10-21-2024, 05:49 PM
DIY or take them to a shop?
My mechanical skills are only as good as youtube videos, service manuals and forum input. I've probably changed tires 5-6 tires on dual purpose bikes. Tried one street bike tire change and gave up after 10 minutes of trying to break the bead. And I didn't want to mess up the rims with tire irons.
But with all three motorcycles needing tire changes and two of them street bikes, local shops wanting $100 per wheel if on the bike / $75 off, I decided to try out the Rabaconda Stree Tire Changer.
[url=https://us.rabaconda.com/]https://us.rabaconda.com/
Not making a video as there are plenty, a few:
Street bike with tubes: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r0_FTR8nk0I
Goldwing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a_NqbdvRRKQ
Harley: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HKLhvaZNHgg
It's pricey at $650. But my justification was $150-200 per bike, that's $300-400 for my street bikes. Next time around, the machine pays for itself and I can loan it out to friends or have it available for long-distance travellers who want to visit.
HUGE selling point: it's very portable, comes with a carrying case and weighs 36lbs.
Nice all the videos, but would I be able to do it? Would I be able to get the wheels off the bike, new tires mounted / balanced, and back on and not fudge things up?
I watched about 7 videos, read online comments and read the manual. Last night, got the W800 rear wheel off and I was done. Tonight, got all my notes together and went at it.
Took my time, got the stand set-up, looked things over, rewatched videos...and started. Took me a few minutes to realize just how to go about it, but broke the bead and had the tire off in just a few minutes of actual work time.
Getting the old one off
![[Image: 6ef8219e4ae48710c785c7ad026c4bc2.jpg]](https://cb1100forum.net/forum/uploads/imp/202410/6ef8219e4ae48710c785c7ad026c4bc2.jpg)
Literally, just minutes
![[Image: 6b1a435f8bfd971209d6e0154e4d775a.jpg]](https://cb1100forum.net/forum/uploads/imp/202410/6b1a435f8bfd971209d6e0154e4d775a.jpg)
And then on with the new. This took more time as the mechanism that does the heavy work slipped off a few times and I had to start over, but still...less than 20 minutes and it was on:
![[Image: 5e8ff08dc48f772c14683971be74ed6e.jpg]](https://cb1100forum.net/forum/uploads/imp/202410/5e8ff08dc48f772c14683971be74ed6e.jpg)
This is what moves the beads over the rim as you ratchet with the long lever
![[Image: 9684eb083aced8a8335026e105dfe0e8.jpg?1]](https://cb1100forum.net/forum/uploads/imp/202410/9684eb083aced8a8335026e105dfe0e8.jpg?1)
Zero scratched rims.
The W800 has tubes and it wasn't really that difficult to work with. I guess we'll see tomorrow if it holds air. Still need to balance the tire and get it back on the bike, but the Rabaconda works...very well! The W's front tire still has some life, but next up will be the Honda CB1100 rear.
In short, it works as advertised. If you read the manual, watch some videos and take your time, it's totally do-able w/out much frustration.
My mechanical skills are only as good as youtube videos, service manuals and forum input. I've probably changed tires 5-6 tires on dual purpose bikes. Tried one street bike tire change and gave up after 10 minutes of trying to break the bead. And I didn't want to mess up the rims with tire irons.
But with all three motorcycles needing tire changes and two of them street bikes, local shops wanting $100 per wheel if on the bike / $75 off, I decided to try out the Rabaconda Stree Tire Changer.
[url=https://us.rabaconda.com/]https://us.rabaconda.com/
Not making a video as there are plenty, a few:
Street bike with tubes: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r0_FTR8nk0I
Goldwing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a_NqbdvRRKQ
Harley: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HKLhvaZNHgg
It's pricey at $650. But my justification was $150-200 per bike, that's $300-400 for my street bikes. Next time around, the machine pays for itself and I can loan it out to friends or have it available for long-distance travellers who want to visit.
HUGE selling point: it's very portable, comes with a carrying case and weighs 36lbs.
Nice all the videos, but would I be able to do it? Would I be able to get the wheels off the bike, new tires mounted / balanced, and back on and not fudge things up?
I watched about 7 videos, read online comments and read the manual. Last night, got the W800 rear wheel off and I was done. Tonight, got all my notes together and went at it.
Took my time, got the stand set-up, looked things over, rewatched videos...and started. Took me a few minutes to realize just how to go about it, but broke the bead and had the tire off in just a few minutes of actual work time.
Getting the old one off
Literally, just minutes
And then on with the new. This took more time as the mechanism that does the heavy work slipped off a few times and I had to start over, but still...less than 20 minutes and it was on:
This is what moves the beads over the rim as you ratchet with the long lever
Zero scratched rims.
The W800 has tubes and it wasn't really that difficult to work with. I guess we'll see tomorrow if it holds air. Still need to balance the tire and get it back on the bike, but the Rabaconda works...very well! The W's front tire still has some life, but next up will be the Honda CB1100 rear.
In short, it works as advertised. If you read the manual, watch some videos and take your time, it's totally do-able w/out much frustration.