Good job, stacysue! For all of you reading this and dreading when it will happen to you, I have some unasked for but very valuable advice, should you decide to bite...
The winter is the perfect time to learn how to change a tire and tube, and to practice so that come spring, you'll have nothing to worry about. So call up your cycling buddies, make some pizza or cookies, and have a Flat Tire Party or two. Everybody brings their wheels and tools and learn together.
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Thread: Changed my first *&^)_&&^%$ tire
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10-20-2009, 12:44 PM #1
Ain't Love a Surprise?
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Last edited by tulip; 10-20-2009 at 12:54 PM.
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10-20-2009, 03:31 PM #2
Goddess on wheels
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What Tulip said. Practice, practice, practice! Another good reason...tires can be very hard to get back on the first couple of times. The bead loosens up quite a bit after a couple of changes. It also took me a few (ok...a lot) of tries to be able to get the rear wheel back on fluidly.
"The bicycle is just as good company as most husbands and, when it gets old and shabby, a woman can dispose of it and get a new one without shocking the entire community." -- Ann Strong, Minneapolis Tribune, 1895
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10-20-2009, 05:07 PM #3
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Staceysue, that's awesome! You made me laugh so hard (in a good way). That was nearly verbatim how my first tire change went! My first tire change didn't have a bolt to get lost inside the tire, but my third tire change (three days ago, on my daughter's 20" wheel) resulted in a tire exploding in my face. However, don't give up! It gets easier! In between those two, my second tire change (her front 20" wheel) went beautifully.
Aren't those skewer springs a pain? I *think* they go big-side-toward-the-fork, but you'd better get confirmation on that.
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10-20-2009, 05:16 PM #4
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Sorry you had a tough time, but thanks for sharing!!! That was great!
BTW, did you take the skewer all the way out of your wheel? You don't have to do that, you just need to loosten it enough to allow it to pass out of the fork. (Although I have also loostened too far, losing the bolt and spring in the process - no fun!)
Hope you have better luck next time.
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10-20-2009, 06:33 PM #5
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Great job......However, get rid of the nut....it's not necessary. It's just one more thing you have to remove. Another tip.....coat your tubes with talcum powder....this prevents your tubes from sticking to (or becoming one with) the tire. You'll impress your hard core bikers if they saw that you did this....also it is a good gauge if your LBS is worth their weight in service.
Happy riding!
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