How To Break A Motorcycle Tire Bead

Motorcycle Tire Dewdrop Breaker Review

The "Poor Man's" motorcycle tire bead breaker works like a charm!

Hither it is: the world'southward cheapest (and most effective) motorcycle tire dewdrop breaker!

This method has not failed me withal; it works on bias or radial ply tires, old or new fashion rims, spoke or bandage wheels.

The only materials that are needed for this device are a couple of pieces of 2×4 lumber: One 2×4 (or 2×3), about 7 or 8 anxiety long, and a smaller slice, possibly a foot long or so.

Identify the cycle on the ground nigh 1 meter from a parked machine. Make sure you lay a couple of pieces of 2×4 (or two×three, equally shown in photo left) under the rim to protect the brake deejay rotor and rim from damage.

Slip the long 2×four under the door sill of the car, and place the shorter piece on the edge of the tire, right up side by side to the rim.

You lot tin become fancy if you'd like and put a hinge on the longer slice so that the shorter slice hangs down, simply I find it more challenging (and easier) to merely hold the shorter piece and put a fleck of pressure on information technology to keep it in place.

Identify one pes over the opposite side of the rim, and lever away! Nigh tires will pop right off the rim with a flake o' pressure, only you lot may find that some tires need a precipitous button to become the bead to suspension.

In whatsoever case, this is the fastest, simplest and most effective method of dewdrop breaking I've always tried. It doesn't make levering the tire on and off the rim any easier, but it sure makes breaking the bead a slice of cake. Forget almost all those expensive dedicated bead breaking tools — you don't need 'em!

Motorcycle tire bead breaker - photo of parts required for breaking the bead on a motorcycle tire.

Owner Comments and Feedback

From "D.W.B." (August 2011): "Been doing this method of breaking motorcycle loose for years. Last week, it met its match and the two×4 method failed to break the bead of a Bridgestone tire on a BMW K1200LT wheel. Had to break downward and run it to a dealer with a hydraulic unit of measurement — he still had trouble. Ah well. Most of the time, this works only fine."

From "D.S." (4/10): "Hey, it works great. The only affair to add… I put a piece of duct tape on each side of the wheel bearings to proceed clay etc. out of them."

Bead Breaker Bearing Protection

From "Chiliad.W." (11/09): "Just tried the method of breaking my motorcycle tire beads this weekend with the fulcrum boards and it worked simply similar explained.

No problem except I used a four Ten 4 instead of a ii 10 iv later on reading about the 2 X 4 breaking and I used my truck trailer hitch as a pry point.

I had someone else put a foot on the rim so I could become control of the 4 Ten 4, a lighter two Ten 4 may be easier to handle past yourself.

The rear tire was a little more stubborn than the front but I just had to let the pressure stay on the bead for a while and it slowly broke then I merely worked it effectually and information technology came right off.

Thank you for the tip."

From "M.Y." (9/09): "I had to check the date on your article to make sure it wasn't published (April one). Subsequently considerable effort I have i dented fender, one broken 2x4x8′ and 1 firmly mounted dewdrop…

Seemed like a good idea though…"

See likewise

From "E.C." (iv/09): "This is genius. I've built-a-matter-in-my-garage, C-clamped, near-bought-the-harbor-freight-thing. Just moved to San Francisco [away from my garage] and used your slice-of-block bead breaker idea to bandy my own tires with a 2×4, ii tire irons, and a gas station compressor. Very obvious in retrospect. Cheers! "

From "MNF" (2/09): "Wow information technology really worked. I was shocked!!!! THANKS"

From "M.D.": "I only wanted to permit you lot know how jazzed I am this morn. I accept ever changed my own tires on my street bikes, just breaking the bead has always been a striking-or-miss bargain for me. I stumbled across, all the same, your article on the 2 x 4 bead breaker, and got to try it out last night. WOW!!! Information technology worked exactly as advertised, and changing the tire on my PC800 took less than xx minutes, from the time I put it on the center stand to putting it away.

And they say that pron is the only expert thing on the cyberspace…"