No-Mar or No Más?

This is about tire changing.

I have had a slow leak in my EV’s front tire. “Slow” as in flat in a week. I failed in finding a nail, etc., and, after consulting my texting brain trust, pulled the wheel, and gave it a bubble bath in the utility sink. Found a stretch of several inches of faint air going AWOL.

I then watched a bunch of youtube vids and, again, consulted my virtual enablers, all of whom said “go for it, Bill.”

Well, I did, but now think they just wanted the post-disaster entertainment.  So, after thinking about Dirty Harry’s admonition, I gave up.  

This is the rest of the story of (what Kathi calls) “Bill’s Dramatic Tire-Changer Saga.”  

I would be more offended, but she is so indulgent, and goes uncomplainingly along with my Guzzi disease.    Besides, she’s right about my seemingly endless agonizing, so what can I say?  

OTOH, her smiling and amiable reaction to my various harebrained schemes and purchases is somewhat troubling, but I try not to think about that!  

But, finally, to cut to the chase, I pulled the trigger on a No-Mar tire changer and a few doodads. I declined to go for the wheel balancer, as it seemed a bit gold-plated, and will, instead, get a Harbor Freight model, no doubt manufactured from melted down U.S. Army tanks from the Korean War! As with Kathi, I try not to think about that, either.

Here’s what I ordered:

Bill's No-Mar Tire Changer

Here’s the WB I didn’t buy!

NoMar's Made of Gold Wheel Balancer

Here’s the HF I did:

Wheel Balancer Good Enough for the Likes of Bill

I know that the tire-changer makes no real fiscal sense when I run the numbers of tires ahead in my riding life. But, that is, IMO, irrelevant as we are, after all, talking about motorcycles.  

As another Guzzista said to me, "Bill, if you try to make economic sense out of motorcycle stuff … you are on a fool's errand.”  

I look forward to learning how to use this gizmo. If in the neighborhood, using it might cost you a bottle of better bourbon or lesser grappa … and letting me watch so I learn.

The EV will be first in the chute, but then the Stornello.  The GRiSO will just kibitz this season.  

1921 - 2021

Bill

Bill, I applaud you. I’m not sure I could even assemble the changer you ordered
I buddy of mine, former GRiSO owner, has a tire changer of some sort and balancer. All the guys we ride with all buy tires now and go over to his house for a change and balance. I’ll probably be doing the same soon. It’s a hassle for me to take my bike to the shop and leave it and come back and pick it up. With as many bikes as you have, and the Moto Grappa, this is a must......good luck and let us all know how this works out.

Hey Bill, I have the No-Mar set up, better than ten years of use. I don't remember the balancer being quite that gold plated. I was on the fence for a while about getting one until I saw a demo and spoke with the No-Mar guys at the MotoGP here in Indy. The only thing I was skeptical about was the balancer. As walked through the pits and I saw a couple teams using similar equipment. So, I figure if it works on 200 mph GP bikes it should get me down the road no problem. At the time I was Running 3 race bikes, 4 dirt bikes, a side car rig and a couple road bikes so it seemed like a step in the right direction with all the equipment I had.

The long and short of it is that the equipment takes up a little shop space, works well and your friends will enjoy watching  you remove 30+ year old tires from their recent barn find vintage project.

GRiSO tires were a breeze. Tires with stiff sidewalls seem to be the most challenging and I recommend at least one long tire iron. Mfg instructions are pretty good. Plenty of instruction at the University of YouTube if you hit a snag.

Yep ++ recommendation. I'd do it again.

hmm, not sure how i picked up the dog avatar

he followed me home . . .

I too have been toying with the idea of getting a tire changer.
I have a VTX that goes through tires once a season, but the GRiSO seems to eat them like candy which is making me look at options. the numbers aren't quite there for me yet, but I'm definitely curious how yours turns out especially with the dual rotor front tire.
keep us posted

I removed the rotors for the front tire, probably didn't have too but I was on to some other operation involving the rotors.

I built one for myself, and used a Nomar bar also. I just went with the Mark Parnes balancer setup. Nice stuff..I then decided after 62 years to buy a electronic balancer for my car stuff. That led to my just pricking up a Derick Weaver 894xs changer.. Added a motorcycle duck-head, and ATV adapters.. I was stupid not to do this 20 years ago..Although it had paid for itself in about two years.. It does not take long to recoup your money. I do think the best Nomar product is   tire lube, Although standard old Murphy's oil soap (died out a bit in the bucket) smells the same, and works about the same for way cheaper. (Veg oi based)BTW have the motorcycle adapters for my Balancer too.. Single-sided Ducati wheels go on the machine without any fancy adapters..

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