The NoMar did it again

[Perazzimx14]

In anticipation of an upcomming trip while manufacturers were having their spring rebates I bought a set of tires online paying less than MSRP and a then got a $40 rebate, Thanks Michelin. This morning the NoMar and I spent a few minutes together removing the front and installing its replacment. Working at a very casual pace total time from putting the bike on the lift to putting away the tool was around 30 minutes.  Rear will get changed later today after I;ve had another coffee. Another benefit of chaing your own tires is like in my instance the front tire is 75% work and will go to the recycler howerver the rear tire as well over 50% thread left and when I get home I'll reinstall it and finish it up. If paying a shop to change tires it would not be worth paying them to reinstall the used tire, if they would even install a used tire so you would effectively throw out a $100 in value.

This is a lesson in how a $500 tire machine can pay for itself in 1 or 2 sets of tires.

Save on tires getting them online. You also get the tires you want and not settle for what tires the shop has instock and is trying to get out of inventory at inflated prices
Save time and effort. Tires ship to your doorstep and you change tires when you want not when the shop can get you in.
Save money as you can swap tires around at you leissure to finish them up. No more throwing away tires with lots of life left in them because the cost to change them

One of the biggest advantages is NoMar tire machines also make beer. Just last week a buddy dropped off his bike and a new rear tire fro me to change out. Next day when he came to pick up his bike he had a case of beer for me. I dont know if other tire machines have this capability but its happened time and time again with the NoMar. 

[mechanicsavant]

Good on ya ! Tires are way cheaper than plaster of paris too . A person I know is trying to get the last few miles out of the original tires on his H-D ! I tried to reason with him to no avail . Maybe a flat on the road will clear the fog . Hopefully @ low speed .Oh , I didn’t see the beer accessories on the No-Mar website. Until then I’ll labor away with my Hopeless Freight unit !

[Perazzimx14]

Good on ya ! Tires are way cheaper than plaster of paris too . A person I know is trying to get the last few miles out of the original tires on his H-D ! I tried to reason with him to no avail . Maybe a flat on the road will clear the fog . Hopefully @ low speed .Oh , I didn’t see the beer accessories on the No-Mar website. Until then I’ll labor away with my Hopeless Freight unit !

That's the thing there was no beer accessory to pick, it just comes that way. I guess its like the hidden menu items. Its always there you just gotta know about it. Anyway the bike is now fully shod with new tars front and rear and ready to go.

FWIW the HF units with a few tweaks and a Mojo bar is a very cost effective and formitable tire machine. I'd also bet if you look deep in the owner manual you'll find how to toggle the beer feature to the "on" position.

[twowheeladdict]

My country tire shop around the corner was swapping tires for me for $5 cash direct to the tech.  Balance them at home. 

New owner a couple years ago won't touch motorcycle tires.

Honda Dealer 14 miles away will swap them for $25 - $35 depending on type of wheel and tire.

I've been looking at the ads for the Rabaconda tire changer, with its ratcheting mechanism, but even at $35 a tire that is a lot of tire changes just to break even. 

I guess not everyone has a place that will do the swap if you don't buy from them.

[Antietam Classic Cycle]

I bought one of these for $380 about 10 years ago. Some of the best $$ I ever spent. I even changed the front tires from my Yanmar YM1401 on it. Out of production now, but there's still parts support for accessories.

[Perazzimx14]

I bought one of these for $380 about 10 years ago. Some of the best $$ I ever spent. I even changed the front tires from my Yanmar YM1401 on it. Out of production now, but there's still parts support for accessories.

Deal killer for me and the Coats is the bead breaker is on the ground. That was one of the major factors in getting the NoMar with the bead breaker at thigh heigth. Th eolder I get the less desore I have to work on the ground.

I will agree on th emoney best spent I'd have to sat my lift, tire machine and blind bearing pullers are top 3.

[Antietam Classic Cycle]

Deal killer for me and the Coats is the bead breaker is on the ground. That was one of the major factors in getting the NoMar with the bead breaker at thigh heigth. Th eolder I get the less desore I have to work on the ground.

I will agree on th emoney best spent I'd have to sat my lift, tire machine and blind bearing pullers are top 3.

What am I missing here? From looking at the No-Mar on their website and comparing it to my Coats, the bead breaker appears to be in the identical location! Wheel is at ground level, breaker handle is at or above "thigh level".

[Perazzimx14]

What am I missing here? From looking at the No-Mar on their website and comparing it to my Coats, the bead breaker appears to be in the identical location! Wheel is at ground level, breaker handle is at or above "thigh level".

