Tire Changing - Flat Fixing - for your sailboat trolley
pictures and text (ver:3b) by: Bill Schell (e-mail: bill@vikingasia.org)
(updated: late June 2005 - after almost 6 years)

this page has a lot of ...jpeg files but they are mostly small

In general tire changing should be a 5 minute or less episode - don't laugh - if you are 'good' and 'mechanically inclined' you CAN do it in 5 minutes!), - not the 30 to 45 minute, cussing & yelling & screaming, busted-knuckles & bloody shins job I've often witnessed at several regattas.

IF you can't do this in 10 minutes (assuming you have pretty strong hands) or 15 minutes (if you use tire-lever-tools & other tools extensively) then something's wrong with your technique, and that's something I HOPE VERY MUCH we can help with.

So - An introduction - a listing of terms, and then a few pictures & some more text.

In General though, here's the outline:

• deflate the tire & remove the valve-stem-core (with a small 'valve-stem' tool)
• remove tire's "bead" (edge) from the rim ("Breaking the bead")
• take out the tube and repair or replace the (inner) tube
• put the tube back into the tire and "pre-inflate" to set it's orientation
• put the tire's "bead" back on the rim and replace the valve-stem-core (use the tool!)
• inflate one last time, you're done!

  PS: _ you WILL get "dirty hands" - but - hey - it's a dirty job - someone's got to do it!

AND (if you're in a hurry and don't want the "big picture" and full-text, then: here's a "few" pictures and 'some' text as an intro:

NOTE: This section is the "Quick Start" section

if you want / need more detail or more pictures and text - then scroll down to the detailed section at the bottom of the web-page!

Picture 1.) Tools ----------------------------------------------------------

Required: top two (yellow/black) are "tire levers"
                AND: the next one down (black handle - silver end) is "tire valve-stem-core wrench"
                the picture to the right (below) is also a valve-stem-core-wrench
                       (there are LOTS of variations on the market).

Optional: The next three are a bar (this is a crow-bar but simply a piece of metal rod 3/8" (8mm) or 1/2" (12mm) or so in diameter and about 20" - 26" (500-700mm) long will do (as long as it doesn't have a sharp end on one end (this end will be inside the tire, and if sharp it could cut the tire or tube)).

The next item down is simply a spare axle - 1" (25mm) in diameter - about 10"(250mm) long would be great - this one is only about 7"(170mm) long.

The last item is a "dead-blow" hammer, any hammer will do - but you prefer one with a soft-face / rubber or plastic - so as not to destroy the rim when you miss the tire & hit the rim by mistake (which you will do).

picture 1a.) - ready, set, --- a good way to do tire changing without killing your back (you'll note that this bucket is upside down, and what you don't see is the lip or ridge on the bottom of the bucket catches the edge of the rim and makes a very serviceable "work-bench" tailored for tire-changing - you can do it without this up-side-down bucket but it is much easier with an up-side-down bucket

ORIENTATION: - make sure to 'orient' the tire/tube/rim to be at the top (like 12 o'clock position)

picture 2a.) Beginings: - first use the valve-stem-core-wrench to remove the valve-stem-core (left picture, above) (but don't let it fly out (because the air in the tube will want to make it disappear under the nearest hard-to-get-at-place!))

picture 2b.) Then "break the bead"; Removing the top "bead" from the rim (see above picture) - note use of tool and use of fingers of my left hand to push bead into "drop" part of rim to allow bead (on the left of the picture) to come out.

picture 5.) Removing the valve stem from the rim (it's hard to see, but I'm pushing the valve-stem out of the rim with my left thumb.

picture 6.) Removing the tube from the tire

picture 7.) the "Glueless Patch" From Park Tools Co. (a popular bicycle tools company) you can buy these at (almost all) bicycle shops - if you don't know how to fix a flat - you can "click here (not implemented-yet) " for a separate page on this little task.

picture 8.) Replacing the tube in the tire - simply the reverse of taking the tube out of the tire - (see picture 6)

picture 9.) Inserting the valve-stem in the rim - same here - just the reverse of taking it out (see picture 5) - but note that both hands are inside the tire - it probably takes at least both forefingers and middle fingers to grab the valve-stem and push it through the hole in the rim.

picture 10.) Pre-inflation - note we did NOT put the valve-stem-core back into the valve stem - we don't need that now - we're just going to inflate the tube to make sure it is seated well within the tire, has no wrinkles, and that the valve-stem is accuratley placed in the hole in the rim (again - at the '12-o'clock), so that it points directly at the axle, - if the valve-stem is crooked, now, it will eventually tear-out of the tube and you'll have another flat - so make sure you "do it right first time" here and you'll have a lasting repair.

picture 11.) Replacing the bead on the rim (notice bead pushed down into the centre (lower) part of the rim with my right hand (left picture), and my left fore- finger between the tire-rim & the bead (left picture)- this is the way gain the "angle advantage", so you can easily get the "bead" back on the rim.

