Removed the rear tire with no tire irons, no protectors - -

[macx]

no name calling and no sweat - - in 15 minutes!

 

Local dealer where I'm at on a 2-1/2 year job near Vegas wanted over $600 for a pair of new tires mounted !!!

 

I bought the tires over Motorcycle Superstore for $310 shipped - same exact tires.Also bought a Marc Parnes balancer, looks great, trying that in the morning.

 

But I've read horror stories about getting esp the rear tire off because the rim doesn't have a very deep center area.

 

Well, I got a little manual bead breaker from Harbor Freight for I think around $35 or so. THAT was a good investment!! Made that part of it really simple.

I think it'd even work on at least most car tires, ATV & lawn tractor tires, etc. Wish I'd had it years ago!

 

However - now to get the tire off.

 

I figured if it's so dastardly hard to pry it off, why not cut it off? Tires shot anyway, right? That's why you're removing it to start with.

 

So got a cheap 4" side grinder (good old Harbor Freight again), attached a thin steel cutoff disc, and went to work.

 

Makes a lot of rubber smoke, but if you're not someplace that might object - - to reduce the rubber smoke, you can cut away much of the rubber over the plies

and esp at the outside edge of the tread at that ridge with a utility knife, cuts WAY down on the smoke but of course is a bit of a PITA.

 

Anyway - I used the cutoff wheel to cut a slice across the tire from bead to bead, just being careful not to get close enuf to the rim to nick it. I had bore down hard

with the bead breaker in one spot, both sides, that kind of kinked the bead in toward the center a little and away from the edge of the rim.

 

After I cut the slice crosswise, I took a sawzall with a metal blade and cut the tire in the sidewall on both sides, parallel with the rim, for about a foot or so so I could

push that part of it out of the way to get at the bead with the cutoff wheel. There are no steel belts in the sidewall so you can cut that with a side cutters or

good tinships too. I raised the bead off the rim 1/4" or so with a big flat screwdriver, away from the outside edge of the rim an inch or so, got the cutoff wheel in and cut the bead both sides. Tire of course fell right off. "Piece of dadburned cake!"

You know the wise old saying about giving the difficult job to the lazy man and he'll figure out the easiest way to do it. :-))))

 

I cleaned the rim, lubed it and the new tire with a 50/50 mix of Dawn dishwashing stuff and water, and the first side literally slid right on just by kneeling on the tire where I

started it on the rim and then pushing it on with my hands. Went very easily with just a couple easy assists with a flat blade crewdriver dipped in the slickum at the very last. You can also use a rubber or plastic mallet on the bead right where it's sliding over the rim if you need a little extra persuasion. Won't scratch or ding the rim if you miss. That Dawn stuff is SOOO slippery! Works so much better than Slime, etc.

 

I had misplaced the fancy new tire irons I had bought so reverted to what I'd done for many years on hot rod tires on mags. Lubed the tire bead and rim up good with the Dawn/water mix, started the tire in one spot and then got both knees on it there to hold it in the middle of the rim. Was able to push it on a little ways around but then it stalled. Got out my trusty flat blade screwdrivers and, by dunking them in the slickum every time, was able to get them under the bead and on the far outside edge of the rim and work the tire on an inch at a time, leaving one screwdriver in place and pushing down on the handle after I worked the next one in under the bead an inch or so away. Thinking about it, the flat blade screwdrivers are thinner than any tire iron which helps a little too.

 

Nary a scratch - was careful to get the flat of the screwdriver blade on the very top of the rim, not the outside exposed edge, no hassling with rim protectors slipping out of place.

I had tried one but it kept slipping out of position so ditched it. Altogether took me about 15 minutes to mount the new tire.

 

A little trick to get the bead to seal the first time. I had bought the tires a few weeks ago, but then ran the old ones out and they lasted longer than I thought they would. Anyway -

Took some short blocks of 2x4 that were a smidgen longer than the rim is wide on the inside and wedged them in from bead to bead, one about every 8" or so. Let them set like that for

a couple weeks till they took a new "set". When I removed the spreader blocks and mounted the tire, the beads were already pushing up against the outer edge of the rim. Seated and sealed

the beads with just what was in a small air tank at 70 lbs! They popped on as soon as I put the hose to the valve stem. Sure beats fighting to get the beads to "catch" a seal against the rim -

they're so close together when you but the tire.

 

$600++?!!! I don't THINK so!!!

 

[johnlt]

I find that in a desert environment, the No Mar paste lub works much better than soapy water. It does not evaporate nearly as fast and is very slippery. Also, if doing it along, a "third hand" thing attaches to the tire side where you started, will hold it down in the "well" for you

[OoPEZoO]

Another trick for easily seating the bead is to wrap a ratchet strap around the center of the tire. Rachet it down a few notches in the center of the tread and it will bulge out the beads towards the edge of the rims. Then same deal......hit it with a little compressed air and *POP* *POP*. Screw your valve stem core back in and you are all done. I've had to do this many times on my buddy's cruiser bike that has a fat rear tire.

