Walking the line between patience and full-on Neanderthal.

I've been beating my head and everything else against this rusty garden tiller (Troy-Bilt Pony, maybe 35 years old) off and on for a week now.  Trying to pull a wheel in order to fix a flat tire.  The retaining pin came out fairly easily, and that misled me into thinking pulling the wheel might actually be possible.  My three-jaw puller was distorting the wheel, so I got a H-F bolt-type puller last night.  Today, I've drilled three holes through the wheel near the hub, and applied the puller, soaked the axle-hub interface with P-Blaster for the umpteenth time, and cranked on the puller with my impact.  It will not budge.

Yes, I've tried heat. 

So, do I jam on it with the impact until something breaks, or keep after it with the penetrating oil?  Not wanting to cut it off, since parts are NLA, scarce, and expensive.

Vote now!  Lines are open!

Sometimes windmilling a 20lb. sledgehammer into an object you've grown to despise is the world's greatest catharsis. Unless it's a person. You go to prison for that.

Hmmm, the parts diagram only shows the retaining pin:

Looks like 35 years have made the wheel hub one with the axle. You don't want to get too crazy with the torch, as you may scorch the axle seals. Maybe try warming it up and hitting it with a can of CRC Freeze-Off to shock it loose?

ATF and Acetone mix.

Would it be feasible to lay it on it's side so the penetrant can migrate down into the wheel with gravity ?

Often applying a strong pull with a puller and letting it sit while the penetrant migrates will help to pop something loose.

I've actually gotten it to move a hair.  If I take a big socket, put it over the end of the shaft against the hub and give it a whack with a BFH, it will drive the hub inboard about a 32nd of an inch.  If I then apply a puller and crank down on it, then apply heat, it will "pop" back to the starting position.  Nothing that I have done to date has persuaded it to move beyond that point.

Cousin_Eddie said:

Would it be feasible to lay it on it's side so the penetrant can migrate down into the wheel with gravity ?

Often applying a strong pull with a puller and letting it sit while the penetrant migrates will help to pop something loose.

Oh, yes sir!  A few days ago I pulled the engine off and laid the tiller flat on a wheeled dolly. 

When all else fails, brute force prevails.

Why does it need to come off?

I'd be looking to fix the flat with the wheel in place at this point.

If the tire is still on the bead, can it be filled with foam so that you can avoid this mess?

If that's not an option, and the tiller isn't currently useable, then it's time to "persuade" it.

If the parts have fused themselves together via a commingled layer of rust, perhaps some molasses might be of assistance.

No Time said:

Why does it need to come off?

I'd be looking to fix the flat with the wheel in place at this point.

If I knew then what I know now...

I think we're a little past that point.  I'm going to need to straighten the rim up.

A little wobble is good for traction 

This doesn't answer your question but it goes along with the foam suggestion .A couple of years ago I read in Farm Show magazine about a guy that filled his lawn tractor tires with concrete he took a hole saw drilled holes through the tire and filled with concrete seem to work very well for him

I call this composition "The Triumph of the Patient Neanderthal."  Offered in a limited edition silver print for the tidy sum of 1200. USD.  Shipping is generously included.

The other wheel is looking a bit worn, maybe it should be replaced...  lol.  

Congrats.  I think we all know the satisfaction of completing a project that frustrated us.