All About Split Rims, Explained! Ep. 11

[@bruceguidosh2120]

34 years of being a road mechanic for trucks, I've removed more RH5 rims than I care to admit! 3/4 of removed rims came from old farm/construction trucks, and many times, I refused to put them back on because of areas of the rim eroded from rust! I was taught by an old tire man who started tire work in the late 40s, and inspection of the entire mating surface was IMPORTANT!

[@MrTheHillfolk]

Glad you're still here and it sounds like ya made it thru with all your parts you came into the world with. Hah,that's one of my retirement goals 😂 I guess I'm sort of still a young buck at 50, but I listen to what the elders tell and teach me like it's the gospel. Besides,some times they're grumpy and ain't gonna tell ya again! 😂

[@phillipgarrow2297]

If you are going to use them please put them in a cage when you're tearing them down

[@kevinfreeman3098]

@@phillipgarrow2297 just stand to the side and smack it real good with a hammer.

[@arvbergstedt3303]

Dad had a Good Year franchise. We grew up fixing split rims. Farm trucks. School buses. Etc. Dad taught us well. Wrap chains around tire in several spots. Clean groves well. Tap in place with hammer while inflating. Watching making sure top ring was in the grove properly all the way around. Never had an accident. Knew of a guy who had one side of his face tore up. Sewed back on. But nasty scars.

[@Milner62]

I had a old '48 dodge power wagon come in guy uses it on his farm bought it from some guy way up north in Canada and wanted me to adjust his brakes. I refused as I was not going to attempt to remove the widow makers from that truck to adjust the brakes. I told him to get those rims replaced and then I would adjust his brakes, but until then I am not going to have those rims come apart and injure someone or hit someone elses $100k+ vehicle that is being worked on at the shop.

[@arthurjennings5202]

Fifty years ago, I had a tire repair business. I worked on these rims and HATED them. I did not have a safety cage, but to inflate them I would set up in the middle of the parking lot, block up the wheel so that the split rim would hang down with the weight of the tire on it to insure it remained seated while I inflated it. I used a locking chuck to inflate the tire. Laying the tire flat was safer than setting it upright in a safety cage.

[@thebigdog2295]

I worked at a Bandag tire recap plant at about the same time. I was teenager when I started working there. We had a brand new safety cage that we never used . When I started working there I was trained to put the rims with the locking ring in the cage, because that's what OSHA requirements said. The first tire they let me change without supervision I was struggling to get it into the safety cage. I hadn't quite got the hang of picking up and moving those big truck tires. One of my cousins work there as well. And he had worked there since the place opened. He saw me struggling, and stopped me. Then called me over to a back corner of the plant, and had move some tires stacked up there. Underneath them was another safety cage. The bars on top had been ripped through at the top. Then he had me look at the roof, there was a spot on the roof where there was a patch on it. A locking ring had gone through both. Unfortunately for the man changing that particular tire things didn't go so well. It cut his head off because he was standing with it over the top of the cage .Then my cousin showed me how to change those damned things exactly like you described. To this day I still remember when the owner of the place caught me not using the cage. He started to say something, but I looked up at the spot on the roof, then looked back at him. He just shook his head, and walked away. I'll never forget the look on the owners face. I even remember hearing about the man dying when It happened. Me and my friends all speculated on how it happened. All the news cast about it just stated it was a work place accident. And there were quite few sawmills around back then. I never told any of them about it, and to this day I don't know why I didn't tell them.

[@larryb982]

Interesting. May he rest in peace. I have seen these old wheels around and was unaware of the dangers.

[@Wayoutthere]

It's great you took the effort of showing us a cut-away of the dangerous type, well done!

[@brianhill5526]

Old olden days

[@ChevyConQueso]

I almost forgot. Pro tip: get a 5 or 10 gallon pony tank for the ugga dugga. Run your 3/8" hose to that, and then run a larger hose from the pony tank to the impact. It'll act as a battery of sorts and deliver more air initially. It won't work for long pulls but it's way better performance for the first couple seconds. It's also useful for smaller guns that are far away from the compressor.

[@SealedBeamRallyTeam]

Interesting! I might try that, but we're also considering getting a hose adapter to run a larger diameter hose, which could deliver a similar effect...? Hmm

[@ChevyConQueso]

​@@SealedBeamRallyTeam Just remember that a hose adapter is only going to be as good as the size of the hole going through it. If you want for instance a half inch line, you need half inch fittings from compressor to impact so nothing slows down. I just realized y'all were dragging the whole compressor out to the truck (not sure how I missed that detail before) so if you can go with a bigger line and fittings straight from it, it will act as the pony tank itself as long as the line between isn't super long. What I recommended is a decent trick for folks who don't want to upgrade everything they have, and will need to run a ways away from a stationary compressor or one that's too bulky to move. Air tanks are usually pretty cheap to add and can be carried around a shop easy enough.

[@SealedBeamRallyTeam]

@@ChevyConQueso I'll be looking further into what can be upgraded and what can't later when i do brakes. 1/2" all the way if possible- don't want those wheels falling off. Thanks for the suggestions!

[@theda850two]

​@@SealedBeamRallyTeam,, use a torque wrench when tightening, please don't rely on the output of your impact tool.

[@Azznbad]

@ChevyConQueso people just gran the Milton quick disconnects because they are easier to unplug their 1/4 or 3/8 hoses. I've even seen them adapt 1/2 and bigger hoses to use the same fittings. A bigger quick disconnect is a little harder to disconnect from your tool bet the amount of air delivered is incredibly greater. Impacts are worn out by hammering away on a nut with the wrench getting less air than it needs to quickly break the nut loose. The amount of pressure your compressor builds means nothing to your impact. Cupic feet per minute is what's important and it takes much higher pressure to deliver 10 cfm to a 1 inch impact through a small hose than it does through a 1/2 inch or larger hose.

[@roostercogburn3771]

Changed tires on split rims for years, in the Army. They worked good for us. Good training and paying attention to detail helps! Plus, not trusting them, using a tire cage or at least a log-chain rapped around it, when airing up and staying clear of it!