Picture 12.) forcing the bead edge back onto the rim. This is probably the hardest step, especially for those with weaker hands.

However, again, the technique is your key to easy-success... ... ... ...

The part of the tire's bead that is at "6-o'clock" (remember our starting position) must be pushed down (towards the ground, so that it can slip into the "drop" part of the rim, to give the part of the bead that is outside the rim, at the 12 O'clock position room / space to get back on. Many people will require the tire-levers here. The key is to not try to do too much of the bead at one time - just a bit on the left, and a bit on the right - it might take two, four six, or more steps (on each side - make sure you do it evenly) at using the tire-lever to lever the bead back down onto the rim.

For a new rim and/or a new tire (more particularly) you might want to mix a bit of liquid dish-soap and a bit of water and swab this on the tire & rim so they are slipery against each other.

picture 13.) (final) inflation (put the valve-stem-core back into the valve-stem with the valve-stem-wrench) and "seating the bead" When you put the air into the tire the tire's bead should "pop" back up onto the shoulder of the rim. (sounds complicated but it's not, really) - and - again - it shouldn't take that long - and like a lot of other things in life it's the "technique" that's the key - not brute strength and not a whole lot of fancy or expensive tools...

also - as with MANY things "Practice Makes Perfect" _ practice when you're not in a hurry and/or when you have some 'spare-time' and it WILL BECOME EASIER - I promise...

and - LADIES: _ you CAN DO this - with small or weak hands - it's still very very possible - I've taught some ladies and they are experts now, - but it does take 'patience and practice' and you can be good at this too (and amaze your friends)...  

============ END of "Quick & Dirty" section for those eager to get started ====================
 

===========  DETAILED section with even more pictures and even more text ====================
1.) Introduction:

Definition of terms:

Just to make sure we are all talking the same language here - that will give us a good basis to communicate:

a.) tire - the outer-casing if you will - where the "rubber meets the road"
   tire - "bead" - this is the "inner-edge" of the tire - the part that actually fits into the edge of the rim
  

b.) rim - the round plastic "wheel" some people call it - that the tire mounts on (and typically has a 1" (or similar) hole for the axle)
  

c.) tube - the "inner-tube" - which - if you've got a "flat" is probably punctured or damaged in some other way
  

d.) valve-stem: the part of the tube that sticks through the rim - and has a place to inflate the tire with a valve (that means the little (tiny) gadget that holds in the air (see below)))
  

e.) valve-stem-core: the actual "valve" part - that meters the air in and out and then keeps the air in the tube (you hope).

A Note here:

many times you think you may have a "flat" in a tube - and go through this procedure of taking the tire off, taking the tube out and trying to find the leak - and there isn't one.  That's because tire-valve-stem-cores (the valve-part) is typically made of brass.  

AND we all know in / around salt water brass corrodes (like crazy sometimes!)

SO - before you go through all this effort to change the tire / see if the tube has a leak - (once you've bought your handy-dandy tire-valve-stem-core-wrench) - take out that valve-stem core and replace it with another (you can steal them out of old tubes for cars / trucks and the like), and/or if you're really desperate you can buy them at an auto-parts store (or some tire-changing places and/or service stations will gladly give you a few if you just ask them sweetly)

AND - last note, too, here - there are "shorties & longies" - just two different ways that they're made - don't be alarmed - either will work just fine, and your 'valve-stem-core-wrench' will fit both types the same way...

f.) tire-levers: - (see picture1 (above or another picture below) - these are the two yellow-black tools with a groove in the end - to aid in removing / replacing the tire on the rim

g.) valve-stem-core-wrench: - some people will call this a "valve-stem-wrench" - the word "core" just adds a bit of specificity - in the name; in the photo with all the tools - it's the small black-handled tool with a silver end, but here's a picture of a different type they all work just fine, and depending on where you live and where you buy yours, there are at least a dozen different types on the market.  I happen to have 4-5 different kinds - but they all work just fine - the larger the handle, usually the easier it is on your fingers / wrists...

