Zenith Aircraft Builders and Flyers
Online Community of Zenith Builders and Flyers
Replacing tire on a Matco rim
Ok, I've got the rim apart and new tire ready to go, how in blue blazes to you get that o-ring to stay when you bolt the two halves of the rim back together?? It sure doesn't seem like you can bolt the rim together and then stretch the o-ring over the whole rim. There has to be a trick! So who knows that trick?? Help!!!
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Don Morrisey on
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Slide the O ring onto the wide part of one of the rims. Bolt together, then nudge it off with your finger or a flat screw driver. Use plenty of plumbers silicone between the two rim halves and also apply liberally to the O Ring. The grease keeps the air in. You can get it at home depot in the plumbing aisle. I grease the O ring and apply more when it is nestled into the mating groove. No Leaks. Use that plumbers grease around the edges of the tires too.
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Permalink Reply by Lonnie Fosgate on
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Thanks Don, The o-ring didn't seem like it had much stretch to it but I'll see if I can get it over onto the wide part. I'll try it tonight and post how it went! Thanks again!
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Permalink Reply by Bryan Ekholm on
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I had to buy new o-rings of lower durometer (softer), it was either 70 or 80, to make them stretch to the flat part of the rim. The o-rings I received with my kit were just way to hard to stretch. I ruined one of the supplied o-rings on one attempt and ruined my fingers with the other.
Bryan
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It worked!! Thanks guys for your input, I sure didn't think it would stretch that far but it did!
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I didn't have any silicone grease (and the closest Home Depot is 80 miles away) but I had dilectric grease and that worked very well. Tire sealed right up, now if the rest of the parts needed would show up so I can get back in the air!!
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Permalink Reply by Van Lovett on
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100% on the plumber’s silicone grease. It comes in a small plastic container and is very liquid when you open it. The first time I tried to mount my tires, I put the two halves of the Matco rims together and forced the tire over the halves. 2 out of 3 tires held pressure, but the 3rd wouldn’t.
After reading this thread, I tried letting the pressure off and reseating the internal gasket (o-ring) and re inflating. No success. Then I went and got some of the silicone “grease” and applied it liberally to the gasket and internal surfaces of the tire. I had to stand on the tire to seat it on one side, then push the body of the tire to create a seal on the other side. When I inflated the tire, it pushed outward toward the true seal on the rim and inflated. Evidently, the silicone I applied inside sufficiently sealed it to keep the tire inflated.
There are insufficient instructions on the tires. I spent way too much time trying to get them inflated. I recommend taking the two halves of the Matco rim apart, putting the tire between them, reassembling them, forcing the gasket over the side with the valve, then heavily lubricating them with silicone, pushing the gasket to the middle, stomping - pushing - standing or whatever actions are required to seat one side of the tire on the rim firmly, then coaxing the other side enough to allow your compressor to push it into a proper seal.
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Yup. Its not easy...the only thing I would suggest differently, unless I'm reading Van's message incorrectly, is to get the O ring on the rim half prior to placing the tire between the halves and connecting the rims. Slide it up to the edge with the flange and you need two hands to do this and pull and shove it into that spot. As Van says, be liberal with the grease....I think I used a tube of grease (or close to it)on each tire. 6 months and no loss of pressure. The hardest part is getting the tire to inflate but if you follow Van's instructions it will work. It helps to have a really good compressor.
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Hard to describe it. When you put the two sides of the rims together, there is a significant air gap with the uninflated tire. You can put the gasket over one side of the rim, then push/coersce the other side with the appropriately greased o-ring (gasket) in the middle. I put lots more silicone grease on the rim of the tire, pushed it on the rim, then inflated. It worked and held....
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Let me describe it thus .. Put the tire on half the rim. Push it down. Mate the other half of the rim and bolt it on. Grease (with aforementioned silicone) the o-ring. Make the o-ring fit in the middle of the rim with lots of silicone - that will create a better seal. Tease the other half of the tire into a seal while inflating.
You will get in touch with your inner French vocabulary while you are doing all this.
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What also helps with inflating the tire is to wrap the circumference with a cargo strap which sort of forces the sides to spread outward toward the edge of the rim.
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