[@marktwining3574]

I narrowly escaped death from removing Budd split ring wheel blew off with 80 lbs. pressure, struck me in for head sent me flying at least 10 feet, did not knock me out, but caved for head in and split my nose ! Did see the light at the end of the tunnel, wasn’t my time to go !! over 100 stitches and many months recovery, plastic surgeries!! Was no cage in sight , first time changing , no training or warnings !!

[@MadMax-bq6pg]

I came through in the time where if a sergeant taught you it was a “split rim” then it was a “split rim” and a complimentary course of counselling sessions was available was to anyone who wanted to argue. My mates in the navy informed me this was termed a counselling session down behind the gun turret. Regardless of nomenclature of a) the name of a part, b) the name of a counselling session, we are all in agreement that arguing with your NCO’s was not a good career move. Regards from Oz 🇦🇺👍

[@JustHere999dl]

Oh you can trust them..... once..... Good on the logging chain. Always made sure I seated them and just gave a tiny bit of air at a time... Sometimes no chain was around. Any rust or dirt and it can go flying. Around 3 PSI to 15 PSI range is the seating pressure depending on the newness or ancient age of the tire.(If the ring moved at all, you had to start over, was my way.) Ya gotta know your materials and be smarter than them. Metallurgy knowledge is an artform not for beginners. BTW autism helped me...... military in knowledge not in training here. ALWAYS make sure the ring and groove are free of rust or other contaminates and never give it a chance to dispute your authority. You MUST make sure the ring or groove aren't worn out at all. Easy to spot mistakes from previous work on the rings or landings... Remember always that dumbarses exist.

[@ronfullerton3162]

​@@JustHere999dlChecking the parts of the two or three piece rims is important. One of his pictures looked to me like the split ring was bent or warped. I sure as heck would of junked that, and never let it be used again. The old timers without cages laid them flat on the floor and had a long hose end on the filler valve. More than one tire shop roof or ceiling has been repaired because of those multi-piece rims. Some tire trucks had an H frame type safety apparatus for airing those rims instead of a cage. It had sides that were long enough to cover the whole height of the tire on both sides. And a large center piece locked them together. That was smaller than a cage and was carried easily in the tire truck. A many tire shops have stopped servicing any multi-piece rims and will not touch them. The liability had gotten to steep to cover by many insurance companies. And some have come apart on the road, and the tire service company has been sued for faulty repair . So many of those rims have enough years of service on them that they are just beyond proper safety life. I personally would not have them on a truck on mine.

[@MapsAndCaps]

​@@marktwining3574omg man, glad you're ok. That sounds brutal

[@helidude3502]

I have some experience with split rim wheels. This information has taught me something that I was unaware of. Considering I’m around people that have and like antique trucks, I find this to be lifesaving information. Thank You for making a cutaway of your wheel.

[@helidude3502]

I did have one experience with a slit rim gone bad. The old shop forklift had split rim wheels. I glanced down one day to see the rim was starting to come off. I was bracing for some big explosion when the ring just fell off as I came to a stop. Fortunately uneventful. I don’t recall who or what was actually done to fix it.

[@SealedBeamRallyTeam]

Glad my own research can be helpful to others! Also glad your forklift experience ended well! Cheers

[@gregorygolden1296]

Years ago I use to bust tires at a truck stop in a small town in Montana. Our Boss was always on us to use the "cage" when airing up these deadly wheels. One day I was busting down a tire and the boss came out and told us someone had been killed at another truck stop because he didn't use the cage and didn't get it together properly. Maaan, we hated them Rims. Thank the good LORD they did away with them suckers.

[@SealedBeamRallyTeam]

Glad you were safe! I'm sure no one needed to be told to use it after that...

[@smasher.338]

My grandfather owned a garage/tire shop, my dad worked in it, and i did tires and oil in my late teens. My grandfather saw a split rim kill a man, and my father was standing right next to a man airing one up, when it took the mans arm clean off. By the time i was doing tires, it was rare to see those old split rims.

[@dinanbimmertv1864]

Scary stuff, never understood how anyone thought a split ring was safe for anything more than a small tractor. I guess those were still the baby steps to what we have today.

[@smasher.338]

@@dinanbimmertv1864 well when i was in Afghanistan we would have to do big split ring 3 peice wheels (not split rim), and it always boggled my mind how a small strip of steel could hold the top rim, and all the pressure of the tire, not to mention when it was on a loader lifting thousands of pounds. They were always aired up in a cage, w a long hose. Never saw one blow. But we were in jalalabad, which was incredibly hot, and tires would aired up to max psi in cool weather that would be stacked in the sun, (then for it to get easily into the high 110s) would blow sometimes. So they started stacking them a little under pressured, and would cover them from the sun.

[@MrJeep75]

Safe if you have proper training

[@smasher.338]

@@MrJeep75 yeah, id have to politely disagree. Split rim (not 3 peice split ring) rims and tires and never completely safe. As demonstrated, there is just no way to tell.

[@johnconnor7131]

Doubt it took his arm clean off

[@maxlown363]

Finally, someone who doesnt call a split ring a split rim. Good job on an accurately informative video.

[@brandonmiller7466]

Both are dangerous as hell but there is a difference.

[@chazmichaelmichaels88]

I have always referred to it as a split rim. I was also a semi mechanic for only a year.

[@NismoXero]

Until this video I had only heard of them as split rim. And I have trucks with them on still. 🤷🏻‍♂️

[@knolez1546]

Yes. Nobody wants a split ring! 😆

[@stevie-ray2020]

Real split-wheel rims are what you find on hand-trolleys & wheel-barrows!

[@artszabo1015]

I am 72 years old and have changed a few big truck tires this video was very informative. I did not know that there were that many different styles. Thank you. Art from Ohio

[@theoldbigmoose]

You did a nice job cutting the widow maker wheel and painting the two sections. Thank you for the tips. Very professionally done!

[@josephbritton5124]

I’ve changed quite a few split ring wheels where I work at. Never dealt with a widow maker. My 67 yearold coworker told me all about the differences but this video enlightened me a lot. Thank you!

[@carlstephens1532]

In 73 I started working at a semi dealership. I have changed many of those tires with mainly split rings, we had a very large sheet of 1inch steel that with a fork lift put it on the rim laying flat on the steel covered floor. And yes I went for many rides as even all new stuff would blow.

[@xmo552]

Can we just bolt on a modern wheel like some Alcoas?

