Tight Tyres

bigmonka
bigmonka Posts: 361
edited October 2014 in The workshop
This morning I went to get my bike out the garage to find a puncture :x
Anyway, I set about repairing it only to break another tyre lever trying to get the stupid thing off the rim (and it was a decent Pedros lever too :( ).
Am I doing something stupidly wrong or are the beads on some tyres just too small to get on/off the rim easily. I went to a bike maintenance workshop at my local Giant shop a few months back where they showed us basics like changing tyres and it was dead easy with their tyres/rims. They even said that you should never use a tyre lever to get the tyre back on but I had absolutely no chance getting it back on unless I used one!

Help! :lol:

Comments

  • surrey_commuter
    surrey_commuter Posts: 18,866
    Normal tyres I can get back on with my hands but puncture resistant (ie Conti 4 seasons) have my tyre levers bending in half
  • bigmonka
    bigmonka Posts: 361
    aah, that might be part of it as they are puncture resistant ones. I can't remember what they are off the top of my head as I think they're OEM ones which came with the bike rather than proper branded ones.
  • nicklouse
    nicklouse Posts: 50,675
    BigMonka wrote:
    This morning I went to get my bike out the garage to find a puncture :x
    Anyway, I set about repairing it only to break another tyre lever trying to get the stupid thing off the rim (and it was a decent Pedros lever too :( ).
    Am I doing something stupidly wrong or are the beads on some tyres just too small to get on/off the rim easily. I went to a bike maintenance workshop at my local Giant shop a few months back where they showed us basics like changing tyres and it was dead easy with their tyres/rims. They even said that you should never use a tyre lever to get the tyre back on but I had absolutely no chance getting it back on unless I used one!

    Help! :lol:
    how many levers were you using? you had broken the bead of the rim all around before trying?

    and yes you don't need levers to put tyres on.
    "Do not follow where the path may lead, Go instead where there is no path, and Leave a Trail."
    Parktools :?:SheldonBrown
  • bigmonka
    bigmonka Posts: 361
    nicklouse wrote:
    how many levers were you using? you had broken the bead of the rim all around before trying?

    and yes you don't need levers to put tyres on.
    I was using 2 or 3 and tried in various different ways with them at different spacings.
    Getting the bead off the rim was what I was having trouble with (I wasn't trying to take the tyre completely off the wheel, just one bead so I could get the inner tube out - I'm not sure I explained it properly before).

    Honestly I don't think you could get it back on without levers. When I'd got about 3/4 of the bead back in, the remaining bit was like a super tight line across the wheel so I couldn't even see the rim anymore.
  • Rigga
    Rigga Posts: 939
    nicklouse wrote:
    how many levers were you using? you had broken the bead of the rim all around before trying?

    and yes you don't need levers to put tyres on.

    You DO need levers to put conti gatorskins on, especially if its a new tyre.
  • gbsahne001
    gbsahne001 Posts: 1,973
    Rigga wrote:
    nicklouse wrote:
    how many levers were you using? you had broken the bead of the rim all around before trying?

    and yes you don't need levers to put tyres on.

    You DO need levers to put conti gatorskins on, especially if its a new tyre.

    Owing to a visit yesterday I had to change the conti hardshell gatorskin last night....no levers used
    Winter Hack
    Everyday Commuter
  • lostboysaint
    lostboysaint Posts: 4,250
    Nope, never needed a tyre lever or either Hardshells, GP4s or Michelin Pro 4 Endurance. The LBS mechanic showed me "the way". Break the bead from the wheel and push it into the middle of the wheel (both beads) and then ease the first section of bead off the rim using both thumbs. Once started it should peel off easily.

    Putting the tyre on is the same, make sure that the first bead on is sat in the middle of the tyre, ensure that the tube is stuffed right into the top of the tyre, put the second bead on at the valve and make sure the tube isn't pinched, again ensuring that the bead is pushed as far to the middle of the wheel as possible. Work the remained of the bead onto the rim, constantly pushing it "central" and the last section should push on with both thumbs without any issues. Inflate the tube enough to push the bead towards the rim, make sure rim is seated properly, inflate fully.

    And yes, I struggled like f**k and broke levers (and cut fingers and thumbs) before I learned.
    Trail fun - Transition Bandit
    Road - Wilier Izoard Centaur/Cube Agree C62 Disc
    Allround - Cotic Solaris
  • MichaelW
    MichaelW Posts: 2,164
    Fit the bead into the central well of the rim to get more slack.
    SPA cycles have a good video.
  • bigmonka
    bigmonka Posts: 361
    MichaelW wrote:
    Fit the bead into the central well of the rim to get more slack.
    SPA cycles have a good video.
    Thanks for the link, I'll have a look later when I'm at home.

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