exhaust gaskets and tire mounting

[dtkid]

Hey Folks:

I could have swore that somewhere on our site there existed a thread explaining the problems and solutions to removing stubborn exhaust gaskets and also, the keys to easy tire mounting.

Can anyone tell me where this thread is.........or:

How do I get the old exhaust gaskets out and/or can I just put my new gaskets over the old gaskets???

Also, please provides tips for removing the old and mounting the new tires on my GS1100 rims. I have changed hundreds of bicycle tires but never my own motorcycle tires. I, in the past, had a shop mount my tires because I thought they would need to be balanced but my shop has moved across the mountain. I have plenty of tire irons/spoons. I just need to know the little tricks/tips that only experience provides. Can you help a man get these beautiful new Bridgestone Spitfire tires with white raised lettering on his recently polished and brand-new-looking rims. My Dennis Kirk shipment just came in and I just can't stand it any longer.

[mark]

Can't help you with the tire mounting. The exhaust gaskets will usually come out with a smaller screw driver. Just sort of dig it in to the gasket and twist around until you can pry loose one of the steel wires that make up that outside of the gasket. Yank it out, it will come out sort of like a spring.

Don't put the new gasket on top of the old. Won't work.

When you put the new gaskets in, hold them in with a tiny bit of hi-temp grease in a couple of spots so they'll stay in while your wrestling with your header.

[gekkechef]

I have a little sugestion
When you put on the new gaskets use a little copergrease, it will hold the gasket in place when mounting the exhaust and will make the next removal much easier

[bwringer]

Tire changing instructions:

http://www.clarity.net/~adam/tire-changing.html

Pretty much the best and most complete instructions you'll find.

There are a few differences between the sportbike tires in the photos and our GS tires.

First off, the simplest, safest, and gentlest way to separate beads is with one or two large wooden clamps. These are $6 or $7 each at Menards or your local home improvement store. Simply apply to the old tire with the nose as close to the bead as possible and tighten until the bead starts to come off the rim. With one clamp, you may need to twist to get more of the bead loose and then work it loose around the tire.

Some of the other contraptions people come up with put WAY too much sideways pressure on the wheel, and with others, any slip or just the bead popping loose could be disastrous. Some of these homemade bead breakers also damage the tire, which can be a problem if you need to remount it or you're fixing a leak.

Secondly, seating the beads is generally no problem at all on our narrower GS wheels. Psssshhhhhhhhhhhhhht...pop...pop and you're done. On modern bikes with wide wheels and wide low profile tires, it can be a pain, and you'll see that in the instructions.

I got tire mounting lube at NAPA Auto Parts. I forget how much it was, but a lifetime supply of 1 gallon was pretty cheap. DO NOT use homemade substitutes like dish soap WD-40, bear grease, KY Jelly, or whatever. Tire mounting lube helps the tire stick to the rim after it dries, you can easily clean it off the outside of the tire and it won't corrode your wheels.

I got stick-on tire weights at Pep Boys, after every tire shop in town refused to sell me any. A lifetime supply was about $20.

[dtkid]

Much thanks........this is exactly what I was looking for.

[ptm]

Here's one thread on exhaust gasket removal. Don't know if it's the one you're looking for...

http://www.thegsresources.com/_forum/showthread.php?t=79600

[Boondocks]

Low Cost Bead Breaker

See Motorcycle Tire Bead Breaker.

dtkid, do you have tubes in your tires? If so, you may have some problems removing and installing tubeless tires unless you know how to deal with the tubes.

[bwringer]

See Motorcycle Tire Bead Breaker.

Whatever the actual details, bead breaking methods like that put an awful lot of sideways stress on the wheel. I'm not comfortable with that at all.

Plus, you're dealing with a lot of brute force where everything has to be lined up just so. With woodworking clamps, you can slowly increase the force applied on both sides of the tire, no dangerous stresses are built up anywhere, and no sideways stress is placed on the wheel. You also have far less chance of accidentally putting stress on a brake rotor.

I realize that a lot of people have used similar improvised bead breakers with satisfactory results. But I don't think it's safe for the user or the parts involved, so I'm not going to do the same.

The same with tire mounting lubricant -- there's little to no point in using improvised solutions like soap and water, but a lot of people do it anyway. The benefit is so slight (you might save $10 or so) that it's not worth risking corrosion or failure.

[dtkid]

Thanks folks..........I'm on it.......I'll let you know how it goes.

[Boondocks]

Whatever the actual details, bead breaking methods like that put an awful lot of sideways stress on the wheel. I'm not comfortable with that at all.

Plus, you're dealing with a lot of brute force where everything has to be lined up just so. With woodworking clamps, you can slowly increase the force applied on both sides of the tire, no dangerous stresses are built up anywhere, and no sideways stress is placed on the wheel. You also have far less chance of accidentally putting stress on a brake rotor.

I realize that a lot of people have used similar improvised bead breakers with satisfactory results. But I don't think it's safe for the user or the parts involved, so I'm not going to do the same.

The same with tire mounting lubricant -- there's little to no point in using improvised solutions like soap and water, but a lot of people do it anyway. The benefit is so slight (you might save $10 or so) that it's not worth risking corrosion or failure.

I've never used this method. It's proponent seems to think it's the greatest.

I break the beads with clamps before removing the wheels from the bike. I agree that tire mounting lubricants are better, but they use water as well (as in soap and water).

[bwringer]

I blush to mention this, but the tire mounting lube is water-based and feels EXACTLY like KY Jelly.

So maybe you could use the famed personal lubricant to mount tires. Although I don't think a gallon jug of tire mounting lube would be welcome in most bedrooms...

[Boondocks]

I blush to mention this, but the tire mounting lube is water-based and feels EXACTLY like KY Jelly.

So maybe you could use the famed personal lubricant to mount tires. Although I don't think a gallon jug of tire mounting lube would be welcome in most bedrooms...

Maybe if it was rebranded as a plunger dispensed "Mounting Lube" and sold by Costco or Walmart to economy minded young newlyweds, a whole new market could be opened.\\/

[JayH]

I bet dtkid had plenty of practice trying not to pinch the tubes when changing tires on his bicycle. He'll do fine.

See Motorcycle Tire Bead Breaker.

dtkid, do you have tubes in your tires? If so, you may have some problems removing and installing tubeless tires unless you know how to deal with the tubes.

[Boondocks]

I bet dtkid had plenty of practice trying not to pinch the tubes when changing tires on his bicycle. He'll do fine.

I wasn't referring to not pinching the tubes, which is somewhat self-evident. The beads on tubeless tires are very stiff and strong. To mount or dismount the tire without breaking something it is advisable to clamp the beads to allow the tire to drop into the wheel well of the rim. This allows the tire to be pushed further toward the opposite side, and then the mount/dismount can be started from the side opposite the clamp. When running without a tube, it makes no difference where the mount/dismount is started.

However, when using a tube in a tubeless tire, if you try to clamp the tire at the valve stem area, it won't work properly. The valve stem apparatus takes up space laterally and won't let the tire descend into the wheel well. The mount/dismount will work fine as long as the tire is clamped at the point opposite the valve area, and mounting/dismounting is started at the point by the valve stem.