changing tires yourself

[5th_bike]

Originally Posted by mr. softie

I am assuming they patched the inside of your tire as well as putting a new tube in? Recommended.

I don' know. Labor, half an hour... They have been there forever, I kind of trust them. When I asked if the rear tire was still good they said that it was still good for a couple thousand miles. I just passed the 4,000.

Nice 'harley' avatar.

[Water Warrior 2]

Originally Posted by mr. softie

5th_bike, I put new tires/tubes on my GZ and used a pair of 12" tire irons I picked up down at the local motorcycle shop. I used a couple of bicycle tire lifters as "helping hands". To break the bead seal I used a couple of woodworking clamps and some short 2x4s. I then proceeded to spend the better part of an entire evening messing around trying to get the new tires on. Of course the tube got pinched and I had to purchase another tube. So in my view it is worth it to have someone else change the tires/tubes.

I am assuming they patched the inside of your tire as well as putting a new tube in? Recommended.

I also recommend using Armor all or the like as tire mounting lubricant if you do changee your tires/tubes yourself.

Gotta disagree with you softie. Armoral is too slippery and might allow the tire to rotate on the wheel after installation. Would probably rotate the tube and shear off the valve stem too. Just use soapy water or do it right and use tire lubricant.

[mr. softie]

I was researching something else when I came across this article at Randakk's Cycle Shack, A Goldwing Site, about the damage done to rims by various lubricants, and the possible slipping tire issues caused by others. He is referring to rims not made from chrome plated or stainless steel, but I know myGZ rims were rusty inside when I removed my tires, and I had to sand some of the pitted areas to make them smooth. Here is the quote:

"If you ever get a chance, look at the ingredients on a can of Drano or Sani-Flush. You'll find that products such as Drano contain sodium hydroxide, also known as lye. Sprinkle some Drano into an empty aluminum foil pie pan. Then sprinkle some water into the pan and watch the bottom of the aluminum pan literally evaporate, leaving a grayish white powder behind.

A similar, but less severe chemical reaction takes place when soapy water is used as a lubricant for tire mounting and dismounting.

One optional lubricant is Lemon Pledge furniture polish. Now the dismount and remount job is so easy that even a caveman can do it!

But now the problem with Lemon Pledge furniture polish is that the first time our caveman friend slams on the brakes, the rim will stop, but the motorcycle will act like the Energizer Bunny and keep rolling! Now the tire beads are so slippery that there isn't enough friction between the rim and tire bead to keep the tire from slipping around the rim!

During my 43 years as a motorcycle technician, I've tried everything from Vaseline, axle grease, rear end gear oil, motor oil, soapy water, Crisco, Mazola oil, olive oil, 3-in-1 oil, WD-40, Lionel electric train oil, cod liver oil, castor oil, and candle wax to Vicks Vapo-Rub. All of these products had major drawbacks when it came to tire mounting lubricant and sealant!

I finally found a product that will ease the mounting and dismounting of a motorcycle tire. This product also acts as a sealant. The product is known as a protectant. Two brand names of such protectants are STP Son-Of-A Gun and Armor-All Protectant. These products are used exclusively in my shop, and they can be purchased at most auto parts stores and discount store automotive departments.

If you choose to have your local Honda dealer or certified Honda technician change your tires, I highly recommend that you insist telling your service people, 'PLEASE DO NOT USE SOAPY WATER TO MOUNT MY NEW TIRES. USE A LUBRICANT THAT IS SAFE AND FREE OF ALKALIS, SUCH AS A PROTECTANT.' "

Howard Halasz, Wing World Technical Contributor - Houston, TX ' ' " (end of quote)

Of course the obvious question...did he try a tire mounting lube like Rim-Slip or Ru-Glide? The only problem I see with these is that a casual changer of tires would die of old age before they used a whole bottle. We want to use something we already have in our garage. Some recommend Silicone spray as being non injurious but effective. I have used both Armor all and silicone spray to mount handlebar grips and after it sits for a bit there is no slippage at all.

[Easy Rider]

Originally Posted by mr. softie

Then sprinkle some water into the pan and watch the bottom of the aluminum pan literally evaporate, leaving a grayish white powder behind.

A similar, but less severe chemical reaction takes place when soapy water is used as a lubricant for tire mounting and dismounting.

