Another Tire Thread!

[LittleRedNinjette]

+1 on the beads. We've been running them for a couple years now in his bike and now mine after the tire upgrade. We love them.

[choneofakind]

Oh gosh, not the dynabeads discussion again... Can't we just let people use whichever method they prefer and put the discussion to rest? There's lots of dyna bead discussion all over the interwebs and they all turn into adamant believers on both sides bickering in black and white. Let's not do that.

[Ghostt]

Originally Posted by choneofakind

Oh gosh, not the dynabeads discussion again... Can't we just let people use whichever method they prefer and put the discussion to rest? There's lots of dyna bead discussion all over the interwebs and they all turn into adamant believers on both sides bickering in black and white. Let's not do that.

Amen, I'm not looking to change anyone's mind, just provide the information, as my famous saying goes,

"*I'm not your mom and I'm not paying for your parts, so do whatever you want with your own bike."

[Ninja Rob]

How much time and work does it take to change both my tires and what tools do I need? I'm going to order some online and I want to order whatever tools I will need as well. Since I have a new job, I earn way more but now I only have Sunday's to work on my bike. I work in a bike friendly place since there are other riders here so I plan to change my tires and commute to work on my bike every once in a while

Do I need to adjust the chain since I will be removing the rear tire?

[dcj13]

Originally Posted by Ninja Rob

Do I need to adjust the chain since I will be removing the rear tire?

Might as well! You're messing with stuff at that point.

Do you have any tire changing equipment? Like the Harbor Freight tire changer? Or Mojolever? Anything?

[Ninja Rob]

Originally Posted by dcj13

Might as well! You're messing with stuff at that point.

Do you have any tire changing equipment? Like the Harbor Freight tire changer? Or Mojolever? Anything?

Nothing. That's why I want to know what I need.

[dcj13]

My thoughts on tire changing equipment, having done approx. 75 tires over the last 10 years, are noted below. Bare minimum? HF tire changer and Mojolever. Other guys use only a pair of tire spoons.

********************************************************

Harbor Freight tire changer with motorcycle wheel adaptor:
Expected HF fit and finish. Does the job. Does it better and a lot easier if
it's bolted to the floor. Recommend Mojo blocks. Also works well for car tires.
Have never used the included HF mount-demount bar on MC wheels, as I don't want
to scratch a wheel.

No-Mar mount-demount bar:
Excellent for tire removal. Terrible for tire installation.

No-Mar Spoonbars:
Will install any difficult tire if you have at lest 3 of them. Haven't needed
them since acquiring a Mojo lever. Could maybe mount a tire without the other
tools listed here. Maybe.

Irwin Quick-Grips:
Handy for holding tire bead in rim center groove opposite the tire "spoonbar"
(see above). Haven't needed them since acquiring a Mojo lever.

Mojo blocks:
They bolt onto the Harbor Freight tire changer and totally prevent the tire
changer chipping wheel paint. They also grip your buddy's R1200GS spoked tubless
wheels with the wide rim. But the Mojo blocks are slippery and strapping a wheel
spoke to the Harbor Freight tire changer prevents the wheel from spinning and
really helps.

Mojo lever:
Ok for tire removal. Excellent for tire installation. Haven't needed the tire
irons or the No-Mar bar since getting this item.

Beemer Balancer:
Essentially rollerblade bearings on metal plates. I made my own stand out of
2x4's and a piece of scrap plywood. Ordered it with a nice straight shaft, a
pair of stepped cylinders for front wheels, and a multi-use BMW rear wheel
adapter. Everything works great, except for the rear wheel adapter, which has
just enough slop so as to provide questionable rear wheel balancing (my opinion,
your results my vary). Rear wheel adapter no longer used since a coworker who
bought a No-Mar cone set joined our little tire changing co-op.

Quickie Kit (from Beemer Balancer):
Well worth the $13. 5 gram magnets with sticky backing that you temporarily
stick to your wheel that's on that balancer, along with several weights that are
10 to 25 grams each that stick to the magnet. Allows me to achieve accurate
weight location and amount in a minute or two.

No-Mar cone set ("cone pack 6"):
An acme-threaded shaft and cones that has allowed accurate slop-free balancing
of every rear wheel we've thrown at it.

General observations on amateur tire changing:
Use tire lube on the tire beads and rims.
If it's warm and sunny, set the new tires in the sun while you're demounting the
old tires.
If it's cold, let the new tires sit in your heated house for a day or 2 (they
smell bad, though, and the outgassing is probably not good for you).
Wear eye protection and ear protection just in case when seating the beads.
Wear old clothes, because you will get filthy.
When changing tires with (for) friends or neighbors, make it a social event:
have a cup of coffee or a beer or two while working.
Honda wheels seem to require less weight for static balance than do BMW wheels
(especially GS wire wheels). Kawasaki wheels are not quite as consistent as Honda wheels, but require less weight that some BMW wheels I’ve seen.
Tube type tires are a PITA.

[ninjunk]

My thoughts on changing tires:

make friends with someone who owns a tire changing machine and bring them beer.

if you have a fleet (10+ cycles) and you are planning on changing tires more than once a month its worth investing in the tools to do it right. if you own one bike and you're going to change tires once a year, just pay someone to do it right.

the first few sets of tires i changed didn't go so well, its not rocket science but there is a learning curve.

[crazymadbastard]

I have some qs:

Anyone use Ken-Tool 34645 Mount/Demount Tire Iron? Its from amazon.
I used 3 tire irons and the job was less than fun! I am thinking next round
to get the HF moto tire changer and the Ken-tool or Mojo bar.

Also I have a mig welder and I have argon/co2 mix I am thinking about using
that mix to fill my tires instead nitrogen. I dont see any issues other than getting the right adapter and making sure I turn the gas regulator to the right pressure.

