Can't get tyre on / Tight rim

it's always varies on the rims really, it's a bit of a bastard with certain campangolo rims mind.

very true, I have some proper nightmare combos on my old mtb which lead to me discovering my patented method...

Each to their own - if you enjoy getting down on your knees who am I to tell you it is wrong??

just put the other 700 x 25 gatorskin on my front deep v rim using the patented j.smooth method with no sore thumbage.

losers

ah!
I learnt that tip at the bike maintenance class I did a few weeks ago and it is a good tip.

ive had similar problems with tight tyres, i get the first bit in, then cable tie it, work around to 1 quarter, cable tie it again then, then the rest, then cut the cable ties after the tyres in situ, bit of a wuss way really but easier and doesnt damage yer hands, in my profession i have to protect what i have!!! ;)

ive had similar problems with tight tyres, i get the first bit in, then cable tie it, work around to 1 quarter, cable tie it again then, then the rest, then cut the cable ties after the tyres in situ, bit of a wuss way really but easier and doesnt damage yer hands, in my profession i have to protect what i have!!! ;)

Are you a pianist?

Hoping the tyre has been fitted by now... but I tend to use teaspoons (handle end) to get my gatorskins on and off. Use like cheaper, slimmer, more effective tyre levers. Just make sure you use some with rounded handle ends so you don't pierce the tube...

Trouble with teaspoon is metal clash metal.

Are you a pianist?

nah i make teeth. who wants a tombstone for a front tooth?

This thread makes me feel much better!
(http://www.londonfgss.com/thread11816.html)

BTW, I've found using spoons/tyre levers is a great way to strip the rubber from the bead and fuck the tyre up... good hint I got was to try to move the opposite end of the tyre into the middle of the rim where it can get lower than where the bead sits...

Also +1 for hulking up and getting angry at it...

gatorskins hmm? think there's the problem, use snake skins ... much smoother ride, too!

ice one to everyone who gave me a few pointers. I tried everything except the speed levers and bead jacks and what won in the end was a combination of stretching the tyre (dunno if it actually made a difference), making sure the bead was pushed right down in the rim, the cable-tie method (nice idea that) and a tyre lever to get the last bit on. Think I will be investing in one of them tools if it is a bastard to get back on next time.

It's a sign from God that Contis are hard to get on.. you should obey that sign.

the hardest battle i've ever had with a tyre was getting a gatorskin on a navigator pista wheel. It's the wheel more than the tyre, those things are bastards.

Think I will be investing in one of them tools if it is a bastard to get back on next time.

That kind of presumes you will be able to get the tyre back off in the first place.

gatorskins are a pain to get on, but you just need to be persistent. alternatively, you could try a crank brothers speed lever.

These are great, I didn't understand why they got such good praise until I got one. They pull out and rotate - clip one end over the axle and the other over or under the tyre (different edge for on or off), then just push it around the whole rim. Makes it a doddle, or with the few tyres I've used it with anyway.

Put a set of folding 23c gatorskins on my flyer this morning - I got a bleeding left thumb nail in the process though...

Fitting the second one (front) was a tad uncomfortable.

after all the messing I had getting it on I got a puncture from a tiny piece of glass. tyre came off and back on with no tools or anything so it must have stretched. still gonna get a speed lever for the navigator rims and future tyres though.

I have Gator Skins. They were a real pain to get on the first time. They are shipped folded and need to stretch out a little. Squeeze them over the rim using the palm of your hand. Don't use levers, just wasting your time. The lever takes up space between the tyre and rim and just makes it more difficult.

I have Gator Skins. They were a real pain to get on the first time. They are shipped folded and need to stretch out a little. Squeeze them over the rim using the palm of your hand. Don't use levers, just wasting your time. The lever takes up space between the tyre and rim and just makes it more difficult.

The ones I have got are the ultra gatorskuns and they have wire bead, so no foldy foldy...

So are mine. I put them on with my bare hands. hftu

So are mine. I put them on with my bare hands. hftu

Hands? Pah! I put mine on with my teeth

So are mine. I put them on with my bare hands. hftu

Putting folding ones on my flyer was much harder than putting beaded onto my wifes Dolce....

I use some stuff by schwalbe, think it's called "tyre ease"

Rub it on the bead & it slips over the rim much easier, never had to use levers with it

Rub it on the bead & it slips over the rim much easier, never had to use levers with it

That's just wrong.

Not wishing to gloat but now I'm worried my skins might come off as they were so easy to fit I didn't even need my thumbs, although I did use em cos they were there!

anyone else had problems with REALLY tight rims. can't get the tyre off this one