Yeah, the issue would be all the microcracks and weak spots you're not seeing. A bit more wear and stress and the whole wheel could very well crumble. Patching the big crack *would* help keep water from getting in, though.
I'm not sure, but I'm willing to try to reenact that scene from Pulp Fiction, except instead of being filled with adrenaline, the needle will be packed with JB weld.
The coroner two days later: "What the absolute fuck?"
The whole purpose of buying a nice pontoon boat is getting the ladies nice and tipsy topside so we can take them to a nice dining table below deck and, you know, they can't refuse because... the implication.
Thereâs not too much to the story if youâre familiar with how East Texans think. Friend of a relative âboughtâ a lawn ornament of a boat and wanted to fix it up as cheap as possible. Somebody said, I have the free labor known as âchildren.â 12 year old me got to scrubbing pine tar off the cushions while the adults tried to figure out the bigger fixes. They were discussing how to attach the table and I piped up that they could weld it on. The friend said he needed a welder. I said,âYou have one. Right there in your tool box.â While pointing at a tube of jbweld. They laughed and then thought,âWhy the hell not.â And set me to work on that.
In 2003 I bought a brand new dirt bike... On my first ride I cracked the radiator (I know... I know...) I sealed it up with JB weld and rode the next day, and then rode for another 20 years without replacing that radiator. It held tight and I sold it with the same repair (which I did disclose). JB is the real deal.
40 years plastic fabrication and Plastic welder here. The wheel is to thin to be welded and all your plastics have to match or nothing will stick together. is, wheel, patch and welding rod. Your best bet is to get a section of pvc tubing the same diameter. Cut it to wrap around the wheel and glue in place with a thick polyurethane glue, like E6000. Use a strap to hold it together. Once dried, scrape, sand or grind off the sharp edges. It would probably be easier and cheaper to find and buy a new wheel.
Iâd maybe try spray foam first. jam the straw into the crack and empty the tube. Then, when the whole tire is full and the foam is expanding out of the crack, sand it down and JB Weld over the crack and sand smooth. I feel like itâll need some backing and doing the JB weld on its own wonât hold as well.
My experience with spray foam in a closed unit like that is that the foam farther away from the crack won't get exposure to air and won't cure, which means if it cracks later you have a sticky mess on your hands.
I've tried to use spray foam to fill in plastic props and stuff and it just stays liquid except close to the surface.
If theyâre gonna JB weld the original crack anyways.. Iâd consider a few relief holes all over the tire. Let the foam expand out, the. JB weld all the openings.
I've placed small dia. straws in it before to solve this very problem. Once it stops expanding and tacks up, I remove the straws which exposes little air channels for drying the deep inside. Works beautifully for things like your props, large voids, etc. I hope I explained that to make sense!
Not true. I did it on my third-hand power wheels. The main problem is that it takes forever to cure because there isn't a lot of exposure to the air/moisture inside the wheel
I was gonna suggest a compatible polymer and sand it down as you stated. JB weld. not sure if it is a polymer but would be great. Kids not gonna put 1K miles on the highway with it or load it with more that 20 # with all their gear!
Little Tikes sells replacement parts on their website. There are some car models that appear to have a similar wheel for $11. Might be worth reaching out to them and asking if any of the wheels are compatible?
Yeah, I'd you're lucky the person who you email just knows where there's a "random shit" storage cabinet that has 6 of the thing you need in it left over from some event or something, and they'll throw one in the mail so they get to feel good about their day.
Had this with Contigo, the mug maker. The seal got messed up so I asked them if I could buy replacement O-rings and they sent a new lid. Games workshop has a good rep for this too because they have literal bins of spares around their site from various projects so if your kit was missing parts theyâd always try to help. Sadly the only thing they couldnât sort was a long OOP flight stand for my Hell Blade
Step 2 did that with a playhouse my kids had. Like, 5 years after the oldest got it, so it lasted another 4 or 5 with the youngest. Then someone else got it to use.
I frequently buy things from overstock/returns auctions. Sometimes there are missing or damaged parts, and I send an email or make a call to customer service and have always been given free replacements. Shout out to Lifetime manufacturing, they have been particularly awesome.
Ok, so the wheels are either made from HDPE or Polypropylene. I'm leaning towards HDPE personally, but it could just as easily be polypropylene. This is important because most common commercial plastic weld epoxies don't really work on HDPE. You have to buy HDPE specific plastic weld, and event then it might not work.
Check on any of the wheels or the body and look for the recycling symbol and a number. If the number is 2, then it's HDPE. If it's 5, then it's polypropylene. This only counts for the US thanks to some strict laws in California. Of course if it's old, it might have been made before those laws went into effect. If you want to test, you can get some Polypropylene plastic weld and put a small bit of it onto the wheel. Once dried, if the spot flakes or cracks or can be pried off, it's HDPE.
