[C2H8O]

Next question - How do you seat the %[email protected] replacement tubeless tires? I got them on, but I cannot get them to seat and hold air. They won't pop out to the rim. Tubeless tires are the work of Satan.:banghead3

EDIT -
OK, I got the tires off by cuting through the rubber then grinding through the steel belts with a Dremel
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How do you unmount and remount the front tires on the rims? Should it really be done by a tire shop?

Replacing the front tires seemed simple, but I did not expect the original Goodyear tires to have 4 steel wires in the rims. They are semi-rusted to the rims.

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[aguysmiley]

For seating the beads, leave the core out of the valve stem so you can get more airflow. A clip-on style chuck is handy so you can have both hands free to move the tire and rim around. Lubricate the rim and tire. You can buy actual bead lube, but I just use soapy water in a spray bottle. You can also wrap a ratchet strap around the tire and tighten it to try get the beads closer to the rim. After the tire is seated, let the air out and take the strap off.

The smaller front tires are the worst. Especially when they've been on there for forty years. I use my big bench vise to break the beads. Also try to get some soapy water in there as I go.

 

[mikeemc]

set the tire on a bucket and seal one side and pump it up. If it's on the tractor then thats another issue. Are the wheels off ? I always put the valve stem on the inside of the front wheels and the backs you have to put the stem on the outside, thats the way they mount. you can spray ether in the tire and use a long BBQ liter and blow them on I don't recommend it but it does work and hurts your ears LOL . the best way is to get tubes. I wipe mine with winter green and let them set a few days that relaxes the side wall and mounts Farly easy. Believe me some things are just a PITA and thats one of them in life. one thing I did try years ago was to wipe them in side with vasaline and heated them up with a ready heater , that made them flexable and it worked out well too

 

[C2H8O]

you can spray ether in the tire and use a long BBQ liter and blow them on I don't recommend it but it does work and hurts your ears LOL .

Okaaay, I think I will pass on that one. :ROF I see that it would create pressure extremely quickly to seat the tire, but with my luck I would be picking bits of new tire out of my teeth.

The tube sounds like a good idea but I'm gonna first try to wrestle it on without one. Heck, now that I have it on, squeezing a tube in there would be a challenge.

I will lube the tire and take out the stem. I should have thoughly cleaned the rim when the tire was off and now I'm dealing with all kinds of old crud on the rim.

I don't have a ratchet strap but I tried a regular strap - no luck, it needs the extra force of a ratchet strap. I'll poke around for something similar. Oh, I just thought of using that regular strap with a stick to twist it like a tourniquet. Off to do battle...

 

[Steevo]

I just wrestled a few tires onto rims Saturday (in the 103 degree heat of central California), and it is always a bear. I clean the rims thoroughly when the tires are off of them, wire brushing away any flaky paint or rust spots, so that they don't become debris between the bead and the rim.
The next thing I always do is to lube the rim and tire thoroughly with soapy water (very soapy) using a bottle brush.
The soap makes it a lot easier to slip the tires onto the rims, and makes them slide into place better when you air them up.
Oh, and as for removing tires from rims, the best investment I ever made was in a cheap P.O.S. bead breaker from Harbor Freight. Not many tires will fit in a bench vise to break the beads, and for those that won't, you really need a bead breaker. Anyone with a welder, drill press and some scrap iron could build one, but for the $25 or so that a store bought one costs, I can't justify the time investment.

 

[C2H8O]

Success! and :thanku:

The soapy water really helped. First, the bubbles showed where air was escaping so I could concentrate on those areas. Second, it lubricated the rim so the tire could slip on more easily. The bubbles showed where I needed to scrape off more crud.

The 1 in wide strap I used was ineffective, even tightening it like a tourniquet. I think your suggestion, a broad strap with a ratchet, would have worked better

Taking out the valve stem to fill more rapidly was the other technique that helped enormously. I took out the valve and used a simple blow gun pushed hard against the valve stem. It leaked a bit but enough was flowing in there to overwhelm the minor leaks and the tire stared taking shape immediately.

It did look overinflated when it finally settled on the rim. The air gauge measured 32 psi, just a tad over the maximum 12 psi. I got it back down to normal and noticed the stem was leaking where it meets the rim - soap bubbles again! Oh well. I will replace the stem rather than patch it with Slime.