[@bingusmctingus4395]

@xmo552 no, you would have to change the studs and hub to match the depth of the aluminum Alcoa wheels. Best to just swap for a 1 piece steel wheel.

[@dustyroads834]

As a kid back in the 70s my dad had a truck repair shop. So I grew up with these wheel styles. He always made me put a chain through the holes in the rims at 2 points across from each other no matter what. One day the chains worked and I’m still here. Thanks dad.

[@cactiguide]

I couldn’t really pay much attention to the wheel information. I was too distracted by all those old truck pictures. Man I love those designs.

[@swmovan]

My father worked at a 24hr gas station(truck stop) back in the 60s, and early 70s. He changed, and repaired, many split rim(& other) truck tires. I do remember one time he was injured badly enough to have to go to the hospital. But luckily not too serious. He always used the cage, but accidents still happen.

[@SealedBeamRallyTeam]

Glad he was ok. A good reminder that there is always a risk to this type of stuff.

[@swmovan]

@@SealedBeamRallyTeam I was around 10 & would sometimes go with him to work. (He would always tell me to stand way back, when working on one of those wheels) It was interesting to meet so many different people passing through, as well as the regulars.

[@johnwade5747]

I’ve ran and repaired all kinds mentioned. I had a 60 dodge dump truck that had been a Kentucky state highway truck in it’s youth. I also worked for an oil company for 22 years and changed nearly all the tires that were changed because others would find other things to do when it came time to change tires! Imagine that! So I’m sure I’ve done up in the 500 range maybe more, who knows! But I’m worn out and retired and I’ve learned the tricks.Thank God I don’t ever have to touch another one unless I want to.

[@SealedBeamRallyTeam]

Funny how everyone else is suddenly busy when the tough jobs come around! Glad I don't have to put tires on these things.

[@WesleyJohnsonMI]

Great explanation of the differences in the wheels! I was surprised & pleased to see that you actually cut apart one of your wheels to show how they are assembled. So many people have no idea how many different types of wheels where available. The project truck is coming along nicely! Keep up the good work!

[@SealedBeamRallyTeam]

Thanks, i spent a lot of time researching and enjoyed learning about the different types!

[@ericschmidt7359]

When I started driving, we had old Macks with split rims. We had to change our own tires until a driver lost His leg. The insurance company and the government sued the Dickens out of the old man. After that Budd wheels were ordered for all tractors and trailers.

[@CrazyBear65]

I had a 72 Chevy 1 ton pickup that had 16.5" split ring rims on it. I used to hear people talk about exploding split rims, but I didn't know all the particulars before. Thanks.

[@4sl648]

I had a 67 chevy 3/4 ton camper special when i was 18 that had the same wheels. I went to 9.5 inch tires up front and 12 inch tires on the rear on one piece steel rims. I miss that truck.

[@sammylacks4937]

I was a sawfiler in a sawmill and when I first started I worked in the mill running an edger. One morning while working , everything normal sounding and thats a blend of all machinery in concert when suddenly an extremely loud boom that I felt more than heard then the floor and whole mill shook. We used Raygo Waggoner L 90 forklifts at the time to reach under a Simi trailer load of logs , lift the entire amount then back away and put in mill or place on yard. As the operator was turning to place logs forward toward mill the ring that holds tire on rim blew off, shot away towards mill , impacting partially against the ground. This caused it to fly up where it hit a 4 inch I beam bending it , tearing it loose from overhead beam it supported, then striking a permanent ladder ruining it. The tire that blew ring was over 7 feet tall almost 3 feet wide. Its hard to imagine the force and wave that we felt inside then see damage. That accident could have been deadly but thankfully only slight structure damage.

[@SealedBeamRallyTeam]

Dear Lord. Glad everyone was ok!

[@hankelrod7315]

Neighbor was just killed on Tuesday working on a widow maker wheel which caused me to look into it more & I found your video. I had no idea they were this dangerous & I need to look around my farm & see what I have on my old trucks.

[@SealedBeamRallyTeam]

I'm very sorry to read that! From what I've read, you may be fine until you need to replace the tires. If you've been driving the trucks, it's probably nothing to worry about unless the tires have gone flat.

[@Napamachinist]

Regarding the impact with a small hose, if you use short blasts of the trigger it helps out, because the small hose isn't supplying the gun with air as fast as it uses it

[@stevendecker9239]

I was a mechanic at Sears for 15 years and for good reason Sears did not allow us to work on any kind of split Wheels. So course I don't know much about them except they were used on big trucks and some 1980s RVs and were very dangerous. I was gaining a little interest on the Old Farm trucks from the 50s and 60s and was wondering if those were split Wheels. And from your video it seems that most of them are split Wheels. Great educational video keep up the good work. 😀

[@SealedBeamRallyTeam]

Thank you!

[@nutandboltguy3720]

I knew someone who was a victim of a split ring wheel gone wrong. He worked part time at a small independent gas station with garage. He was killed while changing a tire and cause of death was blunt force trauma to the head. Yes, it made his wife a widow and also had a 3 or 4 yr old kid. I’m sure they didn’t get anything from his employer. He was in the MS-ANG so he probably had life insurance.

[@JohnMcClain-p9t]

This is a good video, I worked on split rims in Southern California back in the early eighties and did split ring rims almost exclusively. They are quite safe as long as one works exactly to the letter, and discards bad wheels. Inspection is key.

[@Milner62]

which in this day and age good luck, your average guy at the tire shop, lube shop, or mechanic shop that you would take one of these vehicles to were born after carbs were phased out. They wouldnt know a thing about split rims, window makers or what ever you want to call these dangerous rim designs. They also wouldnt know how to even inspect one properly either, I had a guy tow in his '48 dodge power wagon that he bought from canada wanted me to pull the wheels and check the brakes, I refused told him he can come pick his power wagon up and get those widow makers off and put some plain rims on it and then bring it back if he wanted me to work on it. But I refuse to have those dangerous rims in the shop where they could decide to let go and do lots of damage to other customers cars in the shop which many are $100k+ vehicles some that we built, some bought from auctions such as mecum. Sure I know about those rims and its not worth the money, so I left the truck outside and the owner came and picked it up and never saw it again guess he found some other sap to mess with the truck.