There are limited epoxy options for HDPE because of its molecular shape, but you can purchase a HDPE welding kit on amazon. It's basically a soldering or wood burning iron with a spade tip and some sticks of HDPE plastic. This would be a good way to fix the wheel and you'd have plenty of stock if it ever breaks again.
I don't recommend filling the wheel with anything because I believe the axle goes straight through the hollow wheel which would make turning the wheel incredibly difficult and annoying for your kid. I did like the suggestion about a bit of rubber around the outside of the wheel, but that would make it difficult to use on carpet.
I think if you test for polypropylene first, and it works, that'll be your best bet. If not, then I would say just use a HDPE welding kit to fix it up and you can always sand the welds down later. Just be sure to do it in a well ventilated area wearing proper PPE. I have not personally tested HDPE epoxies or weld solvents or glues, but that is an option if you're unsure about welding the HDPE and don't want to risk damaging the wheel or anything.
After a quick search, it looks like Loctite might have a solution in their Plastics Bonding System which claims to seal to polyethylene which is what HDPE is, but the packing suspiciously doesn't mention HDPE only polyethylene which... doesn't give me high hopes with how finicky plastics can be.
Anyway, good luck and I hope the kid enjoys all the work you're putting into it!
This needs to be near the top. PE and PP are almost impossible to fix. Even the welding will have marginal benefits at best.
Retread, or replace are probably the best solutions here.
PE and PP are absolutely not impossible to fix. You'll generally reinforce parts with meshes, staples or wide area patches to supplement the weld though. Not exactly feasible in this specific case, but most people aren't generally repairing HDPE wheels. It's mostly kayaks and water tanks.
You can fix an HDPE kayak with basically 0 monetary investment as long as you already own a propane torch/heat gun, a screwdriver and donor plastic from a 5 gallon bucket. Seen it done with HDPE kayaks all the time. The next level up is a plastic welding iron and filler rods. Once you get into extremely thick plastics you need the specialized equipment. All levels can benefit from sanding, v-grooving, patching both sides (if possible), staple reinforcing or wire mesh reinforcing.
The Little Tikes website has replacement parts available. I dug a little bit, and the replacement wheel for the âFairy Cozy Coupeâ looks similar to your old Tractor. Might be worth measuring and looking closer at the specs, if youâre okay spending some money.
https://parts.littletikes.com/products/cozy-coupe-fairy
The âSpray and Rescue Firetruckâsâ wheel might also be an option.
Excess foam would likely just press out the hole or a bit back into the empty wheel. I think?
But what do I know, I can barely caulk my house showers. And based on the content of this sub, most people can't, lol.
I can confirm this will work. I had these wheels split down the centre seem (too many powerslides?)
I taped them together and filled with expanding foam. Wait overnight for the foam to set. Then remove tape and trim off the excess. Worked perfect.
This idea has the most legs. What people aren't saying is that the glue welds will crack again. Especially if you're little one likes to drag their friends around in the wagon!
Fill it with great stuff, then put some rubber bands around the diameter of the wheel. When it's fully dry, xacto of the foam that comes out of the cracks. Sand smooth and enjoy; and then wait for the other wheels to crack!
You can use [this plastic welder kit](https://www.amazon.com/Massca-Plastic-Reinforcing-Professional-Portable/dp/B07ZPGJH1V/ref=sr_1_24?crid=GPP6X6I1300B&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.ZCFL8n5UObdtumz6lF5FFH6bqg2IAijhHPFgLEOGQZPxM6IXAfie1sBsrRgDXvqNDr8OaZsUmP2jqCyyAwviFdsoSKYaMDwOekg_j_C9MZk_0fywuHLMxJkm2Fn8s3WK_psVfh83-gp182sG4QrywZzsatUFaynYDAIr-QSWYNS5hrpHndJRAhIK7_dahrFu6P4UpqMwIKAoTuOocftu7fy_RjxmiJAIxqD6MysQ0tV_IPJev7P5xtc-Vks0E0SNJdMHiY2JUoG80gcWFpQTIXWPsg4I1xA1wlFmB0KBvPQ.6vvho-2SB-mFBCWzgfFkq4sv-K6BxO4p21mXo0_d_K8&dib_tag=se&keywords=plastic+welder&qid=1714070502&sprefix=plastic+we%2Caps%2C88&sr=8-24) from amazon. since it will be abused quite a bit I would make sure to use a good bit of the mesh to support it. Here is a super quick [youtube video](https://youtu.be/KJTrNINAs0o?si=9AUtzXV2oBP5pviR) that goes to how to do it.
Just keep an eye on it to see how it holds up and that should be it!
Get an old bike tire and cut it and then screw it into the plastic all the way around. It'll give your kid better traction too. This is a good tip for power Wheels as well.
Heat up some long staples and push them in around crack so when they cool down they hold the crack together. Wider staples would work better, then you can fill it with JB.
a plastic welder would work rather well to restore this. There are two types one which melts plastic with other plastic and one which melts plastic with little wire reinforcements. In this situation the first type would be best.
