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Replacing the tires

LMTV89

Member
15
27
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Location
Virginia
I have 4 new good year tires for the LMTV, I called around and cant seem to find a shop to swap them. Has anyone had any luck getting a shop to do the tires on these? What kind of shop should I be calling? How hard is it? I have air tools, a tractor with forks and pavement. Planning on buying a harborfreight air jack either way and make a glad hand adapter to make jacking easier.

Serious question... Anybody in SE Virginia want to make some $ swaping the tires? Ill be the helper!
 

littlesfmtv

Active member
Steel Soldiers Supporter
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Location
Memphis Tennessee
I have 4 new good year tires for the LMTV, I called around and cant seem to find a shop to swap them. Has anyone had any luck getting a shop to do the tires on these? What kind of shop should I be calling? How hard is it? I have air tools, a tractor with forks and pavement. Planning on buying a harborfreight air jack either way and make a glad hand adapter to make jacking easier.

Serious question... Anybody in SE Virginia want to make some $ swaping the tires? Ill be the helper!
I'm in tn other wise I'd come and beer it up with you. They really aren't bad if you have the tools, and learning to do them yourself is a good thing to learn for basic mx. Just remember the hardware on the beadlock goes 180 degrees away from your CTIS valve. Hand impact is your friend. I've got the yellow one and it makes splitting the rim an easy task. Lug nuts and torque is heavier kit. I've got a swench from working on propellers in a former life and it's works great. Amazon torque wrench that goes up to 600# is fine and they are cheap.
 

chucky

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TN .
You can do it unless your down in your back its not that hard and youve got an impact and i use a round point shovel when ive changed mine ! Go ahead and order 4 new O rings for your rims and a tub of tire grease ! You can watch some how to videos on youtube to help you figure it out and let the shovel do all the work like popping the wheel face off the rim and lifting the tire back up on its tread !
 

LMTV89

Member
15
27
13
Location
Virginia
You can do it unless your down in your back its not that hard and youve got an impact and i use a round point shovel when ive changed mine ! Go ahead and order 4 new O rings for your rims and a tub of tire grease ! You can watch some how to videos on youtube to help you figure it out and let the shovel do all the work like popping the wheel face off the rim and lifting the tire back up on its tread !
What O rings? Is there any CTIS maintenance I should do while they are apart?
 

flyfishtrailer

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Cool, CA
and a BFH (big freakin hammer!)....more labor than difficulty in this process. Busting off the old ones is the time consuming part, but if you have a forklift that can make that issue a moot point. Using nothing but a BFH and pry bar, it took me about 1 hour per tire to get them changed over.
 

Keith Knight

Well-known member
Steel Soldiers Supporter
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Location
Wauchula, FL
1703334488177.jpeg
I’ve always kept two 3/4” pipes aluminum pipes in the tool box you can lift and align the tires. The aluminum won’t damage your threads.
But recently made a couple new tools what a game changer with the idea of putting my new aluminum wheels on without damaging them, or the paint. IMG_1094.jpegIMG_1095.jpegIMG_1096.jpegIMG_1097.jpeg
Made a large hand nut so I can raise and lower the tire without tools simply buy screwing both nut in or out. Then I took it a step further and made delrin / plastic guides that fit onto the studs and are a pretty tight fit for the holes on the wheels. IMG_1102.jpegIMG_1116.jpeg
 

GeneralDisorder

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Portland, OR
and a BFH (big freakin hammer!)....more labor than difficulty in this process. Busting off the old ones is the time consuming part, but if you have a forklift that can make that issue a moot point. Using nothing but a BFH and pry bar, it took me about 1 hour per tire to get them changed over.
You can avoid all of that labor with the proper tool I linked above. It's what the military uses - a 50" slide-hammer bead breaker.

 

chucky

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TN .
I just mix some dawn and water in a gallon jug and pour it around the bead with the tire/rim on the ground with all the nuts off and slip the point of the round tip shovel under the bead lip and push down on the handle in 4 or 5 spots around the wheel for the soapy water to slip in and go to work and come back in a few minutes with shovel and pry the rim face pops rite off no hammers of any kind ! And when you go to mount the wheel back on the hub stick the shovel under the tire and either pull up on the shovel handle or lay it down and stand on the handle to lift the tire to slide the studs thru the holes easy peasy !
 

ckouba

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Oregon
This task feels like it's a rite of passage for owning these rigs. There's no rocket science to it, just grunt labor. If Rick's tool makes it easy, I'd take a hard look at it. I've done them enough times (without that) at this point that I have a system developed. Lots of soapy water sprayed on the bead, big pry bar, BFH, lots of little wood wedges to stuff into the gap between the bead and the wheel as you pry on it, and work your way around.

Take care to line up the inner and outer halves when re-assembling. There is quite a bit of slop in the split rim holes- you want to stay concentric with the two halves.

No real secrets to it though, just lots of labor.
 

Littlejacy

New member
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7
3
Location
Amado, AZ
What O rings? Is there any CTIS maintenance I should do while they are apart?
I believe he's referencing the split rim o rings...inexpensive and when bad or deteriorating...leak. Also: banjo bolt crush seals...replace them now as an added precaution. I personally use an impact bead breaker tool with my impact gun...the ken tool breaker is also fabulous. Tires are big...heavy, all that. They are actually
NOT that terrible to change though. Plenty of tire slime and getting your method down (unfortunately learned by the fourth or fifth tire, lol!) is where you'll shine.
 

Littlejacy

New member
21
7
3
Location
Amado, AZ
This task feels like it's a rite of passage for owning these rigs. There's no rocket science to it, just grunt labor. If Rick's tool makes it easy, I'd take a hard look at it. I've done them enough times (without that) at this point that I have a system developed. Lots of soapy water sprayed on the bead, big pry bar, BFH, lots of little wood wedges to stuff into the gap between the bead and the wheel as you pry on it, and work your way around.

Take care to line up the inner and outer halves when re-assembling. There is quite a bit of slop in the split rim holes- you want to stay concentric with the two halves.

No real secrets to it though, just lots of labor.
AMEM to that!
 

serpico760

Well-known member
Steel Soldiers Supporter
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Location
San Diego, CA
and a BFH (big freakin hammer!)....more labor than difficulty in this process. Busting off the old ones is the time consuming part, but if you have a forklift that can make that issue a moot point. Using nothing but a BFH and pry bar, it took me about 1 hour per tire to get them changed over.
Last time I changed the tire, the front half of the rim came off easy. For the back half of the rim I hung the wheel by the chain of the tire hoist, with some tire snot some beating and some time it slid off by itself after a while.
 

GeneralDisorder

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Portland, OR
The slide hammer bead breaker takes less than a minute typically. With the tire laying on the ground. If you haven't tried one I highly suggest it.

I get why people try hammers and wedges and soap and hanging stuff in the air and all kinds of home brew techniques - but the tire industry solved this long ago. It's a slide hammer to drive the tool in, and a 50" pry bar - all rolled into one tool. It's made for exactly this job and it excels at it.
 
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