4x4 Action Group

Tyre Kit and Techniques for OverLanders

So its raining so thought I would
read up on tyre change/repair
and check / sort / repack my tyre repair stuff and post a list here with some comments ...

A number of utube clips are on the internet and a popular one that was
doing the rounds - and makes things look
quite easy - is also reproduced below ...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9qpKdkTIfSw


Herewith a photo of (most of) my tyre kit:
.
.
image1.jpeg

TYRE KIT

Compressor
Tyre Pressure Gauge
Tyre Snot Plug Kit pierce/rasp/needle
Tyre Spanners / Crate Spanner-Lever
Spare Tube
Large Patches
Mushroom Plug Patch
Cut-out of Valve from Tube
Valve Tools
Tyre Glues/kit .. several tubes, viable.
Rougher/ coarse SandPaper
Wire & Cable Ties to stitch side-gashes
Rubber Mallet/Hammer
Soap ... sunlight etc lubricant
........
.........
etc
... and , of course, gloves,jack,
wheel-spanner & blocks etc !

(NB not everything on list is in photi.)

Initially, after tyre removed, tyre need be
‘ debeaded ‘ ie loosened down from shoulder of rim ... this can be achieved by jacking down on the tyre or carefully even another vehicle carefully pressing it down via front wheel ...

In removing and replacing a tyre the key ‘secret’ is be aware of and use the recess valley running round the rim
to full advantage.
... as tyre bead-lip is coaxed
over the one rim-edge on one side ...
... other side of tyre bead-lip should be
positioned in the recess of the far rim valley ...
so less ‘stretching’ of tyre is attempted.

For a tubless tyre to reseal its necessary that it rebead / remount the tyre on the shoulders of the rim... generally one needs > 8bar compressor to achieve this
... else a ratchet strap round the treaded circumference of the tyre or even aerosol can used to ‘ explode’ the tyre out and up onto the rim shoulders.

A very impt point is to get a steel-handled
piercer for snot-plugs ... ie NOT like mine!
Plastic handles are prone to letting the spiker
come through backwards and thru
the palm of your hand .... !!!

Please add/correct/comment ...

I will update/ correct this list etc
as/if thread develops.

your kit looks pretty complete Chas. I would suggest 2 more tubes of rubber cement. Those tubes have a miracle property which causes them to completely dry out once opened, no matter how well they are sealed. I carry a small tin of rubber cement. It fits nicely into the empty space in my duct tape roll.

Good lessons, thanks Chas.

Tyre valve stem puller makes life much easier when replacing the valve stem.
Not easy just pulling with the normal valve tool

... having a new tyre fitted earlier this month , I saw a different method to rerim a tyre ...
( not easy to describe but ...)

... after the new loose tyre was loosely fitted into the rim-well it was kicked from the outer side to effect a partial sealing against the near tyre wall on the one side ...
a rubber ring was then fitted to effect a partial sealing between the other tyre wall and the rim...
the compressor was now effective in building enough pressure to properly rerim the tyre
and automatically eject the temp rim sealing ring ...

I’ve got a write up I did on how to fix a debeaded tyre. Should I post it here or start a new Fred?

XJ Junkie wrote: ↑

Wed Aug 14, 2019 4:55 pm

I’ve got a write up I did on how to fix a debeaded tyre. Should I post it here or start a new Fred?

Post it here

Here’s how to handle debeads

Debeads are very common at low pressures in sand & can happen on any tyre brand, even if they aren't BFG. Having BFGs does increase the odds of a debead situation though. The main reason why tyres debead at low pressures is because when the sidewall takes a hit on the side of a rut, or any hard section/object, there isn't enough pressure to keep the bead firmly against the lip on the rim.

What sometimes happens is that the debead doesn't happen suddenly, but the tyre goes progressively flat. This happens when the sidewalks take multiple small hits & traps sand in between the tyre & rim lip. This allows air to escape gradually without you noticing.

