Changing your dirt bike tires doesn't have to be difficult. It can actually be pretty quick and easy if you have the right tools, tips and tricks, and patience. Below you'll find five easy tips to make changing a dirt bike tire even easier
5 Tips for Changing a Dirt Bike Tire
Modified: September 7, 2019 by BasicPlanet · This post may contain affiliate links ·
Changing your dirt bike tires doesn't have to be difficult. https://www.nysopa.com/ It can actually be pretty quick and easy if you have the right tools, tips and tricks, and patience. Below you'll find five easy tips to make changing a dirt bike tire even easier
Understanding the drop center
It is very important to know and understand what rim drop center is. In the picture above you can see that there is a contour in the middle of the rim. This is known as drop center. When installing or removing a tire, it is important that the bead of the tire sits in this drop center. This helps provide enough clearance on the opposite side where the bead of the tire needs to work on the rim with a few tire irons. The better you get at changing a tire bead at a drop center, the smoother the tire changing process will be. You are going to be less likely to damage the rim or the tire itself.
Tire iron preferred
When it comes to choosing the tire iron, it's the one that works best for you. However, many find the Task Tire Iron Kit to be an excellent choice. This kit includes two tire scoops and a long, curved tire iron. The length of the tire iron is great because it gives the user a lot of leverage when working the tire bead over the rim. Another great feature about this tool is its curves. This allows users to get the tool under the bead and over the rim when the tire is really tight.
Dirt Bike Bid Tool
The third tip on the list is to use a tire bead tool like the one pictured above. The tool is made by Tusk and is a great option under $20. This tool is attached to the rim and acts as a third arm to hold the bead in the drop center. As we know from above, keeping the bead in the drop center during installation is absolutely critical for changing tires. Tusk makes different variations of this tool to fit different rims on the market. They also make a mini tire bead tool that you can throw in your trail pack when you're out trail riding.
Inflate the tube slightly to avoid pinching
It is very important to slightly inflate the inner tube when changing a dirt bike tire. This is going to help prevent a pinch flat during the installation process. One of the worst things to discover is a pinched inner tube after the entire installation process is complete. Not only is this super frustrating, but all the work that was done has to be done again. To avoid headaches, be sure to inflate the inner tube slightly before installing. You want to add enough air to give it some shape and body, which is usually about 5 PSI. Adding too much air to the inner tube only makes the installation process more difficult so be sure not to over inflate. If little or no air is added to the tube, the possibility of pinching the tube during the installation process will increase significantly.
Use tire lube
This tip is probably the most overlooked but the most important. Using a specially designed tire mounting lubricant will not only make the process easier, but it will also help protect your rims and tires from damage. The most popular lubricant among experts is Yamalube made by Yamaha.
Many people don't know what type of tire lubricant to use or even know it exists and end up using soapy water, baby power, or even Windex. All this will be done; But the benefits of using tire mounting lubricants are being missed. Tire mounting lubricants are very slippery, and evaporate upon application unlike water-based products. This allows for easy mounting and cleans the tire and work area. Grab a can of tire mounting lubricant to keep frustration levels low and stoke levels high.
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