Modified Harbor freight tire changer limitations, getting over them. 

I was having a nightmare yesterday with a 245/40/R19 (low profile) until I watched your video and mentioned the drop center…lol. That was key…thank you. First tire 3 hours…second tire 2 minutes lol😂

hey dude great video, what do you do about balancing all your tyres you change, if you do balance yourself i would really like to see how, your videos are great no bull just helpfull, thanks

Glad it helped!

Thank you!

I think you are right to a point, the red dot takes precedence, but, only when the rim is marked with a paint dot or a small shallow drill hole marking the spot to align the red dot. Otherwise the yellow dot aligns with the valve stem and you disregard the red dot if there is one. My experience is that on cars, I see red and yellow dots on V rated tires and above, yellow only on lower speed rated ones.

I need to get a couple of them for sure!

​@@CJdriftZwhen mounting the second bead, install your c-clamps first, they will direct that bead to fall right into the drop center. l use plain vise-grip c-clamps, with old distributor cap 90°boots fitted over the tips preventing marred rims. I did my son's Dodge Magnum 18" rims, with two aluminum motorcycle tire"irons" Just take your time, that drop center really is key. Good luck

Thank you for leaving a comment!

Tire height? 35?

I have never seen a duckbill designed to be used both directions. Always work the tire in a counter clockwise direction. If you try using the other direction the horn of the duckbill may damage the tire. Also the size tires/wheel I am mounting are low profile which this machine was never deigned to be used for. The tires are almost squared with the wheel making them that much harder to mount. rims are 18x9.5 tires are 255/40/18's. That's the point of this video is to work through those issues.

The best part of the vid is that CJ isn’t too fussy about protecting the wheel. A couple thoughts: If you have this changer, which is sold under many more brand names than Harbor Freight’s, the flimsy bead breaker will almost certainly be destroyed by a stubborn tire. If you can weld, reinforce it immediately or fabricate a new one out of much heavier material. I’ve had beads so hard to break that the leverage bent back the changer’s main pole, so I welded it to the T-shaped base. And, as seen in the video, using your shoulder to support the bead breaker pole while wrestling with the tire is a stinkin’ hassle. Fabricate a hook (or use magnets, as seen in another vid) to keep it out of the way. Then there’s that stupid steel pin that has to be maneuvered into a lug hole on the wheel. In all, while the changer is better than nothing, and a lifesaver for users in remote areas, it will remind you why powered tire machines were invented.

Unfortunately you cant go clockwise with low profile tires without damaging them. You could get away with doing it the wrong way on some high profile tires though.

@@VarandMusic "I have never seen a duckbill designed to be used both directions. Always work the tire in a counter clockwise direction. If you try using the other direction the horn of the duckbill may damage the tire. Also the size tires/wheel I am mounting are low profile which this machine was never deigned to be used for. The tires are almost squared with the wheel making them that much harder to mount. rims are 18x9.5 tires are 255/40/18's. That's the point of this video is to work through those issues."

@@VarandMusic He's doing it correctly. The duckbill should go counter clockwise. On a pneumatic machine the tire spins clockwise and the duckbill is stationary. Here the duckbill is moving and the tire is stationary.

Harbor freight doesn't sell this stuff unfortunately. I bought mine from eBay, got links in the description for the duckbill attachment and aluminum centering cone.