h.) spare axle: - (this is optional) - and could be anything as mundane as a piece of 1" wooden broom  handle, and/or a real Seitech axle (1" diameter) - needs to be about 8"(200mm) to 10"(250mm) long or so.

i.) tire-bar (this is Bill's name - don't go ask to buy one of these - they'll probably look at you funny): - (this is optional) - and again - something strong - preferably steel or stainless steel - the optimum size is about 3/8"(8mm) or 1/2" (12mm) in diameter and about 15" (400mm) to 20" (500mm) long -however - metal is better because it's stronger & "slipperier" against the rubber tire.  You want a metal that is hard and shiny on the end - probably a stainless steel bar is good...

j.) soapy-water: - (this is also optional) - and not shown in any of the pictures...

 BUT - it may prove particularly helpful if you're installing new tires.   It's easy to prepare - usually use some liquid soap - about a teaspoon or so into about 8 ounces  of plain water - to apply it  a piece of paper - toweling and/or a small paintbrush and swish it around on the edge of the rim(wheel) and the edge of the tire - it makes life a LOT slipperier...!!!

What you'll probably have to BUY if you don't already have it:

Tire-levers:
Most bicycle shops and/or motorcycle shops will have these.   The ones you'll find at bicycle shops (like those yellow-black-ones in my pictures) came from a bicycle shop and are plastic - they'll bend a bit when you use them, but - again, proper technique should teach you how to not break them - if you break one -  no worry - they're cheap, but - again - technique says you shouldn't break them.   

At a motorcycle shop - you're more likely to get metal ones - and they're obviously stronger, longer, bigger - but can allow you to damage the "bead" of the tire so be careful with these.
  What you'll pay: - probably $3-$5(US)  for a set of plastic ones - perhaps as much as $10US)for a set of metal ones. These won't break the bank - remember you spent 100's of times that on your dinghy, huh?

Valve-Stem-Core-Wrench:
you might find these at bicycle and motorocycle shops - but you can also find them at any auto-parts-store - and perhaps places like K-Mart.  - price - probably  $1 - $3US.

Some philosophy:

There are several secrets to this business of tire-changing- and one of them is that of "angles & techniques".   Though many people who change tires on cars will use a "tire-changing-machine" you need not have anything so exotic.   Here's a small picture that shows me about to change a tire

- and there's several things to note:

 a.) notice I'm sitting, (not stooping or standing or trying to do this on a work-bench (though that can be done)) - in a typical boat-parking lot you won't have a lot of options, but you should be able to find a place to sit AND note the plastic bucket.  This is one of the best things you can do to help yourself for several reasons.

1.) it puts the tire up at chest level - to make it more convenient - so you don't have to bend at the waist, and get a back problem and feed the chiropractor's bank account.

2.) there's a tiny lip on the bottom of the bucket which "catches" the tire-rim and prevents it from sliding all over the place. This holding the tire/rim in one place greatly adds to your appearance as an expert and will greatly enhance your status in the local sailing crowd. (If it doesn't you can buy them a steak dinner!)

3.) you can wrap your legs around the bucket (and then along with the rim of the bucket to the tire-rim connection) this allows a lot of force to be generated, and there are times when you'll need a LOT of force - especially mounting new tires on new rims.

  b.) notice that the rim is sitting on the bucket with the tire-valve-stem sticking out on the TOP side of the rim (the one you can see - not the side next to the bucket; may be hard to see - but trust me!) - AND - (again trust-me the picture isn't very clear) as you sit and look at the tire/rim you can imagine a clock-face on the rim - the position of the valve stem in the rim could be called 12-O'clock with 6-O'clock closer to your belly) - This is so you can get to the valve-stem to remove / replace the core easier - and ALL work should be able to be done from this side. (valve stem "up" and at the 12-O'clock position) - don't deviate here - this will make life a LOT easier for you!

First step: Removing the valve-stem to deflate the tire

First step is to remove the "valve-stem-core" with the "valve-stem-core-wrench" - it just unscrews - but warning - if the tube is full of air- the valve-stem-core will want to shoot-out to the next county as you un-screw it - since the air's going to escape as you remove it - so be careful, otherwise you may have to go for a swim to find the valve-stem...