The NoMar "Cycle Hill" has the bead breaker on the ground. The NoMar "HD Classic" the bead breaker is at the tire working heigth

[Antietam Classic Cycle]

Not enough of a difference to worry me, and I'm probably 10 years older than you. 

[blackcat]

I'm happy with my bead breaker, and it was fairly cheap.

[73 sport]

   I've used a similar 2x4  set-up for the last fifty years.

[Perazzimx14]

Not enough of a difference to worry me, and I'm probably 10 years older than you. 

Age has nothing to do with it, I just don't like working on the floor. Heck, I put the bike on lift to check the tire pressure 

Since these tires are new I picked up a thread depth gauge and took measurements and will do so periodically to see how wear progress's 

Front 5/32's
Rear 9/32's

[Wayne Orwig]

I like my $100 Harbor Freight unit. It has done over 100 tires. Not sure when it will be paid off.


 

[Perazzimx14]

I like my $100 Harbor Freight unit. It has done over 100 tires. Not sure when it will be paid off.


 

At $100 it probably paid for itself before you left Harbor Freight's parking lot. Being able to order tires online verses buying from a local shop was a Ben Franklin right there 

[SmithSwede]

Preach it, brother. 

In addition to huge cost savings, I like being able to change tires on my schedule.  Not having to schedule around when a shop can get to it

[Huzo]

There is the argument that if you leave no stone unturned in trying to minimise your dealer’s income, his door will not be open next time you need him.
Same goes for buying everything you can on e bay etc….
The ultimate is the guy who goes into a store and keeps trying on helmets ‘till he finds what fits…
Then buys it on line for 30 bucks less.
Parasites.

[Oca Grassa]

There is the argument that if you leave no stone unturned in trying to minimise your dealer’s income, his door will not be open next time you need him.

Not an issue here….hasnt been a local dealer here for over a dozen years. All we have is Cycle Gear. Ya gotta remove and reinstall your own wheels, they’ll only change the tire & balance them for you.

If I gotta do all that already, I may as well do the tires too. I already know how, I know who to blame if it isn’t done right and I am my own warranty. The No Mar just makes it easier than the whole 2 spoons & 5 gallon pail method.

[Perazzimx14]

There is the argument that if you leave no stone unturned in trying to minimise your dealer’s income, his door will not be open next time you need him.
Same goes for buying everything you can on e bay etc….
The ultimate is the guy who goes into a store and keeps trying on helmets ‘till he finds what fits…
Then buys it on line for 30 bucks less.
Parasites.

I started changing my out tires because of the a local dealership arrogance, wait time and expense. They screwed me once on a tire & tire change and never got the chance to do it again.

[Wayne Orwig]

I started changing my out tires because of the a local dealership arrogance, wait time and expense. They screwed me once on a tire & tire change and never got the chance to do it again.

I started changing mine not just for the cost, which was significant, but because the local shop at the time had their most clueless worker doing tires. They always goofed something up and damaged the rims.
Then there is the fact that it turns a one hour job into a one day job.

[Perazzimx14]

I started changing mine not just for the cost, which was significant, but because the local shop at the time had their most clueless worker doing tires. They always goofed something up and damaged the rims.
Then there is the fact that it turns a one hour job into a one day job.

Yes, a lot of folks are under the impression that the top mechanic will be working on thier bike anytime you take it in but the reality is the tire jockey is likely one of the less seasoned employees that just got promotred from floor sweeper.

As they say why pay a dealership to scratch your rims when you can do it at home for free 

[Moparnut72]

A couple of years ago I built a tire changing stand with an attached bead breaker. It doesn't look like much but does the job. I used it to change the tires on my V7 and T120 Triumph. I now also have a Mandello. I will take the wheels to the local shop just a block or so away. I wouldn't be able to sleep nights if I scratched one of those gold wheels. 
kk

[PilotJet]

.I dont know if other tire machines have this capability but its happened time and time again with the NoMar.

I often do my buddies tires for beers with my NoMar so that's probably not that uncommon. One of the best purchases ever if you go thru multiple tires on multiple bikes.

[Brand X]

I often do my buddies tires for beers with my NoMar so that's probably not that uncommon. One of the best purchases ever if you go thru multiple tires on multiple bikes.