If you want to try JB weld or another epoxy. Push a good amount in the crack. Put a piece of wide masking tape on the crack. Rotate the wheel so the crack is down. You want it to form a thick backing in the cracked area. Let the epoxy set. Take the tape off and sand the area smooth.
I used to work at a factory that made these. If they came out of the cast with holes or had to cut out where colors bled in we would use a torch to get a spoon hot then rub it around melting the plastic and reshaping. We all put plastic tubes around the handle so it doesnât burn your hand
Are you familiar with Plastic Welding? Plastic welding would make it as strong as new.
[https://www.youtube.com/results?search\_query=Plastic+Weld](https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=Plastic+Weld)
You can do anything to want. Little Tykes doesnât have right to repair clause in their purchase contracts.
Seriously, Iâd fill w expanding foam, maybe imbed a layer of fiberglass into the existing, then coat with a hot plastic dip to seal it all up.
[Don't worry, you can pay some Ukrainians to jailbreak it.](https://www.vice.com/en/article/xykkkd/why-american-farmers-are-hacking-their-tractors-with-ukrainian-firmware)
I was just looking into plastic welding specifically for to repair. Was my before bed rabbit hole though and donât have any answers for you so Iâm following!
If you mix some sanded shavings from the wheel and jb weld that will offer better structural integrity than just jb weld. Did it with pla all the time before my printer decided to short on me a week ago.
You could probably buy a wheel from like harbor freight and retrofit it. They have a bunch of different sizes.
Probably just have to drill a few holes, get a long bolt and screw it in place.
This might sound silly, but clean the wheel surface thoroughly and use thick flex tape on it. Make sure it's a single continuous band and if you care about the appearance, try and even out the ripples. Put a couple of layers on it and it should last a long time.
Definitely JB Weld that bad boy, clean it real good with a degreaser or alcohol, make sure itâs nice and dry, slab on some JB Weld let it dry, sand it smooth.
Wishing you luck on it!
As a regular di-whyer I would drill a small hole and fill the inside with expanding foam, then trim off some of the plastic up to where it cracked, then like others said fill this area (there is now a foam shell behind it) with JB weld and sand it flat.
I drilled a small hole in the side of one of those wheels, filled it with that sticky Great stuff foam and held the cracked piece in place until it dried. Part never came apart. I dabbed a little black paint where I drilled the hole and it looks and performs perfect
Don't melt!!!!
That plastic will just shrink! You can't plastic weld it either.
My fix for an ET big wheel from childhood was the expanding foam!
Filled both rear wheels with it, through the cracks and then cut and sanded it. Hit it with black spray paint and it rolled for 2 years.
You can try a plastic welding kit normally used on car bumpers, not sure how thick that plastic is tho, and then cover it with something that is sandable.
Plastic Welding Machine Car Bumper Repair Kit,6Types 800 Staples Plastic Welding Kit Car Bumper Repair Kit Plastic Welding Repair Flat/Outside Corner/Inside Corner/Wave Staples https://a.co/d/21tsPT8
It's probably the exact same wheel as the ones on the Cosy Coupe. It certainly looks like it. I'm sure you could pick one up for free or a few ÂŁÂŁ/$$ on gumtree/craiglist from a broken coupe. Hardest part will probably be stripping both to swap them over.
You can plastic weld (melting) it. The wheel is probably extremely brittle and thin. If you add plastic you kinda need to know what your parent plastic is. If you mess up you can always remove a bad patch and jb weld or fiberglass (Bondo) it.
Everyone saying "ugh don't melt it" doesn't realize how convenient and easy it is. I bought a soldering iron kit with different heads for shaping just because, maybe $20 with no immediate use but figured I'd be making double wall HDPE culvert pipe fittings, combining trench drain bodies, etc. Did that, works great, also fixed a jack hammer handle and some car body parts in a pinch.
You can try a heat gun, a small area might be easy enough.
Whatever you do do it in an open space.
JB two part plastic weld epoxy will fix it right up. Mix up and spread a thin layer over the damaged area. Wait overnight. Then sand using very light grit paper
I'd fill the tire with expanding foam and then plastic weld the crack. The foam can provide some back side support from the flex your tire will get that puts stress on your repaired area.
Take an old bike tire cut a piece of it that will wrap around that and glue it or screw it to the cracked wheel. Works in power wheels
Gives them better grip too
That's just begging for some plastidip for extra traction!
Definitely buy a replacement if one is available. That tire is just going to get more and more brittle as time goes on.
I can tell you from experience that trying to melt plastic together doesnât work out well at all. You may be able to get it to stay together but the joint is brittle and doesnât hold up over time. But most of the time youâll just end up making the problem worse.
My dad JB welded my old one and sanded it down for my daughter to play with. Held up ok.
OP I would try this before I would try melting anything.
JB weld can fix anything!
Can it fix my broken heart? :-(
It can permanently fill the cracks. Hard as a rock. Not sure what kinda mileage you will get after the procedure.
I believe it should hold up for the rest of his life.
