Mounting a tire on my Spyder - things I'll verify

[seaweed]

I found a shop that will mount a car tire on my Spyder.:yes::yes:
It is an Altimax 215/60. Hoping to pick it up this Friday. Will have to verify the following:
1) Air pressure (I will set it to 18 psi)
2) Valve stem alignment (so that I can easily adjust air pressure)
3) Belt alignment
4) Belt tension

As a famous person, Ronald Reagan once said "Trust but Verify)nojoke

 

[2dogs]

:thumbup:

 

[broderp]

Out of curiosity, does that include balancing and how much?

I've asked around me just get an idea so when I'm ready to do the same I will have some idea what it will cost. So far, no one will touch it or mount car tires - but I've only asked a few places....


:cheers:

 

[BajaRon]

Have them throw in 3oz of balancing beads while they are at it. Takes the hassle out of spin balancing the rear tire which most tire shops can't do.

Out of curiosity, does that include balancing and how much?

I've asked around me just get an idea so when I'm ready to do the same I will have some idea what it will cost. So far, no one will touch it or mount car tires - but I've only asked a few places....


:cheers:

You may have more luck if you take the tire/wheel assembly in. Most don't want the job of removing/replacing the rear wheel.

 

[broderp]

Have them throw in 3oz of balancing beads while they are at it. Takes the hassle out of spin balancing the rear tire which most tire shops can't do.



You may have more luck if you take the tire/wheel assembly in. Most don't want the job of removing/replacing the rear wheel.

I had already asked with that in mind, I started both asks with "if I bring you the wheel.....". I asked two motorcycle shops, the first one who did my Z900 last year and they flat out said no. They do not have the proper equipment to do it. Their equipment was pretty basic IMO but they did a great job for a fair price. I will go back there for my Z900 maybe next season.

I have time, I'm still under 800 miles on my original tires. ")

:cheers:

 

[BajaRon]

I had already asked with that in mind, I started both asks with "if I bring you the wheel.....". I asked two motorcycle shops, the first one who did my Z900 last year and they flat out said no. They do not have the proper equipment to do it. Their equipment was pretty basic IMO but they did a great job for a fair price. I will go back there for my Z900 maybe next season.

I have time, I'm still under 800 miles on my original tires. ")

:cheers:

I am not surprised that a 2 wheel motorcycle shop said no. They have no reason to have an automotive tire changing machine. I thought you were going to places that could do the work and they were saying 'no'.

 

[BLUEKNIGHT911]

I found a shop that will mount a car tire on my Spyder.:yes::yes:
It is an Altimax 215/60. Hoping to pick it up this Friday. Will have to verify the following:
1) Air pressure (I will set it to 18 psi)
2) Valve stem alignment (so that I can easily adjust air pressure)
3) Belt alignment
4) Belt tension

As a famous person, Ronald Reagan once said "Trust but Verify)nojoke

IF they un-bolt the rear air shock ..... the rear tire can be removed without changing the alignment .....just sayin .....Mike :thumbup:

 

[CloverHillCrawler]

Look for a shop the does side by sides, when I was looking around for someone to mount my tire I had a harley mechanic recommend a local shop that does these and they will have the equipment to handle the spyder tires.

I have heard Ron and other people say it's only 3 oz of beads for balancing. Makes me wonder why the shop here that I use put 6 oz in on my rear quatrac.

 

[BajaRon]

Look for a shop the does side by sides, when I was looking around for someone to mount my tire I had a harley mechanic recommend a local shop that does these and they will have the equipment to handle the spyder tires.

I have heard Ron and other people say it's only 3 oz of beads for balancing. Makes me wonder why the shop here that I use put 6 oz in on my rear quatrac.

Maybe they deal in larger truck tires and only carry 6oz bags. Who knows. Different bead manufactures may vary slightly in their weight recommendations. Here is a link to the Magnum+ calculator. These are the beads we use at the shop
https://www.magnumbalance.com/en-us/calculator/

As you can see, they recommend the LT100 for any tire that fits the Spyder (which is a 3oz packet).

Here is what Counteract Balancing Beads company says.

"Having too many beads inside the tire in some cases can cause a slight imbalance. This is a concern on smaller tires where there is not as much room in the tire cavity for the beads to evenly spread themselves where they need to be. When there is too much, it can create a “traffic jam” where the excess beads get forced into the wrong balance position creating an imbalance. There is certainly an ideal amount of product to have inside the tires, as directed by our application charts. The smaller the tire, we need to be precise, the larger the tire, such as commercial tires or off-road tires there is much more room to allow for extra product without hindering the performance. We will always recommend referencing from our chart, and we always remind customers to make sure they are referencing the proper chart as we do have specific charts for specific applications."

 

[CloverHillCrawler]

I don't have any imbalance with them as it is running pretty smooth but when I first put it on I thought my rear brake was rubbing as when I leave I push the Spyder out of the garage before I start it. It was the beads sloshing around in the tire.

 

[Jetfixer]

I've done numerous rear tire changes on Spyders. The easiest method to preserve belt alignment and tension is to simply tape from the top of the swingarm around the back of the adjusters, and to the bottom of the swingarm on both sides BEFORE you remove the axle bolt. This way the adjusters cannot move from their current positions. If you don't want to use the balance beads that Ron suggests, now would be a great time to install a Centramatic balancer. And be aware that the belt pulley can be reinstalled in 5 different positions, including the one that completely blocks the valve stem. Ask me how I know. I've got a local Pep Boys that has no problem dismounting and mounting car tires on Spyder rear wheels. However, in the interest of safety, I always remove the pulley and it's dampers, and the ABS ring and brake disk to prevent damage to any of them. The lower shock bolt does not have to be removed to remove the belt, although if it is, the belt will fall right off. If the rear wheel is hanging in the air, the belt can be "walked" off and back on easily. If belt idlers are present, be sure to get the idler wheel in the correct position while you "walk" the belt back on. And make sure to hold the wheel fully forward against the adjusters as you re-torqued the axle nut.

 

[Old Willie]

Today I pulled the front wheels off my 2022 RT and took them to my local Can Am dealer. They mounted car tires and balanced both. Earlier they had mounted a car tire on the rear. They don't have a problem with it. When I picked them up the service manager even told me. the recommended pressure was probably around 18. That surprised me.

Willie

 

[Longtimer]

Broder, what part of Ohio do you live in? There's a place by me that will do it and they are happy to help you. I am in Lebanon Ohio. Let me know if you need the info.

 

[KX5062]

I found a shop that will mount a car tire on my Spyder.:yes::yes:
It is an Altimax 215/60. Hoping to pick it up this Friday. Will have to verify the following:
1) Air pressure (I will set it to 18 psi)
2) Valve stem alignment (so that I can easily adjust air pressure)
3) Belt alignment
4) Belt tension

As a famous person, Ronald Reagan once said "Trust but Verify)nojoke

.1 Correct. 18-20 psi is fine

2. Valve stem alignment is easy. The spokes of the rim and the pulley line up with each other.

3. Just walk the belt off. There are several how to's on this forum. That's the easiest and fastest way to do it and it ensures proper belt alignment every time.

4. Same as #3, walking the belt off is the best way I've found.

 

[DickB]

However, in the interest of safety, I always remove the pulley and it's dampers, and the ABS ring and brake disk to prevent damage to any of them.

FYI, My local Can Am dealer tech could not balance the wheel with that removed. I had to reassemble for them to do it. "Local" for me is still 2 hours away, but I prefer dynamic balancing myself, and it is a good shop. If I remove the wheel they charge $35, which I think is reasonable. They do tire changes on Saturdays, no appointment, first come first served, so I have little wait time.