MANY of the most 'expert' tire-changers will carry-around a bunch of 'extras' - because - believe you me, Mr. Murphy's law will surely intervene here - and you WILL LOSE some of these valve-stems... - so keep some spares around if you can...

Now that the valve-stem-core is out - the tube should be deflated, but we now have to 'break the bead' - don't worry - that's just a term - you're not actually going to "destroy" anything.

Second step: Breaking the bead (loosen the bead of the tire from the rim(wheel)

There are several options to do this - in order of increasing "force" and depending on how hard the bead was "set" and how long the tire's been on the rim and inflated.

Step three: - remove the top "bead" (completely) from the rim so you can remove the tube from inside the tire

This is probably the hardest step (technique wise) for most people - but it's the key-technique step.

couple of things to think about before you start:

   a.) you KNOW that the tire's bead is not comming off that rim the way it sits right now- you need the advantage of an angle of approach.

   b.) so - a little lesson on how rims are made - once you get the bead broken, you can see this - but if you've never seen a rim without a tire - here's a picture:

  c.) notice that the "centre" of the rim is smaller in diameter than the edges where the "bead" of the tire sits.  This - reduced diameter centre is the key to your success.

  SO - now - at the six-O'clock position, use your left hand to push the tire down (towards the ground) and with your right hand insert the tire-tool (at the 12 O'clock position) with the grooved edge towards the bead of the tire & lever it back towards you to bring the bead onto the top of the rim.

This is possible - because the edge of the tire at the 6 O'clock position (my left hand in the picture below) is now down in the middle of the rim - giving you the space to take the tire off the rim at the 12 O'clock (where my right hand and the tire-lever are) position.

Once you have one tire-tool in and have levered the tire's bead up on the top of the rim - use the second tire tool on the left or right of that to get more of the bead up on top.   It should be fairly easy to work your way around the tire - and get the whole bead up onto the top of the rim. Technique, again, here, though, - don't try to "bite off more than you can chew". It takes several small steps rather than one or two large ones. IF you are careful & alert - you'll look sideways at the rim/tire and note there's a tiny hole in the gap there - just the sort of place you can put your tire tool in - with some degree of force, and lever that bit of the tire's bead up-on-top-of the rim. Then do the other side a bit, and back to the first side.

BUT - if you're not strong enough and/or the tire's sizing is particularly tight - there's an "alternative methodology" - and this is where the spare axle (or something similar) and/ the lever-bar (3/8" or 1/2" rod) will help -

"A picture really is worth a thousand words here" -

and so see this image to show you how to use these tools to give you some mechanical advantage to get the bead out of the rim. You'll need the tire-tool to get the first "bit" of the tire's bead on top of the rim. Then use the spare axle and the tire-bar to roll the tire-bead up on-top-of the rim. Note where I've put the middle & ring fingers of my left hand in the "spokes" of the rim. This gives me the leverage to pull the bar against the fulcrum of the axle and pull the tire-bead up on-top-of the rim.

pushing the valve stem out of the rim - (same as "picture 5" from the "intro / Quick-Start" section)

Now - that the bead is completely free of the rim (on the top side (towards you)) you can remove the valve-stem from the rim (see picture above) - just push it back into the tire with your thumb(s).

Step 6.) Removing the tube from the tire:

   now - just pull the tube out of the tire. - and - if you're replacing the tube - skip to item 8, if you need to fix this tube - go to the next section

Step 7.) fixing the flat tube:

IF you have a "flat" there's several possible reasons, some fixable some not.   Frequently with tires/tubes/rims on boat-trolleys the tire casing & been rotated relative to the rim - and when this happens it frequently stretches or tears the valve-stem out of the tube.  If this has happened - take my word for it - replace the tube - fixing this is near impossible.

IF you have a "flat" (a puncture in the tube) you can put some air in the tube, and imerse it in some water and you'll see bubbles (if you're around boats there should be plenty of water!). Once you find the hole mark it with a red or yellow kids-crayon or you can buy tire-marking crayons at the auto-parts store.

