I searched whole YouTube and while some people claim there might be some easy trick to NOT damage your hands severely to get the tire over the wheel – I have yet to find it. I destroyed 2 pairs of tire levers AND my hands.
I never experienced this with MTB tires, but anything smaller than 45mm seems to be pain in the ass to get on. In the end it always boils down to extreme pain in my hands and excessive force, which I can’t always bring up because apparently I am a wiggely-armed pushover who can’t switch a bicycle tire.
Sorry for renting. Maybe someone got tips for me that YouTube won’t tell me? thanks 🙂
by Fast_Huckleberry5342
12 Comments
Leave the tires out in the sun for a day+ soapy water. If you’re using anything other than those fat ass Pedro’s levers good luck.
You know to put the tire bead in the middle of the rim right?
I also had a tough time putting vittorias on
I always have this problem with Vittoria tires. They make a good case for[shop levers.](https://www.amazon.com/Park-Tool-Heavy-Steel-Lever/dp/B000R9GG1G/ref=asc_df_B000R9GG1G/?tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=693769127027&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=6358471768377293374&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=m&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9027258&hvtargid=pla-350041312543&psc=1&mcid=46239eac24ad3f10aa0ce0a76db3deb0&gad_source=1)
I’m sure some rims are slightly bigger when manufactured. Meaning it will be a tight fit. I would end up using three Tyre levers,(Zefal wide yellow). Put one at either end hooked in and flipped up. I found I could put one under my arm to hold it up so as the Tyre won’t peal off as you feed it on from the other side end. Don’t be greedy keep these two levers side by side. As you lift the levers up take the one furtherest from you out and put it in front of the one still hooked in. Lift it up and then take the furthest the lever out and repeat. Keep working your way to the Tyre lever under your arm. As I said, don’t be greedy!
After ripping the skin off my thumb and snapping a tyre lever trying to install a Schwalbe marathon plus I bought this [Tyre Glider](https://youtu.be/68BJoa4Tn1A?si=yi3yYOgbICcgPEtg ) and had it on in two minutes. Just slides on with a bit of force, absolute game changer.
Take a seat. Put the wheel on your lap, with the valve toward you. Center the beads in the middle of the wheel, and starting inward close to you, push/pull the tire onto the wheel, holding tension on the tire so by the time you get to the far side of the wheel, there’s more than enough slack to pop it over the lip. You basically want to pull the tire close to you into the rim, and push the tire on the other side up and over the lip. Hold tension on the tire the whole time.
Shops don’t use levers, soap, or heat. They use this technique and it makes seating literally any tire on anything absolute child’s play.
That rear tire is on backwards, you need to take it off and flip it. Look for the direction arrow on the sidewall.
Make sure you are putting them on the correct direction when rolling.
renting is ok, times are tough and property is overrated anyway
My two tricks:
1) Use Pedro’s levers
2) Use a keg ice bucket to support the wheel, instead of a trash can.
The keg ice bucket let’s me get more direct power on the tire using my body weight, instead of my arm strength. I take care to put too much pressure on the wheel. But if it can candle my riding, it can handle me mounting a tire.
Shimano tubeless wheels and Conti combination…man, I’ve broken even the bead helper tool.
https://i.imgur.com/dVlzfg1.jpeg
The bead you’re trying to fit needs to sit in the middle of the rim bed while you’re fitting it. All the way around, push it in to the centre and make sure the inner tube isn’t pushing it back out near the edge. The middle is where the diameter of the rim is smallest and so it gives you the most slack to get the last bit of bead over the edge. If you do this right, you can fit Gatorskins without any levers.
Search for ‘Tyre Gilder’ absolute game changer for me
Push the tyre bead into the rim’s valley where the circumference is smaller.
Once you are at the stage shown in the photo go all the way around the rim and push the tyre bead into the rim’s valley again while keeping tension. Rinse and repeat. You can also try to brute force it with 2 or 3 tyre levers at the same time but it can result in a pinched tube (and at some level of force I’d fear for the tyre and rim).