Changing a valve stem without breaking the bead

Some quick searching shows there is a tool available for doing this. I don't have the tool.

Does anybody have a Grassroots way of changing a valve stem without breaking the bead?

Was getting the snow blower ready for winter and hit the valve stem and broke it. The tire is well over 20 years old. I could probably break the bead with brute force but I doubt the tire would ever seal again. It's an old snowblower I really don't want to put cash into it for new tires.

Thanks.

Isn't a tire valve stem just a schrader valve? Just use a stem core tool, replace with new. Make sure the tire is jacked up so it's not leaning on a sidewall. The tool is available at walmart.

Time for a tube.

Time for a DIY foam fill with great-stuff.

Or a new tire. Or a tube.

However, I think the odds of getting it to bead again are better than you think. I've re-beaded some pretty small equipment tires, including old ones.

Another vote for tubes. I went through a couple winters of having to refill the tires on my 70s vintage snowblower before finally dropping some $$ on a set of new mudder style tires and a pair of tubes. In one fell swoop, it went from no traction and no air, to tons of grip, and held air all winter.

In reply to Trackmouse:

It's not the valve that broke, it's the rubber stem. The rubber got brittle and when flexed, that was it.

Will get a stem and break the bead and see what happens, if all fails, looks like a tube.

If the bead won't reseal or you tear it up gettign it off and the tire isn't gettign all dry cracked and due for a tube anyways you can use RTV to make it seal.

I didn't have good luck filling a mower tire with great stuff the one time I tried.

+5 on the tube. My old Allis Chalmers snow thrower has tubes. Just aired them up on Thursday and used it Friday and today. (14 inches of the heavy wet stuff)

I have heard of people filling tires with sand in situations like this. Seems logical to me.

ncjay wrote: I have heard of people filling tires with sand in situations like this. Seems logical to me.

That sounds like a great idea. It can't be that old if it is tubeless. Try breaking the bead on a 60 year old 8" wheel. I resorted to burning them off.

Bead has been broken and I am surprised the surface rubber is still on the tire and not attached to the rim. Guessing the heavy dose of PB blaster and an overnight working period may have helped.

As for age of the blower and tires, I was wrong, looks like this thing was built some where around 1979-1986, making the tires 30 years old.

Thanks for the suggestions.

To break the bead if any one is interested, I used a 3ft+ 2X4 as the lever, a 6 inch 2X4 as the bead pusher about half way back, the base of my cars tire (Still on the car) as the far pivot point hold down and my not so lean and mean 200 lbs at the working end. Could have used a couple more lbs, but a bounce or two did it.

Steve

HappyAndy wrote: Time for a DIY foam fill with great-stuff. Or a new tire. Or a tube. However, I think the odds of getting it to bead again are better than you think. I've re-beaded some pretty small equipment tires, including old ones.

the Great Stuff idea seems like the best way to handle this... i should do that to the leaking tires on the old JD 212 when i drag it out next spring...

i dont know how your tires mount on there but places like Rural King sell solid rubber tires for pretty cheap. I got one for my wheel barrow after i blew the tire on it in less then a year.

The Great Stuff DIY is aided by drilling a vent hole 180 deg from the valve stem hole.

Great Stuff won't harden inside a tire, for the same reason it doesn't harden inside the can. I tried filling a small beach ball with GS. Days later it was still squishy. A coupla C-clamps should be good to break the bead, or a large screw driver and hammer.