Changing rear tire myself

[ccs]

Hi All;

After speaking with several dealers in the area (Suzuki, Honda, and others -- one Suzuki dealer wants $80 to mount/balance the rear tire -- said the bike is old and things break and they don't want to be responsible) I am seriously considering doing the job myself.

I have looked at tiresunlimted and JC Whitney for tires, tire irons, bead breakers, and have read numerous posts on this forum, and a really good article at: http://www.xs11.com/faq/tirefaq.shtml. The process seems straight forward, but time/labor intensive.

However, seeing as the tires are much more critical on a motorcycle, I am concerned that I may do something wrong or incorrectly and end up in an unsafe position.

Can someone with experience changing tires provide me some tips/advice on what to watch out for, so that I do the job correctly and safely and don't make a critical mistake?

TIA.

Charles...

[renobruce]

$80.00 ?? :shock: Dang! That's a ripoff! The shop I use in Reno charges $15 per tire if you bring in the wheel unmounted... and that's if you bring in your own tire, too. If you buy from them, the mounting and balancing is free! I'd check around some more. Personally speaking, it's not worth it to me to buy all that stuff.

[gcextreme]

Mounting

I agree.... I bought my tire for $65, a tube was like $7.... thats all i paid.... i took the tire in ... so they didnt have to take it off the bike and charge me for that labor...

All said... whoever told you that BS about it being old and they dont want to be responsible, thats just BS... there's more stuff to break and be responsible for on the newer bikes....

So my advice.. take the rear tire off, and take it in somewhere and have the new tire mounted on the rim.. then take it home and mount it on the bike...

Like what he said above... buying all the tools to do it yourself... isnt worth it...

Peace

[DimitriT]

I agree with all the previous responses. Learn to remove and remount your wheels. Leave the job of mounting and balancng tires to a good shop. They can do it much faster and easier than you and it shouldn't cost you much at all. If you are not sure how to remove the wheels and remount them, let us know and you will get lots of advice and tips.

[gsbill]

I agree with all the previous responses. Learn to remove and remount your wheels. Leave the job of mounting and balancng tires to a good shop. They can do it much faster and easier than you and it shouldn't cost you much at all. If you are not sure how to remove the wheels and remount them, let us know and you will get lots of advice and tips.

If you have tube type tires, buy a new tube. Just cut your old tire off with a razor knife. 90% of the bitch is getting the old tire off. Install your new tire and tube. If you are running tubeless, just cut off the tire. I work over an old 5 gallon bucket so I dont mess up wheels, rotors and sprockets. I used this method on wheels that cost nearly 2 thousand dollars each and regualr priced rimes also.

You can balance your own wheeels pretty close. I do, with them mounted on the bike as long as they spin free, no brake or chain drag, or do them on a stand.

[chuckycheese]

Take it to a shop

I'm in between on the deal. I think it's a great idea to remove the wheel yourself and then pay someone to put on the new one and balance it for you. After that, you can install it on the bike...knowing that you've done it correctly. ALWAYS buy a new tube; they heat up and suffer, especially in tubeless tires and it's just simply so important to have air you can count on.

I've never understood why people might scrimp on tires and tubes. I, like everyone, hate to spend money needlessly but I can't think of anything more important than having tubes and tires you can rely on....because, you're betting your life on them after about 40 or 50 MPH!!

[pano]

I recently bought a tire from a local shop that I won't be going back to. They charged me list ($147) for the tire, $9.95 for the tube, $20 to mount and balance and $7 for old tire disposal. I also brought my rim and tire in. In the end it cost me about $190. I even haggled on the price of the tire but the guy would not budge. Normally I would have gone somewhere else but I needed it.

I am also considering mounting and balancing my own tires.

[chef1366]

$190:-( I pay $20 per rim + balanced. Find an old mechanic who's a nice guy.

[rustybronco]

Well i guess doing things on the cheep is a way of life for me, so i change my tires at work on an automotive tire machine, it is the kind where you break down the tire beads on on the side of the machine then put the tire on the changer and clamp disc brake rotor with 4 adaptors and zip the tire off.
like this machine.

http://www.hunter.com/pub/product/tirechanger/3815T/index.htm

so check an auto tire store it may be a viable solution to levering the tire off the rim yourself
i balance them between two jack stands on the axle shaft with 1/4 oz stick on weights when done.
around here they want $40 dollars to mount and balance one i can have one changed in about 10 minutes, 4-5 if i try real hard...

[mixongw]

I used a large c-clamp and some pieces of 1X wood to break my beads. It was easy. I use balancing beads from http://www.innovativebalancing.com/

[flyingace]

If the tire is tubeless, enough emphasis can't be made on breaking and seating the tire bead on the rim. It is the most difficult (and important) part of tire changing.

You can try to cut the old tire, but I ran into belting material in the bead I couldn't cut thru. Plus it's nearly impossible to cut a tire bead still imbedded in the rim. Once the bead is broken, getting the tire off isn't that hard, so you should plan on dismounting the tire from the rim. Using C-clamps and wooden blocks is clumsy, but it works.

Once a the tire is back on the rim, getting the bead to seat can be a trial. It literally needs to 'pop' into place. To do this, you need to have adequate air pressure. Some remove the valve stem to allow a faster fill. A bicycle pump won't cut it - you need compressed air. You may also need to bounce the tire to force the bead closer to the rim after it's partially seated. Repeat cycle as necessary.

For balancing, I just put the tire on the axle and set it on a couple of leveled/notched pieces of wood a couple feet off the ground. There should be no one part of the tire that always returns to the bottom.

It took me an entire day to change one M/C tire, but it was worth it in knowledge gained.

Good Luck.

[GSstiny]

heres a vid I found that utilizes a really simple homemade bead breaker. Im sure its not as easy as this dude makes it look, but it beats $80 a wheel.

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-7546109776315225781&q=sportbike

[Billyboy]

I used to bust tires for a living, and I left them on good terms. So when I need a tire swapped out a just use their shop and go at it. :-D

[Einar J Skog]

Hi
I always change tires myself..
I use a vice with a piece of wood to protect the rim, to loosen the tire .
to remove the tire from the rim I use 3 tire irons.

[8trackmind]

Don't go to a shop. They'll F it up AND charge you for it!

Three tire irons, a C clamp and some lube is all you need.

To seat the bead, take the core out of the valve stem. Have a friend hold the air chuck whilst you wrestle the tire into place. (Some people use nylon straps around the tire) You'll have air leaking everywhere, then you'll hear two loud "thumps" and its on there. :-D