Best Tire Changing Tool?

[Richcz28]

I'm going to be mounting up some 35s on aluminum wheels soon. I want to be able to start mounting tires myself.

I have seen a few videos on youtube of guys using different ken-tool bars for big truck tires. They make it look easy.

I would rather not get a manual tire changer. I just don't want to take up additional space in my garage.

What tools do you guys recommend for "easy" tire changing by hand. I don't mind spending a couple extra bucks to get something that will make the job easier.

 

[jekquistk5]

Hf spoons, pry bar and high lift jack. Having friend to lend an extra hand helps.

 

[Richcz28]

Hf spoons, pry bar and high lift jack. Having friend to lend an extra hand helps.

My friends love when I call them up to "hang out"

 

[diesel4me]

I have an aincient Coats manual tire machine...bought it off a friends dad for 40 bucks back around 1977..finally broke the big threaded part the nut screws onto,to hold the rim on its table..now I cant use the manual bead breaker to bust the beads...

I got tired of chasing the thing around the garage ,I never did bolt it down..and someone offered me 25 bucks for one of the 3 bars that came with it,that had a roller to install tires,but I never did figure out to use it...so I sold it..now the thing just takes up space in the garage,and I found as I got older,it was too hard to lift heavy 8 ply tires on steel rims up onto the thing anyway..

Now I just use an old GM bumper jack to break the beads ,by placing the tire under my trucks rear bumper--its never failed me yet,even on tough rusted rims and petrified old junk tires...some brake fluid or WD-40 helps free stubborn ones from rusty rims..

They do sell portable bead breakers at Harbour Frieght and they do work OK,but I dont see a need for one yet myself..they are pretty pricey..I use ordinary "crow bars" or pry bars work OK ,sometimes I have used a long 1/2" drive extention or round stock bar instead to put tires on with..the round stock is easier to use sometimes..


I find using two pry bars on the ground to remove and install tires somewhat easier than it was struggling to lift the tires onto the machine--a 5 lb hammer is a must too,to get the tires back on,and some Murphy's Oil Soap works great with some water,to make them slip on easier...

I do 90% of my own tire changes at home--if I get in a bind I could borrow a rim clamp tire machine at a friends shop,but I'm not very good at using that style,I learned on the old Coats 40-40 type ,anything else I'm pretty useless with..

 

[owenst7]

Hf spoons, pry bar and high lift jack. Having friend to lend an extra hand helps.

This. I did a big writeup with pictures on Reno4x4 and Alaska4x4network showing people how to do their own tires (I kept getting asked). I have a couple good USA tire spoons now, but I've done a ton of tires with the $4 HF ones. I don't want to carry expensive spoons with me on the trail and stuff.

You can bend the HF spoons, but I always point out that if you are having to pry really hard, you need to try something different. You can tear the bead, and if you apply force evenly and correctly, you really don't have to work that hard. In other words, you shouldn't have to apply enough force to bend the cheap HF spoons.

 

[BadDog]

I bought a "Tyre Irons" set (Ausi) years ago when I found that it was almost impossible to find anyone who could mount/dismount 42" tires. And those that could/would, who wants to haul those things around? I also carried tubes for the potential trail repair. Anyway, that kit worked very well for me... right up till a few weeks ago when I tried to break down and remove some tractor tires. I couldn't even get close.

 

[Richcz28]

I don't have a hi-lift and I will hopefully only be mounting in the short term.

Sounds like I need just standard spoons and some slippery stuff on the tires, then hope for the best.

 

[diesel4me]

There is a fine line between too much lube and not enough when working tires on or off a rim..too much and the tools will slip too easily and you'll struggle to get them on--not enough and they could tear the soft bead area up..but as long as you ensure the tire bead is in the deepest part of the drop center groove,you shouldn't have to use that much force to get them on...

Many people try taking off tires or installing them from the wrong side of the rim,which makes it near impossible,always mount or dismount from the side with the narrowest bead near the drop center,or you'll be risking damage on top of beating yourself up for nothing..

The hammer I mentioned is needed more when removing a tire,especially when your working on the last bead ,trying to force the tire off the rim with it standing up,you only have one hand free,and usually a few hammer blows on the inside of the bead will make it come right off..I usually stand on the rim while dismounting a tire until I get to taking the second bead off,then I stand the tire up...mounting them is easier if your standing on the rim too,and you can often use your boots to "walk" a tire onto the rim as you use the bar or spoon on it ..

I find the larger the rims size is,the easier the tires are to get on and off..when I had to do a 28" one on my Ford farm tractor ,I was not really confident I could do it myself,but after getting the calcuim out of it a friend who'd done it many times showed me it was if anything,easier than doing truck tires...the ones that I think suck worst to change are those 4" rim sized hand truck tires ,ones with tubes suck even more...the 6" and 8" tires on boat trailers and lawn tractors can be a suck pill to change too...

 

[BadDog]

I find the larger the rims size is,the easier the tires are to get on and off..when I had to do a 28" one on my Ford farm tractor ,I was not really confident I could do it myself,but after getting the calcuim out of it a friend who'd done it many times showed me it was if anything,easier than doing truck tires...the ones that I think suck worst to change are those 4" rim sized hand truck tires ,ones with tubes suck even more...the 6" and 8" tires on boat trailers and lawn tractors can be a suck pill to change too...

Sorry to OT, but wow, I must be doing something wrong. My tractor has a wide 16" wheel (Kubota B2150), so makes it more like a truck tire. But the R1s (big lug Ags) I bought had CC in the tubes that I wanted out. So I got it unseated just fine. But the bead of the tire was huge, and the side wall is really stiff, so even with tubes (and residual CC) and far bead in the valley, I couldn't even get close to getting the bead over the rim lip. I didn't feel quite so bad when the guys at the tire shop (one benefit of truck type wheels) had trouble getting it off too.

In any case, back on topic, the Tyre Plier set has the 2 good quality common/popular spoons and a bead breaker ("pliers") in a nice compact kit. Beats the heck out of big hammer or jack (dangerous), compact on the trail, and other than these Ag tires, I've never had trouble dealing with tires.

 

[TerryD]

A friend of mine has a HF tire changer attached to a 2" square that goes in a receiver hitch and you have a portable, manual tire changer. Another friend tried a changer from TSC but the head to put tires on doesn't work well and we usually wind up using spoons with his. His bead breaker bent too and doesn't work right now so we've generally just driven a truck up on the bead to break it down after pulling the core out.

 

[jekquistk5]

A friend of mine has a HF tire changer attached to a 2" square that goes in a receiver hitch and you have a portable, manual tire changer. Another friend tried a changer from TSC but the head to put tires on doesn't work well and we usually wind up using spoons with his. His bead breaker bent too and doesn't work right now so we've generally just driven a truck up on the bead to break it down after pulling the core out.

Depending on how big the tire is driving on them doesn't work. I tried when changing those tires in the pic. High lift was way easier.