[@bradleyanderson5701]

The quality of videos keep getting better and better. I personally thought this video was going to be hella boring but was surprised how interesting this stuff is. Keep up the good work!

[@BruceLyeg]

Excellent video and very cool truck. I've worked on both types of wheels. I spent a few years as a fleet mechanic working on school buses and later worked on farm trucks in a small town. You explanation was perfect and very educational. You perfectly demonstrated what I've tried to explain to people for years

[@Azznbad]

When I was working retail and people brought in split rims I had a steady source for 9r22.5 used tires and wheels and made it worth their while to change over by pricing flat repair out of reach. Semi drop center wheels and lock ring wheels never bothered me much since I began working on them in about 1972, but split rims you could never see how the pieces were fitting together and by the 80s most were worn and rusted so badly they just weren't safe.

[@maxsdad538]

While still in high school, I (like many boys in the 60's) worked weekends at a gas station. And I remember a hole in the ceiling above the tire station (in the days before tire cages) where a split rim came apart... one lesson I NEVER forgot.

[@chazmichaelmichaels88]

Worked as an axle guy for a small tracking company. I heard stories from an old UPS mechanic where these rims sent a dude flying to the roof, killed the guy and left a human body shape on the ceiling. Another story was a UPS truck delivering across from a school. The tire blew and sent the putsode half of the rim through two brick walls in the school. Luckily no chdren were hurt, but one of the rooms damaged was a classroom. If kids were in there, a few would have certainly die. I never worked with these rims, but i heard enough stories to never attempt to try working on one. Not to mention the amount of disasters from just trying to inflate those things, apparently even tire cages wouldn't save you.

[@Milner62]

Yep, we dont have a tire cage in the shop, we dont install tires except for ourselves or for certain customers and they are never on this design of rim. We did have a few years ago a '48 dodge power wagon from canada get towed in guy wanted a petronix and his brakes checked and adjusted. I told him the first thing he needed to do was come pick the truck up get those widow makers off and get some regular rims on the truck before I would ever pull it into the shop and attempt to work on it. Last thing I need is some rusty canadian widow makers deciding to let go in the shop with a bunch of customers cars and doing tens if not hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of damage.

[@richardakajazzyamx9690]

Very nice. We replaced the RH 5 degree Firestone rims on our 67 school bus RV with split rings, to reduce the risk as much as possible.

[@milesgerschefske6231]

Im thankful i grew up in a world where Dayton wheels felt like the adequated option compared to bud and hub pilot. I always assumed dad complaining about how unsafe split rims were applied to all of them equally. I really enjoyed the history lesson

[@dx1450]

I remember working on split rim tires back in the 80's when I worked for my dad. He mainly did the two-piece wheels, and I remember him wrapping a log chain around them when airing them up. I did work on split ring wheels off of semis now and then. It was always a pucker factor when you're airing up a split ring wheel to 100 PSI. I won't touch them now, not even the safer split rings.

[@ChevyConQueso]

Great video. I was trying to explain the difference between split rim and split ring, and this video with your cutaway wheel illustrates that perfectly. The old truck brochures are a welcome bonus.

[@davidg.5076]

I ran truck shops for 40+ years, our air plumbing was 3/4" copper from the compressor room to 1/2" hoses off manifold connectors to guns. Save the 3/8" for spray guns and such.

[@SealedBeamRallyTeam]

We don't have a truck shop, but have found a few tricks since this video. One is just to lightly lubricate the threads, cause they definitely aren't going up to torque correctly if they're rusty! They come off easier now too. Things were way too hard to take off! I'm still probably going to get a torque multiplier and 3/4 ratchet. A lot cheaper than a new compressor with 1/2 or 3/4" hose!

[@NebukedNezzer]

I grew up in minnesota on the farm in 1950s we used only the 3 piece lock rim type wheels for replacement. I am alive today and to many were killed or seriously injured by the widow makers.

[@johnwade5747]

I watched the whole video waiting for you to explain about how you get a Widowmaker rim apart by finding the two reliefs that are 180° apart from each other that you have to push the 1/2 down in to get the other half out of. That’s not the best explanation but if you’ve ever repaired and changed the Widowmaker, you know what I’m speaking of.My dump truck came with six of them but it also had a bunch of other spares that were every kind imaginable that I had to take when I bought it so I learned from taking them apart and just using common sense. fire stone mailed me a packet about rim safety because I pointed out a flaw in one of their flyers and it had its own flaw in the pamphlet which showed a man standing in the trajectory zone , airing up a tire,straight out in front of the lock ring on a front wheel! I have their return apology letter thanking me for pointing out their flaw in my basement collection.

[@SealedBeamRallyTeam]

One of the reasons i bought the split ring military wheels was to avoid having to split the RH5's! I'm also of the opinion that if you do a job correctly you shouldn't have to worry about your safety. But from a pragmatic point of view, we all make mistakes, and if I made a mistake here the risk would be pretty high. Great story on your Firestone letter! I'd frame it too!

[@Trindal]

We used a few different types of wheel/ tire combos on equipment used to service Aircraft. In all cases before removing the combo you always wait for it to fully deflate. Especially the ones on the Landing gear… I was just finishing a task and was near a young kid working on a small toolbox trailer. It was a split rim that was bolted around the outside of the wheel lug. He was taking them apart to clean and paint. He did not deflate the thing. He got to maybe the 3rd bolt and it sheered the last 2 as it violently separated. The nut with part of a bolt shot off like a bullet. It ended up busting a hole into the stucco on the building 10ft away. His thumb was broke but amazingly that’s all the damage he took. Well, physical damage.. his butt got into trouble and had to teach his whole shop how to properly identify and service wheels and tires and had to do some other “training” for his actions. Biggest thing to learn, if you don’t know and have never done it, find someone who has! Wether it’s a farm friend down the road or the nearest truck stop even.

[@C1Ksdafafdsa980ufsd]

Thanks for the explanation. In some cases, drop center rims can replace split ring and lock ring rims, often going up a size, from 20" to 22.5".

[@J-1410]

You can't really find sizes like 10.00 20s anyways so 11r22.5 is very close that it works most of the time.

[@stephensaasen8589]

That's some great info. On our farm back in the 1980's and 1990's, we dealt with older trucks from the late 1940's to the late 1960's and I bet some of those widow makers were on them.

