homemade concrete wheel weights

[can whlvr 991]

i needed to do something with the 414 with the blower on it because i was getting stuck when backing up,i dont have the cash to buy iron ones like the c160 i have wears,they are wheelhorse weights and cost me plenty,and i have never seen another set up here anyway,no one wants to get rid of them i guess,so i cast some in concrete,i was mixing some fort a job so i got ready and poured these for free when i poured the floor,they are 55 a peice on the rears and 20 for the fronts,i know they arnt pretty but MAN WHAT A DIFFERENCE,i put 25 pound a peice on my 300 with the 55s on the rear and i coulnt beleive the differece,i could steer this thing and push frozen snow and ice like never before,then the weights got put on the 414 on the rear and it is incredible,drives just like when the plow is on,here are some pics

[stevebo-(Moderator) 8,034]

That works !! Looks good. If you paint them up they will look fine.

[Suburban 550 28]

Don, they don't have to look good as long as they work out and add to your traction. From the pictures, they don't look bad at all. :notworthy:

[Trailman 0]

Unbelievable. Just yesterday I got to wondering if I couldn't make some wheel weights out of concrete and look what I find today. Thanks for the answer but I'm wondering if you used any mesh or re-bar when you built them.

[rickv1957 70]

Don,your weights look just fine!,Rick

[dgjks6 6]

they look great, but how do you attach them? Do you put tubes in the wet concrete? Drill? And where do you get bolts that long?

[Duff 206]

And where do you get bolts that long?

Some hardware stores carry extra long carriage bolts, as do manufacturers and builders of log homes......

Duff :notworthy:

[W9JAB 156]

:thumbs:

very clever

:notworthy:

[can whlvr 991]

thanks guys,there is half inch electrical conduit that i drilled the bottem of the pail on the bolt pattern,made a jig for the top of pail that holds the bolts in the conduit in place,i used air entrained high strenth concrete,i put no mesh or rebar in,there wasnt alot of room for it and you dont really need it,u can put it in if u like,i like the price though,if i get a few seasons i will be happy,then i will make a better mold,its so amazing the front grab with the weights on the front.

[tgranthamfd 28]

How did you get he concrete to release from the bucket, does it just not stick to the plastic? I was thinking about useing an old wheel for a mold, but haven't quite figured out how to release it.

[KB9LOR 4]

How did you get he concrete to release from the bucket, does it just not stick to the plastic? I was thinking about useing an old wheel for a mold, but haven't quite figured out how to release it.

I know the place I used to work we had to make a funnel like deal so molten alloy could go into the furnace, we used vaseline to coat all the inside of the mold, then you just slipped it out, I am gonna try that when it gets warmer, I have a old WH rim to try it on.(this was with concrete too)

[can whlvr 991]

i tried pouring concrete in to a rim,used oil and plastic and i tried everything to get it out,a sledge hammer,tried to press it out,had to jack hammer it out,the plastic pail was cut off to get it off,i just used a knife and peeled it off.

[Iggy68 28]

Use Kerosene or deisel fuel mixed with a little bit of tranny fluid. Spray the bucket using a hand sprayer. Spray the bucket down right before you pour the crete. I have seen foundation guys with wood forms do this and it works pretty well.

[pbradley68 1]

i tried pouring concrete in to a rim,used oil and plastic and i tried everything to get it out,a sledge hammer,tried to press it out,had to jack hammer it out,the plastic pail was cut off to get it off,i just used a knife and peeled it off.

I wonder if it were to be taken outside in the cold and turned it upside down if it would pop out from the cold contraction. Another option would be to put a tube on the inside of the rim before pouring so that compressed air could be blown in from the inside of the rim to maybe push it out. It could be the oil caused a vacuum. (all just guesses)

[HorseBreaker 0]

Hi: Been looking at wheel weights myself & came up with the idea of filling the tyres with water,

I just broke a small section of the bead seal near the valve on one side tilted the wheel slightly so the valve was at the highest point. then poured the water/anti-freeze mix through the gap between the wheel & tyre, with the valve core removed when the water comes out of the valve the tyre is full, replace the valve core & inflate the tyre with air to reseal the bead, I recon I got about 25 litres in each tyre, so a lot of weight.