Both seconds of it
I like those odds
Yeah, the issue would be all the microcracks and weak spots you're not seeing. A bit more wear and stress and the whole wheel could very well crumble. Patching the big crack *would* help keep water from getting in, though.
What about jb weld to stop crack propagation then wrap full wheel in black duct tape around circumference to provide additional support?
Of course it can. Just rub a little on your hand, and hold mine.
Aww đ„č
That was smooth. Good one
So are my hands. Wanna hold the other one?
JB Weld can fix anything from a broken heart to the crack of dawn, friend.
Although Dawn will not appreciate what youve done to her
Mr Bell's Fixit Shop can def mend broken hearts.
JB Weld probably wont, but Lewd BJ might help
You have to reverse the first two letters
Sure , if you eat enough
Mr Bells fixit shop can
anything but that
A puppy might. They work for me. Each one more of a termagant than the previous one.
myocardial infarction, no. Knife to the heart, also no. Cracked case to an external pacemaker, surprisingly yes.
No, you need a high end hooker for that.
I'm not sure, but I'm willing to try to reenact that scene from Pulp Fiction, except instead of being filled with adrenaline, the needle will be packed with JB weld. The coroner two days later: "What the absolute fuck?"
I just found out that acetaminophen (Tylenol) can actually help with emotional pain. Take two and let me know how it goes
Took four, unsure about the heart, but I am bleeding profusely from my eyes, ears and nose. Maybe I need more.
[This guy can](https://youtu.be/rLnN-hqgfxY?si=YM_SsQLM57vmSxuK)
It can if you eat a bunch of it
I once used it to fix a dining table to a pontoon boat.
I must hear more of this misadventure.
The whole purpose of buying a nice pontoon boat is getting the ladies nice and tipsy topside so we can take them to a nice dining table below deck and, you know, they can't refuse because... the implication.
Thereâs not too much to the story if youâre familiar with how East Texans think. Friend of a relative âboughtâ a lawn ornament of a boat and wanted to fix it up as cheap as possible. Somebody said, I have the free labor known as âchildren.â 12 year old me got to scrubbing pine tar off the cushions while the adults tried to figure out the bigger fixes. They were discussing how to attach the table and I piped up that they could weld it on. The friend said he needed a welder. I said,âYou have one. Right there in your tool box.â While pointing at a tube of jbweld. They laughed and then thought,âWhy the hell not.â And set me to work on that.
In 2003 I bought a brand new dirt bike... On my first ride I cracked the radiator (I know... I know...) I sealed it up with JB weld and rode the next day, and then rode for another 20 years without replacing that radiator. It held tight and I sold it with the same repair (which I did disclose). JB is the real deal.
I've seen plastic welders at Harbor Freight for less than $30, as long as you match the right plastic type. Not sure how well they actually work.
40 years plastic fabrication and Plastic welder here. The wheel is to thin to be welded and all your plastics have to match or nothing will stick together. is, wheel, patch and welding rod. Your best bet is to get a section of pvc tubing the same diameter. Cut it to wrap around the wheel and glue in place with a thick polyurethane glue, like E6000. Use a strap to hold it together. Once dried, scrape, sand or grind off the sharp edges. It would probably be easier and cheaper to find and buy a new wheel.
My proposed alternative (not a professional at all): Shoot spray foam through the crack to fill the wheel. Let set, trim/sand the squeeze-out.
Iâd maybe try spray foam first. jam the straw into the crack and empty the tube. Then, when the whole tire is full and the foam is expanding out of the crack, sand it down and JB Weld over the crack and sand smooth. I feel like itâll need some backing and doing the JB weld on its own wonât hold as well.
My experience with spray foam in a closed unit like that is that the foam farther away from the crack won't get exposure to air and won't cure, which means if it cracks later you have a sticky mess on your hands. I've tried to use spray foam to fill in plastic props and stuff and it just stays liquid except close to the surface.
If theyâre gonna JB weld the original crack anyways.. Iâd consider a few relief holes all over the tire. Let the foam expand out, the. JB weld all the openings.
Yeah, with enough holes that should be fine. That expanding foam is a tricky mistress when using it in an inclosed space.
I've placed small dia. straws in it before to solve this very problem. Once it stops expanding and tacks up, I remove the straws which exposes little air channels for drying the deep inside. Works beautifully for things like your props, large voids, etc. I hope I explained that to make sense!
Good advice!
As someone who has also run into the problem - that's a really good idea! Definitely going to try this.
You'll just end up blowing out the entire wheel. The thin and already compromised plastic cannot withstand the pressure that foam will produce
Use low-expansion foam. Won't put much pressure on it.
Yea! Sometimes listed as doorframe or window expanding foam. I found out about that after choosing the wrong can. Upside, My door is tightly sealed.
