Topic: Mounting Tire Hints

[BenelliSEI]

If you mount your own tires, you know they often arrive taped together and tightly wrapped. In the past, some manufacturers slipped in hard cardboard spacers to keep the sidewalls spread apart. My Dunlop K70’s (S/C Project) didn’t have any...... When they arrived, each set of tire beads where almost touching! This makes it very difficult to stuff in the tube, when the tire is 1/2 on the rim. Inserting these pieces of scrap plywood opens the tire back up. It’s hanging in the furnace room (warm), until the wheel is built.

Any hints you want to share?

[PeWe]

Thanks for the good hint!
I'll try it next time.

[MauiK3]

I leave mine in the sun to warm up, not hard to do here in paradise:-))

[Tracksnblades1]

In the flyover bread basket, and when baby powder
wasn’t deadly. We use to powder the inside of the new
Tire. Powder the new tube or preferably the old tube.
Put the tube in the new un mounted tire and inflate the tube a little.
Or at least till it worried you a bit..Time is your buddy now.
Wait a day or two and mount your new tire…

[Alan F.]

Dump some powder into the tire and slosh it around well while rotating the tire to coat all areas, then dump out the excess and use it to powder the tube by hand. Insert tube into rim and give it a few psi.

[BenelliSEI]

Keep your “spoons” clean and polish out any nicks or scratches.

I cut old windshield washer jugs up into strips. The plastic is great to slip in between the spoons and the rims, to protect the rim. That plastic is slippery and virtually indestructible! Use only the same number of strips as you have spoons. Make sure you have them all when finished. I can tell you (from experience) the tube won’t last long if you leave one in there.........

[PeWe]

My tire irons had a square shaped tip I grinded more rounded to avoid pinching the tube which happened more than once so I had to fix it.
One tube was OK for over a year. I saw the marks after the tire irons corners.

Polish the tire irons surface another thing. It was a harsh molded surface no good for rim.

The rim protection could not always be used.

Really bad that the tire irons cant be perfect from the very beginning.
Maybe not made with tube wheel in mind.

[Alan F.]

I cheated and bought a no-pinch tire tool. I got this one:
eBay item number: 313618981128 eBay links seldom work so just search for the item number. It works on the same principle as this one: but it's cheaper, heavier and poorly made in comparison. With 2 'Bead Buddies' it's simple as can be to mount tubed tires.

[PeWe]

I ordered front and rear tire today so the tire hints are well timed
I'll use the small balancing kit I bought after last time.
Will order weights for spokes, not messy ugly glue on rim version.
Try with nuts first fastened with wire and tape on a spoke where needed, probably other side of the valve.
When good use a scale and find how heavy weights to order.
Alu rims so not that visible weld as the stock rims have.

[CaseyH]

ordered a set from Fortnite and arrived nicely with the spacers.
Tubeless for my little 500 Ninja project so that will make them easier to set after install

[Tim2005]

One useful thing I've made for mounting tyres is a wheel stand- I took an old rear wheel rim and welded 4 legs onto it, with a few cross-pieces to add strength and provide a central mounting point for a spindle, then I cut open a length of rubber hose lengthwise and fitted it over the upper side of the rim. Now I just drop a wheel onto it and can change the tyre without all that kneeling on the floor

[ekpent]

One useful thing I've made for mounting tyres is a wheel stand- I took an old rear wheel rim and welded 4 legs onto it, with a few cross-pieces to add strength and provide a central mounting point for a spindle, then I cut open a length of rubber hose lengthwise and fitted it over the upper side of the rim. Now I just drop a wheel onto it and can change the tyre without all that kneeling on the floor

I work off the floor on some 4x4 pieces of oak wood. I find my knee or foot comes in very handy getting some of the bead in. Big +1 on trying to warm the tires before mounting especially in the colder temps. My wood burner stove has come in handy during some winter projects warming up the rubber. Definitely makes the old tires come off more easily also.

[Bankerdanny]

The 2nd best benefit I got from my MotoGuild membership years ago (after access to a fully stocked heated shop) was use of the pneumatic tire machine. If I ever finally get to build a fancy shop for myself I will definitely try to track down a used one.

