My new BFL tires arrived last week and I was all ready for them with a new fork and rims. I had heard that setting up the wheels was a fair amount of work, but I hadn't dreaded it until until the tire actually arrive. They came bundled together looking like one big hard lumpy deformed tire.

I got some tips from Jon Ellis on how to set them up. First I sat them in a nice heated space and hoped that they would soften up and they did, but I could still tell that they were going to be hard to stretch onto the rims and still harder to get the bead to sit right and hold air.

Next,........


I still needed to get some valve stems, so I headed to Les Schwab. I decided to see if they would set up my tires for me and guess what- THEY DID! It cost $20 for them to do it, but it was well worth it IMO. (I didn't think that they would since their machines don't work with such small rims. The guy said he was going to do it by hand - he even knew what kitebuggying is! )

I am totally stoaked- no hard work for me and the tires are nice and round. Now high tide wont stop me!

Wow that is great news. You missed out on what could have been one hard afternoon of much frustration. It could take an hour or more on one tire or just 5 minutes. I remember setting aside a no wind Sat. to put the tires on. I did try and find someone who would mount them with no luck.

Susan (npw goddess)

Tires on plastic rims are easy enough to do when applied with plenty of liquid dish soap {no water} ...plenty is key, don't hold back
plus when your done just wipe off excess soap with just a dry rag {no water} will leave them looking clean and glossy...

same goes for removing a tire...liquid dish washing soap and I find IVORY clear works best out of all that I have used in the pass...

plus it softens your hands while you do your tires

I always use professional tyre fitters, and yes they always do it by hand, but for a few $ its worth letting them struggle, and at least you know it will be sitting perfectly in the rim

We have been using WD-40 to get the tires mounted, especially when you use aluminum wheels as the soap corrodes the aluminum.

Softens your hands while you do your tires! Your to much.

Put the rims in the freezer overnight, or leave them outside if you live in a cold climate, and put the tires in a bathtub a half hour before you want to fit them with the water at about 115* (F). Go out get a rim, put the tire on w/ soap or oil and it shud be alot easier. The rim will have shrunk a bit, and the wheel will have expanded alot. You might be able to make the water bath hotter, just make sure it won't make the rubber too pliable to the point it will stretch and tear like gum.

Exactly what are BFL's? I'm just guessing there not your normal tires.

Big Foot Lites. Much bigger OD, but fit on same size barrow rims, for more "float" on soft sand.

krumly

So are we talking 21x12-8's = Big Foot Lights?

What would a standard Big Foot be?

Quote:

Originally posted by OreBeamer So are we talking 21x12-8's = Big Foot Lights?

yep

Quote:

Originally posted by OreBeamerWhat would a standard Big Foot be?

not sure, but the main difference is larger/ wider rims. BFL's sit on the standard barrow rims.

Okey, Thanks. I guess that's what I have then, BFLs. :frog:

I guess I should look into getting some. Archkiter where did you order yours

21-12 is a BFL ? Those things are huge !!! Someone please enlighten us on a true big foot size. Thanks

BF & BFL is a bit of a misnomer in my opinion because tyre size 21X12-8 is the same for both. It is just the rim width that has created the difference in terminology .
When the tyre is fitted to a narrow rim, say about 75 mm wide, then it is referred to as a BFL.

I have hopefully attached a sketch I made of my tyres fitted to an offset rim. These are what is commonly referred to as BF's.
It should give an idea of the sort of footprint it will give. The actual footprint of course will be determined by the tyre pressure

Not sure you can view the attachment mentioned above (always have such problems on this forum).
You can access the sketch in Photobucket

Link: http://s15.photobucket.com/albums/a394/Sand-Yeti/Buggy%20dra...

Quote:

Originally posted by gross213 I guess I should look into getting some. Archkiter where did you order yours

I bought them from tires unlimited - http://www.tiresunlimited.com/nankang_atv_tires.htm

Nankang 21x12x8- look for the N800 "slick"at the bottom of the page. Not cheap, and the price has gone up a lot on their site since I bought mine (they were $28 each at the time). I think that there is another site call "one stop tire" or something that has them too- Might be worth shopping around. Be sure to factor in shipping costs if ordering online. You might also get a hold of Jon Ellis- I think that he has tires sometime too. Also, you need a wide front fork if you plan on having one in front.

Yesterday was the first time I really did some riding in the dunes- what fun- Bigfoots are a must for the dunes!

you can also call your local tire store and see if they can order them for you and have them come in on the next regular shipment to save you some shippin. I called big-O tires and they have them for $40 each