[@coldlogic800]

Your air compressor driving that 1"😅😂

[@ryleehagen5543]

Not enough air for that gun at all lmfao

[@bronsonFlynnmulligan]

I said the exact thing. That’s what their issue was. Should’ve been using a half inch hose.

[@SealedBeamRallyTeam]

Only need this thing for the nuts. Decided it wasn't worth investing in the hose if this would work as is.

[@chrislong3938]

In the Army, when we repaired flats on Dueces in the field (or the motorpool) we broke the bead with a pickaxe with a flat blade. Then we used the tool that came with the truck to remove the split ring. I forget what it's called. We then patched the tube and put it all back together. We always made sure to re-inflate the tire with the ring side down in case it flew off. It would only hit the ground... Once it was inflated, we'd check to make sure it was fitting correctly and reinstall the wheel. Once you did it a couple of times, it became surprisingly easy to break the bead without damaging the side wall of the tire!!! As much as I hated pulling maintenance of trucks, I kinda got great satisfaction out of being able to fix a flat in the field at any time!!!

[@actionjksn]

That thing is not actually a pickaxe. It is made specifically for breaking down truck tires.

[@chrislong3938]

@@actionjksn No. We used a standard pickaxe to break the bead. The other tool was to pop the ring once the bead was broken. The axe had a flat blade and a pointed pick. We used the flat blade and swung it to get between the tire and the ring to break the bead. How we never destroyed a tire is beyond me, but we got really good at it.

[@actionjksn]

@@chrislong3938 the tool that is made for it looks like what you described except it doesn't have the pointy part on the other side. I'm not sure why they would use a pickaxe when there is a hammer specifically made for breaking the beads down on semi tires. It's called a duck billed bead breaking wedge or hammer. I saw tiremen all over the country for 10 years and they all use the same tool. The tool has been in use for over 80 years

[@chrislong3938]

@@actionjksn I dunno... none of our dueces had anything like what you describe. they all came with field picks and shovels though. The tire change kit had patches and rubber vulcanizing fluid etc. A huge lug wrench and that long bar thing to pry out the ring. That was it. Swinging the pick wasn't hard and it rarely took long to break the bead. You stood on the wheel, astride of the rim, and took a couple of light swings, and then went at it. It's the only way I know how. The motorpool guys had machines that could do it but most of the time it was just easier and faster the way I describe.

[@charleshubert6751]

Thanks for this, I've worked on all of these and the 'Widow Makers' were no longer made when I started working with medium duty trucks in 1977. I never had any one of these let loose on me but the training films I had to watch drive that point home. I think I saw the films you referred to, they were hard to watch.

[@Tuberuser187]

The cut away cross section on the wheel was a really nice touch, highlighted too!

[@brentvalentine]

A half inch hose and fittings will feed the 1 inch impact so much better. It's all we used in the tire shops I've worked at. I've only had the 'pleasure' of changing the tires on widow maker rims on one vehicle, 30+ years ago. What was impressed upon me from the elder tireman, clean, clean, clean (the mating surfaces). Of course you want to inspect for cracks as well. These two rules apply to split rims too. The tire cage was definitely used. Nothing exploded and the customer was on his way.

[@every-istand-ophobe6320]

Need 1/2 air hose for a 1" ugga dugga..

[@jfjjjjfj]

At least...

[@plumbingstuffinoregon2471]

Great video explaining the difference! I have an old motorhome that just has 16" lock ring wheels and people are always calling them split rims and window makers and telling me I need to replace them. I have no intention of replacing them, as they're a similar style to the army surplus wheels you got.

[@joehead1294]

Your regulator may be limiting your air flow from your tank. You might try removing the regulator and tap direct to the tank to see if it's the problem. 1 inch require quite a bit of cfm.

[@John-1984]

They need a larger diameter hose too. That 3/8 one isn't feeding enough air. A minimum of 1/2" is needed. But 3/4" is ideal.

[@avman2cl]

Yeah, that impact sounds sad.

[@nimwit0]

Nah, need 3/4 hose. One of them 1" guns can even run a 1/2 hose dry haha. We run 1" hose on all our service trucks and in the shop.

[@actionjksn]

I haven't done tires professionally for over 30 years. But I just remembered an old trick for breaking one down that is all rusted. Just lay it down flat and pour gasoline around the bead kind of generously. Do not light it just use it like a solvent and don't have any source of ignition near you. Just pour that around there and start using your tire Hammer like normal. It makes it surprisingly easier. Some old-timer showed us this when we were having trouble breaking down a tire that had rusted on pretty good. We beat on it for a while and he poured some gas around it and it broke down easy after that.

[@muffs55mercury61]

I've used gasoline also for unfreezing the tire bead from the wheel. I'm talking tires that were on a car sitting for 30 years or more. They were really stubborn.

[@PDXDrumr]

Had a friend with these on a bus years ago. Didnt really understand the issue till i saw this. Thanks.

[@nolanbrown84]

Man... Awesome video. Great job! It finally all made sense when I saw the wheel actually cut apart! I've never actually seen anyone else do that to explain the true difference between the Widowmaker vs just split ring wheels. Well done.

[@K-Effect]

Also use a larger gauge/diameter air hose, that impact needs a lot of air volume. You can also look at your air fittings, some air fittings have tiny orifices compared to others

[@danprudholme1733]

Very interesting. I inherited the farm a couple of years ago, just now getting around to doing all the old trucks. Will be checking for rims and replacing any widow makers!! Thanks for posting this in a clear, easy to understand video!

[@guyforlogos]

With those big air tools, you need a 1/2 or bigger hose for volume. HUGE difference in tool performance when you have the right size hose. I installed one 1/2 hose in my shop for this reason, works great.

[@tomarmstrong4761]

In a former life, I worked for U-Haul as a truck mechanic. The "Pride of the Fleet" in those days (mid-1980s) was a 1972 F-600 with a steel-framed aluminum-sided 24' box. U-Haul had wisely gotten away from the Widow-maker wheels AND the split rims, and did what they could to keep line mechanics from having to mess with moving tires on and off wheels, leaving that to people trained on such stuff. The trucks, of course, were only slightly more modern than your '62--U-Haul had found a retro-fit electronic module that replaced the points and condenser in the distributor, but otherwise, someone accustomed to working on your '62 would have been familiar with the truck.