[macx]

I can believe in the summer dry heat that stuff evaporates quickly - I rode home a number of afternoons at 112F and I darn near evaporated in the hour's drive home! Fortunately in the garage last nite it was only in the 50's. However I've used that stuff where I currently live in SE MO in the summer and as long as I'm in the shade and don't take too many refreshment breaks it seems to work OK.

 

I've used that ratchet strap idea on big hot rod tires and it does work. I was lucky this time in that I had bought the tires what ended up to be a couple months before I really needed to get them on - was getting those last few miles out of the old ones on just local trips to work etc. Spreading the beads was really simple to do.

 

I'm alone out here so altho it sure would be nice to have that extra hand now and again, I've got to make do with just my own two and whatever other part of my anatomy I can make use of.

 

There are always multiple good ways to tackle something. I was just all excited about how slick that worked to cut the old tire off.

 

 

[LPOL]

 

Perhaps...another approach to removing the tires.

When you hear "GS"...think "RT".

[macx]

That was a pretty slick way to break the bead! Esp if you're "on the road" and away from any kind of equipment.

 

I did notice that for removing the tire on the GSA that the rim was lots deeper in the center, making it a lot easier to pry it off the conventional way. I've done it that way

lots of times on all kinds of tires, also always lubing the bead and the edge of the rim first. And putting the other one on the way he did is essentially what I've always done

and did with the RT tire last nite.

 

I wish I could have found some of whatever kind of tire iron or spoon he was using - they looked nice and thin.

 

The one thing about the RT rim is that the center is so shallow that the tire can't be pulled over far enuf into the rim on the side opposite to the side you're working on.

Believe me, getting that tire on last nite wasn't as easy as it was for the guy in the video with that nice deep steel rim. A deep rim makes all the difference in the world on that job!

[OoPEZoO]

I wish I could have found some of whatever kind of tire iron or spoon he was using - they looked nice and thin.

 

Looks like these expesive little buggers. Nice, but way out of my price range for a tire iron

 

Aerostich Titanium Tar-Arn

[w2ge]

One stupid question.. When he unbolted (and reinstalled the tire) what stopped the tire from spinning? Did he have it in gear? (I know he locked the front brake...)

[dirtrider]

 

That "using silicone" on the tire bead for tire mounting is about the worst idea I could ever think of. On tube type tires that run at lower air pressure that would almost guarantee a spun tire on the rim & a valve stem pulled out of the inner-tube. Even on tubeless tires that would really increase the chance of a tire migrating during hard acceleration or braking.

 

Best to use an evaporating lube made for the process. Even laundry or dish detergent turns pretty sticky after a bit of time.

 

[longjohn]

Hey macx, as long as you're removing the tire with no irons, protectors etc., you might want to try the "no tool mounting method" as demonstrated on adv: http://www.advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=299597

[w2ge]

 

That "using silicone" on the tire bead for tire mounting is about the worst idea I could ever think of. On tube type tires that run at lower air pressure that would almost guarantee a spun tire on the rim & a valve stem pulled out of the inner-tube. Even on tubeless tires that would really increase the chance of a tire migrating during hard acceleration or braking.

 

Best to use an evaporating lube made for the process. Even laundry or dish detergent turns pretty sticky after a bit of time.

 

Obviously, no Rim/Bead locks????

[aggieengineer]

I replace tires every year on my R1200RT using a No-Mar Pro. I've found that one of the most important aspects affecting ease-of-mounting is sidewall stiffness. I recently installed a rear Bridgestone BT023GT. It was ridiculously difficult compared to Michelin PR2s, Dunlop Roadsmarts, and Continental Road Attacks I've used recently. I've been so satisfied with Michelin, that I doubt I will find the need to try anything else for quite some time.

 

Additionally, Yamaha aerosol tire mount lube is wonderful - extremely slippery, but dries withing an hour or so. It's available at any Yamaha motorcycle dealer.

[Skywagon]

You're working at it too hard..

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5_e1suUBoT0

 

[Ponch]

That was a pretty slick way to break the bead! Esp if you're "on the road" and away from any kind of equipment.

 

 

This is slicker: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rNVXHbja0cE&feature=related

[macx]

Don't know - when I did mine I put it in 1st gear, laid down alongside the wheel and held it with one hand/arm while I undid and redid the bolts. Torque isn't all that big a number on the lug nuts. It would just about sit still for me without holding the wheel.

[macx]

Quite the ingenious method! At first I didn't see the point, but the straps being close together sort of act like "sliders" or tire irons, and keep the inside of the tire bead from hanging up on the outside of the rim.

 

Gonna have to remember that one for sure!