[Closed] Tips for removing stubborn tyres?

We did this on another thread a few days ago

"tubeless woes"

Answer was.... Nothing... just get on with it.. some eventually got there, some had to smash the wheel to bits, some cut the tyre... LOL.

https://singletrackmag.com/forum/topic/tubeless-rant/

Lay the wheel on the ground, stand on the tyre wall with feet at twenty past eight, wearing stiff soled shoes. Stamp downwards as hard as you dare.......

It's not ideal is it!

Now i think about it.... I wonder if heating the rim/tyre with  hair dryer to soften/melt the glue would help here ?

Thanks.  I'd given up on the search function.

OP from the other thread here. In that case, the challenge was releasing the tyre bead from the rim - in the end, it took two of us: one twisting the tyre over to roll the bead, and the other wedging a sharp, plastic tyre lever down the gap and edging the bead off. Once started, it actually came away quite easily, but it would have been a bugger of a job for one person to do.

Nothing to add except to say those Bonty tyres are a ******** nightmare to get on and off.  Put some on a set of Flow EXs, took me hours.  Had to buy some motorbike tyre levers to get them off again!

How about using a solo clamp if you have one or can borrow one.

We did this on another thread a few days ago

“tubeless woes”

Answer was…. Nothing

Someone smart and handsome said to use a spade, but didn't elaborate.

Wheel flat on the floor, foot #1 pinching the tyre to the floor, put spade on tyre between foot#1 and the rim, as close as you can to the rim.  Weight the spade. The bead might pop off with shoulder weight, you might need foot #2 on the spade.

Works for motorcycle tyres, I've not yet had to go that far for mtb tyres.

I thought he was kidding about the spade..it seemed a bit excessive and more likely to damage the rim/tyre ?

"How to remove 650b plus sized tyres"

Blimey, I never imagined there would be any difficulty with Plus tyres!

Basically you need to get the bead unseated and into the well in the centre of the rim. Pulling it about with your hands can be more effective than tyre levers sometimes. If you're chucking the tyre out anyway you could probably just take a stanley knife to the tyre and work carefully up to the bead to avoid too much damage to the rim.

Nothing to add except to say those Bonty tyres are a ******** nightmare to get on and off.

What?! Proverbial piece of p, heels of both hands on one side of the rim with fingers on tyre just above opposite rim and squeeze sharply.

What?! Proverbial piece of p, heels of both hands on one side of the rim with fingers on tyre just above opposite rim and squeeze sharply.

...then look at the still-in-place tyre in surprise and press a bit harder with your thumbs. Then scratch your head, rub your aching thumbs and repeat. Then put the wheel on the floor, stand on the tyre and try to jerk the rim off the floor with both hands. Repeat with variations for 30 minutes then post this thread.

(i.e. just because your tyres come off nice and easily, doesn't mean that they all do)

I thought he was kidding about the spade..it seemed a bit excessive and more likely to damage the rim/tyre ?

He wasn't.  It's possible you might damage something if you're not careful.  If you think about it for a minute before you do it, eg, put a towel down between the rim and the floor, gently and carefully place and weight the spade rather than an overhead Hulk Smash, I can't see what can go wrong.  I doubt you'd bend the rim wall on the side against the toweled floor before the bead popped off.

Edit: And it's not excessive if the only other option is destructive!

probably worth checking your spade doesn't have any sharp burrs from stones. a towel/rag this side is probably a good idea if you're worried.

Start opposite the valve...?

We've four bikes with Bonty XR series tyres on, not had a problem with any of them. 45Nrth fat bike tyres, they're a different matter - they do need a bit of heft.

Just unzip them?

https://singletrackmag.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/wtf-just-what-we-all-need-zip-on-tyres/

Start opposite the valve…?

Always a good idea.  At least. not right next to the valve.  Same goes if you're spading your bead off.  missus.

I put the wheel on the ground vertically with the valve up.  Starting at the top I force the tyre from both sides down to the bottom.  It doesn't feel like it is creating any slack, but it works for me.  Pop the bead with just my fingers.

First time I had to pull off a tubeless tyre on the trail I broke all my levers.

A combination of all the above got the “basket” of a tyre off but no amount of washing up liquid was getting it back on.

As I may have to do this on the side of a mountain somewhere, and I will be running tubes for the foreseeable, I snipped through one side of the bead and it popped back on a treat.  Was this a bad idea, will I die?  It’s still tight just not 5mm to short tight.

I can't remove the tyres which came from my 2017 Longitude (wtb trailblazer 2.8s on scraper i35 rims) to set it up tubeless, even after watching the video of the guy standing on the tyre.

Not much use having an 'adventure bike' if you're too scared to go anywhere in case you get a puncture !

Be careful with some of those tips...I now have a tight tyre nicely seated in the rim but a massively buckled wheel...heads to the classifieds.

I once resorted to pouring very hot water on the tyre to soften it up then got as many tyre levers in as possible

if its breaking the bead that is the issue a vice might help.  Pinch the tyre in the vice as close to the rim as you can.

Leave some air in the tyre to break the bead if doing the standing on it / spade thing.   it keeps the tyre walls more parallel so all the force you put in goes into breaking the bead.  Its the only way I can get my fat bike tyres off.

Bubs - you cut one side of the bead?  That tyre will fail spectacularly Its the bead that holds it on the rim.  No way would I ride that unless I have misunderstood what yo have done