Using silicone glue to repair hardened idler tires?
 

Hello everyone, this is kind of a followup to my thread concerning the use of rubber renue on hardened idler tires.
The other day a buddy of mine who I do repairs for him suggested the idea of trying to use silicone glue spread lightly around the edge of the hardened idler tire to give it grip again, and he said he thought it might be something worth trying because it was something they used to do with the wheels on the old slot cars back in the day to give them more traction on the track when the tires would start wearing out. I'm just curious if any of you guys on here have heard of doing such a thing and think that maybe there might be something to trying this technique on old hardened idler tires to get them up and running again as an alternative to having to pay $40 to ge a rebuilt one (especially for me because I don't have that kind of money to spend right now and I would like to try and get my old Zenith Microtouch up and running again.)

That might work - although I've never tried it. I mentioned Liquid tape in the other thread - it worked for me, and is available everywhere. If you want to avoid spending money, I can relate - the thread below mentions silicone rubber as a possible coating to restore grip to an idler:

http://cr4.globalspec.com/thread/21396

There are some other ideas, all related to softening/restoring grip.

Cheers,

make sure the product doesn't have petroleum products (solvents or oil) in it, they attack rubber. The worst looking idler wheels I've come across are where someone apparently tried to treat or coat the rubber with something.

Well probably something like silcone sealant or just silicone glue, and it would be wiped on with an expremely thin layer.

If the rubber is really hard, and the idler is "toast" anyway, I would try making a groove in the edge that will accept an o-ring. That way, you can renew it as required.

To machine the edge, put the wheel on a bolt with a keeper nut, and chuck it in a drill that is held in a clamp/vise/holder. Use a file to carefully make an indentation in the edge. Just approach things slowly and carefully, using a firm support to rest the file against.

Or, find a friend with an actual lathe.

You'll end up decreasing the diameter, but you'll make that up with the o-ring. The actual diameter shouldn't matter speed-wise, as it's an idler. You only need to get close enough that the mechanism puts it in good contact where necessary.

There's one on ebay that just went for $15, as a point of calibration...

Chip

Many newer idlers (4'speed changers) may be too narrow to cut a groove for an O ring, but its a great idea. Probably not so useful for the changers that have a 2 step idler like the 1950 s Vm decks , the speed would be off unless you get both of them just the right size.