Tight tyres

[Fifelad]

Interested to hear other peoples experiences. Until recently, I have never had any real serious issues, I always went for folding tyres, and after the usual faffing with a new tyres or a pu** ure I haven’t had too many problems. Anyhoo, I recently had to replace a tyre, and had a couple of Wire Bead Continental Ultrasport tyres I had never used from a bike I got years ago, as I preferred Gatorskins for committing. Trying to be frugal, I thought I should get use out of them so put one on. A bit of a struggle but on it went. After a bit of thought,I decided to not use it as after a looking at reviews ( I know read the review before using 😂 ) realised they don’t have a great deal of puncture protection. Trying to get it off was ridiculously difficult, I wouldn’t of fancied my chances on the road in the rain of getting it on an off in a hurry. I can’t believe they successfully still sell those if they are so much hassle to get on and off. I have replaced it with a Schwalbe Durano Plus, my god another fight…. 😂 Also, I have heard certain makes of tyres are more compatible with certain makes of wheels. The best tyres I have had for ease of fitting and removal with a good level of protection were Mavic Yksions which unfortunately are hard to source in the UK these days.

 

[Paulus]

It sometimes depends on the rims, the width and depth. Although some tyres are notoriously difficult to fit and remove. Patience is the key, try not to get frustrated, hard I know, but with patience and 3 or 4 tyre levers they do come off eventually.
When fitting try a dusting of talcum powder around the bead, this helps.

 

[ColinJ]

I had one combination of wheel type (Campagnolo Protons) and tyre type (I forget which!) that were a nightmare. I got a puncture on a very warm day in Spain. It took me over 30 minutes of desperate sweating to get the tyre off and back on again.

I have Mavic Aksium wheels on a bike in Devon. I just bought some 32C Bontrager AW3 Hard Case Lite tyres (coincidentally, from Fife Cycles!) for it. That combination is the easiest that I have ever used. I can get the tyres on or off in less than 10 seconds with my bare hands!

Tyres with wire beads definitely make the problem worse, as well as weighing more, but they are significantly cheaper for some reason.

 

[T4tomo]

Also add.....
taking off a brand new tyre is harder than when its been on the rim a while.
Often the hardest bit is breaking the seal of bead and rim, particularly with any rim denoted TR or tubeless ready. you can actually do this (on a deflated tyre) by standing on the tyre close to the rim in a hard soled cycling shoe and pop the bead inwards. Then get to work with your tyre levers.

 

[ColinJ]

you can actually do this (on a deflated tyre) by standing on the tyre close to the rim in a hard soled cycling shoe and pop the bead inwards. Then get to work with your tyre levers.

I worked out last year that one can use that technique in reverse to get reluctant tyres back on!

 

[Fifelad]

Interesting tip re standing on the tyre…🤔😀

 

[screenman]

Wait until you try tight tyres and a Vittoria insert, that made life exciting for me earlier this week.

 

[Smokin Joe]

I had one combination of wheel type (Campagnolo Protons) and tyre type (I forget which!) that were a nightmare. I got a puncture on a very warm day in Spain. It took me over 30 minutes of desperate sweating to get the tyre off and back on again.

I used various Campag rims over the years and always found them a bit of a struggle when it came to mounting tyres.

 

[slowmotion]

Tyres are far easier to handle if they warm and/or if they have been used for a while. Also, plastic rim tape lets the bead slide a bit more easily in the well of the wheel because it tends to be smoother and less thick than cloth tape. Try talc too.

 

[DogmaStu]

Invest in a set of Lezyne XL tyre levers.

https://ride.lezyne.com/products/tubeless-power-xl-tire-lever

These things are great - make fitting and removing stubborn tyres a lot easier.

 

[Kajjal]

Cycle rims tend to be lower in the middle rather than at the edges. Push the tyre bead to the centre and it is normally a lot easier to get off or on.

 

[presta]

Cycle rims tend to be lower in the middle rather than at the edges. Push the tyre bead to the centre and it is normally a lot easier to get off or on.

They don't just tend to be, they're deliberately designed that way for that reason.

 

[ColinJ]

I used various Campag rims over the years and always found them a bit of a struggle when it came to mounting tyres.

I got another flat tyre today. This time on a Campag Neutron wheel, with a Zaffiro Pro tyre. I managed to get the tyre off and put it back on with my bare hands. I just made sure to keep my mitts on to protect my palms.

 

[slowmotion]

Have a look at this classic clip from Spa Cycles.

[media]
]View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-XUFVrl0UT4[/media]


There's some pretty good advice that's useful for tyres that are not Marathon Pluses.

 

[simongt]

It sometimes depends on the rims, the width and depth.

In my experience, Schwalbe Marathons on Mavic rims tend to be a challenge - !