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Uh, oh, trikebldr's posting another long-winded thread!

I watched a Youtube video of changing a tire using just a 35 gallon barrel with a padded rim and some tire spoons. He sure made it look simple and easy, but when you get into the larger bias ply rear tires like the E-3 in the smaller rim diameters, it gets pretty hard for some of us old guys who have lost our Popeye arms of youth! I even bought a pair of 30" long spoons, but it was just too much of a struggle keeping the whole wheel assembly under control while prying with the spoons.

So,.....I gave up and started my search for a local shop to dismount and mount the tires on my five wheels (two bikes, one sidecar!). To start, I needed all of them dismounted so I could clean the inside of each rim carefully, and replace the stems. Then I need all five remounted with new tires. Only one shop had the type of machine with teflon/delrin grips so it wouldn't nick or mar the rim edge, and was willing to put my car tire on the back wheel. He wanted $20/each to dismount/mount the motorcycle tires, then he wanted $65 to dismount/mount the car tire on the rear wheel of the sidecar tug. That would have been $145!

I came home and started my search on CL for a manual tire changer that could be modified to work with our wheels. Nothing! Then, while looking for Kawasakis and parts, a slightly used Cycle Hill No-Mar changer showed up. $250 with several accessory additions included. They are normally $400 with no accessories and with appropriate additions will push $600. So, his $250 was a good deal. I watched their video on this changer and really liked it. I called him this morning to get directions only to be told somebody else was just loading it into their truck! DAMN!

Next stop, Harbor Freight to see what super deals they might have during their three day sale. HF offers one manual changer for car tires and an add-on adapter for cycle wheels. Total for both would be about $100, but the cycle adapter has no mar-proof protections for the rim edges. So, I stood there staring at the adapter and mentally engineering what it would take to add delrin rim grips to protect the edges. Ah, ha! The light went on! So, I was about to load up the two pieces when I saw a pile of stuff being sold as-is on a make-offer basis. I saw two of the car tire changers and three of the cycle adapters in the pile, so I got in line for my turn at dealing with the manager. The two that I picked out to deal on had their hardware sets missing, but everything else was there, if a little scratched up. I offered him $45 for both and he said load 'er up and pay the cashier! WooHoo! The nice thing is I can also change smaller car tires with this basic machine!

A quick stop at the local hardware store and I have everything that was missing, plus the new shoulder bolts to make the modifications to make it mar-proof. Now, all I need to do is order the 1-1/2" diameter delrin rod to machine into the little grips on each leg, just like the Cycle Hill machine has. The mounting bar will need a delrin tip made up, too. It will also need a hitch-mount adapter made to use my truck's hitch for a solid mount.

Here are pics of the Cycle Hill machine (blue) and the HF machines (red). All I need to do is add the little delrin grips on top of the pads on the HF machine. I will take pics as I go along to show what mods I make to this machine to make it more useable.

If you have a tire changer machine that you use and like, I would like to see it and hear about how it works.

I just phone my friend KKMobile tyre fitter, he has all that stuff in his van.

I know Princess Auto doesn't sell one (at least couldn't find one on their site) Harbor Freight in the States does sell one
about $50 (don't have it) so I just go to Rosey Toes in TO to get em done until I'm doing enough of my own to make it worth my while

stocktoy wrote: doing enough of my own to make it worth my while

OK, so what constitutes making it worth your while? Does Rosey Toes charge a cheap enough rate to have several sets done?

Just this one mounting session for me would have cost me as much as buying the two Harbor Freight units and all the hardware to modify them correctly, but now I will have them to use the next time, and a big benefit to me is the convenience of not having to drive anywhere, or wait for anybody to be ready to do them for me. I also don't have to worry about whether or not the kid doing the work knows what he's doing, or if he even cares about damaging the rim. That's kinda important on our ancient, and rare bikes!

"I just phone my friend KKMobile tyre fitter, he has all that stuff in his van. "

And make an appointment, then sit and wait for him to show up, and pay him each time. Money lost.

Doesn't ANYBODY have their own changer?

Rosey Toes - $20 a tire including balance while you wait. open 6 days a week

stocktoy wrote: Rosey Toes - $20 a tire including balance while you wait. open 6 days a week

That's what my guy charges, too, except that the rear tire on my sidecar rig will be a car tire, so he wants $65 to do it. So, to replace all of my tires would cost $145.

Sounds like Rosey has a good business there! Maybe I should do that!