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Dealing with heavy spares when you can't...

kogar

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ok, I'm going to tell you a story first:
Back when I got my first '18 JL, it took about 3 milliseconds for me to get a set of 35s with Fuel wheels, and a modest lift kit. I went wheeling with some friends (experienced people). Unfortunately, in one of the more difficult sections, my passenger rear tire broke the bead (it really was a freak situation -- it was NOT because I had poor quality tires). My first thought was to take the spare off and swap them out, but when I pulled the spare, the 113lbs of wheel/tire did some nasty stuff to my back (injured while in the service...sigh). My wife was NOT happy, because not only did it put me in a lot of pain, it put me in a lot of pain for days. Bad enough that I finally had to get a spinal catheter inserted to fight the ligature tears and disc damage. Fortunately, there were other folks around to help with replacing the bad wheel. But then I got to thinking, what if my wife or I was somewhere on the rural roads of Texas and got a flat. Sure, I could call USAA for a rescue tow/spare replacement, but then it made me wonder why I should even bother with a spare if I (or my wife) can't handle it?

Now to present day. I own a 20 JLUR Diesel, and my wife owns a 21 JLUR Diesel. She's running around on those same 35s, and I'm about to jump to 37s. Ironically, I calculated the respective weights of the wheels -- my 37's will only weigh a 1/2 pound more than her 35s.

So, the question is: Are there (simple) devices that would allow me to dismount a spare and raise/lower it safely for one person? This seems like something obvious, but my search really hasn't found anything that's not a big contraption like a bumper-mounted hoist. My thinking is that a series of panels could be assembled that would function like a simple ramp (because rolling a spare up or down a ramp is much easier), but then there's the question of mounting it as well as the fun task of re-aligning the wheel on the spare tire mount (rotating to line up the bolts).

Some of you may say, "Don't go wheeling with anything heavier than you can lift," but that's just not a workable solution for me. I'm about to go into my 60s screaming and kicking, and I refuse to give up. Surely there's a simple, lightweight solution that I just haven't found yet?
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JimLee

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I haven't seen anything but i'm thinking about a bracket that I can quick attach/detach to the rear of my roof rack with a pulley on the end. Then I can run my winch cable backwards across the roof, through pulley and use my winch to raise or lower a spare. I can lift my tire wheel combo but like you have had some back injuries and associated lingering problems, if I throw my back out offroad that's it trip over, and I may not even be able to drive out.
 
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kogar

kogar

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I haven't seen anything but i'm thinking about a bracket that I can quick attach/detach to the rear of my roof rack with a pulley on the end. Then I can run my winch cable backwards across the roof, through pulley and use my winch to raise or lower a spare. I can lift my tire wheel combo but like you have had some back injuries and associated lingering problems, if I throw my back out offroad that's it trip over, and I may not even be able to drive out.
Using your winch is definitely a clever option! I don't have a roof rack though, so I need to be careful of loading stress.
 

JimLee

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Using your winch is definitely a clever option! I don't have a roof rack though, so I need to be careful of loading stress.
I'd think maybe a spreader bar type arrangement with four wide feet, the weight would keep it in place. I don't thing the spot load would be very high on each foot if you are just lifting an ~ 100lb tire and spare combo. Of course you'd want to keep it small enough and light enough to not be a PITA to setup and use.

Edit, you'd have to find a way to at least clamp it down to the gutters because some of it would have to overhang the back of the jeep.
 

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How often are you wheeling alone? Can
Your wife or co-pilot help lift it? I am running 37’s and bead locks and have a tough time lifting the wheel and getting it lined up on the spare tire carrier. With just a little help from someone else it is much easier.
There is no way my wife could lift it alone. However, she never wheels it, so the only time it could go flat for her would be on the road and then she would just call roadside assistance and they would change it.
 

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I’ve thought of a design years ago for this and never did anything with it. Not because of bad back or anything, it’s a generally hard thing to do to lift the tire and then finely control an outward motion to a tight alignment with the studs at a low lift height; not so bad when the jeep is on a lift. It’s not bad if you sit on the ground and use your feet, but this is really a bad idea since on trails you are just using a jack.

if you have a hi-lift they make a wheel attachment that works extremely well for this type of situation, but hi-lifts have a course adjustment in the height they lift. I’ve never used it for that, but I’ve used my old
One for lifting a wheel out of a hole.
 

PacNWJLGecko

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Hi lift is a good idea. I don't care how strong a person is, there's a reason Osha says anything over 80lbs is a team lift. I'm in construction, pretty much any worker over 50 has a back of an 80 year old man. Being macho helps no one. Take care of your back, period.
 

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I was just talking about this the other day somewhere.... Do you REALLY need a spare? On my 2 dr JK I ran without a spare because I wanted it as light as possible. I always had a plug kit and a compressor if needed, but I never had a chance to use them. Something to think about. I have a full size 38" spare on beadlocks now, and I am thinking about moving it to a camp trailer.
 
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kogar

kogar

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How often are you wheeling alone? Can
Your wife or co-pilot help lift it?
Well, I have a firm rule to never wheel alone, unless it's just flat,open territory with a few hills, etc. You're right that having that extra help matters, but I'm just looking for ideas. Maybe there's a contraption that attaches to a hi-lift that would help haha.
 

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I would think that a Hi lift jack would be the easiest cost effective way to do this. Mind you, I don't think that using a Hi Lift Jack would be easy to do this alone. Balancing a big tire on the jack, while pumping the jack handle could be a difficult process at best. The chance for injury would also be high.

I think the winch idea is also a far reach. What is the chance of having the correct tree placement so run all the block and tackle to get the winch line from the front of the Jeep to a lifting position and not damage the Jeep. Sure it can be done, Just not likely or easily.

If I was not able to lift the spare there are a couple things that I would try. Most of the time the spare sits a couple inches above the rear bumper. I would cut a log/tree limb and use it as a ramp by placing it on the rear bumper and push the tire up the limb like a ramp, turn it sideways and maybe have to only lift it an inch or two. Out in the desert, keep staking rocks to make a ramp or back up to a rock or ledge to get the tire high enough that it is a small lift to get it on the carrier.

Or just put the tire in the back of the Jeep and put it back on the Jeep when you get home.


I carry tire patching kit and have on board air. I would only switch to the spare if the tire was not able to be fixed. I run Cooper STT PRO tires along with six other that I wheel with all over the country. We have 200,000 combined miles with zero flats, punctures or any type of tire failure. They have kevlar re-enforce belts and have performed well on everything from the Rubicon Trail, Moab, Sand dunes, the rocks at Windrock and Rausch Creek. The tires have been through some very extreme terrain by witness fo the deadlock rings on my wheels. This picture is over a year old.

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JeepinJason33

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I agree, even with the right wheel attachment for the hi-lift, it would be unstable and not tall enough to lift it properly. Best bet might be to just lift it enough to get it into the back of the Jeep until you can get help. You can rest one edge against the bumper and then lift the ground end using the bumper to balance and leverage the spare while you flip it into the back.
 

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My plan is to use the hi lift to break the beads. Then I can disassemble my hutchinsons so I’m only lifting one part at a time. Tire goes inside, wheel can get reassembled on the carrier if I’m short room.
 

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My plan is to use the hi lift to break the beads. Then I can disassemble my hutchinsons so I’m only lifting one part at a time. Tire goes inside, wheel can get reassembled on the carrier if I’m short room.
I wheel with a guy that does the same thing. He does not have to carry a spare wheel, just the tire and he throws the extra tire in the back of his TJ and fills it with tools and other items. Works out pretty well.
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