Vid on changing tires.

[Tom]

Dumbed down for tubeless tires.  Not as easy for spoked rims and tubed tires.  Some good hints though.

http://www.motorcyclistonline.com/tech-tips-how-to-change-your-own-tires-fix-flat-mc-garage-video?src=SOC&dom=fb&cmpid=enews062615&spPodID=030&spMailingID=22929094&spUserID=NjMxMTY5MDc5MzIS1&spJobID=582583921&spReportId=NTgyNTgzOTIxS0

[bad Chad]

I watched that the other day, as I was thinking maybe it wouldn't be so hard, and I could save a fair amount of money!

So after I say through it, and I think it was done pretty clearly, I said to myself, "bad Chad, you know it wouldn't go anywhere nearly as smooth for you, there would certainly be much swearing, pain, and blood, and it 70/30 wouldn't be done right when all the dust settled."

As much as I would like to save $200 or so each time I have both tires changed together, I have to respect my own limitations.  And with everything riding on my tires, I'm going to stick with real professional and ride with confidence knowing everything is just as it should be.

This just an account of my experience, others may excel at changing tires, I'm just one  of them.

[pyoungbl]

Hi Chad!
     Drawing the line at tire changing ain't bad, that's what most riders do.  Although I have been doing my own for many years I can still recall the pain of changing the rear tire on my BMW G650GS.  I was getting ready for what was supposed to be a long trip on dirt roads.  The plan was to be able to fix a flat in the middle of nowhere.  I decided to do a dry run in the garage just to make sure I had everything needed to actually do the job, theory be damned.  That turned out to one miserable afternoon...and evening.  It was darn near impossible to get the tire on or off because the rim had such a slight drop in the center.  I decided that, from then on, I'd take that particular bike to the dealer whenever it needed a new rear tire.  Some things just are not worth the agony.

Oh, and I pinched the tube putting it all back together...caught that when the tire was flat in the morning...got to do the whole job again.

Peter Y.

[charlie b]

I started when the dealer let the washer slip off the valve stem and it caused a leak.  I figured I could do that bad.

That was also when I found out I could change my to tubeless so I saved even more money by not paying for tubes.

Once I discovered that bead breaking and seating were the only hard parts I have had fun doing my own.  One of these days will get a proper tire changing stand, but, until then will used 2x4's, C-clamp, irons and ratchet strap.  And now all I carry is a plug kit for emergencies.

[Tom]

The Motion Pro tire irons look pretty good.

[Perazzimx14]

The video is great if you are changing 180 series soft compound sport tires. Some super soft race compound tires you don't even need spoons to get the new tire over the bead, you can just push them over by hand.  You would be hard pressed to break the bead on a heavy walled cruiser tire with those short irons. Especially if they have been on for years. The bead breaker arm on my NoMar is almost 4 feet long and when working on some cruiser tires will have a pretty good bend in the arm to get enough pressure to break the bead.

Buy a NoMar classic and be done with it. A bit of an investment up front but you recoup your money pretty quickly. You get the advantage of being able to buy tires online at a substantial savings + you change them when you want them changed, not when the dealer can fit you in. So you also save money and more importantly time.

I bought my NoMar in December of 2013 as soon as it arrived I changed out 4 of my own tires.  That alone paid for about 1/2 the tire changer. Since them I have changed over 100 tires for friends and a local bike builder. I get rid of of the old tires at a local garage. Pay the $2 per tire recycle fee and throw them on the pile for pickup. Any shop that sell automotive tires SHOULD do the same as you are not direct competition to them.

In a lot of shops the low man on the totem pole is the tire changer. Just because you pay shop to change your tires doesn't mean it is done correctly.

 

[not-fishing]

Buy a NoMar classic and be done with it. A bit of an investment up front but you recoup your money pretty quickly. You get the advantage of being able to buy tires online at a substantial savings + you change them when you want them changed, not when the dealer can fit you in. So you also save money and more importantly time.

