RD400 - changing tires

[Hawaii-Mike]

I think I am pretty good at changing tires.  Just replaced the tires on my H2 with Lester mags.  Both done with no pinched tubes. 

My new technique is to put Armor All on the beads of the tires.  The beads slide on easier, I make sure not to let the Armor All get on the tread.

RD400's - I have always had problems with these rims.  Front tire - changed it, held air overnight.  In the morning it was flat.  I removed the tube and it had started leaking in the area of where the valve is located.  Removed the tube, installed another and the second time it was good.

Last night I installed a tire and tube on the rear rim.  I inflated and deflated it several times, let it sit overnight and woke up to a flat tire. 

My friend told me about the Baja No Pinch Tire Tool.  It costs about $200 including the adaptor to fit the axles on our older bikes.  That's a lot but I have a lot of tire changing to do in the near future so I sprung for it.

Anyone have thoughts to share about the Baja No Pinch Tire Toll or just changing tires on RD400 rims?

[Striker1423]

Learned this from a local MC mechanic at a dealer.

1. Clean away rust and or corrosion on bead.
2. Install correct rim strip. Mag wheels check for any rough areas or burrs and smooth them.
3. Mount first tire bead (balance dot aligned to filler hole), stuff tube in straight as possible and install nut to secure tube.
4. Soak tube and tire bead up with dish soap and water.
5. Partially inflate tube until it is just round.
6. Spoon second bead on and keep soaping everything up.
7. Enjoy without needing to replace popped tube.

Easy really, the tube slips past the spoon as its barely inflated and soaped up a bit. The tube simply can't sneak into the gap between the rim and tire.

[m in sc]

soapy water is my go to as well whenever i get stuck doing it, which is rare these days.

[rodneya]

I usually coat the tube and inside ir the tire with baby powder and put some air in it. warm the tire up if its cold. Then use motion pro spoons to pop the tire on. The last few inched I just use a dead blow hammer.
I used to have a set of tire irons with squarish ends that pinched a tube every time.

[DesmoDrew]

I have a Baja No Pinch.  Very cool.  Using it this weekend to change (and charge for) a tube on a vintage BMW. But to be honest, never pinched a tube since switching to these   https://www.motionpro.com/product/08-0409

[Kawtriplefreak]

I hate it and I am getting too damn old to wallow around on the concrete so I carry the wheel, a new tire and tube to the local bike shop. I pay them $35 and a $5 tip to the guy who does the work.

[85RZwade]

Been changing tires for 40 years and I learned a thing or two just now. Thanks for the input! Warm tires and soapy water have always been my big musts.

[Hawaii-Mike]

I remember this article: https://www.randakksblog.com/easy-method-to-ruin-your-wheels/

Maybe RD400 rims are okay with soapy water. I wouldn't take a chance with. Akronts.

[DesmoDrew]

This stuff     https://www.nomartirechanger.com/sp-lube-pint.html

[Striker1423]

I should add at the dealers they use actual tire lube. Not dish soap. But, for the home-gamer its a good thing to know.

[1976RD400C]

OK, now that the tire is on, how do you get it to bead up and be perfectly concentric? I've spent some time on that one.

[DesmoDrew]

   With good tires, a properly cleaned and prepared rim, and proper tire lube, I've had them pop on with as little as 12 psi.  I always have to add air after the beads pop. I've never had to overfill them and then bleed air off to get to the pressure I was planning on running.  For old grodie dirtbike rims, I use a soft wire wheel chucked up in a drill and clean the tire seating area of the rim.

[pdxjim]

EDIT:  Just watched a how to YouTube vid on the Baja No-pinch Tool.   Looks really cool and probably well worth the $ if you change a lot of tires.



You haven't struggled with motorcycle tire mounting until you've mounted up bib mousses in your dirtbike tires.

Imagine mounting tires with the tubes at 20psi, coz that's exactly what its like.

I was paying the local tire guys $50 per mousse until I sprung for the right tools.  A Rabaconda Tire Changer, Murphy's Tire Soap and at least five heavy duty curved spoons make things so much easier.  Now the tubed and tubless streetbike tires go on with zero effort.

Expensive, yes.  Tusk makes a knockoff version of the Rabaconda that works great at half the price.  The soap is cheap at your local (good) auto parts store.  Motion Pro makes great spoons too.







For streebike tires, you can skip the Rabaconda, and just get a Motion Pro Bead Buddy.  As many of you know, the secret to mounting tires is getting (and keeping) the offside bead down in the rim recess, giving you the room to get the last bit of the bead over the rim.  C-clamps and carpenter's bar clamps work ok for this too.

[Hawaii-Mike]

I had to look it up and see what a bib mousse is.  I wonder if a bib mousse would work on a street bike?

[pdxjim]

I had to look it up and see what a bib mousse is.  I wonder if a bib mousse would work on a street bike?

Michelin Rally Mousse works on the street, but in general, nope.

In most cases, the friction between the mousse and tire creates too much heat on the street causing the mousse to melt.

I run Tubliss Nitro Mousse on my plated KTM 300xcw.  I occaisionally ride it on the street and hiway etc with no problems, but it's a real light bike and the tires stay pretty cool.

The key with mousses is to lube the sh!t out of the mousse and inside of the tire so it can squish around an not generate friction/heat.  I use a few big handfuls of Murphy's inside each tire and all over the mousses.

Waste of time on a streetbike anyway as the real benefit of running foam tubes is you never have to worry about flats.  This is a big deal on a woods bike as they work way better with real low tire pressure (like 6-12psi).  Low tire pressure with a typical tube leaves you vulnerable to pinch flats when you hit a rock or root, and a flat tire a long way from home can really put a damper on the fun.