The BestRest TireIron BeadBrakR (TIBB) is a levering device that incorporates a trio of tire irons into the mechanism that's used to remove the rubber tire from the metal rim. When the bead is free you disassemble the device and use those same tire irons to remove the tire from the rim. What could be more simple, more efficient, more utilitarian?
Breaking News! The TIBB is now available with high-tech titanium tire irons. These are the same TIBB- compatible "Tar Arns" manufactured and sold by our friends at Aerostich. Same price, too. (Aero's old style titanium irons won't work with the TIBB because they don't have the proper holes) Scroll down for more information.
Every rider’s kit should include a variety of tire repair products, including tire irons, a tire inflator, AND a bead breaker. Why a bead breaker? When repairs require removal of the tire from the rim, or if you need to change your tires, you'll need special tools. That's because the rubber tire sidewall is actually glued to the rim, and the bead is held in place by the natural outward flex of the tire carcass. Breaking this chemical and mechanical bond is called "breaking the bead". Unless you can do this with the tools you’re carrying, you might not be able to fix your tire. Plain translation: you’re in for a long walk home.
One old bead breaking trick was to use the side stand from a buddy’s bike. They’d extend their sidestand, tip their bike onto the flat tire (which was lying on the ground) and their sidestand would compress the tire sidewall and hopefully break the bead. Unfortunately this often led to bent side stands, or it didn’t always work, and what if you were riding alone and there was no one to help? Again, start walking.
That’s why riders have carried a variety of “Rube Goldberg” bead breaking devices. They included large C-clamps, or specially modified oversized pliers, or wedges, or hammers, or heavy steel jaws, or screw jacks, and a myriad other devices which were OK for garage work, but most were way too big or too heavy to take on the road. In addition to these tools, the rider still had to carry a full set of tire irons to remove the tire once the bead was free.
We asked ourselves, "Why not combine bead breaking components into one unit? Why not make the tire irons part of the bead breaking device itself? Why not make a compact, collapsible, purpose-built device that’s designed for the solo adventure rider?" So we went to the drawing board and made a better mouse trap! The design had to be small, lightweight, sturdy, multi-functional, and it had to be something you could easily carry on your bike. It took almost 2 years before we came up with the answer…
Compact, lightweight, and easy to assemble using quick release ring pins, the entire kit fits in your hand and rolls up nicely in the storage pouch.
To understand how it works, the left tire iron fits vertically upward thru the spokes. The tire rests on the lower horizontal tire iron, with the hub to the left. The line drawing at right shows the cross section of the tire. Scroll down to see step-by-step photos of the BeadBrakR in action.
Brilliantly simple but amazingly effective, downward force at the end of the lever forces the plunger onto the tire sidewall, breaking the bead. (Note - the term "breaking the bead" does not imply that the tire sidewall is damaged, this is just a common term)
Because we know the BeadBrakR will see some pretty rough conditions around the world we selected materials that’ll stand up to the elements: The 8.5” long tire irons are gold zinc plated to prevent corrosion. Other components are rustproof 17-7 and 304 stainless steel, precision laser cut and formed and TIG welded for maximum strength. (The 17-7 alloy we’re using also makes aircraft cockpit doors bulletproof.)
We added small plywood blocks that keep the BeadBrakR from contacting and scratching the rim. For working on soft surfaces we added a plywood “sand foot” to spread the load. We added a safety lanyard so you could string the assembly pins and blocks together and keep track of them. Then we laminated the instruction sheet and included a set of tire mounting / demounting tips. We also added a set of plastic rim protectors, a bottle of specially formulated BeadGoop tire mounting lubricant, a valve stem multi-tool, and a Cordura storage pouch that's big enough for your own collection of tire patches & plugs.
Overall size of the BeadBrakR kit with all the accessories is 2” thick x 5.5” wide x 12” long. Total weight is (3.1 pounds). The BeadBrakR kit contains the following items:
3 - Tire Irons (8.5” long) gold zinc plated
1 - BeadBrakR assembly (Corner, Lever, Plunger, Lock Bar) rustproof stainless steel
1 - Ring lanyard for storing the 5 quick release assembly pins
2 - Plywood rim blocks to protect the inside of your rim from scratches
1 - Plywood sand foot for when you're working on soft surfaces
2 - Plastic rim protectors for use during tire mounting / demounting
1 - Bottle BeadGoop tire mounting lube to make tire removal easy
1 - Valve stem multi-tool that tightens or removes cores and inserts new valve stems
1 - Laminated instructions with bead breaking and tire mounting tips
We've tested the BeadBrakR on big bore BMW R1150GS and R1200GS and other brands of motorcycle tires and it works like a champ. KTM riders may have to work a bit harder during the bead breaking process due to the double-locking rim design, especially when using stiff-walled tires such as the Karoo.
