Wheel Rim Holes Egged

[Jim Meade / Iowa City]

I had a wheel fall off a wagon today.  It looks like the studs worked out.  The holes  in the rim are slightly egged.  Can they be repaird or does this call for a new rim?

[clayton58]

probably neeed a new rim.You will have a hard time keeping the studs tightr if the holes are egged.  Unless you get longer ones that you can put a nut on the backside of the hub.  but i would try that only if you don't usse the wagon much and no heavy loads 

[Pupdaddy]

If you look in the Shoup catalog, I believe they sell "wheel reinforcement rings, that can be welded over the egged out holes pretty easily. I'd bolt my wheel on the wagon with the reinforcement under the bolts..and spin it to see if the wheel is mounted true. Then I'd get a good weld around the wheel..alternating back and forth across the hub (like you do when tightening one down the wheel) and it should be pretty stout.

[SideHill3X]

what about adding a reinforcing ring between the lugs and the rim? I see them in catelogues for 5, 6, 8 and 10 hole wheels. I use them on many wheels here on our farm, and have never had on fail yet.

[Shaggy98]

I never take a chance when there are safety hazards involved.  Yes you might be able to repair the wheel for less than it would take to replace it, but what happens if the repaired wheel fails on a public roadway?  I know new equipment is not a guarantee against failure, but I would like to think it is safer than repaired equipment.  Just my nickels worth.  Did you determine what caused it to come loose in the first place?

[Jim Meade / Iowa City]

I took the wheel to the local machine shop.  He said the holes weren't bad enough to need fixing, but what we did was use longer bolts and put nuts on the back side of the hub.  I cleaned the hub holes with a tap and the bolts went in well and held tight, but I used the nuts anyway.  I'll keep an eye on them and if there ends up being a problem I'll replace the rim.  Thanks for all the suggestions.