Mounting tires on rims

[oldjeep]

UPS guy showed up with my replacement trailer tire today, so I grabbed the 5 gallon pail, a long screwdriver and some WD40. Neighbor stops by and is bewildered that I'm actually putting a tire on a rim by myself. Showed him how easy it is to do by setting the rim on the bucket, spraying the beads with the wd40, set the tire on the rim at an angle and jump on it a couple times until it is started then just walk around the tire until the inner bead is on. Repeat with the outer bead and use the screwdriver to pop the last of the bead on. Minute or so on the air compressor and its all done.

Is this really that odd? Can't imagine paying someone $15 for something that I can do in 10 minutes.

 

[redone4x4]

Re: Mounting tires on rims

when i was growing up my dad had a bead breaker and we broke n mounted all our own tires. nowadays though, Discount tires by my house does it for free so thats pretty hard to beat. they only charge if you get them balanced. The smaller the tire, the harder it is to do by yourself though.

 

[bruceb58]

Re: Mounting tires on rims

How are you planning on balancing them?

 

[oldjeep]

Re: Mounting tires on rims

How are you planning on balancing them?

I've never balanced a trailer tire - ever, and of the dozen or so trailers I've bought I've never seen one with wheel weights.

The 35" mud tires that I mounted for my jeep use ceramic beads on the inside of the tire - dynamic is about the only way you can keep tires that big balanced.

 

[bruceb58]

Re: Mounting tires on rims

Always balanced mine and have heard the same recommendations from most others. Never had a wear problem or a vibration problem?

 

[redone4x4]

Re: Mounting tires on rims

ive had balanced and not balanced on trailer tires. I do balanced now if i have the time, but i never really noticed a difference. Most tire stores tell you they dont balance trailer tires usually, unless they are trying to make the upsell.

 

[oldjeep]

Re: Mounting tires on rims

Always balanced mine and have heard the same recommendations from most others. Never had a wear problem or a vibration problem?

Nope, and I put about 15K a year on my car trailer and at least 4K a year on my boat trailer. Ever seen a mounted trailer tire for sale that had been balanced?

The boat trailer tire I blew on the way down to lake of the Ozarks last year is only the second tire I've ever lost. The first was on a car trailer - reason unknown, the boat trailer tire was due to a carriage bolt that somehow wound up in the tire

 

[seaboo]

Re: Mounting tires on rims

I balance mine (but I have assess to a shop with a tire machine and balancer so for my labor, I do it for free). I can say on a small trailer (jet ski) with 8" tires on a 300 mile trips it does make a marked difference in ride. I figure it is the same for larger trailers (although I can't say as I've noticed it as drastically....Guess the weight helps).

Anyway, I have mounted tires the "old school way (and would if I didn't have access to someones shop and equipment). I hand mount (and static balance) my motorcycle tires.

 

[Silvertip]

Re: Mounting tires on rims

OK -- a trailer tire is rubber and round. Just like a car/truck tire. The axle it is mounted on serves the same purpose as the axle on a car or truck. Small tires rotate much faster than large ones. Larger tires rotate about the same speed as those on a car. So my question to you folks that don't balance trailer wheels is "why not". What's different about the application other than most trailers don't have shock absorbers. That, by the way, makes balancing even more important if that was the reasoning you were going to use.

 

[windsors03cobra]

Re: Mounting tires on rims

I always used ether to seat the beads.

Some people dont do anything for themselves, the lack of common sense I see in some folks is downright shameful. Most are young folks and I hope they learn some things as they mature.
I don't think people are as handy and as resourceful as they once were, probably part of they throwaway mentality.

 

[Rudi2]

Re: Mounting tires on rims

I always used ether to seat the beads. .

Yep, me too, when needed. Always get a kick out showing that trick to someone for the first time --- they always think you're trying to blow them up ;-).

 

[oldjeep]

Re: Mounting tires on rims

No reasoning, just never heard of anyone balancing a trailer tire before. Can't say as I've ever had any behavior out of a trailer that would make me think I should balance one.

 

[Viking...]

Re: Mounting tires on rims

I've always thought that if we actually had to ride in the trailer, we'd probably get the tires balanced right quick.
Since we don't notice the vibration from imbalanced tires on the trailer, I guess that's the reason most of us don't bother.

Oldjeep, you actually use those "snake oil" beads in your tires?

 

[oldjeep]

Re: Mounting tires on rims

I've always thought that if we actually had to ride in the trailer, we'd probably get the tires balanced right quick.
Since we don't notice the vibration from imbalanced tires on the trailer, I guess that's the reason most of us don't bother.

Oldjeep, you actually use those "snake oil" beads in your tires?

Snake oil? LOL, they work the same way that Equal works in semi tires

http://www.innovativebalancing.com/

They are about the only thing that will keep my 35" tires balanced.
Pretty common among offroaders to use bb's or airsoft pellets as well. Pretty much anything that doesn't clump can be used to dynamically balance a wheel.

 

[a70eliminator]

Re: Mounting tires on rims

Mounting a tire by hand is a heck of alot easier than dismounting the old one.
If I can't break the bead I just run it over with my truck, works every time, just have to watch that it doesn't tiddly wink up and damage a fender.

 

[Viking...]

Re: Mounting tires on rims

Ugh, dyna beads again.

I was excited to discover their product for my motorcycle.
Long story short, they've been debunked by actual testing, after tire manufacturer's refused to honor warranty claims when the beads are used.
The manufacturer of my motorcycle also voids the tire pressure monitoring system warranty if you use them.
Although I'm still skeptical that they do any harm, the testing was quite conclusive that they don't actually work as claimed.

Regardless of all that, if they work for you, great.
I was disappointed, but won't risk warranty issues.

 

[oldjeep]

Re: Mounting tires on rims

Mounting a tire by hand is a heck of alot easier than dismounting the old one.
If I can't break the bead I just run it over with my truck, works every time, just have to watch that it doesn't tiddly wink up and damage a fender.

I usually use a hi-lift jack to break the beads. If the tire is junk I just use a carpet knife to cut around both sidewalls leaving only the bead section to remove. Makes it a bunch easier to remove, but still much harder than mounting.

As for the dyna beads, the only thing I've ever used them in is big tires - about 8oz of beads per tire. I could certainly understand them causing TPMS issues, and I don't have any idea how effective they would be in little tires.

 

[azwarner]

Re: Mounting tires on rims

OK -- a trailer tire is rubber and round. Just like a car/truck tire. The axle it is mounted on serves the same purpose as the axle on a car or truck. Small tires rotate much faster than large ones. Larger tires rotate about the same speed as those on a car. So my question to you folks that don't balance trailer wheels is "why not". What's different about the application other than most trailers don't have shock absorbers. That, by the way, makes balancing even more important if that was the reasoning you were going to use.

Smaller diameter tires are typically less critical to balance than the larger tires because any out-of-balance issues are so much closer to the hub

 

[90stingray]

Re: Mounting tires on rims

On the aircraft I work on, we only balance the nose wheels since there is side to side movement. The main wheels... no balance. I have pulled car trailers with balanced wheels and without. I do not notice a difference. I usually have the shop i bought the tires from mount the tires... since the mount them for free when you buy the tires there. I also do not like the weights on my wheels... they usually cause corrosion on the aluminum rims. And that makes them look poor. So i will continue to not balance my trailer wheels.

Dang... old thread. Sorry guys

 

[bruceb58]

Re: Mounting tires on rims

2 year old thread