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Not sure if this has been post anywear before so if it has please let me know
I was wondering what other members are doing/using for tire changing devices / holders ? Anyone got a great DIY set up that they reccomend ? with 3 machines now I 'm sure my time is due to start changing tires and the old spoons on the ground method dose not excite me..:lol8:
For the most part, all of the home made devices I've seen, used or head of were some modification of this type of system:
Attachment 1208
This setup is 60 bucks from HarborFreight. I'm sure you can get some good use out of it but it definitely doesn't have all the bells and whistles.
Here's a video review of a similar type of system, more expensive but it's trailer hitch mounted and you get to see how this type of mounting machine basically works. Based on this, folk have made about a dozen ways to perform the same task with some materials you may find in your garage.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xOlFE_JHCqQ
CC
I should have been a bit clearer on the question.What I ment to asking was what other are using at home/ off road to make for easyer tire changing.
Carl -thanks for the photos
kens,Quote:
Originally Posted by kens
Tire irons for me and lots of dish detergent and baby powder for the tubes. Knock on wood, I haven't had a flat on or off road in years.
:riding:
Hi Ken. Please forgive the bluntness of the question, but what's wrong with taking the wheel/tyre to the local garage. It can't more than a few $$....unless of course you're more skint than I am?:mwink:
Well I'm not that cheap:lol8:...And I am willing to buy tools any day.The second issue is that I am trained Tech and more trained than most tire shop kids..But we don't have anywere to get it done here anyways.
I have proper tire spoons in my tool box but I thought I'd reach out and see what others are doing / using for stands ,bead breakers ect..I you never know..there is a lot of knowledge on this forum:thumbsup:
Road/trail: I have some nice MotionPro 7075 aluminum tire irons. I've tried many others, but these just seem to work better. On the V-Strom, I have a plug kit as the tires are tubeless, my other bikes use tubes so I carry a patch kit and sometimes a spare tube on long hauls. I use my kickstand to break the bead on the tires and a small portable electric pump to air up on the go. That's the "emergency" stuff, I suggest trying it at home so you are more confident if something happens out in the wild.
Home: I don't trust the shops here in China with tire changes, they just don't understand the basic concepts and usually hack your rims up pretty bad. There is a car shop down the road with a fancy tire machine so I trained a couple of the guys in the fine art of changing. Little things like using lube and matching the balance spot to the valve stem were a complete mystery to them :eek2: . Once I have them mounted, I balance them myself with a small balancer, I wrote about it in this thread.
The tire changers CrazyCarl showed are pretty good for home use and will probably pay for themselves fairly quickly as most shops in America and Europe charge 25-50 bucks even if you take the wheels off yourself.
Cheers!
ChinaV
Thanks Chinav..more great info
Please forgive another dumb question. Once you have changed the tyres yourself, where do you take the wheels to be balanced? :chinese:
My plan is to build a balancer like the one in ChinaV's other thread if I need one. Stick weights are easy to buy in Canada.Use a few 6203 bearings ect.
You can use a dowel rod and saw-horses (or a bench) for balancing. Assuming your bearings are still good, put the dowel rod through the axle hole in the wheel and place both ends of the rod on the saw-horses. Spin the wheel lightly, and mark the very top of the wheel where it stops. Since the heavy part will settle on the bottom, add weight to the top. Keep doing this until the wheel is balanced.
This method freaks out a lot of people but I know it work just fine. Had tires balanced by this method up past 120MPH and no problems.
CC
That takes care of the 'static' balance, but not the 'dynamic' balance (wheel turned at hig revs). :eek2:Quote:
Originally Posted by CrazyCarl
However, given CC has had no probs over 120mph, say no more!! :thumbsup:Quote:
Originally Posted by CrazyCarl
Ditto! :thumbsup:Quote:
Originally Posted by kens
I used to change Land-Rover tyres with a Jackall highlift ratchet jack and tyre irons, just jamb the tyre between the jack ratchet and top clamp, and jack it, there easily breaking the bead. For motorcycle tyres, I am thinking something like a G clamp to break the bead, or just jump up and down on it or stamp the heel in. Don't get me wrong, I like tools, in fact I am a tool fiend, but if it won't fit in my tool box, I can't have it as I have not the space to store it, whatever I do, I have to find a way that does not involve something that if left outside, I won't be too bothered if it gets stolen. The bike will be imobilised and I have an alarm system with tilt sensor and hack protection. Currently thinking of making a tripod lifting arrangement so I can lift the bike up for the removal of wheels to change bearings, three stout wooden poles will do with a sheer lashing to make a tripod and the bike frame suspended from the apex, hmm, come to think of it, I have three Mirror dinghy mast rigs here, ideal, sorted.
sprocket,
Yes,
I'm also trying not to be a tool junkie. Most of my bikes have center stands and I have one of those hydraulic bike jacks that is always in the way. I need to get rid of it.
Tire irons and a c-clamp (if needed) work for me.
I don't balance my tires (except for my 500cc Honda Ascot ) and they seem to be just fine.
I was Googling for pics of tyre skid marks left on the road, as you do when it's an eternal grey sky, 4deg C and tipping it down interspersed by sheet drizzle.
For unexplicable reasons one of the pics was a Wicko tyre changer. It's too large a file to load so here's the URL:
http://images.google.co.uk/imgres?im...D1&um=1&itbs=1
Only US$399. Don't all rush at once. :lol8: