Looking for a good tire changer

after seeing david's award winning videography of john (? - cali-rider) changing his tires... and the nice thread going now of a shop damaging a rim i've decided i want to look into changing my own tires.

i obviously like the price of the harbor freight changer but there seems to be so much you have to do to it to make it work properly. plus, it doesn't come with the handy dandy tire balancer that cali-rider made. so i've looked around and there are some pretty expensive options. i don't have a lot of money but i figure that something like this will pay for itself eventually.


so, how many of you change your own tires and what do you use? pics and links will be greatly appreciated.

I change my own tires but I do it by hand. Much more difficult but cheaper and takes up less space!

what tools do you use - especially for breaking the bead? i looked for some tools to do it manually and they still came out to around $100.00. is that about right? now long does it take you to do it by hand?

thanks

Here is one but cost a lot more than the HF setup. </title> <meta name="robots" content="index,follow"> <meta name="GOOGLEBOT" content="INDEX, FOLLOW"> <script type="text/javascript" src="/a/j/javascripts.js"></script> <meta http-equiv="content-type" content="text/html; charset=iso-8859-1"> <meta nam

yeah, i looked at the cycle hill one. as far as changers... that's where i'm leaning. i guess i'd like to know more about doing it "by hand" before i commit.

also, how do you guys balance you tires?

dean owens said:

i guess i'd like to know more about doing it "by hand" before i commit.

also, how do you guys balance you tires?

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I don't want to mislead you here. I don't really recommend doing it by hand. It's a brutal job and takes patience. I break the bead with my knee and the help of a tire spoon. Once you get it started it's easy. It's tough sweaty work and your hands can get messed up. I'll probably buy a changer some day but not now.

I use three tire irons/spoons, a lot of elbow greese, and windex.

For balancing you can make something like Cali_Rider has. Mine's no where near as precise.

My current BT-002s are nearing the end of their life so I'll take some pictures next time I change my tires.

Just be glad our tires are tubeless!!! Changing the tires on my DR is even more fun!

Here's a nice setup and not all that expensive for the "standard kit" Pricing

$185.00 including shipping gets you the bead breaker, balancer, two 11.5" tire levers, weights, rim protector and a carpeted cover to protect the rim underneath.

no way we change tires right here at the house for 20.00 a wheel and have even done 5k custom 9" wide chrome wheels no mars at all go check out No-Mar: Scratch Proof Tire Changer best purchase we ever did!!!!!!!

squirly said:

no way we change tires right here at the house for 20.00 a wheel and have even done 5k custom 9" wide chrome wheels no mars at all go check out No-Mar: Scratch Proof Tire Changer best purchase we ever did!!!!!!!

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Walworth, eh? Howdy neighbor!

Any plans for the Log Cabin this summer?

(sorry about the thread jack)

squirly said:

no way we change tires right here at the house for 20.00 a wheel and have even done 5k custom 9" wide chrome wheels no mars at all go check out No-Mar: Scratch Proof Tire Changer best purchase we ever did!!!!!!!

Click to expand...

I second that. I have the Classic model and wheel balancer. It may look pricey in the beginning, but when you do the math, $50 per tire at the shop around here, in a few seasons, this one pays itself off.

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PuvazCc0FgY]YouTube - Changing a Wide Rear Tire with a No-Mar Tire changer[/ame]

P.S. you can do auto tires too, even though I haven't tried that yet.

ok, i haven't moved on this at all. i'm still vacillating. i'm cheap, so i like to spend as little as possible. but i like for things to last and work well. hence my dilemma. i've put together a little price comparison spreadsheet.



going on the aspect of things working well and lasting a long time i'd really like the no mar classic ultimate package but i'm pretty sure the funds aren't there.

going on being cheap i have a tug to go with the harbor freight setup and try to make it work. but the reviews are so varied on that system.

that brings me to the cycle hill changer, but i really like the bead breaker system on the no mar better. plus, with the no mar i can order it with the trailer hitch attachment rather than the floor attachment and not have to worry about drilling into a concrete slab. i also wonder how much more carful i need to be breaking the bead on the CH since i'm laying it on the ground and the breaker doesn't have any nylon over the metal.

