I have two riding mowers and both of them struggle with traction getting up and down some hills I have that need mowing. One of the mowers has leaking tires, so I figured I'd replace them all and put some ag tires in the back and use that mower primarily for the hilly areas. For most of my property, if the tires are hard on the grass it doesn't matter-- it just needs cut, doesn't have to look good.
I've unmounted/mounted mower tires enough times that I have the process down pretty pat. But getting one of the old front tires off really kicked my butt. The first one came off with a reasonable amount of frustration (in my experience the small front tires are more difficult) but the second one just would. not. budge. I tried everything I could think of, but one side of the bead was just welded on there. I finally resorted to taking a jigsaw and cutting most of the tire off, leaving just a strip along the bead. Figured that would free it up some, but it didn't. In fact it probably made it more difficult as I had nothing to get a hold of with tools or a clamp or something to pry it away. I finally resorted to taking a dremel with a diamond bit and literally cutting the bead of the tire in half--- which was like doing brain surgery because you have to be extremely careful not to touch the mating surface of the rim, and you have to get deep into the bead to cut all the metal cords. I finally succeeded without mucking things up, some marring of the paint (which usually happens no matter what method I use to get the tire off) but otherwise the sealing surface is undisturbed. Took about three hours longer than I thought it would!
Anyone have any useful tips or tricks for doing this? Or is there a tool available that will work on a small mower rim? I've watched all the Youtube videos and as I mentioned, I've been pretty successful replacing these tires in the past, just wondering if there's some magic trick or tool I can buy that will make this much easier. Other than buying a new rim with tire already mounted, which isn't an option for this particular mower.
I've unmounted/mounted mower tires enough times that I have the process down pretty pat. But getting one of the old front tires off really kicked my butt. The first one came off with a reasonable amount of frustration (in my experience the small front tires are more difficult) but the second one just would. not. budge. I tried everything I could think of, but one side of the bead was just welded on there. I finally resorted to taking a jigsaw and cutting most of the tire off, leaving just a strip along the bead. Figured that would free it up some, but it didn't. In fact it probably made it more difficult as I had nothing to get a hold of with tools or a clamp or something to pry it away. I finally resorted to taking a dremel with a diamond bit and literally cutting the bead of the tire in half--- which was like doing brain surgery because you have to be extremely careful not to touch the mating surface of the rim, and you have to get deep into the bead to cut all the metal cords. I finally succeeded without mucking things up, some marring of the paint (which usually happens no matter what method I use to get the tire off) but otherwise the sealing surface is undisturbed. Took about three hours longer than I thought it would!
Anyone have any useful tips or tricks for doing this? Or is there a tool available that will work on a small mower rim? I've watched all the Youtube videos and as I mentioned, I've been pretty successful replacing these tires in the past, just wondering if there's some magic trick or tool I can buy that will make this much easier. Other than buying a new rim with tire already mounted, which isn't an option for this particular mower.