Gonna attempt my first home tire change this weekend. This is a tubed tire. Couple questions before I get started on it:

1) I was thinking if I can use a c-clamp to break the beads.
2) Once I put the new tube and tire in place, can I use a small air compressor (like the ones used for emergency airing up of tire) to air up or do I have to use a compressor with more force so that the beads seal? Again, note this is a tubed type tire.

Also, will welcome any other tips.

EDIT: My first tire change turned out to be disaster. Wrestled to take the tire out and put it back in for almost 4 hours on both tires. Things I did:
1) Pry the old tire off using two tire irons.
2) Put one side of new tire in. Inflate tube enough where it is round yet flexible and stuffed it into the tire. Had to fish the valve stem through the hole.
3) Wrestled hard to put the other side of tire under the rim. I did not want to use the tools that much in fear of busting the tube.
4) Alas...when I went to air up the tire, all air escapes from where the rim meets the tire right above the vavle stem. And it does that on both tires !!!!
I must have ripped out the valve stem somehow, but no clue how. I had my nephew help and he was using the round end of a wrench to hold the tire in while doing #3 above. And I cannot remember if he had the wrench over in the area where the valve stem was. I do not have the energy to take the tires off again to check. And I got no stinking tubes anymore. With my luck going the way it is, I might have to ship couple more tubes overnight....end rant...

A C-clamp works for me, the 5" kind.

In a tube-type tire, the tube contains the air, so the tire doesn't really seal to the rim. What is important is that you put enough air in so that the bead pops out to its proper location on the rim. Around 40 psi works for me.

I always preferred the 2x4 contraption for breaking beads on the cheap:

http://www.webbikeworld.com/t2/bead-breaker/motorcycle-tire-bead-breaker.htm

I modified mine a little by mounting the short piece to the long piece with a standard hinge (I had issues with too few hands a couple of times), and ran another 2x4 between the open studs in my garage instead of using a car.  Makes FAST work of popping even the Most stubborn beads.  But, with a tube tire, you may be able to just stand on the tire and break the bead free.

And yes, you can absolutely use the small/portable air compressor for tube tires.  Heck, my "emergency" air for my KLR is simply a hand pump commonly used on bicycles.   


A few things ~ when you have the old tire and tube off the rim, clean it and apply lube to the inside surfaces, it'll help the bead seat.  Also apply lube on the Inside of the tire (the part that you'll be forcing over the rim with tire irons), it'll make the tire slide on easier.  Inflate your new tube with just enough air to make it not completely flat/limp/wobbly ~ makes it slightly less-prone to pinching with the irons.  And finally, coat the tube with baby powder, corn starch or something similar.  It'll help the tube not wear as quickly as it moves naturally inside the tire. 

Fun stuff, I've been changing my own tires for over a decade and wouldn't have it any other way.  Of course, I own a NoMar now and hate that I waited so long to buy one. 

Thank you guys. That is the kind of tips I was looking for. Got new tire, tube and rim strip. So should be good to go. I might make a tire changer similar to the one you linked.

Updated topic....

How much air did you attempt to put in the tire before giving up?  Since the tube is not fully inflated when you mount the new tire, there is a lot of extra air inside the tire, but outside the tube, that will need to escape as the tube expands.  Does that make sense?  So having some air "leak" out of the tire the first time it's inflated is normal in a tubed tire.

hmm! let me try that out!!

At lunch time, I took the tire to a local shop and tried to air them up. It does not appear to be holding any air - it keeps leaking air from around the rim just above the valve stem. So I think I did a number on the tubes. I dropped them off at the local honda shop to put new tubes and air them up.

At lunch time, I took the tire to a local shop and tried to air them up. It does not appear to be holding any air - it keeps leaking air from around the rim just above the valve stem. So I think I did a number on the tubes. I dropped them off at the local honda shop to put new tubes and air them up.

Thats how the tubes get worked on my bike too brutha 

After the honda shop got done, they showed that the front tube had a pin head size hole - seems factory defect. But the rear tube we pinched it pretty good when trying to put the tires over. What took me like 3 hours to take off and put on, took them only about half hour.