Tyre Changing Tools

[Snod Blatter]

I'm looking at quite a few bald tyres sat in the garage and don't fancy paying a guy £20 a time to fit me some new ones. I am wondering if anyone has experience with the proper tools/rigs that seem to exist for home use, the abba and Sealey products seem the most common yet they both look a bit wimpy and rubbish, as well as keeping the job of tyre changing difficult.

I am aware this has been asked before but only about the abba version as far as I can tell, and it was almost five years ago so people may be wiser or there could be new products out there I haven't seen yet. Oh and I don't have an air line and don't really want to go over £150 so it can't be too professional!
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1994 CB250, 1984 CBX250RS-E, 1989 K100RS, 1995 TRX850, 2016 Z250SL

[binge]

A pair of decent quality tyre levers and some man-handling will see you through.
Can buy rim-protectors on ebay for next to nothing.

Failing that, find a cheaper tyre fitter. £20 a pop is pricey as fuck! If they were loose wheels, and simple change-overs without balancing, I'd expect to pay about a tenner for 2 wheels.


In fact, if you are anywhere near Rainham, Kent, come and see me.




Ben

[stirlinggaz]

[SQL]

round here the car shops refuse to do em and bike shops charge £15 per wheel loose and £30ish per wheel ride in

[........................]

Have a look here

Like you I didn't have a local place that would stick them onto a loose wheel cheaply, the place I used to go to shut.

I got all the stuff I need from Gumtree for £55 which was quite lucky, including the Abba bead breaker which worked a treat. I already had a compressor but plenty of people seem to use a foot pump with success.

[rubyhorse2]

wow... £10 a tyre at my local garage.

dont think i'd ever try and do the tyres myself.

[DrDonnyBrago]

I use pieces of timber as a bead breaker. Just a lever and a short wedge placed against the bead, then something to lever it against.

Rim protectors are cheap, levers are cheap.

I made a balancer that bolts to axle stands for about £2 (angle iron and skateboard bearings), weights from eGay. Loads of people get away without balancing.

[bikenut]

see DIY Tubeless Tyre Changes a few posts below, read, read, and read again......


digest and have a go on a push bike wheel and tyre first.......

only spoons needed for then, you should be able to fit the tyre using only your thumbs ( porriage for brekky then ) ........no levers needed to refit.

when you can do them hassle free and not trapping the inner tube....progress to a motorcycle one........

since the tyre coming off is worn out??? use plenty of soap to aid removal......

only use sufficient ( just enough to lube both beads ) tyre soap for refitting....yes I know how much is just enough?? well that's down to experience.......and the only way yur gunna get that is to watch and old fart ( sorry dudes, old sweats and tyre fitters ) do it, or do it your self.
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nuts about bikes

[........................]

I would just add, get the equipment and go for it. I'd always assumed it was some sort of dark art as many people didn't seem to do their own but were happy to attempt all other kinds of motorbike servicing. Then I did a bit of reading and saw actually quite a few did and it turned out to be much easier than I had predicted.

I'm guessing a bit now but I think this type of lever might be the one to go for

https://www.machinemart.co.uk/images/library/product/huge/05/050914854.jpg

As the ones I used were a little bit thick but it's only a small hassle.

[bikenut]

looks very similar to one of my favourite bike tyre levers.......longer ( about twice as long by the looks ) and much more shinny............ :D

the secret really is lub for removal ( lots but not too much else everything gets really slippy ) and just enough lub for refitting.....and checking that you aiont pinched/trapped the tube, if fitted.

the thing that will make you scream ( apart from a finger stuck in the bead after inflation ) is to see the directional arrow backwards......and/or trapped innertube.

you know of the tyre balance marks?
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nuts about bikes

[Snod Blatter]

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The bead breaker worked flawlessly and was a good buy but then I paid £55 for the bead breaker, balancer, tyre irons and rim protectors. I've just had a quick look on the Abba site and it's listed as just over £60 on there which is a bit steep but then it depends on how often you'll be changing tyres as to whether it will be worth it. I'd be tempted to use the 'jump on a shovel' method.

[Pigeon]

[johnsmith222]

the abba bead breaker is probably the best one to go for imo.

It also makes it easier to fit the tyre, as you can clamp the bead permanently behind the rim, that way you're not chasing yourself round the tyre (shouldn't happen anyway, but makes it easier) or needing a lever to hold the end while you work your way round.

[-]

I bought all the gear from Ebay, bead breaker, balancer, levers, rim protectors, tyre soap etc.

The first tyre I tried took me a while as it was slightly oversized for the rim. All I would say is that I could have done with more than 2 tyre levers really and more than 2 rim protectors.

The balancing kit I bought was supposed to fit on to a paddock stand. It didn't fit on to any of mine, so I had to make a frame up our of wood to hold the bearing which the balancing rod sat on.
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TZR250 2MA road, TZR250 1KT road, TZR250 2MA race, TDR250, YZF-750R Boost colours.
Jaguar S Type 3.0 V6 Sport R, VW Transporter T5 GP LWB Shuttle 140ps DSG.

[Robby]

The only proper tool I use is a set of tyre levers.

I tend to use cardboard to protect the rim, having chewed through some cheap rim protectors. A big vice does the job of breaking the bead, and some watered down washing up liquid for tyre soap. I don't bother with balancing - if I'm fitting a tyre that needs balancing, then the chances are that I can get a good deal on the tyre fitted from FWR in Kennington.

[........................]

Like Robby I didn't bother with the balancing and can't say that I feel any more vibration than with the old tyres.

[Pete.]

I have some 1mm thick ally sheet that I cut to make single-use rim protectors. I cut strips about 70x40mm and fold them over by hand.
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a.k.a 'Geri'

132.9mph off and walked away. Gear is good, gear is good, gear is very very good

[binge]

Unless you change your own tyres for the enjoyment (Why anyone would do that is beyond me! ), I can only assume it's done for saving money.

To spend out on a proper bead breaker etc, you must really go through some tyres!

I change my own tyres because I've been doing it since I was 15 (Work).
But if I didn't have access to a tyre machine (Which at some points I didn't depending on where I worked), I just paid a fitter to put my tyres on for me.

Only time I do it manually is on my track bikes when a track-side change is needed.

[Snod Blatter]

[SQL]

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[DrDonnyBrago]