I bought a tire online, took the wheel off (while I was installing the Shotgun Shock system) and took it to the local dealer. They charged $30 or $35, if I recall correctly, to remove the old tire and install the new one.

None of the auto tire shops I called would do motorcycle tires - has to be a motorcycle shop. If we had a good indy in the area I'd have taken it there, but I don't know of any yet.

I've done lots of tires in the past, on my dirt bikes, but would rather have these street tires done for me so I don't screw up the rim or throw the back out trying to wrestle one on manually.

Roger

 

The dealer here gets $148 to put on a tire on a softail plus the cost of the tire and if you want nitrogen its 32 bucks more.

 

I used to change tires on laced wheels in the old days (triumphs, hondas, etc.) but the way that my rim on the front of my Night Train is made, I have pinched the tube every time. The inside of the rim is also so rusty that I am glad that I took the tire off myself, however, because I cleaned it up and painted it. The inside of the tube is real easy to rot. If you want to save some money but make the delicate part go better, get the tire off the rim, clean everything up, put a new tube and spoke band on the rim, put one side of the tire on, and take it to a shop. Have the guy with the tire machine install the other side plus balance it. $30 oughta do it... that's the least headache and the quickest option, plus when the shop sees that it's basically a wham bam thank you mam deal then they will usually interrupt what they are doing and mount the tire for you on the spot.

C#

 

Bring your tires and wheels in. Cyclegear will mount tires and balance. Then it's up to you to but wheels back on bike

 

I've changed every tire on my Duece in my garage with a bead breaker and tire irons from JCWhitney. Except one - when I had a flat on a trip and had to have it towed in and done at a dealer. I use 2 X 4s to protect the wheel/rotor/pulley when using the bead breaker and scraps of cardboard to protect the wheel from the tire irons.

Guess how many scratches/gouges my wheels have from tire changes?

One! (You can guess where that came from if you'd like).

As for balancing, I made my own balancing stand out of 2 X 4s, plywood, and four ball bearings I had laying around for a total cost of zero.

 

I will echo what others have said. I have been riding since I was 15 and I am now 70. I have replaced all my own tires. For many years with spoons. Now I have the inexpensive HF tire changer to make it a little easier.

I have always indexed the tires( dot on tire with dot on bike) Not all rims have the dot. Sorry to say most metrics do but HD does not. So the best 2nd choice is the valve stem location. I do not inflate the tire first. I put it on a wheel balancer ( again HF and cheap)

By doing that if the valve stem area is not the heavy spot, I can rotate the tire until it is in the best balance point. I have never had to add weights with this procedure.

I buy discounted tires on line with no shipping cost or sales tax. Save a fortune on each set compared to a dealers price.

 

Is that why they last so much longer than car tires?

 

Nitrogen? I thought somebody made that up as a joke. They really offer nitrogen? Do they sell magic power crystals to improve your gas mileage?

 

For those who want a tire changer at home that will not scratch the rims check this out. IF I actually had a garage to keep it in I would have one. the wife said no tire changer in the living room.
http://www.cyclehilltirechanger.com/pages/training

Drew

 

Yhe dealerships wont work on anything older than 2000 so people like me have no choice but to use independent shops or do things ourselves