Thorny problem - need ideas

[jCarroll]

My JD 40S will be moved to some vacant land we have in Colorado to assist with homesite preparation (culvert, driveway, boulder collection, etc). The land is sandy, with a knarly ground cover plant, and lots of cactus with needle-like thorns about an inch long. My front tires are 6.00 x 16 implement tires - original equipment grade tires.

The problem I anticipate is that the thorns will puncture the front tires (and the tubes), and when I repair the tube, the puncture will be so small I"ll go crazy trying to find it - and then the next day I"ll have another puncture, and the day after that, etc, etc.

What ideas do you have to minimize the cactus problem? I"ll be glad to answer any questions on this.

 

[ron dukavas]

try some of the green goop tire sealer used it on mine with thron apple tree

 

[1936]

See if you can put old used car tires over the front tires. Dad did this on the rear trt tires by using larger trt tires when bush hoging thorn trees. Will go into the outer covering tires and not get the good tires.

 

[Gordon in IN]

You might try installing "full liners" in the tires. The liners (made from old tires) will flex in the tires and break up the thorns before they penetrate the liner and/or the tube. Also the "Green Slime" or the "Yellow Slime" in the tube may help. Final solution may be "foam filled tires", but I have never used the foam.
Good luck and let us know what works best for you, Gordon in IN

 

[Johnski]

I would recommend Amer-Seal available at NAPA stores. I maintain a fleet of mowers and equip. for our Parks Dept. and I'm blessed with a never ending supply of flat tires. Slime and most other goop sealers are almost impossible to clean out of the tire if you need to repair a larger puncture. The Amer-Seal works very well and can be rinsed out of a tire with only hot water if you need a patch repair. HTH Jf

 

[Bruce Hopf]

1936 has a real good Idea. I've heard of this a long tome ago. Its worth a try. Better than fixing flats!
Bruce.

 

[Tradititonal Farmer]

Get a set of Amish steel

 

[msb]

www.gemplers.com have tire liners just for that purpose or you can cut up an old inner tube and it will deflect the thorns and break them off.

 

[Goose]

Round up a pair of steel wheels.

I once took out some plum bushes with the loader on my H and I was fixing flats for six months. It was impossible to get the thorns out. They'd work their way through and poke a hole in the tube two months later.

It would have been a heck of a lot less aggravation if I'd just bought new tires when I was done.

 

[IH2444]

used aircraft tires ?

or the slime or used steel belted truck tires.

 

[Bob Kerr]

Not sure about Cactus, But some of the dang thorn locust trees we have have in Indiana have 3" plus spines and will stay in the ground long enough to give fits years down the road. Outside of maually cutting or digging up the cactus and carefully taking it to a spot where you know you won"t be driving a lawn mower or tractor later. Some of the guys ideas I like about using an "overtire" sounds good to me. If a locust fell into a field we would look for and pick up every spine we could find and if he drove over that spot for the next few years we would slow down and watch the tires for a stuck sticker.

 

[BillinCentralMO]

You can have them filled at a tire place. No more flats. You also gain quite a bit of weight. Had the front tires on my 806 filled. They weigh about 200 lb each. It cost enough I would start with new tires.Should last til the rubber wears off.

 

[super99]

Not sure how he got them on there, but neighbor had trouble with thorns causing flats on his mowing tractor, so he cut part of sidewall out of old truck tire and put over the outside of front tire. Looks goofy, but ended his flat tire problem. Chris

 

[jCarroll]

I've looked at this. The clearance between the sidewall and the steering arm on top of the spindle is only about 1/2". Not confident that an "overtire" would clear under use.

 

[jCarroll]

BC @ MO
What filler material is used? Exactly what do I ask the tire store to do?
Thanks,
JC headed 4 CO

 

[jCarroll]

T Farmer and Goose,
Steel would be OK. I have never seen a steel wheel which mounts like the web on a pneumatic tire - all I'm familar with have the hub and spokes as one "part".

Got any ideas for a source of steel wheels?

Thanks,
JC headed 4 CO

 

[Chad Franke]

We never had too much problem with the prickly pear spines, really not strong enough to puncture a tire, but hell on hands and arms if they get into a small bale...

Where are you moving to in Colorado? What is the "gnarly ground cover plant"? I grew up in a sandy area of NE Colorado, one tip for you, be careful what you tear up. We had pastures that the simple fact that there was a cow trail going over the crest of the hill caused a "blow out" (as we called it) where the wind would pull the sand out a little (or a lot) at a time, making a big hole, spreading every year...one was about 100 yards across and the height of the hill...once started, had to fight them for years to keep them from spreading (no hope of repairing...)there are some unique things about living in a desert environment, drop me an email if you want to chat.