How hard is it to break the bead?

[dirtydawg]

Out riding with my buddy on his KTM950 when he had a rear flat and it took us about 2 hours to get it back on the road. KTM has an extra lip on the rim that really latches on to the bead and won't let go. We put his centerstand on the bead and bounced his 950 up and down on the bead for about 10 minutes before it broke loose. Since I haven't had to change a tire on my DR650 yet, it caused me to wonder just how hard it is to break the bead on it? Will the kickstand method work ok, or should I consider carrying a bead breaker of some kind? I assume my 650 tire is nowhere as stiff as the KTM's but I thought I'd ask before I find myself at the side of the road when it is too late.

So is changing the tire a piece of cake, or not?

[Max Kool]

I've had tires on my DR that were just as hard to break the bed from. A small amount of water, WD-40 of hand soap will do the trick. It will lube the tire just enough so it will slip down just a little easier.

[dangermouse650]

Havent had that problem of getting a flat in the middle of no mans land.

I recently changed my rear wheel, to break the bead i used the vice & the biggest hammer i could find.

[UPSam]

I rode my DR 9miles slowly with a totally flat tire before the bead broke. At home it takes a couple c-clamps and is a real pain in the butt. I wonder if breaking the rear(which is the harder of the 2) couldn't be done by riding it flat and locking the rear brake? going slow of course.

[FatChance]

Max has the right answer. You have to lubricate the bead, then it comes off a lot easier. I carry a little vial of liquid dishwashing soap (or shampoo) in my tire repair kit that you can mix with a little water, then lube along the bead, wait a couple minutes, then it works very easily. Even more important is to practice doing this before you get a flat out in BFE in the rain at night. So, try taking your tubes out and reinstalling them on both wheels in your garage to see what the issues are. Just as important is to ONLY use the tools you normally carry on your bike. If you use tools to change a tire and leave them in the garage, you'll be quite the fool out in the backcountry if you have a flat.

[hilltownwalsh]

I had a real tough time with the rear tire bead. I tried C-clamps, a vise, and a leverage tool made with 2x4's. I eventually just cut it off with some bolt cutters. The front was no problem, just stepped on it.

[elevatorjunky]

I have changed my rear tire 7 or 8 times.never lubed it or used any tools to break the bead just stepped on it.Guess I am just lucky.I have always needed alot of pressure and some soap to reseat the bead.

[ChrisKoz]

The first time I did it, it was a pain in the ass. The last time I did it, last weekend actually, it was a cinch, no problem at all. I actually was able to do it by standing on it.

[coffee]

My bead un-seats when I run my bike at too low of air pressure. 250f with trials tires. Still has enough air pressure not to destroy the tire though.

.

[tomshell]

Kickstand and or lube.

[dirtydawg]

Lots of good advice here, thanks!

I like the idea of carrying a bit of soap, should be room in the kit for that.

[Clear-a-Path]

Since i got a flat and rode 90 miles and the bead never broke, i'm starting to think how much difference tires make? The wheels are all the same so it must be the tire that makes such a difference in the bead.

[6-fiddy Hooligan]

Depends on the tire... A tube-type tire should break fairly easy, using the sidestand. A tubeless tire (i.e. Metzeler Tourance) may require a BFH and some sweat!

[Marcus74]

Check the bead breaking tool in the bike section of this web site www.tyrepliers.com.au. I havent tried one of these tools myself but they look promising and I was thinking of getting one and carrying it in my back pack on rides (It wouldnt be too hard to make one either). The pirelli Mt21 that I run on the rear is horrible to get off and on!

[SgtMike]

The bead breaking tool sounds like something I'll have to get. I have a set of tire spoons from Motion(?) ,anyway they are indispensible. Some beads pop easily away from the rim while I've had to stand on others. One rear I did was memerable as it took about an hour to get to pop. Mounting a tire can be a pain in the:moon: too. I use dish soap too but sometimes it seats crooked and I'll have to re-do it. I've got to think theres a lot of luck involved here too.

Mike.

[coffee]

Check the bead breaking tool in the bike section of this web site www.tyrepliers.com.au. I havent tried one of these tools myself but they look promising and I was thinking of getting one and carrying it in my back pack on rides (It wouldnt be too hard to make one either). The pirelli Mt21 that I run on the rear is horrible to get off and on!

Would not work on the trail but have used a garden variety "C-clamp" to do that, seems to work at least in the garage - it does weigh a couple of lbs though.

.

[rokklym]

I've had some easy ones, and some tough ones and the tough ones can really be a PITA! I usually can get them without lube but you need the 16" Motion Pro with ya and one more shorter one. You put the end of the long one with the curved end under the rim and you can press the tire down a long ways ( but be careful because it can slip and it comes flying up into your chest or face ). You take another shorter iron and put it close to the second one, maybe an inch and a half away and pull on it and it should go with a lttle work. This probably doesn't make any sense the way I explained it.

[Benrod327]

I ran my rear tire over with my jeep and the bead still didn't break. The front broke real easy.

[Navaho6]

The DR rear rim has a lip on the inside of the rim, making rear tire changes challenging. I've changed dozens of dirtbike tires, and the DR is the toughest I've ever done. I use large carpentar's wood clamps that will queeze the two sides of the tires together, and I still have to pry the tire over into the center of the rim with a claw hammer and a lot of patience.

Good luck changing one in the field.

[wood_man]

Good luck changing one in the field.

I agree. I put new tires on my DR not too long ago and was surprised how hard the bead broke on the rear. I thought tube type tires did'nt bead to the rim that tight.

I used a large C clamp to break the bead.

Just the thought of breaking down the rear tire along side the road in BFE is scary.