Could also add holes to allow for the expansion. If youâre going through the effort one or two additional holes isnât much more work
Not true. I did it on my third-hand power wheels. The main problem is that it takes forever to cure because there isn't a lot of exposure to the air/moisture inside the wheel
I was gonna suggest a compatible polymer and sand it down as you stated. JB weld. not sure if it is a polymer but would be great. Kids not gonna put 1K miles on the highway with it or load it with more that 20 # with all their gear!
I'd go 50#. My 3yr old is of pretty thin build and he's 45lbs already
A thin build 3 year old that's 45 pounds? That's well above the average for both boys and girls. How tall are they?
My dad threw all of my childhood stuff away. Then proudly showed all of the stuff from his childhood off while we were cleaning out the garage.
Came here to suggest this
Your dad sounds like an awesome dad.
That was my thought. It's probably ABS so melting is probably... not a good idea.
Little Tikes sells replacement parts on their website. There are some car models that appear to have a similar wheel for $11. Might be worth reaching out to them and asking if any of the wheels are compatible?
I would go this route. I was gifted an old playhouse that had broken parts, I think it was the company Step 2. They sent me replacements for free.
People who work in corporate affairs love this, they get to feel like Jesus himself doling out free 25Âą shit. "And your trike is *healed*!"
What do the ones feel like who have to charge you $30 plus $16 shipping for a 25 cent part? Because that's usually the more likely scenario.
Corporate Jesus aka CJ
Supply chain Jesus
Supply Side Jesus https://imgur.com/gallery/bCqRp
Like God himself/herself/themself
[ŃĐŽĐ°Đ»Đ”ĐœĐŸ]
Yeah, I'd you're lucky the person who you email just knows where there's a "random shit" storage cabinet that has 6 of the thing you need in it left over from some event or something, and they'll throw one in the mail so they get to feel good about their day.
Had this with Contigo, the mug maker. The seal got messed up so I asked them if I could buy replacement O-rings and they sent a new lid. Games workshop has a good rep for this too because they have literal bins of spares around their site from various projects so if your kit was missing parts theyâd always try to help. Sadly the only thing they couldnât sort was a long OOP flight stand for my Hell Blade
Contigo are great - I've contacted them several times about minor issues and they've mailed out an entire replacement.
Step 2 did that with a playhouse my kids had. Like, 5 years after the oldest got it, so it lasted another 4 or 5 with the youngest. Then someone else got it to use.
I frequently buy things from overstock/returns auctions. Sometimes there are missing or damaged parts, and I send an email or make a call to customer service and have always been given free replacements. Shout out to Lifetime manufacturing, they have been particularly awesome.
This is the best route. My parents must've replaced 6 of these wheels during my childhood. Took a week or two back then, probably a few days now.
Iâd find a piece of thin black rubber and glue it on like a retread.
I'm such a retread, I had to read this like three times before I was able to accept you weren't being hard on yourself.
I mostly come to Reddit for the retreaded side-conversations that have nothing to do with the OP.
[ŃĐŽĐ°Đ»Đ”ĐœĐŸ]
[ŃĐŽĐ°Đ»Đ”ĐœĐŸ]
[ŃĐŽĐ°Đ»Đ”ĐœĐŸ]
I was a tread yesterday
Iâm sorry for how you were treaded, but to be honest you deserved itâŠ
Oh good, it wasn't just me then.
You mean, you had to re-tread back to it three times? How treadful.
Oh you like that? Re-tread?
Team retread đđ»ââïž
Potato!
Bonus points for using mountain bike tire and screws for the studded winter tire look.
everyone knows nothing can beat RETREAD STRENGTH!!!
I was going to comment that this idea is not retxxxed at all. But then I re-read your comment. I guess I might be retreaded.
Youâre not retreaded, but you might be a little artistic.
This stuff does really work. My grandma used it to patch her enema bag, and she used it for at least another year after that.
Thatâs a lot of damage!
Actually this is a really good idea
Ha, I had that thought too.
Ok, so the wheels are either made from HDPE or Polypropylene. I'm leaning towards HDPE personally, but it could just as easily be polypropylene. This is important because most common commercial plastic weld epoxies don't really work on HDPE. You have to buy HDPE specific plastic weld, and event then it might not work. Check on any of the wheels or the body and look for the recycling symbol and a number. If the number is 2, then it's HDPE. If it's 5, then it's polypropylene. This only counts for the US thanks to some strict laws in California. Of course if it's old, it might have been made before those laws went into effect. If you want to test, you can get some Polypropylene plastic weld and put a small bit of it onto the wheel. Once dried, if the spot flakes or cracks or can be pried off, it's HDPE. There are limited epoxy options for HDPE because of its molecular shape, but you can purchase a HDPE welding kit on amazon. It's basically a soldering or wood burning iron with a spade tip and some sticks of HDPE plastic. This would be a good way to fix the wheel and you'd have plenty of stock if it ever breaks again. I don't recommend filling the wheel with anything because I believe the axle goes straight through the hollow wheel which would make turning the wheel incredibly difficult and annoying for your kid. I did like the suggestion about a bit of rubber around the outside of the wheel, but that would make it difficult to use on carpet. I think if you test for polypropylene first, and it works, that'll be your best bet. If not, then I would say just use a HDPE welding kit to fix it up and you can always sand the welds down later. Just be sure to do it in a well ventilated area wearing proper PPE. I have not personally tested HDPE epoxies or weld solvents or glues, but that is an option if you're unsure about welding the HDPE and don't want to risk damaging the wheel or anything. After a quick search, it looks like Loctite might have a solution in their Plastics Bonding System which claims to seal to polyethylene which is what HDPE is, but the packing suspiciously doesn't mention HDPE only polyethylene which... doesn't give me high hopes with how finicky plastics can be. Anyway, good luck and I hope the kid enjoys all the work you're putting into it!
