New to tubs

team47b
team47b Posts: 6,424
edited May 2014 in Road beginners
I have just fitted my first pair of tubular tyres :D

I read all the articles, watched all the youtube experts, watched the corporate vids etc but something was missing from all of them, no-one mentioned that after you have pre-streched the new tyres on rims for a few days and applied glue to the tyre tape THAT THE TYRE WILL SHRINK AND WILL NO LONGER GO ONTO THE RIM AS IT DID BEFORE.

so it was a bit of a shock when you are all glued up and ready to fit that last 20cms to the rim to find out that it may not go on!

I was not expecting this :D

Got the tyre on but it was a struggle which resulted in glue being wiped onto my nice clean tan wall tyre. I also learned that solvent in glue dissolves the surface coating on the tyre's tan wall.

Next day, tyre number two, I put the tyre with the dry glued tape around my shoulders and stretched it with my shoulders and arms first, gave it a real stretch, then put it on the wet glue rim, it went on a lot easier, and no glue got onto the side wall.

So a lesson learnt for next time, also it is easier if you have a glamorous assistant to hold the tyre away from the rim and to keep hold of one part of the tyre leaving you free to use two hands and also your assistant can feed you chocolate biscuits to keep your blood sugar up during this process (maybe it's only me that can bonk fitting a tyre :roll:)
my isetta is a 300cc bike

Comments

  • sungod
    sungod Posts: 16,432
    tbh i don't stretch mine first, veloflex carbons, as they go on ok without it - though it seems others, conti for instance, are much harder to fit

    it's important to keep plenty of tension on the tyre as it's being mounted, especially for the first 75-ish% of the circumference, then the remaining bit is much easier to get on
    my bike - faster than god's and twice as shiny
  • team47b
    team47b Posts: 6,424
    The tension was there, all the way :D

    My point was that when glue dries it causes the tape (and tyre) to shrink in diameter making it a tighter fit than the tyre was before gluing.
    my isetta is a 300cc bike
  • charlie_potatoes
    charlie_potatoes Posts: 1,921
    I had my first go at this a couple of weeks ago.
    I found it easy, mainly because I cheated and taped them on :D
    "You really think you can burn off sugar with exercise?" downhill paul
  • sungod
    sungod Posts: 16,432
    team47b wrote:
    The tension was there, all the way :D

    My point was that when glue dries it causes the tape (and tyre) to shrink in diameter making it a tighter fit than the tyre was before gluing.

    maybe it varies by tyre, but i've not found that with the carbons

    i think it's more that tyres are elastic, once you've stretched them, they'll start restoring the moment you take them off the rim

    anyway, which tyres? have you ridden them yet? are they nice?
    my bike - faster than god's and twice as shiny
  • team47b
    team47b Posts: 6,424
    Not ridden them yet, I will report back when I have :D
    my isetta is a 300cc bike