DIY Tire changes

Wannabe

Wannabe

Well-Known Member
jeffersoniansobs.org
I really like working on my bike and hate paying shop rates for routine maintenance like oil changes, valve checks, and tire changes.

I was recently quoted $160 for swapping out the front and rear tires on my Gen II. I know shops need to make a profit, but changing a tire is not so hard to go the DIY route. $160 is a lot of beer.

I know there are plenty of DIYers here, what equipment do you recommend purchasing?

I figure I would personally recoup the money in a few tire changes and can always charge my friends a few bucks and beer.
 
all you need is a couple of tire irons..3 preferably...2 or 3 rim protectors,a couple of 2x4's for breaking the bead and some soapy water. That's it.
 
I posted this on another site

So I decided to change my own motorcycle tires instead of going to a shop to change from touring tires to track tires. It is around 30 bucks to change a set of tires. So it go from commuting - > track -> Commuting its 60 bucks. That an expense I didn't want to pay. So I decided to look into changing my own tires. Priced it all out and it came out to cost under 30 bucks for the tire irons, 2 dollars for the valve core remover and 7 bucks for wood.

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Got my tire supported by 2 pieces of wood so I don't damage the rotor. I am going to change it to a triangle so it supports it easier.

I removed the valve core to release the air.
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Found online an easy way to break the bead with wood. Worked great.


Then I used tire irons to take the wheel off the rim
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The first one was difficult, but the 2nd tire was much easier now that I knew what to do.
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Putting the tire back on, pretty much the opposite to pull off. Just make sure the tire is facing the right way and the mark is on the valve stem.


I then used my air compressor the seat the bead and it worked perfectly.
Tomorrow I am going to find a way to balance the tires then mount them back up!

I do need to figure out better rim protectors. My plastic soda bottles sucked. Maybe cutting a hose in half would work better.






So after looking around my garage I decided to make a balance stand instead of spending 50 bucks for a Harbor Freight one.

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Now I have 2 balanced tires.

It's easy to make stuff out of wood when you have all the cutting tools.
 
my version of the home made wheel balancer.
2 jack stands (I already owned) one 1/2" steel rod. 2 bearings with 1/2" ID (optional),
and a set of 2 different size cones ordered from Nomar (R) total caost $20
the larger cones are for the rear wheel.
Notice the harbor freight bead breaker in the back ground.
For actual tire changes I use a 15" car wheel with a piece of rubber hose on the edge (perfect for holding 17" wheels) and a set of good old fashioned tire irons.
 
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Hi Mud,A lot of good ideas,but I am not sure about your balancer you need to use cones to centre the wheels properly,also I would run the rod through the wheel on bearings so the wheel turns freely.a set of longer tyre levers would make the job easier,I like the wood bead breaker a good simple idea
 
Some sweet homemade contraptions! Taking it a level further than I anticipated! I don't currently have a garage so making my own tools is difficult.

Has anybody bought the Harbor Freight balancer, or another brand?
 
From webbikeworld.com:

Slide the axle through the wheel, set it on the bearings, and spin it very slowly to find the heaviest spot, which will naturally rotate towards the bottom. Put a weight on the opposite, or top, side, check it again and you're done.

It's not necessary to spin the wheel with anything other than a very light touch. After a little practice, you can probably balance a wheel in as few as 3-4 turns.
Click to expand...

Using the saw horse method:
Suspend the wheel by it's axles vertically so it turns freely. Spin it a few times to free up the grease in the bearings. Spin the wheel and mark the highest point. Repeat two more times. The marks should be fairly close. If the marks are within a couple of inches apply a medium weight with scotch tape or masking tape in the middle of the marks. (You may need to remove the weight.) If they are close together use a heavy weight.

Spin the wheel again as before. If the weight always ends up straight down remove the weight and apply a lighter one. If the weight always ends straight up apply more weight. If the weight stops in a random position the wheel is balanced. Repeat several times to make sure the wheel stops in a random position. When you are sure the correct weights are in the right position attach them permanently.
Click to expand...

balance2.jpg
 
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My balancer works fine. I have tested some of my race tires that got mounted at a shop and it showed that it was balanced on my contraption.
 
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