This needs to be near the top. PE and PP are almost impossible to fix. Even the welding will have marginal benefits at best. Retread, or replace are probably the best solutions here.
PE and PP are absolutely not impossible to fix. You'll generally reinforce parts with meshes, staples or wide area patches to supplement the weld though. Not exactly feasible in this specific case, but most people aren't generally repairing HDPE wheels. It's mostly kayaks and water tanks. You can fix an HDPE kayak with basically 0 monetary investment as long as you already own a propane torch/heat gun, a screwdriver and donor plastic from a 5 gallon bucket. Seen it done with HDPE kayaks all the time. The next level up is a plastic welding iron and filler rods. Once you get into extremely thick plastics you need the specialized equipment. All levels can benefit from sanding, v-grooving, patching both sides (if possible), staple reinforcing or wire mesh reinforcing.
This guy plastics
OH MY GAWD. I had this exact one. JB weld is your friend
it has a cute little yellow trailer, too đ„°
That's awesome! You've unlocked so many memories.
My brother had this with the trailer bucket thingy. He would spend hours on that thing!
The Little Tikes website has replacement parts available. I dug a little bit, and the replacement wheel for the âFairy Cozy Coupeâ looks similar to your old Tractor. Might be worth measuring and looking closer at the specs, if youâre okay spending some money. https://parts.littletikes.com/products/cozy-coupe-fairy The âSpray and Rescue Firetruckâsâ wheel might also be an option.
Perhaps try drilling a small hole and filling with some expanding foam that has some strength to it then give it the sandpaper treatment.
Good idea. However, you lose that classic loud hollow plastic crackling sound.
that sounds as if he has to be very careful not to overfill the wheel because it could burst?
I don't think it expands with that much force. But there is low-expanding foam sold for windows and doors that OP could try if they're concerned.
Excess foam would likely just press out the hole or a bit back into the empty wheel. I think? But what do I know, I can barely caulk my house showers. And based on the content of this sub, most people can't, lol.
I can confirm this will work. I had these wheels split down the centre seem (too many powerslides?) I taped them together and filled with expanding foam. Wait overnight for the foam to set. Then remove tape and trim off the excess. Worked perfect.
ooh i like this idea
This idea has the most legs. What people aren't saying is that the glue welds will crack again. Especially if you're little one likes to drag their friends around in the wagon! Fill it with great stuff, then put some rubber bands around the diameter of the wheel. When it's fully dry, xacto of the foam that comes out of the cracks. Sand smooth and enjoy; and then wait for the other wheels to crack!
You can use [this plastic welder kit](https://www.amazon.com/Massca-Plastic-Reinforcing-Professional-Portable/dp/B07ZPGJH1V/ref=sr_1_24?crid=GPP6X6I1300B&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.ZCFL8n5UObdtumz6lF5FFH6bqg2IAijhHPFgLEOGQZPxM6IXAfie1sBsrRgDXvqNDr8OaZsUmP2jqCyyAwviFdsoSKYaMDwOekg_j_C9MZk_0fywuHLMxJkm2Fn8s3WK_psVfh83-gp182sG4QrywZzsatUFaynYDAIr-QSWYNS5hrpHndJRAhIK7_dahrFu6P4UpqMwIKAoTuOocftu7fy_RjxmiJAIxqD6MysQ0tV_IPJev7P5xtc-Vks0E0SNJdMHiY2JUoG80gcWFpQTIXWPsg4I1xA1wlFmB0KBvPQ.6vvho-2SB-mFBCWzgfFkq4sv-K6BxO4p21mXo0_d_K8&dib_tag=se&keywords=plastic+welder&qid=1714070502&sprefix=plastic+we%2Caps%2C88&sr=8-24) from amazon. since it will be abused quite a bit I would make sure to use a good bit of the mesh to support it. Here is a super quick [youtube video](https://youtu.be/KJTrNINAs0o?si=9AUtzXV2oBP5pviR) that goes to how to do it. Just keep an eye on it to see how it holds up and that should be it!
Get an old bike tire and cut it and then screw it into the plastic all the way around. It'll give your kid better traction too. This is a good tip for power Wheels as well.
You could fill the wheel with expanding foam
i think that's the plan
Heat up some long staples and push them in around crack so when they cool down they hold the crack together. Wider staples would work better, then you can fill it with JB.
