At home tire changer and balancing?

[Moto Josh]

Does anyone change their own tires and balance them? All correctly and safe... Only thing I've seen is a motorcycle tire changer and balancer at Harbor Freight. Have a feeling that isn't adequate. Prefer not to keep paying a shop to do said work as the equipment will pay for itself on my own.

 

[SONICJK]

All you need is a set of tire spoons.
Motion pro makes some nice ones that's what I use.

 

[raptormeat]

just use the axles and if the bearings are in good condition, it'll spin all around until you've balanced it right.
you can also rig up a felt pen or pencil and spin it to see where it is out of true.

 

[doc_rot]

All you need is a set of tire spoons.
Motion pro makes some nice ones that's what I use.

Ditto^ its pretty easy to change and balance tires. I started doing it myself after a shop put a huge gouge in a brand new aluminum rim. I swear they put the dumbest guys on tire duty at bike shops.

 

[mydlyfkryzis]

The HF balancer is fine, except I found the 1/2" rod was warped. A $6 rod from a hardware store fixed it...I used a precision tool for run out too...

 

[whynot]

I change my own too. I use two jack stands to balance. Just make sure they are level. I do intend to get a balancer (maybe the HF one), because I have a lot of tires to change.