[@skipstein744]

Thank you for the information. I owned a 1969 Dodge D200 truck with split rim wheels. Never had any problems with the rims, but found it hard to find trie shops with a cage for working on them. Went to Ford 1 ton rims. Thanks again.

[@DomManInT1]

I worked for my uncle who owned a roadside tire service. I have probably changed/repaired 200+ tires mounted on split rig wheels. Never had one explode or come apart during service.

[@leegunter5223]

Between 1977-83 I was road service for tire company in Jersey starting when I was 18! I replaced and fixed flats on every rim you showed. Even mounted a bunch with sprung single lock rings . Was told about the spit buds but never had come apart. Never used a cage either. If I was worried about one I'd mount it to the front hub! The Board of Ed. didn't Like spending money on the school busses. Only had one single ring come off! I was more worried about someone running into me on the road! Airing up tubeless tires with closed beads was fun. Just spray starting fluid around the bead and toss a match on it! The gas in side the exploads the bead on then you can air it up. They outlawed it but did it anyway. The expression on the truck drivers face was priceless!

[@joshuaschmitz]

When you were talking about the SeaFoam deep creep I was thinking "yeah project farm tested it and it came out on top".... but then you said the same lol

[@reallyslowcustom2514]

Need a bigger hose for that impact gun

[@slomotrainwreck]

You guys really need to supply that 1 inch impact gun with a minimum of 3/4 inch air hose hooked up to a high CFM air pumper like a rotary screw or vane type to do it justice, I'm glad that it worked though. Thanks for the video on these types of rims and that Seafoam product tip. Have you guys ever watched the "Pakistani Truck" youtube channel? They repair those split ring rims on those"Jingle trucks" over there.

[@SealedBeamRallyTeam]

Ideally would have the big hose, but then we'd be getting into a bigger compressor, and then the $250 impact driver purchase spirals up toward a grand, and well, the wheels are the only things I will be using it for at this point. I'll check out that Pakistani truck channel!

[@SkylarHillShop]

@@SealedBeamRallyTeam The compressor will be fine, the diameter of the hose is killing you! Even a 1/2" hose would help. You'd be amazed how much harder it hits. When the compressor kicks on just wait for it to charge back up. Great info on the different types of wheels!

[@SealedBeamRallyTeam]

I'll have to figure something out before i start hauling loads. For now I'm going to make sure the lug studs are lubricated so I can fully torque them, and I think it'll be fine for just driving around with nothing on it

[@jerrykinnin7941]

I run container chassis. Split ring is a railroad standard. On a Dayton wheel. 5 spokes. a big majority of which are a 10x20 tube type tire. How we mount them is inner wheel ring out valve stem pointing to the inner lug nut. then Put on the spacer then put on the outer wheel valve stem pointing toward the opposite inner lug nut. Now install the wedges on the studs then the lug nuts. Seating the tire so it runs true. Now air up bother tires at the same time to 90 lbs. After aired up drop the jack and put a touque wrench on them. To remove a blown tire. Loosen the 5 outer lug nuts smack the rim to loosen the wedges. Now remove lug nuts and wedges.

[@woodennecktie]

the trick to feed the impacttool is not the short hose , but a 1' hose of about 10 ft direct to the tool . that way you have a lot of air available for the first knocks

[@terrystewart2070]

I worked in a gas station that was a truck (and car and tractor) tire service from 1964-68 while in high school. We worked with all these wheel types, all the time. The boss had a huge 3 phase powered v type compressor with about a 50 gallon tank, and an Ingersol-Rand one inch drive impact gun, which never met a lug it couldn't remove. We also had a big air powered bead breaker, that was similar to a jackhammer, but with a bead breaker end. It also worked great. Short handled sledges presuaded rusty stuff loose. Once the reassembly process started, we had an automatic inflator that we could set the desired pressure, hook it to the valve stem, stand back, and it would shut off when the pressure was reached. We often raised the lube rack and put the wheels under, then lowered the rack onto the wheel before inflating. We knew the wheels were dangerous... a local man who owned dump trucks and heavy equipment got blown up during this time, but lucky for him he recovered. He never worked on those again, he had us do it.

[@PORNDAWG]

One of the best video's I've seen. Both informative, n entertaining with live footage n examples plus the great history/info sesh at the end. Frickin love it haha

[@paintnamer6403]

Nice work on the cut a way.

[@SealedBeamRallyTeam]

Thank you

[@SteveMacSticky]

thank you for including metric measurements. much appreciated

[@171apples171]

Man i had to change those old ball and seat lug wheels on a big ugly old Mack yard truck in a scrap metal yard. I dreaded hearing "I got a flat" on the radio. It was always that damn Mack lol

[@dalewier9735]

I was about 6, in Diboll, Texas in 1966 and was across the main road coming out of Western auto and looking toward Poland tire. Suddenly, i heard an explosion and saw the "split" part of the rim of a log truck tire fly up about 50 to 60 feet in the air and land on top of the building. It would have killed anyone near the flight path. Will never forget it.

[@integr8er66]

You might add how hard it is to replace C50 wheels because they have a 10 bolt pattern which you won't find any non widow maker wheels for other than some VERY expensive aftermarket ones that were made for avery short time. Also you can wrap a chain around the tire and through the holes in the wheel center. do this all the way around and even if it lets loose its basically in a cage.

[@redreaper215]

I was directed here from Reddit to explain what widowmaker tires are. i know absolutely nothing about cars and I found your video super informative and well done!!

[@datzkar]

Hahaha you saw the same post I did!

[@redreaper215]

@@datzkar 😂😂 that’s awesome.

[@SealedBeamRallyTeam]

Interesting. I saw it was linked from a Ford truck forum earlier but I'm glad people are finding it informative enough to spread further! Thank you for the note!

[@paigepaige4149]

You might have saved my life. Lol We had no idea. We have an old 1957 6400 Chevrolet Grain Truck and about to change the tires….

[@SealedBeamRallyTeam]

Be safe!

