I bought a pair of Heidenau K66s, which I really like. (I used this same tire on The Bride). In this case, I’m going with identical tires front and rear, 90/80-16. They’re on the small side for these rims (both 2.15″ wide), but with only 5 horsepower and a single drive ratio, I was aiming for lighter weight and smaller diameter.
I attempted to spoon the front tire onto the rim about a week ago, and for the life of me I couldn’t get the front tire (which is a tubeless rim) to seat on the bead. I wrestled with it for many hours. With a ratchet strap around it I could get it to inflate, but it just wouldn’t pop into place. I went as high as 70+ PSI, bonked it with a rubber mallet, and even upped my game from soapy water to Beadbuster commercial tire mounting lube.
None of it would do the trick. Look at the 1 o’clock to 3 o’clock position in this photo:
After three days of messing with it, I still couldn’t get the bead over the safety rib on the tubeless rim. I tried switching out tires in case the one I was trying to put on the front was defective. (Remember, the front and rear tires are identical.) I de-mounted it and switched tires.
On the front, I did all that again, with EXACTLY the same result. But I mounted the other tire on the tube type rear wheel and the bead popped at 85 psi. At that point, I had very little to lose. Once I had exhausted the alternatives and overcome my fear, I cranked the air compressor up to 120 psi and gave it a go without the valve stem in. It turns out the magic number was 110 PSI.
Great Success!
I’m glad it worked out. I’m pretty happy with both the wheel and tire choice; I think they’ll be perfect for my 5 HP diesel cruiser.
