So you want to change your own tires.

Here are the basics of how to break the bead on a tire, and how BeadBuster can help.

For starters, there are TWO STEPS in the de-mounting process of any tire change:

Step 1

‘Break’ the tire bead loose with a Bead Breaker

Step 2

Remove the Tire with Tire Irons

The BeadBuster tool only helps with the 1st step.

But critically, the 1st step is usually the hardest. Dislodging the tire bead from the rim (aka ‘Breaking’ the Bead) can be almost impossible without the right setup and tools.  We also sell great, Heavy Duty tire irons for Step 2.

The tire bead is held in place between the lip of the rim, and a small bump-like feature called the “Bead Retainer”.

The tire seals around its inside diameter, and is held in place with air pressure; the bead retainer’s job is to keep the tire from moving and losing its seal under side loading.  A heavy steel cable runs through the bead, and keeps the tire from expanding and losing the seal.

On an ATV, the bead retainer is quite large due to the extreme use that the tire sees on the trail, and relatively low air pressures that are run.  The bead retainer does such a good job that it is very difficult to get the bead past it when its time change out a worn or damaged tire.

Shown below is a conventional bead breaker, it uses a mechanism that we call the “Shoe & Lever” to break the beads.  A curved metal ‘shoe’ pushes down next to the bead using a long lever.

This works OK for some kinds of tires, like cars, trailers, and some motorcycles.  But it does not work well on the heavier tires and more extreme rims found on ATV’s, Side by Sides, Offroad Trucks, Adventure and Touring Motorcycles, and the list goes on.  Often, using this tool on those stubborn tires will result in a damaged tool, tire & wheel, and a whole lot of wasted time and frustration.

The problem is that, by its design, the shoe pushes down on the SIDEWALL next to the bead, which is thin rubber.  If the bead puts up a fight, the shoe will slide down the sidewall, because the steel cord will not budge over the bead retainer.  This kind of bead breaker just doesn’t have the proper mechanical advantage.

We’ve seen many creative alternatives to this Shoe & Lever bead breaker…all of which still don’t work very well, are dangerous, and not a solid, reliable technique for breaking loose stubborn beads.

All you do is get the feet in between the lip of the rim and the tire bead, and the Clamp Screw sucks the feet in, partially breaking the bead in that area.

Usually all the way around the rim with pushing down on just one spot.

When the steel cord gets pushed down, the rest of the tire is coming with it, no matter what its condition is. By design, the BeadBuster HAS to work…and it does every time.

And it doesn’t matter the width, diameter, or type of rim. The BeadBuster does not need adjusted, you just clamp it and break it loose. It works on everything from Go-Karts to light Aircraft.