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If you need lots of force or lots of leverage, you are doing it wrong. Be firm but gentle, use the drop center and take small bites. I'm pretty good at tire changes but as others have said watch Jay Clark's videos, he's a master at them.
hilarious tyre change challenge Billy Bolt, Tommy Searle, & Ed BBs mechanic
https://youtu.be/DCQGtVuSweY
I don't know what to tell you. I'm 67 and have been riding and racing since I was in my teens. I've never paid someone to change a tire for me. I guess people are different now and not so self sufficient.
Same way I did it. Put dirt bike tires in the machine but use irons, maybe use the machine to take the old one off, but always put the new one on with irons.
The Shop
Luxon 4-Post Bar Mounts
$189.95 - $239.95
DeCal Works Huge Plastic Inventory of UFO and Polisport kits.
Yea same here, using the machine is an easy what to mess it up. Clamp it and use spoons.
“Support your LBS!”
☝️Favorite cycling nerd reference
If you buy tires from a shop, especially full retail, would expect a very small fee to mount them. And when that’s the case, heck yeah, but usually not, so do them myself - NBD, especially with a stand.
Serious question, what do you think you should have been charged? Your own tire, so zero profit from selling you the part. What would you consider to be a fair price?
Try changing some Ice race tires with liners😂 I have paid to have tires mounted a few times, but I”m back to doing them myself, nobody cares about your shit like you👌
They’re worth the money 100%. I bought a set of Tusk irons to try and they’re worthless.
I don’t mind changing tires, but at times I would be willing to pay $40 for someone to put the tube in and get the valve stem to pop through the hole…
Put the tube in the tire, fish the valve stem through the hole and put the nut on, spoon the tire on.
...I had to teach a young Yamaha factory mechanic how to change a tire at a practice track last year. He had the spoons in his Sprinter but didn't know how.
They normally just hand them off to the Pirelli guys I guess...
I had 3 strong capable guys standing around watching me like I was doing some sort of magic show....
If you own a dirt bike, you should know how to change your tire, IMO.
Tire heating tip. If it's too cold or there is no sun out, I take a heat gun on the low-ish setting and put it inside the tire to get it soft. Let it run for a while over the corner of the garage while you're doing other stuff. Works great!
This is a terrible take and they are not crooks. Comparing it to car tires is far different than a moto tire. It takes at least twice the time per moto tire.
How much do you make an hour and what overhead does your employer have? $42 when you brought in your own parts is a bargain. Do you take your own hamburger meat to In N Out and ask them to cook it for you? If you are going to buy parts online or elsewhere, do the work yourself.
Hosed
i do
all my own tires it’s too easy
I used struggle big time changing tires...hours and hours to change one, bloody knuckles, bent irons, pinched tubes, scratched up rims....so I started to pay for tire changes...THEN I learned how to do it....front and rear-with tubes...30 minutes tops (the Raboconda slows me down with tubes). Easy!
I can do a single tire with bibs in about a half hour now (with my rabaconda)...and that is super slow (the ISDE guys are doing them in like 3 or 4 minutes).
If you are breaking a sweat changing a tire, or pinching tubes regularly, you're just plain doing it wrong.
Learn the proper technique, no sweating, no cursing, no pinched tubes, super easy. Faster than driving to a shop and waiting for them to do it (and cheaper).
The hardest/least fun part for me is getting the wheels on and off the bike.
My local shop is free mount if you buy the tire from them. It forces you to buy from them. I can not order one anywhere and pay for the mount cheaper than buying from them with the free mount.
There is a direct correlation between riding talent and tire changing ability.
The more you have of one, the less you have of the other.
What? 10% mayyybe 20% of the guys in the big rigs at an AMA Pro race could do a tire by themselves? Jeez, half those guys can't even do an air filter or adjust their chain.
$20-25 per wheel Pre-Covid, $40-50 Post-Covid has been my experience.
Pit Row
Some sort of magic show, lol. I can’t be the only one that got a flat on my bicycle when I was a kid. Buy the inner tube repair kit & change the tire with screw drivers. It may hv taken a bit longer than it should have. But I really like the smell of the glue. Haha
Wait till it's $45 for a loaf of bread...
I’d have charged you the same thing. Buy the tire from the installer instead of being a cheapo. Or buy the tire online and do the tire change yourself. Seems simple to me.
it’s worth it to me just so I do t have to correctly dispose of the old tire.
Hahahaha! I feel you on those 10" tires. I mount all my own tires, bibs, etc no problem. But I fought those stupid things for 20 min and then GLADLY paid to have them mounted. It's half the reason I got my oldest off his KTM 50.
I pay a fellow forum member to mount all my bibs (4) for my CRF-X/Dez bike. He’s fast and he NEVER F’s up my tire/rim beads…ever.
I think it runs me about $200 for the 4 wheels “old off & new on”…all bibs…all dez rubber…truly a pain in the ass.
I usually buy lunch and do a few service items on the bike while I’m there…& I often clean and oil all the filters for all the bikes at the shop that need it while I’m there.
Now, here’s what’s truly silly…whenever we’re out on a ride and someone gets a flat or needs to swap out a smoked bib…? I often help or “just do it” to simply get it done without ruining the tire & get us back on the tail. So, why don’t I do it on my own bike(s) to begin with?
Because, I’d rather hang out and do other things while a legit mechanic does it right!
Btw, when I go to a shop and ask for a service? I get them to quote me a price and I make an informed decision.
Ya know, I expect people to pay me for my time…& I’m fine paying for theirs, too.
I’m jus’ sayin’…
Changing tires is a byotch. While $42 is a little pricey, it’s not that bad.
Its $40-50 to string a tennis racquet and I have that done at least once a month.
https://us.rabaconda.com/products/street-bike-tire-changer
I'm looking at getting one of these because I have street bikes as well. If you think changing dirt tires sucks, try a low profile street tire...
I always thought tubeless street tires would be impossible to change. Then my neighbor said if you can change a mx tire a street tire is a piece of cake. He let me borrow his spoons that have an integrated bead breaker to break the street tire bead and after that was a piece of cake. Airing it up to set the bead was a little scary when you hear it pop, but agree with him street tires are easier
Imagine bringing a Steak to a Steak House for them to season and cook it for you. That's what it's like bringing a tire to a local shop after saving $3 online.
If you're capable of changing a tire, how long does it take you? You were prolly charged for 1/2 hour labor, and it took a mechanic who makes $5 commission 20-30 minutes to do it plus the tools (he paid for) to do it.
Learn to cook your own steak if you don't like the price at a fancy restaurant.
Local shops arent struggling b/c online sales, they're struggling b/c their customer service is poor, and hire people that aren't motorcycle/sxs enthusiast.
Maybe that gear cleaning guy should branch out into tyre changing
It’s maybe a little high. Changing tires is a bitch so depending on perspective, that could be an absolute steal for some. I think $30-35 is a good range but I wouldn’t speak for the value of a mechanics time. Service could be billed with a 1 hour minimum charge or some bullshit.
Post a reply to: Tire changing fees.... crooks!