There's a lot of different methods to do this - but my all-time-favourite is the "Glueless Patch"

from "Park Tools"(a well respected maker of bicycle repair tools and supply- things. - and you should be able to find these at any fairly reputable bicycle shop for about $5 US or less (for about 5-8 patches I think)

To make the repair you should:

    a.) sand-paper the area around the hole when the tube is DRY

    b.) wipe the area that you've sandpapered with Alcohol, Acrylic Lacquer Thinner, Acetone or something similar that will NOT leave a 'residue' or a 'film' -

    c.) apply the glueless patch and hold it  for a few minutes.

then your tube should be "good as new" -

OR - if you're going to replace the tube - the just  put a new one in -
 

Step 8.) Replacing the tube in the tire:

You will probably want to remove the valve-stem-core with your valve-stem-wrench, before you put the tube back into the tire. - Just push the tube into the tire-casing, remebering that the stem should be at the 12 O'clock position.

Step 9.) Inserting the valve-stem in the rim:

This is just the reverse of removing the valve-stem from the rim - you'll have to reach inside the tire with both fore-fingers (typically) and then find the valve-stem and push it through the hole in the rim.    Remember, too, here - the "12 O'clock" issue (but note in this picture it was taken "from" the 12 O'clock position - so it's reversed...- and the valve stem should not be crooked in it's hole - it should point directly at the axle.
 

Step 10.) Pre-inflation: Note, here, that the tire's bead is not inserted into edge of the rim - because we want the top edge / bead of the tire to rise-up above the edge of the rim when the tube inflates.  This makes sure that everything is seated properly. Seated means that we want to make sure everything is properly lined up & there are no wrinkles in the tube before we "close it up" and put the tire back on the rim. This may sound a bit odd - but what we're going to do now is to put some air in the tube without the valve-stem-core in it - this has several purposes:

  a.) it "seats" the tube "circumferentially" that is - around the rim - to make sure that when we finish the valve-stem is pointing towards the axle and not "off centre"

  b.) it makes sure that there are no wrinkles in the tube where it sits inside the rim & the tire (and if you're using an old tube you may want to dust it with some talcum powder to make sure it slips & slides inside the rim / tire to position itself correctly.

  c.) it allows the tube (when it then deflates to position itself away from the area of the rim & tire-bead so that when re-installing the bead in the rim you have less chance of "pinching" the tube and creating a new hole in it.
 
 

Step 11.) Replacing the bead on the rim:

Like removing the bead to begin - with - this is one of the key "technique" areas.  AND - again - it's vital that the tire - at the  6 O'clock position is forced down into the "smaller-diameter-centre" of the rim to give you room to fit the tire back onto the rim at the 12 O'clock position.

IF you've got fairly strong hands - they may be all the tool you need.  Once you're holding the tire into the rim-centre at the 6 O'clock position you may be able to use your hands to just push the tire-bead back onto the rim - doing each side equally (4 O'clock then 8 O'clock, then 10 O'clock & then 2 O'clock  - Sometimes when you get to this point it will be really hard - so there's a couple of different options, again:

   a.) use a tire lever to lever the last bit back onto the rim - but - be careful here: - You want the groove of the tire-lever to stick under the edge of the tire-bead and grip the rim - then lever the tire over onto the bottom of the bead

   b.) if you are having a lot of trouble - especially with a new tire - try some soapy water 
 

Step 12.) Replacing the valve-stem-core: - simply screw the valve-core back into the valve stem. 

Step 13.) Inflation & "seating the bead (reverse of "breaking the bead"):

This sounds exotic, but it's just a question of putting some air in the tube.  At some point the air inflating the tube will (at least theoretically) pop the bead up onto the shoulder of the rim and it will "look right".  The easisest way to guarantee tha the bead is correctly seated, is to look for a small raised rib on the tire-casing right near where it sits on the rim.   When the distance between the rim edge and this small raised rib on the tire-casing is constant all the way around the rim-tire, then the bead is properly "seated". I tried several ways to take a picture of this point - but everything's black - I'll try some other techniques and update you later.

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So - now you're done - time to go sailing: - However - a couple of WARNINGS: - If you have a pretty white, beautiful, new & expensive spinnaker (to say nothing of your other sails) you'll PROBABLY want to Wash your hands FIRST before you get dirty fingerprints all over everything!!! -

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Good Luck - and let me know if you like the page - was it helpful, too many words? not enough pictures? couldn't understand the words ? want more whatever - let me know -valid criticisms & complaints always welcomed - AND/OR maybe I'll see you sailing someday! - I sail in Hong Kong, Sydney, Florida, and various points in between!

Hope this was Helpful - Sincerely yours, Bill Schell