Rusted Wheel repair on ZL 1500-A

HelluvaEngineer

New member
Aug 2, 2010
4
0
0
Atlanta, GA
Hi everyone. I have a very old ZL 1500-A that has served me well for a few years, but I haven't done a great job of protecting it from the elements. I recently had a front tire tube fail on me. I replaced it with a tube from TSC and it soon failed too. So, I figured I had a bigger issue.

I pulled both wheels and the tires and tubes. There was significant pitting on the inside. I figured the wheels deserved a good AL oxide blast in my cabinet followed by some primer and a new paint job (this time in orange on the outside not just the inside).

As I blasted around the hole for the tube valve stem, unfortunately it quickly grew. There was a lot of corrosion in this area. Looking online this seems fairly common and a recommended fix is welding in a washer. I'd like to do the same (I'll probably braze it) but now I'm not sure where I should center the hole in the washer.

Looking at some pics online it looks like I should center it in the vertical side portion of the wheel. I'm just concerned though that my replacement tube seems to have a stem coming out at about a 30 degree angle. It seems like that wouldn't be the correct angle unless the idea is that the stem settles lower down in the "bead" of the wheel when inflated.

Any guidance or perhaps pictures of similar repairs? Thanks in advance!
 

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BigG

Well-known member

Equipment
l2501, FEL, BB, Rotary cutter, rake,spreader, roller, etc. New Holland TL80 A
Sep 14, 2018
1,950
774
113
West Central,FL
Not to sound like a smart a** but can you use the other side as a model to show you where to put the hole?

If not I would file the edge of the hole until you have some good meat to weld/braze the washer. Mount the tube and tire, while using a lot of baby powder, then place the washer over the stem of the tube. Using a marker trace the washer and break the tire down. Weld / braze as needed. A little paint and you should be good to go.

Good luck!

You might get a fender washer so you have a better chance of getting some good steel on the rim.
 

Dave_eng

Well-known member
Lifetime Member

Equipment
M7040, Nuffield 465
Oct 6, 2012
5,106
926
113
Williamstown Ontario Canada
Suggest you drill a new hole in the best area of the rim and just focus filling in the old hole.

There is nothing unique in the hole location on a low speed wheel.

Dave
 

shootem604

Member
Lifetime Member

Equipment
L245DT with Kubota (Arps Model 22) FEL and Kubota B/L4520B (Woods 650) BH
Apr 23, 2018
875
18
18
British Columbia
Yep, I had a rusted out valve stem hole on my rear rim due to the calcium chloride; welded over the hole with a nice 4"x4" piece of plate, then drilled a hole in the plate for the stem. Or just drill elsewhere after you weld over it.
 

GeoHorn

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Lifetime Member

Equipment
M4700DT, LA1002FEL, Ferguson5-8B Compactor-Roller, 10KDumpTrailer, RTV-X900
May 18, 2018
5,570
2,936
113
Texas
I had badly rusted out rims and wire-wheeled the area and filled with JB-Weld, then used a unibit to cut a new hole thru the JB Weld area. It’s lasted now for 18 years.