aalenkin

Hi Friends at Bike Forums, I am struggling with my 20" crappy tires on my folder, super super impossible to mount/dismount, Ive done the soap trick, multiple levers and its still a pain, any suggestions on a super easy 20" tire manufacturer I can use? I use my folder a lot, thus flats, etc etc.. Thanks!!

michaelnel

Funny, I can mount/dismount the crappy tires on my 20" wheels without using any tire levers, just my thumbs and fingers. However, whether a tire / rim combination will be easy to mount is pretty much dependent upon the particular tire / rim combination. I will say that the Dahon Rotolos with the stock Dahon 20" wheels and the Kinetix 20" wheels are a breeze to mount / dismount.

Not wanting to be insulting, but are you sure your technique is correct, ie: making sure you slightly inflate the tube (just enough to hold its shape) and making sure that you have the beads of the tire down into the well of the rim as far as possible while you work the tire on?

aalenkin

Thanks for the quick response! Yes I know about the tube, baby powder, bead etc... probably need to upgrade to a better tire, other than the ones you mentioned any others? Thanks again for the response! Seems like the tires I have on are just solid, no give/fold at all its like putting on a doughnut!!

AEO

if you step down on one side of the rim, preferably with the tire already mounted on that side, it will give some extra slack to slip over the tire on the opposite side.
also, rolling the tire on with both thumbs helps. Think of how you place your hands on the keyboard, now simply copy that over to the tire, and then roll your wrists, like you would turn a car key, but with both hands. The valve stem should be at 3' or 9' while doing this.

If they're still hard to mount, double check that you have the correct tire size and if possible use a narrower rim strip. Fat rim strips tend to make tires harder to mount, because they effectively increase the rim size.

fietsbob

I have little trouble with wider tires , the 406- 47. OK
349-37, a bit tougher, no bike with 451- 23, so no Info, to offer.

622- 23 are a bit tough too, so I expect a struggle,
but at least at 100+ psi , they wont blow off.

Foldable Two

I found Marathon Plus 1.35" tires to be "impossible" for me to get off my Bike Friday rims. Our current 1.35" Kojacks, on the other hand, are doable, mostly using the 'thumbs' method described above. I think the tire/rim combinations are key here, and there are obviously lots of them - some work, some don't.

I came to the conclusion that I didn't want to be out on the road with a flat tire and a patch kit, but no ability to get even one edge of the tire off the rim.

Haven't had the 'necessity' to see if I can get those Kenda 1.75" tires off the Pocket 8 rims yet.

Lou

fietsbob

I tend to set 3 tire levers, used simultaneously.

vmaniqui

not as bad on my speed tr. i have 20x1.35 kojaks. a bit of a stuggle so i usually will use 2 tire levers simultaneously.

Transformer

I've had great results with a single Qwik Stik on all my 16" & 20" tires with wire beads.

https://www.amazon.com/Quik-Stik-Tire.../dp/B000C128PC