Breaking the Bead

[Kill Switch]

Has anyone here ever changed a flat tire on the Tiger...actually any motorbike?  I would assume the answer is yes.  I have a friend that says it is very hard to break the bead...actually almost impossible without a press.  He is referring to any motorcycle tire.  I am thinking that this is untrue.  However, I have never had to replace a flat tire.  We must be able to replace a flat if we are far away from help.  What is the actual truth here?  Can we do it with the right simple tools....out in the woods or on a lonely country road?



Thanks much guys.

[Dick Boyer]

Breaking a tire bead isn't that tough. Simply put the rim on top of the new tire on the groung. This will keep the disc off the floor or ground. Deflate completely by removing the valve. Then just stand on the tire and bounce all around. It usually lets go  and then turn over and repeat.

[AK Tiger]

I've had the ... ummm ... pleasure of changing several tires on the side of the road over the past 34 years and have NEVER found a tougher tube -type rear tire to change than the Tiger's.  The little safety ridge on the wheel, combined with the radial tire design, increases the sweat/swear factor greatly. Stomping the bead just didn't work at all for me.  I found the motorcycle bead breaker from Extreme Outback Products http://www.extremeoutback.com/index.cgi?cart_id=1149661.10556&pid=57  to be very helpful if not essential.  



Best to practice at home before the side-of-the-road test.



Darrell

[NortonCharlie]

I've changed my tire a couple of times simply to find out if there was any point in carrying tire irons.  I got some advice from the Michelin web sight.  



I break the bead using the flat end of the tire iron.  Let all the air out (of course) the slip the flat end of the iron between the rim and the tire and pry it toward the center of the rim.  You need to work it all the way around the rim a few times.  The first time around it only moves the tire enough to get the iron in easy.  This is a good time to get a little soapy water in if you have some.  It takes me about 15 minutes per side to break the beads.  BTW, I leave the wheel on the bike while breaking the bead.  It does a great job of holding the wheel for you.  



A bead breaker would simplify the process but I don't carry one with me on the road.  When I need tires I ussually pull the wheel and take it to the dealer.  They do in minutes what it takes me a good hour to do.  But when you are stuck by the side of the road an hour to get you going again isn't bad.  I need to add a patch kit to my tools.  With that I could patch a tube without even pulling the wheel off the bike, assuming I could get whatever punctured the tube out of the tire and the tube didn't rip to bad.  I just carry a pair of old tubes with me now.  So far I havn't  had to use them.

[ArizonaKid]

The guy that can break the bead by standing on the tire must weight 800 pounds easy!  IMHO can't be done.  There are several compact bead breakers available that work fairly well.  Even the tire iron method described here is a tough sell.  After two flats this summer, both a hundred miles from nowhere this is all fresh in my mind.  Anyone with tubed tires needs to carry a patch kit, 2 tire irons and a bead breaker, along with the tools you'll need to remove the wheels from the bike.  You'll also need a method to blow the tire up when you're done. There are a couple compact compressors available for bikes and then there are the CO2 cartrige inflators that you can buy just about anywhere.  Leaving the wheel on the bike is a good idea, but might not be possible in some situations.  By the way you CAN NOT remove the rear wheel with the tools in the Tiger tool kit. You'll need to cary a couple (2) 19mm sockets and rachets to go there.  Oh yes, this all assumes that you have a cener stand on your bike (rear wheel removal).  If not you're SOL.  A couple of other options might include road side assitance (AAA in the US, or whatever), or even swapping your spoked wheels for cast wheels (circa 2005 Tiger wheels).  There is some guy around that has a method of sealing spoked wheels, but I'm not sure I would have confidence in that.   Any way you look at it, it's a pain in the ass to do along side the road.