Tail Dolly Tire

The tail dolly tire is flat again. The last time this happened, it took me bloody forever to get the tire bead off the rim, and back on again, with bicycle tools. (The wheel is one piece and does not come apart.) Somebody else must have figured this out. Short of taking it to a tire store, who has a tool, tip or trick for how to do this right?
Thanks for advice
John Cochrane BB

You can have it filled with foam. We have done this with tail dolly and tow plane tail wheels. Adds some weight, but very tolerable. JJB

Yes, but let's fix the flat first... Thanks

Buy a split rim?

Sorry, John, but I have no good solution. I have used screwdrivers, and with that small a tire (200 by 50, or is yours 210 by 65?), it is just tough to do, and easy to pinch the tube. You are just dealing with a high percentage elongation to get the tire around the rim. The bigger the wheel and tire you are dealing with, the smaller the percent stretch to get the tire onto the wheel. I, too, wish for an easier way that doesn't involve finger poking, cussing, and way too much time for such a small piece of equipment.

You can buy nylon split rims from W&W for under $70 if the tail dolly wheel is one of the above mentioned sizes. Maybe worth it if over the life of the dolly it saves you an hour? Otherwise, far as I know, it is just a struggle.

Steve Leonard

Use some liquid soap mixed with water as a lube on the bead and rim.
A suitable sized bar through the wheel and clamped in a vise gives some leverage. Wheel is laid flat on the vise, bar through axle hole and "just" sticking up through the top side so you have working room.

Having it foam filled fixes the flat and likely the shop installing the
foam will also remove the tube for you and remount the tire. Problem
solved. Good luck with whatever you decide to do.

On 8/1/2016 9:22 AM, John Cochrane wrote:
Yes, but let's fix the flat first... Thanks

--
Dan, 5J

On Monday, August 1, 2016 at 9:07:56 AM UTC-7, Dan Marotta wrote:
Having it foam filled fixes the flat and likely the shop installing the
foam will also remove the tube for you and remount the tire. Problem
solved. Good luck with whatever you decide to do.

On 8/1/2016 9:22 AM, John Cochrane wrote:
Yes, but let's fix the flat first... Thanks

--
Dan, 5J

I did the foam thing several years ago on my tail dolly after having read someones great advise here on RAS. I regret having done so. It makes the tail dolly a lot heavier. More important, when I'm pushing on unpaved surfaces (which is frequently) it makes the tail bounce a lot worse than it did on air.

On this type of rim, I have had better luck with 4 ply tires. I have a nice 6 ply tire and it's really really stiff, but you just can't practically get it on the rim. It's completely futile. I believe the practical use for that tire is with a split rim such as the glider tail wheel on some models..

What I do know though is just buy the whole tire/hub assembly from monster scooter parts. It's like 10 or 20 bucks,cheap, and works well for a dolly tire.

Use a good tube and have it filled with helium? Helium does not leak like air.

Use a good tube and have it filled with helium? Helium does not leak like air.