Fulcrum wheels - what tyre levers

robbie the roadie

Managed to get my Pro Race tyres on with out too much of a struggle but last night I got a p******e and looked decidedly amateurish trying to remove the tyre. I broke one park tools lever and it took two of us to get the tyre off. So can any other fulcrum owners recomend me some tyre levers.

andy_wrx

No, but think yourself lucky that you're using ProRace - I found Conti tyres all-but-impossible to get on or off Fulcrums in the warmth of a garage with all sorts of metal implements available which you shouldn't really use as tyrelevers !

I've given-up on the Conti GP4Seasons as completely lacking grip and p*nct*ring far too regularly, switched to ProRace, but I'm tempted to buy some old-school (plastic-coated) metal tyre levers for my Fulcrum rims...

celbianchi

Fulcrum rims are a nightmare. I have some bontrager tyres on a pair and they are a bugger to remove.

Lagavulin

I haven't got my Fulcrum (3) wheels just yet but I've found these Soma levers to be excellent so far.

Mounting Krylion Carbons onto Aksiums has been my biggest challenge to date.

robbie the roadie

Lagavulin wrote:

I haven't got my Fulcrum (3) wheels just yet but I've found these Soma levers to be excellent so far.

Mounting Krylion Carbons onto Aksiums has been my biggest challenge to date.

Yeah they look the biz they do

update - just bought some

over-the-hill

I'm just about to get Fulrum 3s on an Izoard. Shouldn't I?

Yorkman

My LBS tells me that continental & Michelin tyres are the hardest to mountain on Fulcrums, as the Fulcrums have a slightly larger lip.

He recommends Schwalbe & Vittorias as the least troublesome to mount.

robbie the roadie

over-the-hill wrote:

I'm just about to get Fulrum 3s on an Izoard. Shouldn't I?

no there good wheels, but like campag rims can be a tight wth certain tyres

Monty Dog

If you've got the thick plastic rim tape, try replacing it with some thinner, lighter stuff - means you can push the tyre deeper into the rim well and lift the bead. Tyres like Vittoria Cx and Veloflex also have a quite soft sidewall making them easier to remove - but aren't quite as durable.

scannings

i've got Racing 7's on my Focus with Vittorias on which I fitted this week. They go on bu they're damn tight I've got a pair of unbranded polished steel levers that work fine but I must admit I'm always worried about scratching the wheels or damaging the rims. Nice wheels though even at the entry level spec that I've got.

SteveR_100Milers

I have broken 2 levers just getting a pair of Fortezza Tricomps on R3's. I'm dreading getting a puncture alone miles from home...

wastelander

I've just put a new pair of Tricomps onto my R3's without too many problems - I had to use a single level (integral on my Topeak Alien II) to get the last part on but it wasn't too much of a struggle. Schwalbe Blizzard Pro's are definitely much easier to get on.

McBain_v1

Umm, I've got Fulcrum R3's on my Enigma with Michelin tyres. Should I save myself a lot of roadside grief and change the tyres now rather than wait for the dreaded deflation event and then find I can't get the tyre off?

mrushton

Get a VAR lever or those Soma levers or the Leyzine alloy levers. My choice is the Var as it's compact and allows you pull the tyre back on the rim

il_principe

Funny wheels Fulcrums - getting GP4000's on my Racing 1's is a nightmare.
Getting GP4000 S on Fulcrum Racing 0's is a joy... Great wheels though.

fenlandplodder

jashburnham wrote:

Funny wheels Fulcrums - getting GP4000's on my Racing 1's is a nightmare.

I am inclined to agree. When I tried getting new GP4000 types onto Racing 1's I manged to destroy 3 innertubes before both wheels were done. A few weeks and many hundreds of miles later, I had a an accident which caused an inner tube to fail. Fueled on adrenaline I managed to get the tyre off, fit the new tube and put the tyre back on the rims with the minmum of fuss.

So I suspect after the tyres have been on for a while things should get easier.

The wheels are excellent despite this problem.

normanp

Odd - I have found GP4000 on Fulcrum 1s easy with plastic levers! Maybe it's technique - I am very careful that the bead is pushed into the centre,,

il_principe

normanp wrote:

Odd - I have found GP4000 on Fulcrum 1s easy with plastic levers! Maybe it's technique - I am very careful that the bead is pushed into the centre,,

GP4000 or GP4000S?

4kicks

Ive got Pro Race 2s on Fulcrum..always harder first time round (go figure) and once I had to pre-stretch the tyre on another rim, but Ive found the yellow michelin plastic levers from decathlon (!) work well as they are very broad.
I do carry a small pump as well as CO2 & find inflating the inner to the right pressure makes all the difference to slip the last part of the bead over without the levers...

Then again, I am the Mallorquin national thumb wresting champion.

normanp

jashburnham - I took off a pair of GP4000S (new - fitted by supplier) and replaced with part-used GP4000 (to use them up). That's all I've done with my new Fulcrum 1s. They seem to be just the same as my old Zondas. Neither operation was difficult. I always put the bead in the centre of the rim then place the first tyre lever under the bead, lift the bead only enough to allow me to put the second lever in and drag it as far as possible away (eg 15cm?) so that a combined 2 lever lift takes as much bead as possible over the rim. I then drag the second lever round the rim. I replace tyres by hand without levers to avoid pinching the tube - possible with the bead in the centre of the rim.