[Laneco]

For the road bike - tire brand makes a big difference for me as to ease of install/removal. Michelins used to drive me nuts until I had then on and off a couple of times. Just really tough the first install/first removal on the wheels I was using.

Tips to make it easier. First...check to make sure you have no spoke or little metal spur from the wheels sticking up that will give you a flat...

Put a little air in the tube and put the tube and tire on the wheel together (rather than one side of the tire, stuff the tube in, then the other side of the tire. The air pushes the tube slightly against the tire and AWAY from the tire levers.

Good levers are worth the money. Most tires I can mount with one good lever (and many mountain bike tires I can do with no levers), but if you have 3 even the truly stubborn ones give up and do your bidding. A little baby powder makes helps the tire/tube to give up their stickiness and can make it easier to put on. The first side usually goes fairly well. The second side is usually the pain in the arse. Roll the tire bead by hand deep to the center of the wheel as they are usually concave (don't try to keep the bead up near the edge where the mount is). The last foot or so are where the tire tries to make a straight line across the wheel.

At this point, use one lever to "anchor" one side of that flat stretch and go to the opposite side and begin rolling the tire onto the wheel with another lever. If you get stuck, stop - use that 2nd lever to anchor that point. Now you have two levers which are hopefully fairly close - like 8-10 inches apart. Hold the wheel with one hand and use the third lever a few inches inside of one of the other two to "flick" just a little more tire onto the wheel. Keep it close - looking for no more than 2 inches. When that little bit pops on, leave that lever there to anchor your spot. Remove the lever that is behind it, and use it the same way. You'll shrink the space down and then last move has the last of the tire popping in.

This has helped me install even the most constipated combination.

angela