How to change a tire?

[Guest WildJackal]

Some questions:

 

Are a 2002 Sport's tires tubeless?

 

Do you change your own tires? If not where do you get it done .... cycle shop or auto tire shop?

 

I always changed my dirt bike tires but these big road slicks intimidate me. How do you keep from scarfing the rims? Is balancing required? Do you have to remove a front disk to get the tire off?

 

Thanks

[callison]

Are a 2002 Sport's tires tubeless?

Yes

 

Do you change your own tires?

Yes

 

If not where do you get it done .... cycle shop or auto tire shop?

Cycle shop

 

I always changed my dirt bike tires but these big road slicks intimidate me.

How do you keep from scarfing the rims?

Rim protectors.

 

Is balancing required?

Yes

 

Do you have to remove a front disk to get the tire off?

No, but removing the disks will keep them from getting bent by accident. Do not ask how I know...

[gthyni]

>Are a 2002 Sport's tires tubeless?

 

Yes all modern street tyres are.

 

> Do you change your own tires? If not where do you get it done .... cycle shop or auto tire shop?

Auto tyre shop.

You can do i yourself, but you need a bead breaker

 

>I always changed my dirt bike tires but these big road slicks intimidate me.

Dirt track tyres can be "jumped off", but tubeless are stiffer and low profile.

 

>How do you keep from scarfing the rims?

Rim protectors between tyre irons and rim

 

>Is balancing required?

Yes,

but static balancing is good enough

just let spinn on an axle a few time

and mark the place where it stops with a crayon

The pattern shows any imbalance,

compensate with lead and try again.

 

>Do you have to remove a front disk to get the tire off?

No

 

Edit: Carl beat me to it, while I was writing and looking for pics.

[callison]

Göran Thyni did a good job with the photos. I had no idea that there was a picture anywhere of the rim protectors. My suggestion on them though, is to be 2 or 3 sets (they're not that expensive) so that you can cover at least 2/3rds of the rim, even better - all of it. This dramatically reduces the likelihood of scarring the rim. I use one of the Harbor Freight tire doohickeys to break the bead. It's a horrible piece of equipment, I don't recommend it although the very long and robust tire iron is very useful. Save the weights you remove. You use them in combinations with duct tape to determine how much weight to apply to the rim when you do the static balancing. Weights you can buy from the local shop. The balancing jig is something else. A guy in Los Angeles made mine (I've long since lost the information). It cost about $65 and is good to 1/4 gram for sensitivity. Pieces of 2x2 board space the rim and disk rotor away from the floor. Don't let them slip - and it's damn near impossible not to. I use the axle slipped back through the bearings as the pivot for the large tire iron and two common type common tire irons to hold the rubber lip in place while the large iron pops the rest of the lip over the edge of the rim. I use household spray cleaner in copious amounts to lube the rubber and rim. 409 in my case. Whatever seems appropriate in locations worldwide that don't have the ubiquitous USA household cleaner. The cleaner is dual purpose here, really triple purpose. You get to lube the tire, clean the rim and prep the weight stick location. What else? Oh yeah, get good stands for the bike. I use Pit Bull stands and do both ends at the same time. You have to remove the brake calipers prior to removing the wheels, everything else is pretty obvious. Have lot's of explitives at your disposal and make certain no small children are within earshot. It's a pain to change tires, but you can save a lot of money and time by not enslaving yourself to your local shop. Use the money you save to buy something you need at the shop instead. Rear tires are easier than front if the front is dual disk (and our bikes are). Really, really, really work hard to make certain that your tire iron does not exert pressure against a disk rotor, or that the wheel presses a disk rotor against the ground or anything when working on the wheel. I bent a rotor and had to put up with badly working brakes until I finished the rotor bend job by hitting a car.