Wilsons Sandbox

About 15 years ago when I got my first Klr I went down to Mexico to do the Copper canyon_Baja thing.I met up with a group of Americans that had set up an informal group ride.Things went well and eventually I was left alone I'm Matazlan.It was November and the weather was good not too hot.Took the ferry to LaPaz on the Baja side.Spent the week exploring the desert roads .I was on my way north the central town of Mulege and stopped on an incline to take desert vista photos.Foolishly I left the bike in neutral.it rolled off and plunged down a small gully that was not possible to ride out of.Alone in desert.I stood in the road and luckily some Mexican truckers stopped and four of us got the bike out.all good and hardly any damage to the trusty Klr. an hour later as I was heading north to hook up with another Klr guy the bike felt weird.I had a flat on rear.I was using a Gripster at that time I had brought tools and tubes but no way to break bead.I saw a rickety building in the distance so i made for it with my weight off the rear wheel. Well the building turned out to be a roadside bar run by expat gringos from California.After a few beers and a few hours jumping on tire the bead broke.At the time I was not aware of the side stand trick. BACK on the road and on to Mulege when near the town limits got another flat.in my inexperience I did not properly check the inner tire after fixing the first flat.Another cactus spine had worked it way through the tire. well the lesson I learned that on any trip I take all the right stuff prepared to be self sufficient. That includes a pre cut spare chain.bead breaker is a must for me along with a proper inflator.I had a bicycle pump in mexico not good. Mike montreal

---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: "Greg May" Date: Jan 23, 2015 11:30 PM Subject: Re: [DSN_KLR650] Tyrepliers To: dsn_klr650@yahoogroups.com>, Cc: Hi Mike I found the klr rear tire one of the worst I've had the "pleasure" of breaking down. I can't remember what rear tire was on it when I bought it, but I've changed it and three Kendas. The first had a really stiff sidewall and was the worst but the Kendas weren't much better. After seeing a test of a Motion Pro Heavy Duty BeadPro FS, it looked like it should work so I bought one a while later when I saw it on sale. I've only changed one tire with it so far, the rear a Michelin Pilot Road 3 on my weeStrom it broke it down with no problems. It is a bit. In the large size, 17" I believe but there is a slightly smaller version that is perhaps more suited to carry on the bike. Greg in not so balmy Nova Scotia ------------------------------

On Wed, 21 Jan, 2015 10:38 PM AST michael stecyk michael.stecyk@... [DSN_KLR650] wrote: >Dear list > I bought the Tyrepliers beadbreaker last year and never >tested it because I didn't see the need to.I kept it on my on board tool >kit with confidence >Thinking that if I needed it it would perform as advertised.The other day I >brought my 2006 klr to my regular bike shop to have my worn K60 scout >Heinidau tire replaced for an identical one.Good time to test my Tyreplier >I said to me self.I know that this tire has a tough sidewall.well to my >surprise this tool didn't do anything close to breaking the bead.useless.I >even had some of the mechanics give it a try.no luck.We tried many >different configurations. > Perhaps others had better luck with this product.believe me >we tried. > Well this thing is now going to be retired without honors >Well now I'm asking if anyone else had a similar experience? Looking at the >Motion Pro bead pliers .any thoughts? mike Montreal Canada

#ygrps-yiv-864411638 blockquote.ygrps-yiv-864411638cite {margin-left:5px;margin-right:0px;padding-left:10px;padding-right:0px;border-left:1px solid #cccccc;} #ygrps-yiv-864411638 blockquote.ygrps-yiv-864411638cite2 {margin-left:5px;margin-right:0px;padding-left:10px;padding-right:0px;border-left:1px solid #cccccc;margin-top:3px;padding-top:0px;} #ygrps-yiv-864411638 .ygrps-yiv-864411638plain pre, #ygrps-yiv-864411638 .ygrps-yiv-864411638plain tt {font-family:monospace;font-size:100%;font-weight:normal;font-style:normal;} #ygrps-yiv-864411638 a img {border:0px;}#ygrps-yiv-864411638 {font-family:Tahoma;font-size:12pt;} #ygrps-yiv-864411638 .ygrps-yiv-864411638plain pre, #ygrps-yiv-864411638 .ygrps-yiv-864411638plain tt {font-family:Tahoma;font-size:12pt;} Mike, one sees the depth of intellectual capacity and experience in your story. You were always able to have someone else come to the rescue and had beer available. IMO, you should write the book to replace "Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance". Let me know when it's in print as will buy several copies.