Dirty bike tire changes

[OreoGaborio]

How much of a pain in the ass are tire spoons? Recommendations?

[Chippertheripper]

I got a motion pro set of 3. Not spoon shaped, just a little angle at the top. They're not bad, it's all technique.
Peruse a few yootoob vids before busting your knuckles up.

[nhbubba]

Street tires are only a mild pita. Can't imagine dirt tires are all that much harder.

IMO, lube is the key. As with so many other things in life. Personally, I use lemon scent furniture polish. Love that lemony scent.

[hondarider102]

Wirelessly posted

They are a bitch to learn. Like chipper said, 3 spoons. I actually wouldn't suggest the motion pro ones though. That's what I have and last time I used my buddies, I'll have to find out what kind they are but they were more like the ones used in a car tire machine and they worked much easier. Like chip said again watch YouTube videos, they help ALOT!

[nhbubba]

Which motion pro set are you po-po-ing? They must make a half dozen different types of spoons.

I have this set. They work well on street tires. The big long one does most of the work while the little ones get used to hold the bead in place.

[Chippertheripper]

I have that same set, but I almost never use the big one.
And I use winded for lube. It evaporates quickly, so the bead sets faster. It does, however, require more frequent squirts.

[hondarider102]

Wirelessly posted

I have ones that look like spoons like a kitchen spoon, my buddy has 3 like you big middle one and that works much better

[Kurlon]

I've got a set of 3 smaller irons that are supposedly Italian... don't recall where they came from but they've served me damn well.

[Rada]

The two smaller ones pictured above are the ticket. A breezer tool can be helpful too.
It's all technique.. Once you get it. It's easy. A tire swap should only take about 3-4 minutes.
Keep track that the far side of the tire is always down in the center of the rim. That gives you the most slack to work with.

Windex also works as a convenient lube. Use plenty of it.

[maxim_X]

I have the motion pro ones and some spoon shaped ones. I use the spoon ones mostly. Depending on the tire it can be a real pain. I like glass cleaner or purple power to lube it up. That's probably because it's what is sitting around when it comes time. Get ultra super heavy duty tubes to make pinching less of an issue.

[gregp]

I have been changing dirt tires for 40 years, on my knees. My advice: Take small bites with any irons. I like the short 6" long ones best, as they tuck under the disc nicely. I also use a sacrificed, large, long, flat screwdriver that has been ground smooth, for the initial bite only. Kneel on the tire, opposite where you are spooning, to keep the bead dropped down on both sides of the wheel. Spray the entire tube and tire bead down with WD-40 (some folks use windex, dish soap, etc.). I like WD-40 because it lubes up the spoke nipples, cleans up easy, and it kind of vulcanizes the tire to the rim with time.
I used to use dish soap, but I completely destroyed a CR250 wheel because it was so caustic. The aluminum anodizing flaked off in big chunks around the spoke nipples.
Install an Ultra Heavy Duty Tube, if you can. That makes the task of getting the valve stem through the rim hole about 10x tougher, but it makes the rest of your life easier.
Just like with street tires, old, hard, dry rotted tires are the worst. Some mount easier than others. Chen Shin's used to be very difficult.

[Rada]

Chen Shin's used to be very difficult.

Damn Straight!!! Only ever mounted 2 of those heaps. The sidewalls are about like a truck tire.. Thick and stiff. That works on your wedding night but not when changing tires.

[TimmyB]

We are prone to punctures here in AZ so I have had to swap tubes a few times. My only issue was pinching the tube with the tire irons, so i only use the small rounded spoons, and not the big sharp straight irons I use on my sportbike wheels. Lots of soap, all four extremeties, and one smooth tire iron works well for me, although I have the Tubliss system and a bunch of slime on order now, so hopefully my days of changing tubes is over for a while.

[JettaJayGLS]

I've done em, got 3 tire irons and watched a YouTube video. Not too bad. You're welcome to borrow my spoons, but I only paid like 20 bucks for the set anyway. I've also changed race rubber by hand.

[ZX-12R]

I use 3 10" motion pro spoons which I got off amazon for fairly short money. Tire changes aren't too difficult. Watch the videos on YouTube and you'll be all set.

[OreoGaborio]

Okay. Spoons ordered.

Now to figure out what I wanna do about tires & tubes... Ugh. Tires don't really NEED changing, though they're pretty damn worn. Need a new front tube though, definitely.

[gixxer72]

Keep track that the far side of the tire is always down in the center of the rim. That gives you the most slack to work with.

Windex also works as a convenient lube. Use plenty of it.

This is key, remember it when you struggle to get that last bit of rear tire onto the rim.

[breakdirt916]

I'm in the minority here...it's all about technique and I couldn't find it...I only bought the 2.small irons in bubba's pic and.always made it to roughly 85 percent , then have the tire come off at another point when trying to squeeze the very end over the rim....next time around - for $30 to do both tires, I dropped it off at a shop and saved myself the battle

[gregp]

Really, it is 50% technique, and 50% brute strength. No shit. Do not pay attention to the super clean, factory shirted guys doing the Racer-X video's, with tires on a shiny red stand, at waist height. It really doesn't work like that in real life. Nor does it go like the 2 minute ISDT video's - but they are closer to reality.
It is going to take some muscle, and you are probably going to bleed a little bit until you get a good system down pat.

[nhbubba]

Yeah. I have my street bike tire changes down to about 60 minutes or so for a set. Easy peasy.

[slowkermit]

I bought a stand from pit-posse for $100. Makes life way easier than doing it on the ground.

[breakdirt916]

Really, it is 50% technique, and 50% brute strength. No shit. Do not pay attention to the super clean, factory shirted guys doing the Racer-X video's, with tires on a shiny red stand, at waist height. It really doesn't work like that in real life. Nor does it go like the 2 minute ISDT video's - but they are closer to reality.
It is going to take some muscle, and you are probably going to bleed a little bit until you get a good system down pat.

wow, this

putting on the tire just felt like a wrestling match...after awhile I just tapped out

and I've seen those Racer-X videos on that shiny waist-height stand...it looks way easier when they do it

[OreoGaborio]

Yay... motion pro tools came in. Got the tire off... Def need a new tube.

Soooo what's the rim supposed to be lined with? Guessing not Duct Tape.

[hondarider102]

Wirelessly posted

Yay... motion pro tools came in. Got the tire off... Def need a new tube.

Soooo what's the rim supposed to be lined with? Guessing not Duct Tape.

Rim strap. There a couple bucks at the mc dealer and available online

[Kurlon]

Or, as others have noted, Duct tape works too.