small, front tire question

Hustler27

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Two options then...

Option #1) Fix the flat...
  • over-inflate the tire a bit and put it in a tub of water to find the leak.
    • Don't forget to mark it well with a crayon
  • Deflate tire
  • Break beads on both sides of the tire from the rim
  • Making sure the opposite bead slides into the "drop down", carefully pry the beads off of the tire on the same side
    • Cussing is optional
  • Buff, glue and patch the hole
  • Reinstall and inflate tire

Option #2) Use slime
  • Go to the store and buy Slime
  • Deflate tire
  • Pump in the required amount of slime
  • Inflate tire and go for a ride to spread slime
  • No cussing needed
    • But a Margarita would be nice!

I worked as a mechanic for thirty years with half of those years with Goodyear Tire and Rubber. The smaller the tire, the more difficult they can be. While I would never use fix-a-flat, and especially not in a passenger car or truck tire, I don't mind using slime on turf tires.

What about a third option. What does the process look like if I buy a new tire? I've never done tire work before.
 

bertsmobile1

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I do not us any gunk in a tyre unless the customer demands it.
Fix a flat is latex based and a foam so it will gt into cracks in the side wall, but it is not and never was intended as a permenant repair, it was and always is a "get you back home" emergency repair.
It requires heat to set it off and mower tyres never get hot enough
Slime was designed for the lunar rover where gravity is 19% of that on earth so again it can fill the tyre and make a temporary repair .
It is heavy and sits on the bottom of the tyre where it can plug PUNCTURES, some times but usually not.
Over time it will lift the paint and being water based will start rusting the rim.
If the rim is powder coated ( and most are ) they rust under the paint and eventually around the valve hole .
Then before the tyre can be fixed, you have to strip the wheel back to bare metal and paint it properly, then leave it for a week to go hard before fitting the tyre.

However we are putting the cart before the horse.
The first thing to do is find out where it is leaking from .
As you have already been instructed, take the wheel off , inflate it to the maximum as moulded into the side wall then immerse in water .remove the wheel & mark where the bubbles come from.
Tubeless tyres can be plugged using mower or pushbike plugs , not car or motorcycle plugs as again these need heat from the tyre to glue themselves into the hole.
I use the North Labs tyre plugs and am yet to have one fail and I would fit about 30 or so each season ( Bouganvillias are very popular round here ) .
On a really big hole I have some tractor plugs I get from the Tractor Supply, look like the same thing only the plug is about 1 foot long and it will fix a very big hole.

So get the wheel off & into some water then marked & photoed
Post the photo so we can then give you good advice for your problem & not general advice for everyones problems
 

bertsmobile1

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The Chairman said he would never use fix a flat in a motor vehicle tyre and he is quite right.
It is only a get you home temporary fix and if left in too long can & has caused tyres to suddenly blow out on motor vehicles , not mowers.

I use a cut off wheel in an angle grinder then a cold Chisel with a dumpy hammer to remove the blade bolt heads
Normally just an X all the way through the head will work but as you have never done this before a strait line from one flat to the opposite one so you have 6 little triangles of head then smack the cut line with a cold chisel and each little triangle should break off.
Usually once 1 or 2 have gone the bolt will come out with a lock jaw or other pliers.
You can grind the entire head off with a standard grinding disc if you want but it takes a long time .
The 1mm wide cut off wheels work so much faster but you must cut all the way through the bolt right down into the blade,

DO NOT PUT ANY GOO ON THE NEW BOLT
Torques are always for a new bolt in a clean dry hole unless otherwise stated
Putting never sieze on the bolt will have you tightening it 20 more than you should and will make it easier for it to overtighten in use because the friction between the threads will be substantially lower.
The threads are not the problem, the head is the problem
It is being pulled too tight against the blade.
When you get it off examine the remainder carefully, it will not be stretched, it will be perfect because there was no problem with the thread.

Try to avoid Face book and You tube unless it is a specific site some one on here sends you to
Most of the idiots who post have less than no idea what they are doing and are just ego maniacs in love with themselves.
 

keakar

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What do you use to cut the bolt head off? This sounds like another expense.
you can just use a hack saw but a side grinder or reciprocating saw would be much less work but if the bearings are bad in it then there is no point messing with it

make sure the belt is off and you engage the blade lever so it releases the brake on the spindle pulleys then spin the blades by hand and listen to rthe bearings, if you hear a whirring or grumbling the spindle bearings are bad and need replacing. also spin the idler pulleys while you are at it, they should be completely smooth and silent when spinning or they need changing, the idler pulley bearings generally go bad after a couple of years
 

keakar

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whats the make and model number of your mower?
 

Hammermechanicman

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the valve stem either seals to the rim with a fat ring lip or it doesnt and is narrow

as for tubes in tires, most will be tubeless and when they start leaking air people pop in a tube because in most cases you wont wear out the tread on the tire unless you are going way to fast in turns. front tires you can buy for like $25 but the rear tires you will pay around $50 for those so $10 tubes make a lot more sense
Not sure last time you you bought tires but i wish i could get good tires for that price.
 

Hammermechanicman

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My $0.02 on tire sealants and nlade bolts. Everybody has their own way. I never use fix a flat. Just amounts to thick latex paint. It will separate to white snot and water and rust the hell out of rims. For large punctures i use Slime with the chunks of rubber in it. Makes a mess in the tire but doesn't separate and rust the rims like fix a flat. My choice for dry rot and small leaks i like Liqui-tube. Any liquid in tire is a mess but if a customer wants to not replace an expensive tire or buy a tube i put it in.
As far as blade bolts i just put some grease on the bolt and zip it with the impact a few hits. Never had a problem getting blades off or one coming loose. Round hole blades self tighten anyway. Especially if the blade hits something. Star hole blades don't self tighten when you hit something. It just breaks things.
 

The Chairman

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What about a third option. What does the process look like if I buy a new tire? I've never done tire work before.
You still have to remove and then reinstall the tire to the rim. That's the hard part, mate. Take it to a shop if it's too much for you.
 

The Chairman

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Tubeless tyres can be plugged using mower or pushbike plugs , not car or motorcycle plugs as again these need heat from the tyre to glue themselves into the hole.
I have to agree with this as well. I am adverse to plugging a tire, but this is a turf tire, so you're not going to have a blow out. Plugging car tires cause many separations, so avoid that. Patch or replace are the only two options for a highway tire.
 
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