Put a new front tire on a couple days ago. My knees still hurt from working my way around the rim! I should have bought longer tire tools and I did mark up the rim a little. Had wee pieces of leather to put between tool and rim but the whole mess, including my hands,  was so slobbery slick with soapy water I just couldn't seem to accomplish that simple additional feat. Finally had to get my wife to sit on the opposite side of the rim so I could pull the final four inches of bead over the lip.

Got it working though. Yellow circle stayed in place and the valve stem stick out almost perfectly. It even holds air pressure.

Used a Maxxis 100/90-19 H tubless tire I got from JC Whitney with free shipping. The change is very satisfying. Less vibration, straighter tracking, less turning effort and holds a line through turns with confidence. I am not anything near a knee dragger and as a relative newbie any element that requires less concentration and improves instinctive handling is a plus.

However, I did a stupid thing that anybody is welcome to weigh in on. The previous owner had a tubless tire mounted with a tube inside it. Of course when I removed the tire and found the tube, I promptly bought one myself and followed suit. I'm betting that this increased the difficulty of the tire change, added unnecessary rolling weight, and is a pretty common indicator of first time jitters.  

Anyway, I slowly making my way through the list of things I want to change or improve and will post as I make it through them.

My next idea is to do something about this Jarred (sp?) pipe. It makes my ears ring ... and I'm wearing a full face helmet.    I got the OE muffler but prefer to disassemble the aftermarket to see if it is hollow. When in traffic, cars beside me either roll up their windows or change lanes. That's not why I ride.

Anyhow ,,, really enjoying the forums here. Oh yeah, I got the CD and have found it a remarkable resourse for information and inspiration. It is money well spent.

verslagen1 wrote on 06/28/08 at 07:36:14:

 




How do you run tubeless with the spoked Savage rim?  The rubber strip covering the spokes isn't enough to assure no air leakage through the spoke mountings, which is why you are supposed to use a tube even with a tubeless tire.  Am I missing something here?

i just did my front, took me about 50 minutes start to finish on and off bike. went like clockwork. dunlop 404 tubeless with tube.  works nice.

verslagen1,
Where did you get those wheels? There're gorgeous! I would like to get a pair for mine.
Thanks,
Jay

After removing the front wheel and loading it in my cage ,I took it to my local mechanic along with the new tire,took about 10 minutes he charged me $20,no scratches ,no sore knees,oh I also had a new tube put in ,a good idea every time you change tires.