Motorcycle Tire Mounting And Balancing

[tjmoening]

I want to order a new front tire for my Softail through Dennis Kirk because they have considerably cheaper prices. If I remove my current rim and tire from my bike, where could I bring it and get the old tire removed and the new tire mounted and balanced? Are there any chain tire shops that would put a motorcycle tire on a rim and balance it for me? I am going to assume any Harley shop will refuse to do this because they want to charge me through the roof for one of their tires and the labor to mount and balance it for me. Dennis Kirk has the tire I need for around $70 bucks. I guarantee any Harley shop would want to charge me $150 -$180 for the job. Any experiences or ideas??

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[IronGypsy]

I had a new front tube and tire installed and balanced on my '09 FXSTC(21" on a laced wheel) for $220 at an HD dealership. That included parts and labor.

[tjmoening]

Doesn't that seem expensive to you? You could darn near get 4 car tires put on a small car for that. I just had 4 new 40,000 mile tires put on my V.W. recently for a little over $300 bucks. Maybe a custom bike shop or some small, independent shop could do the job cheaper.

[xxxflhrci]

I mount my own. I've been riding on hand mounted tires for 20+ years. I don't balance. I just mount the sidewall dot so that it is lined up with the valve stem. I have never had a vibrator. My bikes ride smooth and tires last a long life. Sure somebody is gonna come on here and tell us of all the evils of not balancing. However, I've ridden on a pile of tires mounted in this fashion and never had an issue. If I ever get a vibrator, I'll simply pull the wheel and have the indy ricer shop a few minutes away balance it for me.

[IronGypsy]

Originally Posted by tjmoening

Doesn't that seem expensive to you? You could darn near get 4 car tires put on a small car for that. I just had 4 new 40,000 mile tires put on my V.W. recently for a little over $300 bucks. Maybe a custom bike shop or some small, independent shop could do the job cheaper.

Yep, but the last time an independent shop did it the front tire let go on an off ramp at about 70mph. I'm sure the same thing has happened to people who go to dealerships, but I like the peace of mind. Anything involving the wheels/tires on my bike gets taken to the dealership, at least until I'm more experienced and can do it myself. Just my opinion though.

[austinharley]

Change the tires yourself and use Dyna Beads instead of weights for balancing. Many in this forum have had great success with them!

[jimmers1817]

I was going to attempt a rear tire change because with 2 bikes I figure I should learn to do it myself. Plus I'm a diehard DIYer. But summer is a busy time for me and I didn't want to be bothered with going to tire changing school. Maybe some other time.

Dealer charged me $128 +tax for the install which was listed as a 1.5hr job @$85 per hr.

tube $29
liner $3
tire (D401) $166

If I knew of an INDY I could trust in my area I would've gone to them. Don't really trust any mechanic but at least my local HD dealer answers to a higher authority and has deeper pockets in the event I get mangled or killed because they didn't tighten this or install that.

[Notgrownup]

I buy my own tire and take it to a small indy shop and does it for $15.00. I remove and install the wheel on the bike myself.

[128auto]

I mount my own tires without balance, never had problem. I think motorcycle tires are different than car tires, they are well made to begin with, plus better rubber and stronger core. Well, if I own a sport bike, I would balance it for sure.

[jknowlton]

indy shop charges $70 to do everything..take off old, put new on rim, balance and install.

HD, for both tires (parts and install) was $600 qouted