[dcj13]

Originally Posted by crazymadbastard

I have some qs:

Anyone use Ken-Tool 34645 Mount/Demount Tire Iron? Its from amazon.
I used 3 tire irons and the job was less than fun! I am thinking next round
to get the HF moto tire changer and the Ken-tool or Mojo bar.

Also I have a mig welder and I have argon/co2 mix I am thinking about using
that mix to fill my tires instead nitrogen. I dont see any issues other than getting the right adapter and making sure I turn the gas regulator to the right pressure.

Dunno about the Ken-tool, but the Mojolever works great!

I use regular old air: It's 78% nitrogen. Don't really see the point of running other stuff, as I don't ride/drive 200 mph and my tires will never get hot enough to matter.

Originally Posted by ninjunk

My thoughts on changing tires:

make friends with someone who owns a tire changing machine and bring them beer.

if you have a fleet (10+ cycles) and you are planning on changing tires more than once a month its worth investing in the tools to do it right. if you own one bike and you're going to change tires once a year, just pay someone to do it right.

the first few sets of tires i changed didn't go so well, its not rocket science but there is a learning curve.

You got the right idea about friends with the equipment!

Respectfully disagree, though, about frequency of tire changes required to acquire equipment. I don't like paying $50 per tire and wasting more of my time to let someone else do what I can do in less time. And I don't like scratched rims.

Tire changing is not for everyone. And a fair amount of equipment is needed to properly do the variety of wheels/tires that are used on bikes.

[choneofakind]

My thoughts on changing tires:

Well s***, the frustration and cussing would be worth more than it costs to have someone else do it.

[StrangeKnowledge]

So it's been about a month on the Kendas and I'm liking them, they make it feel almost like a new bike. Highly reccomend!

[Kruse08]

I agree to the above statement. These tires are cheap but they grip well and are much better than the stock dunlops. They are a good tire for a good price.

[Ninja Rob]

Originally Posted by Ghostt

Amen, I'm not looking to change anyone's mind, just provide the information, as my famous saying goes,

"*I'm not your mom and I'm not paying for your parts, so do whatever you want with your own bike."

So these dyna beads, does that mean I don't have to balance the tires when I first install them? My Pirelli tires just arrived yesterday.

[LittleRedNinjette]

Originally Posted by Ninja Rob

So these dyna beads, does that mean I don't have to balance the tires when I first install them? My Pirelli tires just arrived yesterday.

Yup, they balance the tires so no traditional balancing is required.

Get metal valve stems. The beads don't easily go into the plastic ones.

[Ninja Rob]

Originally Posted by LittleRedNinjette

Yup, they balance the tires so no traditional balancing is required.

Get metal valve stems. The beads don't easily go into the plastic ones.

Where can I buy those metal stems?

[csmith12]

Originally Posted by LittleRedNinjette

Get metal valve stems. The beads don't easily go into the plastic ones.

Even the 90 degree ones? Many of the metal stems are 90's.

[LittleRedNinjette]

the ones my boyfriend put on his bike are metal and not 90s.

I believe he got them from Competition Accessories but i would think anyplace that sells tires or a shop would have them. I can check with him when i get home.

[dcj13]

Old fashioned static balancing is cheap, easy, and effective. Dynabead seem like a relatively high-cost solution to a non-problem.

[LittleRedNinjette]

It's a solution to the ugly wheel weights that stick out like a sore thumb.

The bother me anyway. So this is a big reason I went with them. The other being I didn't have to take them anywhere. a buddy put the tires on and the car dealership he works and we put the beads in in the back yard.

It's just personal preference.

I'm not trying to change anyone's opinion or say "you wrong". Just giving my opinion. There's nothing wrong with traditional wheel weights. Just not my preference.

[choneofakind]

Again? Dynabead discussion again? this is like people asking about tires. THERE'S TONS OF STUFF ABOUT THIS ALREADY. All over the internet. All over these forums. All over everywhere. And there's many passionate people on both sides. It's annoying when someone doesn't take the 5 minutes to search for information and asks in a semi-relevant thread and starts the discussion all over. Seriously, try google. Just humor me this one time.

This topic is a pet peeve of mine just because of how well documented it is on literally just about every enthusiast forum for just about every type of motor vehicle. Spending 5 minutes on google would net you more information than you'd ever care to know, from user-based testimonial to actual data for both choices of tire balancing to installation DIY's for both.

/rant

[LittleRedNinjette]

[Ninja Rob]

Originally Posted by LittleRedNinjette

the ones my boyfriend put on his bike are metal and not 90s.

I believe he got them from Competition Accessories but i would think anyplace that sells tires or a shop would have them. I can check with him when i get home.

Would this work?

.453" 1 1/4 " long

[crazymadbastard]

Originally Posted by Ninja Rob

Would this work?

.453" 1 1/4 " long

nope ours are 11mm.

[LittleRedNinjette]

And I wouldn't get any thing with slime in them. Not sure how that would work with the beads.

[dcj13]

Originally Posted by LittleRedNinjette

And I wouldn't get any thing with slime in them. Not sure how that would work with the beads.

Don't need beads if you have slime...

[Ninja Rob]

Originally Posted by LittleRedNinjette

And I wouldn't get any thing with slime in them. Not sure how that would work with the beads.

I think slime is the brand name but I am going to return it anyway. I found them on eBay. Just need the wheel weights and a thing to balance the wheels.

[dcj13]

Originally Posted by Ninja Rob

... Just need the wheel weights and a thing to balance the wheels.

A breath of fresh air! Simplicity and elegance go hand in hand.

[LittleRedNinjette]

/Done. Unsubscribed.