The first sign that you've debeaded a front tyre is when your steering goes tight, or the steering goes off centre in the case of a rear debead. It's usually only the outer sidewall that'll debead. Inner debeads are very uncommon, but they usually necessitate a wheel swap unless you've got some ratchet straps & more time.

Jacking in sand:
Changing entire wheels isn't safe in sand, especially with conventional or hi lifts. Even if you use a jack plate the vehicle can fall to the rear, front, or side (depending on where you mount the Jack). My personal preference is an air jack/bag. The vehicles weight is resting on a wider footprint vs. a regular jack. They are much quicker & predictable. If you have an IFS vehicle & are in a precarious position or where a jack can't be used, then you're in luck. Just dig under the tyre until the body of the vehicle rests on the side of the hole. Then make the hole deeper until the articulation runs out, which usually doesn't take long.

Rebeading a tyre is faster & safer than jacking, so here are the steps that I use:

Steps:
~ after the debead, try to get to level-ish ground
~ it's always easier if you have a friend handy to go through the process
~ put your airjack in place & make sure that during inflation it pushes against the tyre. Positioning the Jack is important & be careful that the top can't be punctured by sharp underbody objects. Also watch out for the hot exhaust that'll melt your bag. You can use floor mats for protection if your bag didn't come with a rubber mat.
~ handbrake up if needed, or put into Park if it's an auto.
~ get your compressor rigged up & start your engine. This is important as it pulls big amps.
~ use the compressor air to blow as much sand out from the bead & off the middle of the rim. Start cleaning from the top. A little paintbrush is a great tool as well.
NEVER use water if the sand is dry as it just makes a sludge spot at the bottom of the inner rim. ONLY use water if the sand is already wet.
Excess sand that falls into the actual tyre doesn't matter. That's Hi-Q's job on Monday.
~ once the bead is relatively free of sand, unscrew the value inner (I always carry a few spare I case I drop one in the sand).
~ get your mate to hold the airjack hose come over the exhaust pipe. Don't rev! I've been hit in the chest with one of those cones. If it's a diesel & you're the one holding the cone over the exhaust, then make sure that your mate isn't a smartass by reving to spool up the turbo so that that you get a face full of black smoke when you take the cone off.
~ guide the Jack as its being inflated
~ once the vehicle is up, dig as much sand away under the tyre so that it can the bead is in line with where it's going to need to be.
~ now that the vehicle is up, clean the bottom of the tyre bead where sand tends to settle (6 o'clock position)
~ place the compressor nozzle onto the valve with the inner removed. We do this to get air in with less resistance & because it's faster. Strong pumps work well with debeads.
~ whilst the air is flowing, pull & position the tyre against the rim until you hear the pop. 4 hands are better than 2 here.
~ after the pop, which means the tyre is in place, remove the air nozzle & screw the valve inner back in.
~ then pump the tyre again until it's hard. It's better to drive around like that for a while to allow the bead to seat properly. Then deflate to your desired pressure again later.
~ let the Jack down & job done. After practice the whole affair shouldn't take longer than 5 minutes.

You can chuck some water on to look for bubbles that indicate if you've done a good job or not.

Anyway, the above is just a guide & each to their own in terms of doing the job.

Hope this helps somebody.

Another method to get an initial ‘ weak partial tyre seal’ ... for the compresser pressure to ‘bite’ and take the tyre beads up onto rim shoulders ... is to put a ratchet strap around the circumference of the tyre and ratchet up tight till the tyre walls splay apart a bit against the rim upslopes ... so the compressors tyre pressure can then build up & become effective...

Another method is to tie a rope fairly tightly around the tyre circumference and then put a stick or cross-bar through to wind and so tighten the rope strongly to achieve same initial start for the compressor as for ratchet strap method above ...

If you're brave
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2v6L_VVzaJA

Couldn't find a clip of when this goes wrong but they are there. Just need time to find

With racket straps, I find by the time the chap gets his strap ready, I’ve already got the tyre back on . They do serve a purpose if the vehicle is at an awkward angle or when both beads are off.