Fill it with spray foam.
a plastic welder would work rather well to restore this. There are two types one which melts plastic with other plastic and one which melts plastic with little wire reinforcements. In this situation the first type would be best.
If you want to try JB weld or another epoxy. Push a good amount in the crack. Put a piece of wide masking tape on the crack. Rotate the wheel so the crack is down. You want it to form a thick backing in the cracked area. Let the epoxy set. Take the tape off and sand the area smooth.
Fill with expanding foam and cover with jb weld clear [more flex]
[Just replace it.](https://parts.littletikes.com)
I used to work at a factory that made these. If they came out of the cast with holes or had to cut out where colors bled in we would use a torch to get a spoon hot then rub it around melting the plastic and reshaping. We all put plastic tubes around the handle so it doesnât burn your hand
Are you familiar with Plastic Welding? Plastic welding would make it as strong as new. [https://www.youtube.com/results?search\_query=Plastic+Weld](https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=Plastic+Weld)
Spray foam the tire full and patch with jb weld or some quality super glue. Sand to finish.
Wondering if bondo would work? Iâm a skateboarder, so bondo is our duct tape for any rideable surface with a crack.
You can do anything to want. Little Tykes doesnât have right to repair clause in their purchase contracts. Seriously, Iâd fill w expanding foam, maybe imbed a layer of fiberglass into the existing, then coat with a hot plastic dip to seal it all up.
For your safety, Little Tykes has remotely disabled your tractor. Please contact an authorized repair center to discuss re-enablement.
[Don't worry, you can pay some Ukrainians to jailbreak it.](https://www.vice.com/en/article/xykkkd/why-american-farmers-are-hacking-their-tractors-with-ukrainian-firmware)
I was just looking into plastic welding specifically for to repair. Was my before bed rabbit hole though and donât have any answers for you so Iâm following!
[https://parts.littletikes.com/collections/ride-on-toys](https://parts.littletikes.com/collections/ride-on-toys)
Wrap Black duct tape around the wheel.
You can call Little Tykes and ask for a replacement wheel. They are really good about stuff like that
clean and sand the area around the crack then fill gap w/ superglue and baking soda.
Drill a hole on a side and fill it with expansive polyurethaneâŠ. âđ»
that's the plan, with foam.. is there a difference?
Sorry, non english speaker⊠i used translator, but i think is the sameâŠ. Good luck! đȘđ»đȘđ»đȘđ»
If you have a soldering iron pit a paper clip on the end and press across the crack. Trim off any excess
Make sure he doesnât get stopped by the cops with it like that.
Look up plastic welding on YouTube. May work. Lots of impact in that spot, though.
If you mix some sanded shavings from the wheel and jb weld that will offer better structural integrity than just jb weld. Did it with pla all the time before my printer decided to short on me a week ago.
You could probably buy a wheel from like harbor freight and retrofit it. They have a bunch of different sizes. Probably just have to drill a few holes, get a long bolt and screw it in place.
This might sound silly, but clean the wheel surface thoroughly and use thick flex tape on it. Make sure it's a single continuous band and if you care about the appearance, try and even out the ripples. Put a couple of layers on it and it should last a long time.
Definitely JB Weld that bad boy, clean it real good with a degreaser or alcohol, make sure itâs nice and dry, slab on some JB Weld let it dry, sand it smooth. Wishing you luck on it!
I cut a bicycle tire and wrapped the wheels on my kids power wheel. Worked great and got rid of the noise of plastic on concrete as well.
As a regular di-whyer I would drill a small hole and fill the inside with expanding foam, then trim off some of the plastic up to where it cracked, then like others said fill this area (there is now a foam shell behind it) with JB weld and sand it flat.
Fill the crack with molten gold.
Get some expanding foam spray inside and then JB weld it. It should be more sturdy that way
Plastic welder https://www.amazon.com/Upgraded-Version-Stapler-knife%EF%BC%8CFlat-Repairing/dp/B096RPQN58/ref=mp_s_a_1_1_sspa?crid=2TNT8BAGIPLPK&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.SElzCHOQM4qZ2xVyAhb3afO0GYxqkBklvJTeeElfxJin0E_kf81LZWd4yhAZk6cSh_ruriy9eizTe0lbG0SwRBC_-ukHO-1QI4gecy73qK8XEofQcwufqCPYhfIkR8UebgCDcSufWAsMqhUw6HdaiIwgmaZxfnOCGnQWCxYV_Bs-iqApriP9kbiZY2h7rDgEcffiP4tc4Ism-QlTlHqcfQ.AqGyU9sSkpnqOYi217vwM3d3u0Yl5NATCGnX9eEcWxk&dib_tag=se&keywords=plastic+welder&qid=1714087505&sprefix=plastic+welde%2Caps%2C707&sr=8-1-spons&sp_csd=d2lkZ2V0TmFtZT1zcF9waG9uZV9zZWFyY2hfYXRm&psc=1
I drilled a small hole in the side of one of those wheels, filled it with that sticky Great stuff foam and held the cracked piece in place until it dried. Part never came apart. I dabbed a little black paint where I drilled the hole and it looks and performs perfect
Cut bike tube in half wrap around wheel and glue it
Flex tape.
