Installing tires myself?

[Mohawk918]

Is it possible to remove and install them myself and what do i need? I am going to need new tires here soon and if i can do it myself and save money then id like to do that.

[steves]

Let me start this by saying, if the tires are old hard and worn out... don't bother.

I've a no-mar tire machine. I do my own tires and have been doing so for several years. You might be able to figure out how to do it with spoons, but let me tell you how bad that sucks. Especially if the existing tires are old and busted. Seriously look into finding a shop and just have it done.

EVEN with my no-mar, I've broken dismount tips trying to get old tires off the rim.

[Mohawk918]

ok well doesnt hurt to ask. Just wondering.

[KAT TOY]

Is it possible to remove and install them myself and what do i need? I am going to need new tires here soon and if i can do it myself and save money then id like to do that.

you can save money by removing the wheels yourself and take them to your repair shop and having them replace the tires.

[Kat Floyd]

you can save money by removing the wheels yourself and take them to your repair shop and having them replace the tires.

This is what I did. With buying the tire at the shop and mount/balance it was about $120 for just the rear

[buffalobill]

DIY sport bike tire mounting…

I spoon my own, but I got bad results on my 750F, not a permanent seal someplace: rim or valve stem?
I need to dunk the wheel and track that down, but the valve stem is my #1 suspect. Lose 3-4 Lb pressure the 1st 24 hours.
I mounted Michelin Pilots low profile, hard to manage because they have almost no sidewall.
The front tire is the bad one, the back is ok.

Mounting tires on my GS1100G is easier, 19" rims, wide sidewall tires.

[Stinger02]

I've been mounting my own tires for years. For the longest time my bike was my main source of transportation and I have a 500 mile a week commute. I have the harbor freight tire bead breaker and two of their tire irons. Now I won't lie to you, using the tire irons to stretch the rubber around the wheel is hard work and it takes practice but can be done. Just use some water and soap in a spray bottle to keep the rubber and rim slick. Also using the irons can scratch up a rim pretty good. You can try and cut some plastic out of a milk just to put between the iron and the rim but it's really too thin. I eventually bought some rim protectors that have a nice rope attached in case the drop inside the tire so you can pull it back out. Also to set the bead, before I had a compressor of my own, I'd take my wheels to a gas station once the tire was on and inflate them using their machine. It would put out air fast enough to set the bead. Make sure you hear it Pop on both sides to know you've securely set it.
Now as far as balancing. I don't bother. Hasn't affected my bike in the last 88k miles. You will see that the tire will wear on one side slightly more then the other but I use Continental motion pro tires. I get 10k out of a set before they need to be replaced. I could probably get more if they were properly balanced but I'm okay with that.

[maniac1886]

Local tire shop charges me $40 a wheel if I bring em up there. That's mount + balance + piece of mind + in tact fingertips. Can't beat that if ya ask me.

[fury8793]

I paid $60 for a mount and balance at a local shop, the guy is real nice. The smaller shops seem to dick you over less than the big timers.

[ygolohcysp]

I've started doing my own tires, and don't think it's really that bad. Breaking the bead to get old tires off is the worst part. I set my wheel on two pieces of 2x4 to keep from scratching it, behind my car. I then use another piece as a lever between my trailer hitch, and a really short piece of 2x4 that's against the tire. Press down on the "lever" piece, which presses the short piece against the tire right next to the wheel. Pop the bead off, rotate wheel. After a few times, the rest of the bead falls off. Flip the wheel over, repeat. Then I'm just careful with the spoon levers and making sure the rest of the bead is in the right spot.