(swoosh sound)
- Now for most cyclists out there,
it's going to come to a point
when it's time to replace the tire on your bike.
Perhaps it's got a big cut in it
and something which is not that safe to ride on
or maybe you've actually just worn it out.
Either way, for some people it is quite a daunting process.
Perhaps it's your first time attempting it
or maybe you're just a little bit unsure.
So today, lets look at how to do it nice and easy.
(soft elevator music)
Now you are gonna need a couple of tools for the job.
So firstly, you are gonna need some tire levers,
so that's to be able to remove the tire from the wheel
and also a pump to be able to get it inflated
back up to a decent pressure
and maybe, just maybe, a spanner,
depending on what type of wheels you have.
So first off, you're actually going to have to remove
the wheel in which the tire you're replacing
from the bicycle and now if you've got
a quick-release skewer, it's nice and simple,
just undo that lever and remove the wheel from the bike.
If you've got nuts on the axle,
then simply use the spanner to release one nut at a time
so you can take that wheel out.
Once it's out, it's simply a case of deflating the tire,
so in this case, I've got a presta valve on this rim,
so I'm gonna actually unscrew the valve here
and release all the air.
If you've got a Schrader type valve,
so that's one of the ones which you find on a car,
then simply depress that center section
and again you're gonna remove all of the air
from the inner tube.
And the next step is to actually insert
one of the tire levers in between the bead of the tire
and the actual rim itself.
Now I tend to actually always work opposite the valve.
The reason being, you tend to have a little bit
less material, because around the valve itself
is a little bit of bulk, so here you have got essentially
the most room to be able to play with and insert that lever
underneath the bead.
So once you actually get it hooked underneath,
try and grab your tire lever and actually insert it
behind a spoke there, keeping it nicely in place.
Then, with your second tire lever,
try and put it underneath the bead of the tire,
again getting as close as possible
to the existing one.
Sometimes, depending on how tight your rim
and tire combination is, it's not possible.
In this case, I've managed to do it
about five centimeters away, and then simply release
that bead over the side of the rim
and work around until you've got enough over
that it's nice and comfortable for you
to simply use the tire lever to push the remainder
of the tire away from the rim.
Now do take care whilst doing this
that the inner tube itself doesn't actually get pinched
in between the tire and the rim and using, obviously,
the tire lever there, so just pay close attention to it.
So now that you've got half of the tire off of the rim,
you're gonna want to remove the inner tube.
So, again, working opposite the valve,
simply release that inner tube from within
and then work it around until you get to the valve
and then it's easier to remove it that way, basically,
because in the case of this wheel,
it's got a deep section of rim,
so the valve is actually pretty long.
Just remove that.
Then the rest of the tire should easily just pop off,
slide off like so.
So now that you've removed your inner tube and tire,
it's worth just having a look on the actual surface
of the rim bed, here, so if you've got yourself a rim tape,
whether it's plastic or cotton, in this case,
just make sure that all of those spoke holes
are being covered nicely and again,
there's no actual material defect inside
which could give you a puncture going forward.
Once it's all good, you are ready to fit that new tire.
Next thing is to grab your new tire and have a look
on the sidewall of the actual tire itself,
and see if there is any directional arrows.
In the case of this one, there is one here
which is indicated with rotation.
The reason being, that is likely to help
with both rolling resistance and also displacing
any surface water on the road that you may encounter.
If there is one of these arrows,
make sure it is facing in the direction of travel
once it's fitted onto the rim
and then I like to always find
the manufacturer's logo and then line it up
with the valve hole, just a nice little finishing touch.
So now that you've got yourself your manufacturer's logo
and you've found the valve hole,
you want to insert half of the bead of the tire
inside the bed of the rim and slowly work that around,
so it's going like so.
So, now that you've got half of the tire fitted,
it's worth grabbing the inner tube
and simply inflating it very gently,
so only a small amount, just to get the inner tube
to actually have a shape and then lock down that valve.
So now the inner tube has a bit of shape to it,
actually insert it into the valve hole,
which is nice and easy to find because you've had
that manufacturer's logo, and then simply tuck it
inside of the tire like so.
Now if you've put too much air in,
it won't go in that easily, so just be aware of that.
And then, at the valve, start tucking that remaining bead
of the tire over the sidewall of the rim
and in towards the center.
So if it is a little bit tight towards the end,
just go around the actual rim and the tire
and essentially squeeze the beads inwards
so they go into, there's a deeper groove
in the center of the rim in most cases
and that's gonna give you a little bit of slack
for you to be able to play with when it comes
to trying to get this final bit over the sidewall
of the rim.
So just make sure, like I say, that it is
in the center of the rim.
Now when you do get to a situation like this,
when you have a very tight fitting bit of tire, perhaps,
that it's best to actually put the wheel onto the floor
so that you can get a little bit more leverage
inside of your wrists to actually get that tire
over the sidewall of the rim.
What though, if you've used up all of your energy
and you still can't get the bead of the tire
over the sidewall of the rim and into the center?
Well, I don't normally advise using them,
but you can in fact use a tire lever,
so you would simply place it underneath
and then over the sidewall, so the hook of the rim,
and then gently, really, really gently,
making sure you're not pinching the tube whatsoever,
move it over.
So just levering it into place.
Now the next stage, what I like to do
is just to make sure that the tube has not
become pinched in between the bead of the tire
and the bed of the rim, so I just go around
and work the bead away from the sidewall
and just check to make sure that, basically,
there's no sign of any rubber poking out underneath.
If there is, then you can kind of wiggle around the tire
and hopefully that inner tube will just pop back into place.
Then I'll repeat that process after putting
about 15 PSI of air into the inner tube,
which is about 1 bar of pressure.
And then, once it's all good, I inflate it
to the maximum recommended, which is indicated
on the sidewall.
That way, the tire actually finds its shape
as well as in the case of using where,
the tubeless compatible rim,
actually pops into the correct position on the rim.
Now that your tire is fully seated onto the rim
and running nice and smooth, it's probably likely
that you are gonna need to adjust the pressure there
to suit both you and your riding style
and then refit it into the frame.
Now there are many of you out there
who have got different ways of fitting tires
and tubes back onto a wheel.
I'll be keen to read them.
I have fitted literally thousands of tires
onto wheels over the years and I've never had a problem
doing that one yet.
However, there is a little tip and this one's for free,
is to get a tire and put it over a radiator
if it's a particularly stubborn one.
That way it does tend to just soften up a little bit
and be a little bit easier to put on,
but as ever, I want to know your tips and tricks
for fitting those stubborn tires.
Now, do remember as well to like and share this video
with a friend.
I believe that actually fitting a tire
is one of those real essentials because you never know
when it's you or someone else stranded at the roadside
and you're gonna need that skill.
Now also, remember to check out the GCN shop
at shop.globalcyclingnetwork.com
where we've got a whole array of goodies for you.
And now, for another great video,
this one on how to calculate the right tire pressure
for yourself, click just down here.