[Stev-o]

The 2nd best benefit I got from my MotoGuild membership years ago (after access to a fully stocked heated shop) was use of the pneumatic tire machine. If I ever finally get to build a fancy shop for myself I will definitely try to track down a used one.

No doubt.  One of my buddy's has one, I have a couple tires that need to be mounted  [the K4 & the Z1] so I will just bring him the wheels and he'll do it for beer money. Win/Win!

[CaseyH]

one down one to go

[grcamna2]

ordered a set from Fortnite and arrived nicely with the spacers.
Tubeless for my little 500 Ninja project so that will make them easier to set after install

Casey,have you run those Kenda tires in the past ?

[HondaMan]

If you mount your own tires, you know they often arrive taped together and tightly wrapped. In the past, some manufacturers slipped in hard cardboard spacers to keep the sidewalls spread apart. My Dunlop K70’s (S/C Project) didn’t have any...... When they arrived, each set of tire beads where almost touching! This makes it very difficult to stuff in the tube, when the tire is 1/2 on the rim. Inserting these pieces of scrap plywood opens the tire back up. It’s hanging in the furnace room (warm), until the wheel is built.

Any hints you want to share?

Sorry, but I just had to say this: I broke out laughing (loudly) when I saw what is being called a "K70" tire today!

[70CB750]

I leave mine in the sun to warm up, not hard to do here in paradise:-))

Yup, same here.  I use Shinkos exclusively and sometimes I have to seek big honking compressor to seat the bead.

I mount my jeep tires too - bike tires are easy 

Edit:  I have only comstars to deal with now  - tubeless.  I really dont miss messing with tubes but for Dorothy I used baby powder everytime.

[ekpent]

 Nothing worse then going through all the work of taking off an old tire and mounting a nice fresh new pretty one and then realizing the arrow is going in the wrong direction !  Sure I am the only one here who has experienced that pain. If it does happen it makes you much more careful in the future to never do it again. 

[70CB750]

Nothing worse then going through all the work of taking off an old tire and mounting a nice fresh new pretty one and then realizing the arrow is going in the wrong direction !  Sure I am the only one here who has experienced that pain. If it does happen it makes you much more careful in the future to never do it again. 

No, you are not the only one 

Guilty

[PeWe]

Have not done tire in wrong direction, only wheel flipped wrong in tire!
It is rather easy to fix direct when the new tire is soft and has the tire assembly lube.

I do not like:
Wrestle with the old tire that do not want to release its grip of the rim. Even when one side is out.
This without scratching the rim......

Easy on -off type of tire is one good parameter.

[Bankerdanny]

When I put the new rear tire on my first 550 back in 2011 I punctured the rear 2 twice. I ended up having to reuse the original 1977 tube because the new one was damaged beyond repair the 2nd time.

[BenelliSEI]

Nothing worse then going through all the work of taking off an old tire and mounting a nice fresh new pretty one and then realizing the arrow is going in the wrong direction !  Sure I am the only one here who has experienced that pain. If it does happen it makes you much more careful in the future to never do it again. 

No, you are not the only one 

Guilty

+1 on that!

[grcamna2]

I leave mine in the sun to warm up, not hard to do here in paradise:-))

Yup, same here.  I use Shinkos exclusively and sometimes I have to seek big honking compressor to seat the bead.

I mount my jeep tires too - bike tires are easy 

Edit:  I have only comstars to deal with now  - tubeless.  I really dont miss messing with tubes but for Dorothy I used baby powder everytime.

I prefer tubeless on a tubeless applicable rim;have you ever tried a tubeless tire(special application)on a spoked rim?

[70CB750]

I leave mine in the sun to warm up, not hard to do here in paradise:-))

Yup, same here.  I use Shinkos exclusively and sometimes I have to seek big honking compressor to seat the bead.

I mount my jeep tires too - bike tires are easy 

Edit:  I have only comstars to deal with now  - tubeless.  I really dont miss messing with tubes but for Dorothy I used baby powder everytime.

I prefer tubeless on a tubeless applicable rim;have you ever tried a tubeless tire(special application)on a spoked rim?

No, but Red's Comstars are not marked tubeless and I have to use special bolt in valves. Technically the 78 SS wheels were suposed to use tubes.

I know people did tubeless on spoked rims, there is some kind of a band to use - or duct tape afaik.