so, people with experience with any of these, could you let me know what you recommend out of these three and why? which would you get if money were no option? which would you get if you were on a budget? (i don't mind you saying that you'd get the no mar even on a budget if your experiences with it have been that good.) are my concerns about the HF and CH (way less with the CH) valid?

also, any thoughts on the balancers i've listed? is the HF balancer just as good as the no mar? is the marc parnes balancer really that much better? seems pretty expensive when i figure i still have to provide my own way to elevate it.

thanks

Hey Dean, I haven't looked at all of your options, but the Cycle Hill base package + their "Standard Static Wheel balancer " looks comprehensive. Borrow or rent a hammer drill to drop concrete inserts to secure to the floor and you are in business.

As you appear to be looking at this as a long term investment I would strongly discourage you from considering the Harbor Freight package. As you have read and viewed in other threads, it's a substandard product that need a lot of TLC to make it acceptable.

Dean, on a budget, I kind of like the CH changer. I can't tell if the bead breaker has scratch protection on it but remember why you're looking for a changer in the first place. You don't want to be scratching your rims when you can pocket the cash for the changer and pay someone else to scratch them for you....

In terms of mounting to the floor, I made a 4'x4' platform out of 2x2 and 3/4" plywood with grip tape applied on the surface and the whole thing sits in my basement. It's not ideal but it worked for me. I didn't have a hitch at the time and didn't want to Hilti it to the floor but now that I have a hitch, I'm going to be looking at getting the No-Mar hitch attachment for my Classic.

I'd say go with the cycle hill (it's made by no-mar anyway). They offer a addon that makes the bead breaker scratch free. The HF balancer doesn't look that bad but I would atleast change the bearings on it.

Have you seen this video on tire changing and tools/balancing beads? I was thinking about it---but will probably pay CG to do mine.

Video Library | Jake Wilson

My mate picked up this unit on ebay about 3 years ago for $200.
Its a drawn out process so he sped up the video
[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=83WacX93PEQ]YouTube - Tyre changing[/ame]

well ladies and gentlemen... i went with the cycle hill changer. i really, really, really wanted the no mar for so many reasons. but in the end it would have come out to about 240 dollars more and at this point in life i couldn't justify it.

everything i've read on the cycle hill is positive and i'm sure it'll give me years of use. i'm happy with my purchase. i still want the no mar, but i think if i would have ordered the no mar i would have regretted spending the extra money that we could use in other places around here. once i get it i'll let you know what i think of it.

oh, and for those that don't know... right now no-mar is periodically putting cycle hill (complete kits) and no-mar classic (complete kits) up on ebay for a slightly reduced rate from what they're asking for on their site. and they still have free shipping. you might not need everything in the complete kit, but if you use the bing.com cashback "promo" feature it gives you 8% back in your paypal account.
so rather than paying $555.00
i ended up paying $501.40

thanks for the help. i do appreciate it.

Tailgate said:

Have you seen this video on tire changing and tools/balancing beads? I was thinking about it---but will probably pay CG to do mine.

Video Library | Jake Wilson

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i did see that video when i first started looking around and was very tempted by it. it's doable, and would save some money. but when i started adding it all up (spoons, rim protectors, and something to break the bead) it still came in the ballpark of $100.00 to do it all manually. i figured since we had a little bit of money i might as well throw a little more in and go for something a little easier.

also, i read up on the beads.... let's just say that if you think oil threads can be hard to follow and full of opinions.... wow. i'll stick with the tried and true method of weights.

Well, I just returned from CG with my new tires (BT016's) mounted/balanced there ($53 for both after CA fee and new valve stems). When I dropped them off I asked if they use rim protectors and the guy assured me, "Oh yeah, we don't do that here (mar/scratch,gouge rims with tire change)!" He was right! The rims show no evidence of sloppy and careless work. They look just like they did before...perfect! Well, I'm glad about that. Still, it's kinda pricey and I could've invested in a tire change system that would pay for itself after, probably, another tire switchout or two, huh? But, at least the rims are not gouged up!