SIGH! There are 2 things wrong with this conclusion:

1) While real soap is made with a process using lye (or something like it), about 80-90% of what we call "soap" today is really detergent and is NOT made with an alkalyde process like real soap.

2) Even if you did accidentally get some "real" soap, then you would also have to have alloy wheels to have a problem; the GZ doesn't.

When an article starts off like that, it is hard to put a lot of stock in what follows.

What I DO know is that Armor All and similar products that get on the TREAD presents a HAZZARD; not so with detergent or other products that don't "coat" the rubber.

Advising people to put Armor All on ANY PART of a tire or wheel is just not prudent advice, IMHO.

Oops, guess I should read the WHOLE post before replying!
You got lucky with your handgrips. Silicone is "super" slippery and never degrades.
It DOES find it's way into tiny cranks and crevases in the rubber and is almost impossible to completely remove.....EVER, by any means. It also has a tendency to "migrate" and tries to cover the WHOLE surface of anything it is applied to.
Silicone on or near tires is the absolute WORST thing you can do.

[mr. softie]

After pondering the wisdom of my posts on this subject, I would have to agree that I have been misled by information taken in good faith from the internet. So... I take it all back!

[primal]

I changed the tires on my KZ550 myself, but only because they're tubeless mag wheels. I don't think I'd be up to changing a tube-type tire without all the proper tools. For a tubeless tire, all it took me was 3 tire irons, a big C-clamp, and a liberal dose of Windex as lubricant for getting the new tire on the rim. Actually, the most difficult part aside from breaking the 26 year old glued on bead was getting the bead on the rear tire to seat (probably would have been easier if it wasn't 30 degrees outside that day!).

[adrianinflorida]

Originally Posted by primal

I changed the tires on my KZ550 myself, but only because they're tubeless mag wheels. I don't think I'd be up to changing a tube-type tire without all the proper tools. For a tubeless tire, all it took me was 3 tire irons, a big C-clamp, and a liberal dose of Windex as lubricant for getting the new tire on the rim. Actually, the most difficult part aside from breaking the 26 year old glued on bead was getting the bead on the rear tire to seat (probably would have been easier if it wasn't 30 degrees outside that day!).

IMO, tube tires are actually easier to change, breaking the bead on a tube tire is much easier than on a tubeless tire, usually. Also, setting the bead is easier on a tube tire, because the tube pushes the bead onto the rim, you don't have to try to keep the air from escaping as you try to get the bead set.

Neither here nor there, though, it's a nasty, pain in the ass job, that I only do because I can and don't want to spend the money for something I can do myself.

[primal]

Originally Posted by adrianinflorida

IMO, tube tires are actually easier to change, breaking the bead on a tube tire is much easier than on a tubeless tire, usually. Also, setting the bead is easier on a tube tire, because the tube pushes the bead onto the rim, you don't have to try to keep the air from escaping as you try to get the bead set.

Well, considering I have trouble changing the tube tire on my bike....

Neither here nor there, though, it's a nasty, pain in the ass job, that I only do because I can and don't want to spend the money for something I can do myself.

Absolutely agree with you 100% here. If I had the money to take my bike to the shop for every little thing, I'd have enough money to have a nicer bike.

[savrip]

I need some optimism here. Check out my video of my truing rack. All the spokes were replaced with new ones after finding 8 broken total. All spokes are just hand tight and the hub is able to be moved slightly in the center. My friend (I mentioned in another post) that has trued rims for 5 years, I hope can make sense of it. I'm hoping that I'll have a wonderful follow up video after we're done. If anyone knows where I can get the info for the distance of rim to hub it would be much appreciated.

Rear Wheel mounted for truing

[grego]

hi all

now here's a different thought. i am restoring a 35 year old 35 foot sailboat. rewired the whole boat. i needed something that i could put on the wires so they would slide thru holes with rubber chaffe guards on them, and when running multi cables thru the hole. tried numerous lubricants, but most were messy, some didn't work . i finally found a lubricant the is the slipperiest in the world and i have run lots of wires thru conduit.using the yellow 888 wire lub.. are you ready for this......ky gel. its a water base and its really really slippery, the cables fly thru the holes. and its water based and dries rather quickly and leaves no residue. its expensive but works.

safe biking

grego