Price $150.00 (with 3 steel tire irons) Click here to order
Price $245.00 (with 3 titanium tire irons) Click here to order
Inventory Update May 8, '08 - We're out of stock on titanium tire irons. We expect another shipment at the end of May. If you can wait that long, place your order and we'll ship your Ti-TIBB as soon as we can. If you need a TIBB sooner, we recommend you order the kit with steel tire irons.
Note: If your order also contains other items we will HOLD shipment of those items until we can ship your order complete, unless you tell us otherwise.
Price $140.00 (without any tire irons) Click here to order
Some might say this is an expensive tool, but when you consider the costs of a trio of tire irons, rim protectors, valve stem tool, tire lube, and a bead breaker of some sort, the BeadBrakR is a bargain.
The BeadBrakR is Patent Pending and proudly made in the USA.
To see how it works, scroll down:
Remove the tire from the motorcycle and place it on a smooth flat surface.
Unpack the contents of the BeadBrakR pouch and lay out your tools.
Use the Valve Stem Multi-tool to deflate the tire and remove the valve core.
Assemble the BeadBrakR using the quick release pins. The laminated instruction sheet makes assembly quick and easy. After you've done it once the second time is easy.
Remove the pin that connects the Lever from the vertical tire iron and set the Lever aside.
Lift the wheel and lower it down onto the vertical tire iron, finding a wide spot between the spokes. The plywood "sand foot" keeps the device pointing upright and prevents the end of the tire iron from sinking into soft surfaces.
Note how the vertical tire iron sticks up thru the spokes, between the rim and the hub.
Plywood blocks prevent the BeadBrakR from scratching the rim.
Pull the BeadBrakR tight up against the inside of the rim, then push the Lock Bar tight up against the tire. This system keeps the BeadBrakR from moving in relation to the tire.
Reattach the Lever to the upper end of the vertical tire iron.
Position the Lever so it's about 20 degrees above horizontal, and adjust the Plunger so its about 1/2" from the rim, on the sidewall of the tire.
Align your body so your're facing the wheel, then kneel so the sandfoot is between your knees. Use both hands on the end of the tire iron. Your arms will stabilize the BeadBrakR and prevent it from twisting to the side.
Take a firm grip on the end of the tire iron and SLOWLY press down. As you do this the Plunger will depress the bead. To get the best leverage you may need to make minor adjustments with the position of the Lever and Plunger. If the BeadBrakR doesn't break the bead on the first attempt make an adjustment and try again. You'll find the "sweet spot" that works best for your tire and rim.
You'll see the end of the Plunger depressing the bead, and in seconds it will break free from the rim.
Once you've broken the bead at one spot, you can often step on the tire and "walk around the rim" and the rest of the bead will break free. If it won't, then reposition the BeadBrakR a short distance around the rim and repeat the above process until the bead is free.
Turn the tire over and repeat the process on the other side. It's really that easy!
When you're done breaking the bead, disassemble the BeadBrakR. Slip the blue rim protectors over the edges of your rims and use the tire irons to lever the tire off the rim. We've provide helpful instructions on how to do that process.
For more photos of the BeadBrakR in action visit our SmugMug site: BeadBrakR In Action
Some riders ask about the need for blocking up the tire/rim to prevent damage to the brake rotor. The wheel we used for our photos was from an BMW R12GS which doesn't have an attached rotor.
If you have a rim with attached rotors you'd need to make sure they're not in contact with the ground when you're breaking the bead. You could that with a couple wood blocks under the tire at 2 o'clock and 10 o'clock, with the BB positioned at 6 o'clock.
The BeadBrakR is about 1" thick when it's in contact with the rim, so if the offset of your rotors (from the rim) is 1" or less you may not need to put a block under the BB itself - each tire/wheel is different.
We've put a lot of thought into bead breaking in the field, trying to imagine worst case scenarios. If wood blocks aren't handy to block up the tire to avoid contact with the rotors, you can use a couple sticks, pannier lids, etc, to elevate the rim, or you can even scoop a shallow impression in the ground to make room for the rotors. Both methods work.
Also, due to the geometry and physics of the lever, as you press down on the end of the tire lever, the opposite side of the wheel tends to want to raise up off the ground a bit. This upward angle results in a desirable side effect - the outer edge of the rotor is no longer in contact with the ground, therefore it won't be damaged.
TireIron BeadBrakR