[@rustybucket4468]

Thanks 👍 for the info! I've had the pleasure of using bud rims for the most part and only a small number of the rims I service are split ring and split locking ring rims. I always take the time and care to do a tire replacement properly , like not exceeding a bead seating pressure of 20psi, and then into the tire cage for inflation to the specified pressure. I will keep an eye out for the "widow maker" type of rims but I'm happy to say that most of the trucks I work on are not antiques. Say another big point when inflating a tire is to listen for any cracking noise while inflating,that is a sign that the steel belts are snapping between the inner and outer rubbers and that the tire is unsafe to inflate and should be discarded. One more thing 😃 that Saab Sonett you have is a fun little sports car. Fiberglass body, front wheel drive ,with a "free wheeling" trans axle , mechanical headlights, like the Opel GT , and that industrial V-4 was an excellent power plant. Have fun with that!

[@TheEgg185]

If I was doing this, I wouldn't want to have to handle it after filling in a tire cage. I'd rather put it on the vehicle, then fill it with a long hose from far away. If it explodes and damages e vehicle, so be it.

[@Convoycrazy]

Great video. I have some wartime budd rims that have a single solid ring, they used them on CCKW’s, ton & 1/2’s and Ben Hur trailers. Was very interesting trying to disassemble them

[@SealedBeamRallyTeam]

Very interesting. I didn't see those in my research. Having a hard time trying to pin any down in Google right now. After making this video I pay way more attention to truck wheels, but I'll keep an extra eye out for those too.

[@VB-bk1lh]

Back when these RH5° rims were more common, most guys doing tires knew to stay clear of these when inflating. If the rims were in good shape, the two halves of the rims fit rather well, it was when rust and years of use beating up the rim that made them a bigger issue. The first shop I worked at back then didn't have a proper cage for these rims and I'm not sure you could buy one at that time either. We would do one of two things when inflating these, either we used the forks of the forklift, which we pushed together on both sides of the tire and a remote tire filling hose, or we would place the tire in the alley between a storage trailer and the concrete building. We were told to inflate the tire just slightly, maybe 5 psi or so, then check the halves of the rim before inflating. We were taught never to lay the tire down simply because what goes up, must come down. It was years later, in the 80's before I actually saw a rim separate during inflation, a guy was inflating a newer, three piece lock ring style wheel with a new tire and tube when the snap ring slipped out. It was in a full cage when that happened. The same guy however later was responsible for blowing up four more tires and cages. It never happened to any of the other guys for some reason. By the 1980's most shops wouldn't touch two piece rims and many refused to even work on three piece rims claiming it was an insurance issue. We still did them on occasion, or at least I did, most of the younger guys would evacuate the shop when I was inflating one. For as many of those rims as they made over the years, the failure rate back in the day was pretty low. I think most issues were from inexperience, carelessness, corrosion, and mismatched parts. I personally owned a truck years ago with those rims. A previous owner, likely long before my time with it, had welded the rim halves together. It made replacing the tires interesting but once the old tires were off we realized they had welded both the outside and inside of the rim with what looked like stainless or high nickle rod. They got a set of used tires at that time but I eventually found a set of modern rims for it. The old rims became camp fire rings and flower planters around the neighborhood back then. I'm not sure what the replacement rims came from, a local used tire shop had them for cheap with a set of decent used tires. The used tires lasted till I sold that truck years later, so I never did get a really close look at what those rims were. I likely never had the wheels off it again.

[@GageLaBarber-q5z]

Dang I thought all the widow makers were the ones with the 5 forks... you probably just saved my life with this info I just got a 1967 f600

[@SealedBeamRallyTeam]

Stay safe my man!

[@jdmbeats]

I've always wondered why these types of wheels were so dangerous. Cool informative video 👍

[@davebarnes1370]

I ran a service truck doing truck and heavy equipment tires from 1981 to 2003. Done hundreds of split rims and have no problem with any of there designs. Like the one old guy says... If it's corroded to bad can it. The Widowmaker takes expert knowledge to service safely. There's that little bevel just above the locking mechanisms that you keep even all way round and you can tell it's locked. But! It requires you ad a small amounts of air while tapping the outer ring until it evens up all round. If they were corroded, I would tell the customer it beyond usable and then destroy the wheel so some rookie couldn't kill himself in the future trying to use it.

[@jamesg9932]

45 years ago i worked on a 1950 Ford dump truck that had a non-Bud style split rim. It shocked me to realize that you must deflate and inflate the tire assembly while mounted on the vehicle or the rim can overlap on itself and expel the bead ring with deadly force. I upgraded to a split ring style rim that was thoroughly cleaned of any rust.

[@Truckguy2007]

When I had my 1970 C50 it still had 5 of those wheels left on it. I found some multi piece wheels in a wrecking yard and replaced them.

[@SealedBeamRallyTeam]

Good move!

[@redbarond1]

Absolutely incredible video production quality, and I love that you really did your research and provided your sources! Keep up the good work!

[@dDayye]

My brother was driving a 68 International loadstar dump truck and the lock ring blew off the front tire and cut my uncle's mailbox post in two, we never found the ring. And these were Dayton 20 inch rims with 900/20 tires.

[@SealedBeamRallyTeam]

Holy cow. Do you know if it had been serviced recently? From the reading I've done, it appears most issues pop up pretty quickly after tire replacement.

[@dDayye]

@@SealedBeamRallyTeam Don't remember, that happened back in the late 70s.

[@mikefeddersen2476]

My dad had a gravel truck business and for many years all the tires were tube type with the 2 or 3 piece split rims. I remember one of the solid rings with the split rim, but dad said to scrap it. In 1984 I worked for a concrete company in Mesa Arizona, they had the widow maker rims on some orchard trucks. The head tire guy taught me to pay attention and air them up with a chain wrapped around them. In 1988-90 I was working for a truck and off-road equipment tire shop that would change the widow makers. After an employee at the Firestone shop down the road had one explode on him as he pulled it out of the tire cage our manager offered customer's two choices. 1. Here's the air chuck, the customer could fill the tire up. 2. They could get a nice safe new 2 piece rim with their tire change. No one took the air up challenge. I didn't realize how fortunate, or blessed I was over all those years changing tires. But I do now. Great video.

[@mikefeddersen2476]

I meant to mention my grandpa mentioned doing one of the widow makers, it lifted him to the roof of the service station he was working at.

[@otomoravec1732]

Those old truck pictures are beautiful!