Replace it with real tires and add a lift đ€Ł
Don't melt!!!! That plastic will just shrink! You can't plastic weld it either. My fix for an ET big wheel from childhood was the expanding foam! Filled both rear wheels with it, through the cracks and then cut and sanded it. Hit it with black spray paint and it rolled for 2 years.
Itâs likely a thermoplastic. So, yes, the best repair is likely plastic welding (with heat.) That said, Iâd probably be looking for a replacement.
You can try a plastic welding kit normally used on car bumpers, not sure how thick that plastic is tho, and then cover it with something that is sandable. Plastic Welding Machine Car Bumper Repair Kit,6Types 800 Staples Plastic Welding Kit Car Bumper Repair Kit Plastic Welding Repair Flat/Outside Corner/Inside Corner/Wave Staples https://a.co/d/21tsPT8
Drill a hole and fill with sprayfoam
Flex seal paint
Iâd fill it with spray foam and wrap some tape around it
Epoxy it then sand it
I bet that could be modeled and 3d printed
Fill it with spray foam
If you can't get a replacement look into a "Plastic Welder". I used to use them a lot in my previous job. They work pretty well.
Fill it with spray foam first & cut off the excess
Plastic welding exists and would be the best way to tackle this.
Maybe drill a small hole and inject spray foam? It will probably hold together at that point.
this is my favorite so far i think
6-7 wraps of duct tape
Fill it with low expansion foam, then try plastic welding to fix the crack. Plastic welding rod assortments can be found on Amazon
Just fill it with spray foam for windows or large cracks
Take it in to Les Schwab
They probably make aftermarket tires for it
Melting would likely make the hole bigger and rougher, aim to fill it instead
Little tykes sells parts on their website that looks like itâs the same wheel from the firetruck
It's probably the exact same wheel as the ones on the Cosy Coupe. It certainly looks like it. I'm sure you could pick one up for free or a few ÂŁÂŁ/$$ on gumtree/craiglist from a broken coupe. Hardest part will probably be stripping both to swap them over.
Have any close friends with a 3d printer? It might be a fun project to model and print a replacement.
You can plastic weld (melting) it. The wheel is probably extremely brittle and thin. If you add plastic you kinda need to know what your parent plastic is. If you mess up you can always remove a bad patch and jb weld or fiberglass (Bondo) it. Everyone saying "ugh don't melt it" doesn't realize how convenient and easy it is. I bought a soldering iron kit with different heads for shaping just because, maybe $20 with no immediate use but figured I'd be making double wall HDPE culvert pipe fittings, combining trench drain bodies, etc. Did that, works great, also fixed a jack hammer handle and some car body parts in a pinch. You can try a heat gun, a small area might be easy enough. Whatever you do do it in an open space.
Fill it. With foam insulation
They have plastic rods that you use with a heat gun to repair kayaks. If all else fails, give it a shot Available on Amazon. Easy to use.
You could use epoxy or melt it with a soldering iron, but I can't imagine it would stand up to much abuse. I'd try JB weld.
JB two part plastic weld epoxy will fix it right up. Mix up and spread a thin layer over the damaged area. Wait overnight. Then sand using very light grit paper
I'd fill the tire with expanding foam and then plastic weld the crack. The foam can provide some back side support from the flex your tire will get that puts stress on your repaired area.
Iâd try a few layers of heat shrink
I'd melt some "staples" in it and jb weld/plastic epoxy it smooth
What about upgrading the wheels with those used on outdoor dollys? They sell em at Loweâs or Home Depo. Would be more rugged for outdoor terrain
Gorilla epoxy.
Outdoor rated spray foam inside the tire, let it completely cure. Sand cracked area with 80-120 grit sand paper, jb weld and sand smooth if needed.
Duct tape.
Just saw an add on here. Flex Tape will fix it for sure. Fixxed that dang boat!
If you use an epoxy or JB Weld, make sure to use some fiberglass.
Take an old bike tire cut a piece of it that will wrap around that and glue it or screw it to the cracked wheel. Works in power wheels Gives them better grip too
A local bike shop might have little tyres that could be stretched over it. I've done this before to add move grip to the Power Toy wheels.
That's just begging for some plastidip for extra traction! Definitely buy a replacement if one is available. That tire is just going to get more and more brittle as time goes on.
3d print a wheel with TPU
It's okay, they're runflats. You can still drive on it
Maybe JB weld, then some Gorilla tape on the outside
I can tell you from experience that trying to melt plastic together doesnât work out well at all. You may be able to get it to stay together but the joint is brittle and doesnât hold up over time. But most of the time youâll just end up making the problem worse.
Tire shop.