:huh Dude, the link in your sig doesnt work. I was fucking with you and trying to say that id like for that link not to be dead. You took that the wrong way, and im pretty sure it was obvious to others.. right??
Yes Lots of soapy water (all the way around the bead, not just one section) and more air pressure, sometimes 60 + pounds. Put your helmet on A visual Look for this ridge or something similar. I hook my fingernail on it and run it around the circumference.
The bead is steel and won't stretch. The concept is to make it oval, for that to happen, the side you start on has to be completely into the dished section of the rim, which is a shorter distance. Similar to your last photo. Shouldn't you be greasing something?
You hear that sound? That's the sound of cursing at the tlmaffucci house. I feel bad but I'm glad I'm not there.
This is seriously the most disappointed I have ever felt. I'm in awe of my depression right now. It's 2 am and I'm going to bed. Fml
/ Trust me man, youll look back and laugh at this. I cant tell you how pissed I was the first time I pinched a tube. Its happened twice to me- both times I was in a hurry and started stabbing with the irons too aggressively.
That's why I almost pissed myself laughing the last time I changed out that tire that the rim lock went flying into the garbage can missing my head by a few inches. you just gotta laugh it off or it's going to kill you. Try it again tomorrow. Pay attention to getting the bead down as you're working your way around the tire. I have a technique where I place my fingers under the tire so I know that the spoon isn't pinching it right before I pull up on the lever. It's tricky and I could probably lose a finger but I have 9 others and haven't had any problems pinching tubes since I started doing this. Off to bed now. Better luck tomorrow man. I feel your pain. Been there.
To me, and from what the original poster was implying, was that there was an o-ring behind that bolt, and it looks like it by the photo. Why else would he question whether the previous owner may have put it there, as it would be unusual and almost certain to cause a leak, especially if the proper sealing washer wasn't there. Furthermore, if the sealing washer (or gasket as Suzuki calls it) in question was an o-ring then I am sure that they would call it that just as they call every other o-ring in the manual, an o-ring. This is an o-ring (below) and would not belong behind that bolt which is why I advised him to remove it. This is not an o-ring (below) and is what is supposed to be there. (image courtesy of motolab) Suzuki also call their gasket/seal whatever you want to call it that seals the joint between the header pipe and muffler, a connector. Go figure !! Remind me never to order an o-ring from you procycle. I'm likely to end up with the wrong thing !
It's been said before, I'll say it again: that cheap, small Harbor Freight bead breaker, for motorcycle tires, works great and has saved me lots of aggravation. Lex
I've put on three sets of those tires; only the first tire was difficult, I was doing what you are doing: learning on the job. Get an education first, lots of YouTube videos to show you how to mount a tire. These tires are not difficult to mount. Lex
Thanks for taking the time to do that Derek (seriously), but did you read this bit in one of my previous messages? I do actually know how to tune a carb, and did it for years on my race bikes. I've just finished doing a couple of AMALs for a Matchie rebuild, as it happens. I also used to build tuned exhaust systems for old Brit bikes years back. I'll probably drop back a size in the main and like you, I'm not sure that the larger pilot is really warranted. The bike appears to be burning all the fuel going in properly, plugs are nice, no soot in the pipe, clean stage transitions, no stutters, stumbles or other problems. If the bike had a 20 litre tank I wouldn't even bother about it, but as I ride between 100 and 200km a day it means filling the existing tank every day. A slight change might give me two days running and I really don't want to fit a bigger tank. Given the power the even the basic DR puts out the Staintune mileage isn't all that bad - some of the worked 350 and 500 singles drank fuel by the gallon.
a few tips for tomorrow: 1. line the valve stem up before you try spooning on the second bead; get one bead on, stuff your tube in the tire with a little air in it and get the valve stem poking through the hole, then stand the whole thing upright with the valve stem close to the ground. press your chest against the top of the tire to hold it in place and then rotate the wheel inside the tire while watching the valve stem as it moves backwards and forwards. do it a few times and youll get a pretty good idea of where the neutral position for the valve stem is. pulling on the stem can help confirm that its in a good location too as you should be able to pull it straight up without it rubbing on the edges of the hole 2. spooning on the second bead shouldnt be too difficult; remove the valve core from the tube and start spooning opposite the valve stem (unless you have a rim lock, then start opposite the rim lock) and then get a little of the tire seated to the left of the start point, then the right of the start point. this should keep the the tire from creeping around the wheel which can give you a crooked valve stem. only put the tire irons in as far as you need to get them to hold onto the wheel rim or youll pinch the tube. when spooning the tire on starts to get difficult, put your knees onto the parts of the tire that are already in place to push then down into the wheel well in the centre of the wheel and keep spooning on the tire slowly, taking "small bites". keep pushing the newly spooned on sections of tire into the wheel well as you go. only about the final 1/10th of the tire should be difficult to seat, and even then, if your slogging your guts out you might be doing something wrong. 3. when you do inflate, try taking it up to the maximum pressure printed on the sidewall first to get the bead to seat as best you can, then drop it back down to normal riding pressures. if its still a little off being fully seated all the way around (most of the time i find its a little off in one portion of the tire on at least on side) go for a ride for 30 minutes or so. as the tire heats up it will soften and usually seat itself pretty quickly. just take your time and itll get there. crack the shits with it or rush it and youll probably have to do it again