Does anyone know if this has the same efect as fitting wheel weights? I don't have weights so can't compare the two methods!

[Dw Andy 0]

i tried pouring concrete in to a rim,used oil and plastic and i tried everything to get it out,a sledge hammer,tried to press it out,had to jack hammer it out,the plastic pail was cut off to get it off,i just used a knife and peeled it off.

I know the plastic pail is too large in diameter and don't fit in the wheel very far. But with the pail removed does the wieght fit all the way into the wheel ? I found some tin cans that originally were filled with popcorn , to be a close fit in the wheel (1/4 " clearence all the way around)

[Dw Andy 0]

I just had to get some wieght on here ina hurry, It still took me all day

:thumbs:

[pfrederi 17,129]

Hi: Been looking at wheel weights myself & came up with the idea of filling the tyres with water,

I just broke a small section of the bead seal near the valve on one side tilted the wheel slightly so the valve was at the highest point. then poured the water/anti-freeze mix through the gap between the wheel & tyre, with the valve core removed when the water comes out of the valve the tyre is full, replace the valve core & inflate the tyre with air to reseal the bead, I recon I got about 25 litres in each tyre, so a lot of weight.

Does anyone know if this has the same efect as fitting wheel weights? I don't have weights so can't compare the two methods!

Farmers have filled tractor tires with fluid for many years as it is cheaper than cast iron weights. Water weighs about 8.4 lbs per gal so you got about 40 lbs. (I believe that anti-freeze is slightly lighter than water.

[d180man 5]

Hi looks nice great job! :banghead:

[bork 0]

I dont know why I didn't think of this sooner. Pour lead in wheel, it wont stick. I'll have to price out lead, & see if my pot burner tank is still full, or else it is outta date for refill. May have to get a retest.

[Save Old Iron 1,563]

Don,

Could you take a face on pic of the rear weights.

My concern is how close the attachment tubes are to the outside of the weights.

Seems like they are within a fraction of an inch of the outside of the pour.

Thanks

[can whlvr 991]

ill get some pics later but the tubes are close to the out side,so far ok but if i hit them alot they will fail,i needed weight now and didnt have time to make a form to replcate the rim,as i stated ealier i tried to pour one in a rim and couldnt get it out period.i would prefer the iron ones like on my c160,but around here they are very scarce,i have only seen one set of iron wheelhorse weights and i saw them on a listing only 2 minutes old,and immediatly drove and bought them

[bork 0]

Wow ! How much do the steel ones weigh?

[Save Old Iron 1,563]

Don ,

how about this

lay the tire / rim flat

lay a 3/4" plywood square (orange) down on the rim, cut out a hole in the plywood to allow a 5 gal plastic bucket (red) to bottom out in the rim but come even with the top of the plywood square.

create a plywood "ring" and after centering it with the rim, attach the ring to the plywood square.

insert bolts or pvc and bolts onto the rim for the final weight attachment points

pour concrete into the 5 gal pail and allow the concrete to "spill out" onto the top of the plywood frame and level out at the top of the ring on the plywood base.

remove the plywood and maybe even the plastic pail ( or leave the pail to provide a smoother appearance.)

what you have now is more a mushroom shaped weight that may not protrude out so far past the tire. and probably a few pounds heavier too due to the increase in size of the pour.

just a thought

p.s maybe embed an eye bolt into the concrete to allow an attachment point to pull the weight out of the rim if need be.

[bitten 133]

Your weights dont HAVE to be Wheel Horse brand, about any 12" wheel weight will work. I have a set from a cub that works great.