I built one too..although I use a Nomar bar on it..I think I have used one time since I got my Brite changer/motorcycle adapters . Bought it more my cars than anything else..I bought a electronic wheel balancer about the same time with a Motorcycle attachment too .Still use the Mark Parnes unit more for Motorcycles .Whole thing paid for itself about the first year of owning it..There is no way I am letting anyone work on my motor
cycles or cars..Just the way I am.Local tire place pretty much pissed my off one too many times, and we have options to deal with it..

PS-some 705 Shinko are coming so0n for my current bike. and another notch on the tire machine setup..

[guzziart]

Yeah, doing my own tires saves me a couple bucks and can be done in accordance with my schedule.  Since I bought the nomar, other manual changers have surfaced like max2h & rabaconda and a couple old Coats 200's which was my original preference.  Although I'm not a fan of crawling around on the ground to do a tire like with the Max & Rabid.  I never got the hang of using the nomar mount bar but the "Mojolever" solved that issue (and I use a Mark Parnes balancer).  Also, after I bought the nomar, a small indie repair shop moved into the neighborhood and does tires for $35/wh. so I now have a contingency plan if I don't want to schlep the nomar out of the corner and bolt it down.  On another note, the same make & model of tire I bought in early '22 for $87 just cost me $148 from the same retailer a month or so ago ....for my Eldo shown here.

 I do some tire work for friends occasionally but the wife is now getting after me about the potential liability associated with working on another persons vehicle. 

[Antietam Classic Cycle]

I don't understand the "crawling around on the ground" comments in reference to the Coats 200. One lays the wheel down onto a pad to break the bead (requires bending over - oh my!  ), then operates the lever at waist level to break the bead. <shrug> One must then bend over again to flip the wheel, repeat, bend over to pick the wheel up and put it on the changer. Oh the horrors. 

[cliffrod]

I don't understand the "crawling around on the ground" comments in reference to the Coats 200. One lays the wheel down onto a pad to break the bead (requires bending over - oh my!  ), then operates the lever at waist level to break the bead. <shrug> One must then bend over again to flip the wheel, repeat, bend over to pick the wheel up and put it on the changer. Oh the horrors. 

Agreed.  I don’t find the Coats 200 I have here at my home shop to be a “crawling on ground” inconvenience in any way, either.  I like it very much.

After years of changing tires on “real” pneumatic tire machines (one was a Coats plus couple of off-brand clone versions)  at the shop, it’s a very familiar operation.  The only real difference is that the bead is broken while wheel is horizontal (200) instead of vertical (typical pneumatic tire machine).  Either way, it’s lots easier than the actual crawling on ground, milk crate, handyman jack whatever methods that were normal here until I got my own Coats machine. 

Now I’m waiting for a machine that removes & installs wheels on my bikes as easily as changing tires with the Coats.  Even with a lift table, That is still more likely to require aggravation akin to changing tires on a milk crate down on the ground…

[Perazzimx14]

I don't understand the "crawling around on the ground" comments in reference to the Coats 200. One lays the wheel down onto a pad to break the bead (requires bending over - oh my!  ), then operates the lever at waist level to break the bead. <shrug> One must then bend over again to flip the wheel, repeat, bend over to pick the wheel up and put it on the changer. Oh the horrors. 

guzziart: "Although I'm not a fan of crawling around on the ground to do a tire like with the Max & Rabid." No reference to the coats in his comment??

I don't understand the desire to work at ground level, so I guess we agree to disagree. Personally, my days of working on the floor are over. I don't care if everyone else works in a hole in the ground in my world the work comes to me and my back is better for it. YMMV


One of the many reasons do not like the Rabaconda is the center pin sticking out like a harpoon waiting for the user to slip and impail themsleves. It should come with a rebar cap

[Antietam Classic Cycle]

I don't understand the desire to work at ground level, so I guess we agree to disagree. Personally, my days of working on the floor are over. I don't care if everyone else works in a hole in the ground in my world the work comes to me and my back is better for it. YMMV

All the work (moving the lever) is being done at waist level. <shrug>

[chuck peterson]

Yes, a lot of folks are under the impression that the top mechanic will be working on thier bike anytime you take it in but the reality is the tire jockey is likely one of the less seasoned employees that just got promotred from floor sweeper.

As they say why pay a dealership to scratch your rims when you can do it at home for free 

My last trip to a dealer ended with the chain at max tightness zero slack, and the tires inflated to the max tire pressure from the sidewall. The tech was in his first week of work and it was a $400 bill just for the install of two tires

 

[SIR REAL ED]

I'm happy with my bead breaker, and it was fairly cheap.

Using plants as soft material to prevent rim damage is brilliant!!