[@danieljones8587]

Growing up in Los Angeles in the 50s & and 60s, I remember Firestone servicing our F650s. All were split rings, and if my memory serves me as correctly, they would not service split rims. They would send their service trucks to where our trucks got the flat on the road or jobsite. All of their service staff were big and strong Negro gentlemen that could break the tire bead in one mighty swing of their special bead breaker axe and then sliding a bent tire tool through the holes in the rim when they inflated the repaired flat that was supposed to retain the split ring if it ever flew off during inflation. Also, they would bang on the ring with that tool to make sure the ring was seated during inflation. Sometimes, I would drive the trucks to their shop if it was rear inner or outer flat and noticed the cages they would put the tires in when inflating.

[@SealedBeamRallyTeam]

My cynical side says if somebody got killed by the wheel, they could always claim the tech wasn't doing it right or something. But the convenience for truck operators is paramount either way.

[@Rocksoup77]

What a great video and piece of information. I worked at a tire shop out of high school in the 90’s. We did the split ring rims in the tire cage. If I remember, I don’t believe the shop manager even let us service “split rim” style.

[@marktwining3574]

Budd style split rings are deadly as I narrowly escaped death , changed one not knowing the dangers, no training to speak of and no cage in sight because it was never used under a pile of tires ! Was airing up to 80 lbs when it blew like the sound of a cannon, hit me in forehead and sent me flying at least 10 feet away and ring kept going through steel roof ! Caved my forehead in and split my nose ! A year recovery and a few plastic surgeries ok.

[@rockfangd]

This video reminds me that I do not miss working with these. Great video. In rust areas like where I live this was even worse

[@conleycroom8813]

Good video , just to add to it... the 1 inch impact requires 18scfm and a 3/4 inch hose to get full throttle out of it. Deep creep is awesome. Thank you for the vid

[@donalddodson7365]

Well done, thank you. Beers and bull headedness are huge factors in tire repair mishaps.

[@lightningdemolition1964]

Get a manual torque multiplier for jobs like that. Mine multiplies 70 to 1 and breaks anything loose. Just use it to get the nuts cracked then use the impact to run them off. A whole kit with several sockets is less than $100.

[@SealedBeamRallyTeam]

This is what i plan on getting for the future. Hard to justify an air compressor upgrade just for the one vehicle.

[@BlueCollarBachelor]

Hint on your ugga dugga machine there, dual line it. 3/8 isn't enough flow. Needs AT LEAST a 1/2" line. Two 3/8" lines to a 1/2x3/8x3/8 Tee with 1/2" to the impact will make it work correctly. Awesome video. Great info for folks!

[@muffs55mercury61]

Back in the late 70s & thru the 80s I had a few F-350s and F-600s (trucks that were retired from work) Never had to change one from the F-600s but changed some of the lock ring type from the F-350s and never had a problem. I didn't have the luxury of an impact wrench but used a lug wrench and a six foot cheater bar. I always got lucky and got them off. Ford came out with a 22.5 tubeless wheel in 1956 but they seemed to have fallen out of favor within a few years as most of those trucks after 1960 had tube types once again. This brought back a lot of memories. I miss those old big trucks as they were quite reliable. Brakes and tires were the only jobs that were more difficult that on a pickup.

[@wt1370]

My cousin was killed by a split ring/rim back in 1986 in his shop. He was working late at night and no one knew until the next morning. His dog was still laying beside him when his brother found him.I’m thankful I never had to fool with them.

[@SealedBeamRallyTeam]

This is incredibly sad. I'm sorry to hear it.

[@steveashcraft718]

No tire shop around here will work on either style rim. I've worked on the split ring wheels. Didn't have a cage so we used a heavy log chain to hold the ring if it blew off.

[@clayz1]

Washington State National Guard 6 years. 1976 to 1982. We had the motor pool next door. It had a cage inside. My Sargent pointed out the circular groove in the cinderblock wall behind the cage. That was sobering as all getout.

[@lesmiller1739]

In a trade magazine years ago I read that the split ring stores enough energy at full inflation to throw an 8 pound bowling ball five miles. There is only about 1/8 inch that holds it to the rim. Old hands will remember “for speeds over 60mph add 10psi” on some of the old bias ply truck tires. I for one am thankful for the advancement on tires and rims.

[@Rusty_Nickle]

The air and truck tires is no joke. We had a service tech was reaching down to pull air chuck off. Just as he did that the sidewall zipper ruptured. It threw him 5 ft backwards into a metal cabinet. The cage went 10 ft and the other direction.he Dented the crap out of the cabinet. He was wearing a one piece coveralls. Never even bothered with the zipper when the force literally ripped them off of him. He was very lucky to see the least. Took him about half a day to get his hearing back

[@darrelfuhrman8217]

Most widow makers were made by Kelsey Hayse, I am sure that I spelled it wrong. At the one tire shop that I was at, an old guy showed me & told me what to watch out for on the KH widow makers. On the KH mark with crayon on the rim where the notches are. On the KH center mark on the center where the notches or hooks are. Make sure that they are opposite. NEVER air up a rim with any bent, worn, or mismatched parts. One guy brought in a Goodyear rim, Firestone snap ring, and a removable bead that had been run down a highway flat. I said NO! He complained to the day manager, day manager said yes. I still said NO. I told him to go call the owner Ed. Ed said that he would look at it tomorrow morning when he came in. Ed looked at the removable bead, said no. Told the guy to get his junkyard parts out of his shop! I think that the day manager got talked to. Next time I saw owner, my Friday afternoon shift, he said thank you. Your impact wrench sounds low on air volume, remove the quick coupler from the impact wrench, screw about a 6 foot hose onto the impact wrench. DO NOT USE 1/4” quick couplers! Use 1/2 quick couplers for a 1” wrench! Go to the Torque Test Channel, they torque test impact wrenches, air hose sizes, quick coupler designs, quick coupler sizes! Hello from north east Montana. 10 miles from the Canadian border.

[@christophermeiners8305]

A guy who knows how to service widow makers.. Impressive! It seems that even the people who can identify the RH5 degree still don't realize that the notches in the ring exist and misalignment is the root of failure apart from corrosion

[@treeguyable]

Been doing split rim, since 81. Still do em on the regular, on my 81 F700.m, daily use. I use a chain when airing up. Never had a problem.