Hello all,
Haven't been around lately, but have missed the list! After the dust settled, my '66 S sold, as did my '91/'76 1275. I am left with the '70 S, which was the car I originally figured I'd end up keeping. The Mini Gods work in mysterious ways.

So now that my wallet is a lot lighter, I'm back to focusing on the '70. I have a set of A008's on the way, and wonder about mounting them. I see that MiniMania warns against machine mounting. Discount Tire here in the States have given great service and advice for more than 20 years, and they say they will machine mount them and give the usual warranty.

Do I risk some kind of damage to wheel or tyre that they are not aware of? Is there a way to do this by hand myself, and then take them in for balancing?

Hope all have been well, and talk soon.
bmc

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Ben McCafferty
Bainbridge Island, Washington, USA
1970 ex-police mk2 Cooper S

That's the only way I've ever had tyres mounted here, and my A008's were done only a few months ago. They're fine, I don't know why Minimania would warn against it..

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Simon

The adventures of an owner builder in the Tallarook Ranges

Me either--but they state:

"Mount tires to rim by hand only! Machine mounting will damage the tire and will not be warranted!"

Hmmm.
bmc

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Ben McCafferty
Bainbridge Island, Washington, USA
1970 ex-police mk2 Cooper S

I got mine done by the local tyre monkeys. They had to use a different machine than they usually do, as the tight inner bead was too stiff to bend over the rim.
They got them on, but they had to grease them up a lot of really push them on.

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Simplify and add lightness

This is why:


from here: http://www.turbominis.co.uk/forums/index.php?p=vt&tid=318003&lastpost=1

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Too many cars, and too little time.

On a site over here in Seattle, one guy mentions having them use the machine, but once the tire iron is in place, to have them turn the machine through by hand. Would that tend to avoid the problem?

I guess if they're willing to warrant them, it's not a huge deal since they'd be liable for the torn tyre?

Again, hmmm...

bmc

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Ben McCafferty
Bainbridge Island, Washington, USA
1970 ex-police mk2 Cooper S

Yoinks!! Can't say I've ever seen that happen before.

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Simon

The adventures of an owner builder in the Tallarook Ranges

I've had about 3 sets machine fitted to 10x5 ROH Contessa alloys, never had a problem.
They just lube the bead, and fit it from the narrow side of the wheel.

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DrMini- 1970 wasaMatic 1360, Mk1S crank, 86.6HP (ATW) =~125 @ crank, 45 Dellorto (38 chokes), RE282 sprint cam, 1.5 rockers, 11.0:1 C/R.

I think the issue is that they're just that bit trickier to mount given the geometry involved with such a small rim. The tyre fitter needs to use plenty of special sauce, take their time, and as bmacpiper says, turn the machine by hand to get over the tight spot. If your tyre guy is inexperienced and /or in a rush, you might encounter problems, but it'd almost certainly amount to a cost to the tyre dealer (and maybe a delay to getting you on the road again).

Matt

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'68 Deluxe w/Metro engine

I've never had a problem with damaging a tyre but had a tyre places tyre fitting machine tear a huge chunk out of the side of a contessa when fitting Falkens a few years ago ....

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I have fitted hundreds of 10' tyres to all different types mini rims with a machine and have never had an issue, tho i have seen damaged tyres that have been fitted by a tyre specialest. The main problem is lack of experence with 10' tyres and the fact that the rim needs to be fitted the correct way up (short) on the machine. Trying to fit a tyre over the "long" side of the rim will damage the tyre.

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Have a Nice Day.
If already having a nice day please disregard.

There has been alot of discussion on the UK forums about fitting tires to 10*6 rims with 3" offset and 3" backspace - so the flange is in the middle. Big issues with fitting, and in some cases, the problems not showing up untill some time later.

First time i got some 10's fitted up, the fitted pointed to a big weld in the arm of his machine, and said he will never fit mini rims the wrong way up again...he broke the machine on a mini rim during his first day as an aprentice!

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speed costs....how fast do you want to go...

If a tyre shop wrecks the tyre when fitting it shouldn't they be replacing it?

And unless you are really good at changing tyres by hand i wouldn't bother doing it yourself. 10 inch wheels are fiddly whereas truck tyres are easy.

Thanks for all the replies. Two of you mention the wrong side of the rim. So I can tell the tire dealer, is the "correct" side the INSIDE of the rim, i.e. mount/dismount from that side?

Thanks all,
bmc

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Ben McCafferty
Bainbridge Island, Washington, USA
1970 ex-police mk2 Cooper S

The correct side to mount the tyre is the narrower side. If you look at a rim you will notice that the Valley is closer to one side. On Mini wheels this is usually the inner side of the rim. They are made like that for a good reason. I have seen tyre fitters trying to fit a tyre on a Mini rim the LONG way on. I had to explain to the guy that there was the right way and the wrong way of fitting tyres on a 10inch Mini rim. They don't usually do many Mini tyres and most "New" tyre fitters don't know the geometry of tyre fitting unless they have been told. Also I have seen tyre fitters using Machines with such a worn out FOOT that it slices the tyre beading like a razor blade and when they are doing it the wrong way and tyre there is trying to stretch too far it cuts it even worse. Make sure you tell the "tyre fitter" to fit your new tyre from the correct side of the rim. Some of them are so Smart and they do not like to be told how to fit a tyre correctly. They are only used to fitting Holden and Ford tyres which have a lot more give in them than a little 10 inch.

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