the yard as i do lol

 

eric j  

I will admit, for this part of the country the conditions were a rare 13" snow, the 3rd deepest snow on record in Topeka history. I have a 42" blade and at the time of the snow only chains, no weight front or rear. As for plowing with the blade set straight ahead my 857 was pushing 13" without hesitation or complaint. Setting the blade to an angle was out of the question for all but the lightest of passes and only for finish cleanup of edges. What was absolutely frustrating was trying to turn the tractor around at the end of the street after plowing a block of sidewalk. With the blade raised and simply trying to turn the machine around was a total nightmare, I would be wallowing around for five minutes or more trying to coax the machine to turn left or right with the blade raised in the unplowed city street finally getting it turned around and pointed where I wanted it. That describes how the whole day went, as long as the blade was set straight ahead  and I was plowing I was fine, angled blade, don't even think about it, turn around in the unplowed snow with the blade raised, forget that too.

 

Granted, it was a lot of snow I was plowing but I also made multiple passes as the snow was falling so most of the time I was plowing 3-6 inches for some of it. It would turn around most of the time except for the really deep unplowed stuff. Like as not I will never really have need for all the weight and tri ribs etc. for many more years but after that experience I want better control if the issue comes up again.

Edited February 8, 2014 by Uncle Buck

[Tankman 3,518]

Long carriage bolts, concrete, pick a pair of brake drums from your local junqu­­­e yard.

 

 

[876wheelhorse 46]

what truck are those drums out of? i really like the way that looks prob easy weights but whats the weight on them

[ericj 1,578]

Granted, it was a lot of snow I was plowing but I also made multiple passes as the snow was falling so most of the time I was plowing 3-6 inches for some of it. It would turn around most of the time except for the really deep unplowed stuff. Like as not I will never really have need for all the weight and tri ribs etc. for many more years but after that experience I want better control if the issue comes up again.

 

 

how do you think a car would have turned in deep snow like that, it would have pushed some to and it weight a lot more and has bigger tires. the point i'm trying to make is your front tires are only 16" tall and the front of the tractor only weighs less than 300# so the deep snow or any slippery surface is going to cause your front end to push, while you can do thing to help lessen this you probably won't eliminate it, just the nature of the beast. i know  that it is a pain some time u just have to decide do you want to live with it or do many of the things people talk about on here like the bike chains on the front tires, tri-ribs or extra weight or multi solutions . for me i just live with it. i don't have it happen enough to worry that much about but that's my 2 cents worth. hope i didn't offend any body because i sure don't mean to

 

 

eric j  

[Wheel-N-It 2,968]

I set out to make some one time. Got the left side done after wasting a whole afternoon and about $50 dollars worth of drill bitss. Said the heck with it and went and bought a pair. That was alot easier.

[Racinbob 11,030]

Years ago when we still lived in Indiana a friend showed up one day and said he had something he thought I could use. The shop where he worked just acquired a new machine and he had been playing with it. What he brought were two solid round pieces of steel the perfect diameter to fit inside the rim. The cut was perfect. They completely filled the rim and the thickness brought them flush with the outside edge. They weighed 88# each. I drilled and tapped four holes (I think 3/8") and ran a piece of threaded rod in each one. I 'jammed' the rod with a nut so it would provide a small spacer. I also made a handle for they to assist in the installation/removal process. The handle did protrude outside the rim. I could have unbolted the handles but they didn't bother me and I know the next time I needed them I wouldn't be able to find them. I left them on my 76 C160 year round as well as the factory front weights.