I bought the abba kit a few years back and its easily paid for itself. So easy to use, even my 3 year old helps me balance the tyres etc.
Happy to report no tools got wanged!!! In the end i stumped up for one of those £38 bead breaker/tyre changer as mentioned earlier in the thread, the rim rested on the spokes on it so as not to damge the wheel i added a little padding Which did the trick, the bead broke without too much trouble and i had the tyre off in a matter of minutes, a top tip is lube the crap out of it and make sure its warm! I also purchased a static balancer, which i am still awaiting delivery so havent yet put the tyre back on, i shall let you know how that bit goes! Even with the purchase of new tools (which, lets face it, is always fun) i have still saved just shy of £30 from having them supplied and fitted at a dealer, so any future changes will save even more.....and acquired a new skill to boot!
I have one if those. I moved the plates between the hoops to the inside as the nuts/bolts caught the inner rim on a SSSA wheel. Window cleaner makes a good lube.
Tyre iron launched into neighbours garden ...oops. getting the rear tyre on was a massive pain in the ass, i lost my rag a time or two and forgot to take pics, anyway, after i had a brew i tried the tie wrap method but with ratchet straps....worked a charm! Made things much easier and after retrieving my wayward iron i was calm enough to balance the wheels (balancer was waiting for me after work) This bit was super easy and very cathartic, watching the wheels settle really chilled me out for some reason, anyway not long after the wheels were balanced and back on the Pani. Cleaned the axles and regreased everything that needed it and whilst the wheels were off i got right into the nooks and crannies for a good clean and then gave it a good dose of acf50, all bolts torqued to spec. Job done! The neighbour is milling around, probably saw me getting the tyre iron and wants to have a go....hes a bit of a prat but its great fun winding him up, a while back the cheeky sod told me he thought my front garden was in need of some attention......i gave it some especially for him...
5 Minutes to get this on just using my hands; 5 minutes later; I wish the Guzzi tyres had been so easy; without a doubt the worst, hardest tyres to change I have ever seen. Narrow, stiff tyres with inner tubes so can't use the cable tie method - don't think it would work anyway due to the narrow, stiff tyres being totally non-compliant and the wheels are a rough cast finish. When I finally managed the rear, I had pinched the tube so had to do it again. I gave up with the front as I couldn't shift it off the rim without damage or tears. I took it to the local bike shop and his machine stalled getting the tyre off, it took 2 blokes to 'assist' it. When back on it was a swine to set the bead, took about an hour for a professional with all the gear. I had loads of fun seating the bead on the rear; loads of soap but still it wouldn't go even with full pressure from the compressor - about 100psi and it won't go any higher as there is a 'blow-off' valve even if I override the electrical cutout. I ended up slopping even more soap into the gap (when deflated), turning the heat up in the workshop until it was tropical, inflated to 100psi then using one of those cigarette lighter powered compressors from a car which although slow don't cut out and claim can do 300psi, but take forever to get any air in. I left it as long as I dared (they get very hot) until I had 130psi and it still wasn't seating, so I left it at that pressure and temperature. When I went back to check it 4-5 hours later it had finally seated and it stays there when set to the correct pressure. Also can't get over how heavy the Guzzi wheels are, the rear wheel (5.5"/180 tyre) of the 916 weighs about half that of the Guzzi (2.15" wheel/110 tyre).
okay new gadget spotted; Sealey tools bead seating tools which blasts compressed air in one blast. • Suitable for use on cars, commercials, agricultural and ATV tyres TC900 £250 approx (20ltr version) TC903 £350 approx (bazooka bead seating tool 6ltr) Anyone got experience with these devices?
Found a useful link to an online sealey pdf of those two. Page 477 End User App - Catalogue 2015 digital edition
Told ya so, re the cable tie method. See those tyre levers .. all you'll do with those big berthas is knacker your rims. You'd have been better off leaving them in your neighbour's garden. Mine are literally 3 inches long and made of plastic. And I only use those rarely. As a mate of mine said .. "its not a rubber band .. you'll not stretch it on". If you're fussy, its actually quite easy to balance the wheel with minimal lead weights. First balance the bare wheel and mark the heavy (or the light) spot. Then fit the tyre with cable ties equispaced all around the rim (this allows the tyre to be easily rotated on the rim later). Find the balance point in that condition and mark the tyre. Observe the tyre and rim markings and move the tyre around on the rim until mark on the tyre is opposite the light point on the rim. Repeat a couple of times until the wheel/tyre assembly balances up with the heavy point of the bare rim coming to rest at the lowest point once more Remove ties, pop the tyre onto the beads and then add your balance weights as necessary. Or something like that .. you'll work it out as you go along. Ok, that might be being ultra fussy but when you've shelled a couple of grand on carbon wheels the last thing you want to do is slap unnecessary lead on them. I saved myself about 50g on the rear wheel. And that's 50g unsprung weight, rotating at full wheel diameter, so fairly significant. You wouldn't think a new tyre would be so imbalanced, would you (brand new Michelin PR3). The bare rim balance points can be permanently marked so subsequent tyre changes are simpler .. I used a tiny vinyl dot sticker.
Also, the key to seating the beads (other than plenty of lube) is a good, strong blast of air. It is essential to remove the valve core to allow this. On my first attempt, I actually managed to do it using just my ancient (late 1960s) foot pump. But I got lucky .. subsequent changes definitely needed the compressor. The Sealey kit probably works great but at that price its a non-starter. It also helps to sit on the wheel, forcing any stubborn areas of tyre into close (ie sealing) contact with the rim, as you apply the air pressure. I have also heard that a ratchet strap around the tyre circumference will do a similar job.
Never a truer indication of its not how big it is, its what you do with it that counts ! :tearsofjoy::tearsofjoy::tearsofjoy:
Good work!, I'm spoilt using the proper tyre machine at work!. Even with the tyre machine some Bridgestones can be a real pita, really stiff sidewalls..
