It held a reasonably steady 95°F today in my corner of southeastern Massachusetts.
Got home from errands about 1:00 PM and found the new 110X90/18 Bridgestone Battleaxe BT46 I ordered for the rear of my T3 wrapped in clear shrink wrap lying in the sun on my blacktop driveway.
Lester rim had already been cleaned and prepared for the new tire.
Tire was almost too warm to touch. Put installation lube on the tire and rim and the first bead dropped over the rim flange with no tools in about 15 seconds. Grabbed the rim protectors and irons and had second bead over the flange in about 2 minutes. Pop on the air hose and the tire seated almost instantly.
Certainly was a personal best especially for these 80 year old hands. Thought about changing a similar tire last February in my unheated garage. That was a different story. Made me think that I should look for one of those tire heaters like the racers use. That would probably make removal easier too.
