WARNING - SPLIT RIMS AND JACK STANDS!!!

[houdel]

WARNING!! WARNING!! WARNING!!

I earlier added this as a reply to a previous post, but felt it was important enough to deserve its own posting. I realize few of us have enough cash to take our Deuce to the local truck stop every time we need to take a wheel off or even change a tire, and besides it is way to much fun to DIY anyhow. But do it safely, or you could end up dead.

The previous post mentioned several times to always use an inflation cage or chains when inflating split rim tires. This is extremely important! NEVER inflate a split rim tire without a cage or chains wrapped and secured at three or four locations around the tire & rim. If the ring doesn't seat properly as the tire is inflating, the air pressure WILL blow the ring off with deadly force!

Make sure the split ring is facing away from you (split ring down on the ground if you are using chains), and do use a locking tire chuck and at least 10' of hose!

I lost a good friend who just leaned the tire up against his shop wall and tried to inflate his tire with a hand chuck. The ring didn't seat, blew off the rim, hit him in the chest and killed him instantly. I realize probably a billion or so split rims have been inflated without incident; but don't you be the billionth and one who gets severely injured or killed!

Also, NEVER put ANY part of your body under ANY part of a vehicle supported only by a jack! ALWAYS use a jack stand rated for the load you will be placing on it, or solid double set blocking. In my 10 years as a paramedic, I have been on two fatal runs on guys who just needed to crawl under their car for a second and figured the jack would hold. It didn't!

Always be super careful when mounting those tires and at all times when working under your vehicles. I already know three people who are dead from a moment's worth of carelessness, I don't want to know of a fourth. BE SAFE at all times!


The previous post, FYI, was
http://www.steelsoldiers.com/index.php?name=PNphpBB2&file=viewtopic&t=4068&highlight=split+rims

 

[wallew]

A buddy of mine in Germany told a similar story regarding split rings. In this incident, the soldier did about the same thing. However, the split ring broke and flew across the shop and decapitated him.

Needless to say it ruined EVERYONE'S day in the shop. To say nothing of the dead guy.

Better to be safe than sorry. And I REALLY LIKE the 'lay it on the ground with the split ring facing down AND a locking chuck with at least 10 ft of hose' advice!

jim

 

[liljohn]

Great advice on the jack stands, too. My brother is a FF, last summer he went out on a fatality, some guys working on a car lifted up with a forklift. 16 Y/O kid bought it when a $20 set of jackstands could have saved his life.

 

[jimk]

I have a video of a guy taking a high power rifle shot at a split rim tire.It shows how fast that piece of metal can movel.I'll see if I can download it to the video section now.It is 2PM.

JimK

 

[mangus580]

Approved

 

[builder77]

One of my long time friends has a plate in his head from a rim comming apart when inflating. I think he was stationed in Germany when it happened. When he woke he was back in the States. Luckly he made it ok, and even has some disability pay to boot. Oh and he has some memory problems too. I had never heard of using multiple chains, but it sounds like a good idea.

 

[Towman2277]

Thanks for the video....

 

[liljohn]

Just watched that video. The guy with the gun is one lucky sob....

 

[JRBAMATEX]

This may be a dumb question but I would feel better with input from you guys on this. Due to the danger of inflating split rims and everything I have heard. I am so freaked out about this that even when I am just checking and adding air pressure to take the stears up to around 60 PSI and the rears to 50-55 PSI I am sweating bullets. I have the snap on air chuck and the long hose and the distribution andle with the built in pressure guage so I can stand behind the truck while airing up the tires. When I go around to take the chuck off the stem I can just see the ring taking off my hand at any moment. I have had experienced people tell me that once the ring is set and there is air in the tires and they have been running that it's safe but I'm still not sure.

I should just chill out about this right?

 

[Djfreema]

That is the same thought running through my head as I'm filling up. On the video, is that just from shooting an inflated tire/rim or are there explosives involved?

 

[builder77]

I am no expert on this, so others should chime in. I believe that your only worry is when inflating the first time after a tire change. During that inflation everything should have seated itself properly, or exploded. Until the next tire change you should be fine, I think.....

And don't shoot your rims.

 

[liljohn]

I am no expert on this, so others should chime in. I believe that your only worry is when inflating the first time after a tire change. During that inflation everything should have seated itself properly, or exploded. Until the next tire change you should be fine, I think.....

And don't shoot your rims.

What he said.

The big issue is if the ring isn't seated correctly, it will slip off when airing up. Once you're aired up, it's definitely seated correctly, your worries are over.

If they were THAT dangerous they wouldn't be used. As stated earlier, many people have been using them for years and years and years with no problems. Consider them like firearms - treat them with the respect they deserve, and you'll be fine. I'm not particularly scared of my rifle when I pick it up and draw a bead on something, but I get REAL nervous if I'm staring down the barrel! Same with split rims, there are times to be nervous and extra cautious, and other times you're all set.