Then  there are those of us snapping red suspenders who buy tires online, pull the wheels off and take them to the local Italian tuner shop who also happens to be restoring a El Dorado.  The charge is $20 per wheel to mount, balance & dispose.  The shop is on my normal commute.  Since I only average one tire change per year I'm going to have the shop do it. 

I look at it as "supporting the local shop" and saving my positive Karma for when I have to take my Griso's tank off or chase electrical gremlins.

[Cage Free]

 In the video he has trouble keeping the rim protectors in place which will inevitably lead to damaging your wheel..Ive been changing my own tires using the zip tie method for a couple of years now. I bought a HF bead breaker and wheel balancer for next to nothing and since no tools are used my wheels are scratch free.

[Lannis]

I change my own tires on a waist-high tire stand padded with an old 21" tire to avoid scratches.

Several things about the video, which is fine as far as it goes:

1) Most beads won't unseat that easily.   I have to lean on a real floor-mounted bead-breaker to get mine off.

2) I'm getting too old to get down on the floor on my knees and wrassle a tire.   My knees can't be used as tire tools any more, either.

3) All good advice about get the opposite side down into the center well so you can work the bead on.

4) Very many tires will not seat that easily since the beads don't contact the rims when they have no air in them.   You have to use ratchet straps or bead-seating "o" rings to make it work, and certainly you have to take the valve core out to have enough air volume to expand the tire and seat it.

5) Finally, a wheel with dual-disks on it often can't be put on the floor and knelt on like that, or you'll bend a disk.   You have to support the wheel or rim so that the disk is off the floor and has no load on it.   They won't take any side load.

So not as easy as he makes it.    I'd love a No-Mar but can never convince myself to pull the trigger ....

Lannis

[Lannis]

Then  there those of us snapping red suspenders who buy tires online, pull the wheels off and take them to the local Italian tuner shop who also happens to be restoring a El Dorado.  The charge is $20 per wheel to mount, balance & dispose.  The shop is on my normal commute.  Since I only average one tire change per year I'm going to have the shop do it. 

I look at it as "supporting the local shop" and saving my positive Karma for when I have to take my Griso's tank off or chase electrical gremlins.

I've never had quite the nerve to buy a tire on line and then take it to my shop to mount.   Since my shop will match any on-line price on tires anyway, IF I've made the decision to let them change it (my Stelvio front wheel is particularly difficult due to the rim size relative to the tire not allowing the bead to "catch" the rim without a Cheetah bead-seater), then they're the ones I buy it from.    That HELPS support your local shop even more ...

Lannis

[Lannis]

This is the tire changer that will be waiting for us in Heaven someday ......

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j0Hx_rpdxJY

Lannis

[Sasquatch Jim]

  No.  This is the heavenly tire changer.

 

[not-fishing]

I've never had quite the nerve to buy a tire on line and then take it to my shop to mount.   Since my shop will match any on-line price on tires anyway,

Shoot I've been buying tire online since my '74 Fiat X 1/9 first needed tires back in '76.  I'd be more than happy to pay a little more for tires from the shop but I know they're not set up for that low of a profit margin.  Still I'm going to ask before I buy this next time.

As to knees, I've found buying 6-7 sets of the cheap, extra-soft, foam double strap knee pads and putting them on before you need them is great for my knees.  Sure I look a little funny walking around with knee pads all the time but it saves looking for them.  also the reason to by 6-7 pair because I seem to have a problem remembering where I left them  Now if I could just get a hoist that would follow me around and pick me up once I get on my knees I'd be good.   

Mark

[Lannis]

  No.  This is the heavenly tire changer.

 

Yep.   Trumped my ace with the queen of hearts .....

[kirkemon]

I watched that the other day, as I was thinking maybe it wouldn't be so hard, and I could save a fair amount of money!
As much as I would like to save $200 or so each time I have both tires changed together, I have to respect my own limitations.  And with everything riding on my tires, I'm going to stick with real professional and ride with confidence knowing everything is just as it should be.

This just an account of my experience, others may excel at changing tires, I'm just one  of them.

If I remove the wheels myself, my tire guy gives a fairly good break. I figure it's not worth busting my knuckle over.