I did not know there was a "bead breaker" tool. The inexpensive Harbor Freight version now says it is handles "up to 5 inches", which is just enough for those rims. I also came across a 5 dollar bead breaker - a length of 2x4 arranged as a lever. However, these old, cracked tires were rusted on. I do not think anything but a hydraulic bead breaker would have worked.

What I have garnered from this:

1. if your wallet can afford pre-mounted tires, get them!
2. ALWAYS replace the stem. It's worth the couple of bucks. I don't know why Tractor Supply let me go out the door without a stem.
3. ALWAYS clean the inner rim thoroughly after de-mounting the old tire, If necessary, use a wire wheel. If you scratch the inner rim paint just spray-prime it. Now is a good time to paint the outside of the rim.
4. Tubes are probably worth the extra bucks. They already have a stem and you don't have to fight with the tubeless demons. OTOH, if you get a leak, a simple tire plug will not work and you have to remove the tube
5. Always use very soapy water to lubricate the tire and rim.
6. Take out the valve stem for faster inflation and to overwhelm minor rim leaks. For me it was the difference between success and frustration. I used a plastic zip-lock bag to keep track of the very tiny valve stem.

Thank you again. I'd buy a round but this is the best I can do over the web
Cheers!:trink39:

 

[Steevo]

Cheers on your success!
I'd be a bit leery of that 2x4 setup. Looks like it could generate more problems when the end comes out from under the car and scrapes up the door.
And he's using that 2x4 in its weakest orientation, too.

 

[C2H8O]

Yeah, I noticed the bad orientation. But I guessed that tractor people (as opposed to moto-cross people) would catch that error and use the beam more appropriately And you did.

I too would not use the side of a car but there are any number of things to brace it - like, say, a heavy garden tractor. Or use the car's rear bumper. Yes, the lever could slip out or break under the stress and then you would have an expensive gouge in your car door. But if you are running moto-cross, it is dad's car anyway. (OK, that's enough beating on cyclists)

 

[blackwolf14804]

Another way of breaking beads...well actually two ways. Take one of the old metal car ramps, set it on the tire close to the rim, then just drive your car up the ramp. The other way that works well is jack up the front of a car or truck with disk brakes, take the tire off, slide the tire you want to break the bead on under the rotor and lower the vehicle slowly. I've used the second one alot and haven't had an issue rotors afterwards.

 

[Bolens 1000]

I usually use my farmall cub front rib tire to break the bead

 

[Steevo]

Yeah, and although us tractor people wouldn't use the 2x4 that way, at least motorcycle people would recognize that it was a snowflake mag wheel from a street bike he was working on (probably an early 80's BMW).
On another note, I see an new 3-pt hitch accessory design brewing in the back of my mind . . .

 

[Tractor-Holic]

I use a manual tire changer I have mostly for the bead breaker--but it busted on me,so now I can only do smaller tires,tractor tires still fit on it,but car tires wont now,too wide..so I'm back to using crude methods like running them over with my 3/4 ton pickup to break the beads..prying the tires off with spoons or crowbars doesn't bother be as much as getting the beads broken..I find the 6" and 8" tires the hardest to dismount and put on,myself..the bigger ,the easier they are,IMO--.Just the opposite of what you'd expect!..

I saw a tool my friend uses on 18 wheeler tires to break the bead--its nothing more than 2 thick pipes that slide over one another,one has a duck billed end you place against the tire bead,and you slide the other pipe down hard and whack it,and it drives the bead off the rim slick!..works like one of those fence post drivers kinda--I might try making a scaled down version for car and tractor tires--beats using a masons chisel and a 5 lb sledge ..

He also has a "tire hammer" that looks like a sledge on one side and has a curved end on the other,you use in similar fashion--you place the curved end against the bead,and hit the "hammer" end with another sledge hammer!..I used a brick hammer in that way to get a really petrified 6" tire off a rusty rim,it worked but I ruined the tire,but it was dry rotted bad anyway..(was hoping to save it for originality,but looks arent everything!)...I've had to use a hacksaw and cutoff wheels on quite a few old tires that were "stubborn" too!..in fact cutting them is often easier than breaking the bead traditionally,and saves you a lot of time and effort..if the tire is junk anyway,why not ??.

 

[NSBolens]

this is the way I seat my beads now. works like a champ, and better than fireworks sometimes. the fourth video down is on a yard cart, but it's a front rim/tire from a tractor.

http://burgmanusa.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=60&t=37712