 

[jrosbo]

Split rim

If you have ever seen and heard on of these things blow in person you will learn to respect it real fast. When you break one down you will notice that most of these rings has a little lip that your tire bead goes over. That is supposed to squeeze the ring together until the bead seats and the ring seats in the grove on the rim. If you watch the first few seconds of inflation and your tire is growing and it is not going up on the lip stop inflation and let the air blead out and reposition the tire. Normally when one of these things blow it is because the tire has not slid up on the lip and is caught on the edge forceing itself up under that lip slowly causing the ring to expand until it pops out of the grove by that time you have built several pounds of pressure up inside the tire. Also when you are trying to inflate the tire to seat the bead it is goog practice to leave the core out of the valve. In a panic situation you can stop inflation and walk away letting the air out safely. When I do mine I lay them flat on the ground and put the bucket of my backhoe on top of them. My neighbor was replacing one on his dump truck and I was not watching what he was doing and boom! Out of the corner of my eye I saw that backhoe jump. With a little time and safe practice you can break these tires down with no problem but you have to respect them.

 

[hot rod deuce]

RE: Split rim

Yes, your right, these are sorta safe. as long as you look to see the bead is over the inner lip it "cant" really come out. THEORETICLY. Some of the other kinds I have seen have a "bead" ring and a "lock" ring. So its like a giant snap ring and then the bead ring holding it on. Add a little rust on over the road trucks and its a bad deal. There have also been people killed when removing them from the back of a pick up after changing. when they hit the ground the rings go pop. One thing to our advatage is that MV's as a rule have less salt and rust.

 

[Steamynachos]

I work as bus driver and was talking to a old time mech. at our garage and he said that back in the 70's some of the buses used split rims. well they had a bus that had to put a new front wheel on the drivers side front then the bus was going out the next day. Well the bus went out and was on the road for about 5 hrs. when the bus driver pulled up to a red light he was waiting for the light to change and then BOOOM the ring came off and went into the side of a car sitting next to him it hit the back door and trunk area and smashed the back door in and almost ripped the back quarter panel off this poor ladys car
So now I dont spend as much time infront of the wheels of my truck than I have to.

 

[liljohn]

Here, found a site with some decent diagrams to show what we're talking about:

http://www.skoolie.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=324&sid=94a0d55b1df54555671f504f7a87b705

It shows both the single ring and the dual ring setup that HRD mentioned.

 

[G744]

A note from a guy that does all his own tire work and has for over 30 years: There are a lot of stories about "split rim" blowups.

Maybe so, I've seen a number of them go, but not in my shop. Those from pickup trucks, farm tractors, and old crappy trucks usually.

None of those blown has been the type wheels used on M-series trucks & trailers, the Goodyear LTS wheel. They are found on the G741, G742, G749, and G744 trucks.

It is not prone to that type of failure oweing to it's construction. A stout lip goes down into the junction between the tire & wheel to force you to lock it into place properly. Only when it is locked, will you have reduced the diameter of the ring such that the tire can come up under it and allow pressure to be built. If it is not locked, it will just push up off the wheel and let to tube pop out before you can get more than 10 psi into it

They are easy to tell as most are from either Goodyear or Firestone, the two big contractors for them. Some later ones are from Motor Rim & Wheel. All will have the letters "LTS" stamped into them along with the size.

The good type didn't come on WW2 trucks. The worst offenders are the Dodge 1/2 ton and the GMC/Studebaker duces like the CCKW.

They didn't come on a lot of commercial trucks from the 50's & 60's either, so beware some swapping about may have been done.

I use a commercial cage and a clamp-on hose when doing these tires just in case. But I can tell you from experience, and I have purposely tried to make one go "high order", it is just not a problem with the real LTS wheels.

I guess in the long run, all "split rims" are not made equal. The ones on your M35's are the best there was.

dg

 

[jimk]

Mike,Thanks
Djfreema ,I Don't know any details.I assumed that was just air.There is dust ,no smoke.

Group,There are some risks with non-split rim wheels too.Any unexpected rim or sidewall failure can be very nasty.Alloy rims probably higher risk than steel.Higher pressures mean exponetially greater forces.Big truck wheels are about 100psi.That may be twice the deuce wheel pressure.Just guessing,pehaps 4 times the force.

I have heard of steel auto rims failing becuase someone forgot to take a hose off(100psi?).A elderly [near]neighbor had split rim fail while driving his 60's vintage Ford(600?) dumptruck rolled.He walked away.The lip had failed because of rust.

JimK

 

[ken]

I'll have to chime in on the jackstand consern. MAKE SURE THE GROUND UNDER THE STAND IS STABLE. Last year i cut 2 fingers off when changing to a dropside bed. The ground gave weigh under the pass side jackstand and my fingers were cut by the falling bed. The Doc was able to reattach them and they do function but they arn't right.
I was scared that i wouldn't be able to count to 10 for a while there. I thought i was being safe by using the stands. But you can never be too safe.

 

[sparkylisle]

Do not wrap a chain around the tire when inflating, they have no give and can break. Secure the tire and rim with a nylon rachet strap if you don't have a cage or the tire is to big to fit in the cage.
I use to work in a tire store, and that's the procedure we used.