tire mounting

[karnovking]

can anyone tell me the proper way to mount a tire? I mean, i remember hearing something about how there is a place on a tire to line up with the valve stem, if so, what should I look for? If not, why would someone have told me this?

[MagicRat]

Generally, there is no relation to the valve stem and the tire. The tire can be located anywhere in relation to the tire.

As for mounting a tire, its best to take it to a tire shop, since this is a safety related issue and not for a beginner. It is easy to damage the tire or rim, which would make either component dangerous. Also, the first time you inflate a tire on a rim (to seat the bead) it is possible to have a tire explosion that can cause injury or death if the tire is not installed correctly.

[karnovking]

i did tires at firestone for about a year. I just bought a manual tire changer. I've already practiced on a junk tire and wheel. everything went okay.

I just don't plan on balancing unless there is a serious vibration problem. So I thought maybe there was something to that valve stem thing.

[MagicRat]

Every tire I have ever installed has needed balancing.
Computer spin balancers are nice and easy, but you can get an inexpensive static balancer. These have a center pivot point and use a 4 way level (the bubble in a glass tube ). The idea is you put the installed and inflated wheel on the center pivot and the bubble will tell you where to put the weights. It takes longer than the spin balancer, but its much cheaper to buy.