CrimsonKarter21

Call me stupid, I don't care.
So I had Conti Comp 19's on my carbon tubulars for a while, and with less than 100 miles, I decided to take them off because I now have a massive influx of tubulars that are better suited to my kind of racing (i.e: Wider because the roads are pig**** here).
I want to save the Conti's, but the base tape has separated from the tire both times. I've used Continental's cement, and I guess I glued them really well because the base tape stuck with the rim.

Now I need to send these tires to the repair-man to get some new tape.

So what's the proper way?

Homebrew01

I use a big-ass screwdriver to pry them off. Start at a spoke hole because you can dig the tip under more easily there.

CrimsonKarter21

I used a tire lever and just dug in little by little underneath the base tape, but it still comes up.

carpediemracing 

+1 on the screwdriver, but I'd use a fine flathead/slot one first (i.e. kind of like a stiletto, slice down between the base tape and the rim). Literally cut through the old glue using the tip. I use a motion kind of like what a caveman might use to try and grind a groove into a rock or something.

Then when I get about 4-5" of base tape off like that, I get a slim but long screwdriver and stick it in through the opening between the base tape and tire, so now the tire is straddling the screwdriver.

Roll the screwdriver around the rim. After you get half of the tire off, you should be able to pull on the tire (grabbing it hard and not letting the base tape start to separate) and peel the rest of the tire off.

At least you're doing a good job gluing. Kudos on that.

cdr

CrimsonKarter21

Thanks! It was my first time, and I wasn't sure I did it right. I guess I now know.

Is this how you take off all tires, or just ones that you'll discard? I'm specifically looking for the best way to take off a tire, but still be able to use it again (if that's possible?)

KendallF

Maybe I'm the caveman, but I can usually get them off with no tools. I pinch the tire and roll it back and forth, loosening the glue until I can grab the edge of the base tape with my thumbs and push the tire upward. I repeat this until I have a 6-8" section loose, then I roll it off the rim. A bit of patience and the base tape stays attached.

CrimsonKarter21

I tried it, but my glue was too strong. I cook a lot, so my fingers have little cuts on them to begin with too.

EivlEvo

I use a plastic c-clamp (the quick lock kind) cuz my thumbs get all sore. This + a knife to cut the glue and a regular old tire lever to pry works well. I've also used a plastic paint scraper.

carpediemracing 

I remove all my good/remount tires like that. Good = usually moving to a different wheel, or rotating a front to a rear. Remount = "I thought it wasn't glued well enough but after 20 minutes of struggling to remove the tire I realized that I, in fact, glued it pretty well".

Tires I don't care about I do the first 4-5", get the screwdriver under, and roll until I can grab the tire with my fist. Then I just tug and pull until it's off. I don't care if I hear threads ripping (common) or base tape separating (also common). I just want the stupid thing off.

cdr

thefatguy

I've seen that happen several times on Conti's with the black base tape. Seems like a production issue to me.

MIN 

You'd be foolish to use a screwdriver on carbon tubulars.

jfmckenna

I wouldn't use a screw driver either. And if you ever train on those wheels your going to need to be able to change the tire in the field, this can even happen in certain races as well. You should be able to rip them off with your thumbs by rocking backwards and forwards till it loosens up.

wfrogge

Or just plain dumb

Homebrew01

True .... I'm an old school grunt.

If the tire holds air, I usually pump it up 1/2 way to get a better grip on it.

MIN 

stick a plastic lever in like so...



pry with the lever underneath the basetape until 15-20% of the tire is peeled off, then grab the tire and pull off the side. the first part is the hardest because that's when the tire is the tightest against the rim. once a portion of the tire is off the rim, there will be less pressure against the rim and you will fight only the adhesive power versus both the glue and the tension of the tire against the rim.

carpediemracing 

I use a screwdriver even on my carbon rims. Nothing else is sharp enough, except a knife. If I can put a tire lever between the tire and the base tape, I consider that glue job "not good for me".

I also never change a flat when training. Tubulars can be ridden home, and to me a flat tubular that is properly glued is much more secure than a tubular with air that is not glued well.

cdr

EivlEvo

If you don't care about the tire... just cut the tire and stick ur finger inside the tire and peel dat bish like a banana.

CrimsonKarter21

That wasn't my question.

EivlEvo

I answered ur question already. I was responding to another who was talking about ripping the tire off to discard it, to which I made my comment.

