Important! Help! Tires!

Hello, hello all.

I have been building a small trailer on top of a flatbed. It is approximately 5' wide, 7' tall and 7' long. The flatbed was given to me and the tires are far from roadworthy, SO,

I need new tires.


I cannot figure out how to get the old ones off, and do not know what kind of tires to purchase to replace the others now that the flatbed has a significant amount of weight on it.

Here are some pictures of the trailer and the tires. Any advice?
The tires seem to be using some sort of pin?

The part I've built on the flatbed is made of wood.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v665/dandeliondisco/Photo1327.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v665/dandeliondisco/Photo1328.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v665/dandeliondisco/Photo1329.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v665/dandeliondisco/Photo1330.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v665/dandeliondisco/Photo1331.jpg


Thanks!


-Olivia

Pull out the split pin and undo the nut.

You may want a mechanic to do this, as these wheels have tapered bearings and will need to be adjusted when the wheels are put back on.

Yup, remove the cotter pin, back off the nut and the wheel should slide off. You need to pack the bearings with fresh grease and replace the oil seal on the inside of the hub. If you've lost the grease caps, this will have a negative impact on bearing life.

Also have the rims looked at, they look pretty rusty and may not be fit to mount a tire onto. But you won't know until you take the tires off. I agree with having a mechanic or someone with some knowledge give you a hand if you've never done this before.

Bob

The wheels look rusty, but only on the surface. I don't see any flaking or thick scale. I think an hour of work with a rust removing 3M scouring wheel on a drill and some paint would spiff them up decently. I'd also hammer out the rim dents. Replace the wheel bearing dust cap before you spray paint 'em. Looks good so far though!

After you pull that pin out and take the nut off, the wheels should come right off. Then you can measure the diameter of the spindle and order a hub to fit it. some photos...

Your axle will look something like this after you take the wheel off. The shiny part between that flange and the threads is the spindle:
http://riverside.net/jay/sailing/Electra/brakes/SpindleBefore3.jpg

Then you can get a hub to put on it. Here is a picture. Its basically just the center part of your wheel onto which you can bolt a "real" wheel. In this photo, the grey part is the hub. The black part is the axle and where it fits through the hub is the spindle.
http://www.trojan.co.nz/images/straight_trailer_axle.jpg

Then you can put a wheel and tire on it like this:
http://home.att.net/~rustybore/galvtirerim.JPG

curtis is the best!
yeah, i second the mounting a hub idea.
that way you can put a "real" wheel on and if you get a flat tire, you can simply change it out.

as for what tires to put on, as long as the weight in the trailer doesnt exceed the weight on the sidewall of the tire, you will be just fine.
the weight on the sidewall is per tire, so if you have 2 tires, than multiply by two and thats the most that the tires will carry safely at their max pressure.

the first thing you have do do though is decide on a wheel to use.
if you re-use the wheels that are on it currently, the just get the same tires.
the numbers should be on the sidewall of the tire and will have all the info you need.

if you get wheels that bolt to a hub, then get appropriate tires for that wheel.
ask whoever you buy the wheel from and they will point you in the right direction