No need for rudeness. Everything isn't always about you.

thefatguy

For future reference- I always leave a 1" section directly across from the valve unglued. This gives you a good starting point should you need to remove the tire.

yak

A buddy of mine changed one on the road the other day. He carries a large common nail with the point pounded flat and ground smooth, so it's similar to a screwdriver but not quite as sharp. He pried it under till it was all the way through, then dragged it around the tire to pop it off. Worked like a champ.

jfmckenna

Are you serious? You don't even bring a spare with you? I've admired your wisdom on this forum for quite some time now but I gotta say thats nuts

I would not want to ride 50 miles on a flat tube. I've ridden plenty of miles on a spare, you just got to baby the corners. You know the method, glue up the spare and tri fold it into your saddle bag. No problems there.

That's a great idea

You know there is such a thing as gluing a tire on too good. For cyclocross I glue the sh1t out of them but for road I go a bit lighter.

carpediemracing 

Heh, thanks I think

I should clarify I never change a flat tubular. Clinchers I change because those are unrideable when flat. And I usually have a lot of stuff with me when I ride - my standard load in my small saddle bag is a multi tool with an 8mm, another multi with a chain tool (and I've installed a couple Campy 10s chains for friends, under duress, with said tool), a metal Ritchey lever/tool, tube, pump, and some misc things.

Flat tubulars though, I would have a hard time changing one on the road. I also can't stand mosquitoes, and they seem to like me a lot, so I try and keep my stationary time to a minimum. Changing a tubular on the road would be hard. For example, when I scrape a tubular off the rim with a screwdriver, I'm not smashing up the rim because I'm super careful about keeping the rim intact. But with a multi tool (and a screwdriver thing that would keep moving around) I would have a hard time not damaging the rim.

I've also seen guys roll tires, and I really don't want to roll a tire. Cornering on a flat tubular may not be great, but at least it's sort of predictable - you know it's going to suck. Ditto hitting potholes, sewer grates, etc. But with a tubular that you just put on, it's unpredictable. I changed a few tires but found it totally unpleasant riding home. I had a lot more fun time trialing on a flat tubular, and after I rode a few flats home even though I had a spare, I decided to skip the spare. I've ridden home on double flats too (I used to love flying along on dirt roads), and once I even rode home on a double clincher flat (that was unpleasant).

One of my teammates once flatted a tubular and then passed me at about 55 mph on a 1-1.5 mile descent not 1 or 2 miles later. I immediately sat up because I thought he was going to die. At the bottom I asked him why he did that on a freshly mounted, not glued tire (it was a used tire with glue on it). I started rolling the tire off to show him just how easily it would have come off. We went a lot slower on the way home (and we had about 60 miles to go). By the time we got home the tire was pretty good on the rim, but he reglued it anyway.

For all those various reasons, etc, I've decided I don't want to change a tubular on the road. Hence, if I train on tubulars, I try to pick out a route that's not too far from home (20-25 miles is my max tolerable riding distance on a flat, but that might mean a 60-80 mile loop). I also tend to be somewhat paranoid about changing iffy tires, I ride conservatively to avoid flats (I keep an eye up the road, bunny hop things, etc), so I figure I'm taking reasonable chances because my tires are in good shape and my riding habits seem to result in fewer flats than not.

I rarely train on tubulars though, not now anyway. I gave up training on them after I flatted most of them in my 2-3 year "burnt out on bikes" period in the late 90s where I fixed flats simply by finding a wheel with a good tire on it. Since I started with a number of flat tires on race wheels, I started running out of wheels after a few years (I think I had 5-6 pairs of wheels with tires on them left) and at some point I decided I better replace a $1 tube than to flat yet another $40 CX.

cdr

Road Fan

Perhaps I don't glue quite so well, but I can usually work loose a gap with my thumbs, some times using a sharp jacknife to slice the glue. In your case one could damage the fibers in the tire or possibly the rim(!!). I'd suggest step away from the knife. However, I haven't had any carbon rims, so I can't say for sure how serious it would be to cut some fibers in the tire bed area.

If you're gonna replace the basetape anyway, just get the tire off by pulling with your hands and deal with teh basetape as a separate issue. It should be easier to find the solution to that once you can see the problem better.

carpediemracing 

One final note, regarding basetape. The '84 US Olympic team decided not to use basetapes for certain events, I think the 100k TTT being the biggest one. I think that the basetape helps with the structural integrity of the tire, but apparently some folks didn't/don't think so. It's entirely possible to glue the tire on without a basetape. I've thought of doing something like that when I've accidentally taken the basetape off a good tire, but I never actually went through with it.

Also one of those tubular tire repair places can glue a new basetape on for you.

cdr