A process familiar to most automotive shop environments is dismounting and mounting tires on wheel rims. This was originally done by using manual labor and tire lever bars, physically forcing the bead of tire to move around the rim lip on the wheel. This is still done in many circumstances, such as agricultural and OTR tires. However, most tires on passenger vehicles are now changed with a sophisticated tire changer machine, a dedicated piece of equipment designed to assist in the removal and reinstallation of tires.
Modern Tire changers are incredibly advanced and require tight tolerances on all parts of the machine to ensure tires are able to be effectively changed without damaging the customer’s wheel. MT-RSR is the top source for high quality, OEM style tire changer replacement parts.
The first step in any tire changing process (after the valve core has been removed, of course) is securely clamping the wheel so it can be operated on. Many tire changers use multiple ‘jaws’ that are hydraulically, electrically, or pneumatically forced to clamp onto the rim. These clamps must be in good condition, and often require extra protection to ensure the rim remains undamaged.
Being able to control the force exerted by the jaw systems and other ‘work’ adding systems in the tire changer requires being able to accurately control the amount of pressurized fluid (air or otherwise) that enters the system. That’s where high-quality valves from MT-RSR enter into play. These control valves allow the user to efficiently operate the tire changer machine.
Another important piece of this system are the pneumatic cylinders used to multiple pressure to achieve a great amount of work, such as for the bead breaker subassembly. These cylinders must be free of imperfections and have high quality seals to ensure no leakage is present.
For systems that run primarily on electricity rather than pneumatic power, the switches in the system are also incredibly important. As with most electrical switches, your OEM Tire Changer forward/reverse switches will wear down over time due to natural electrical arcing and micro-welding when the switch is both opened and closed. It is imperative to ensure that these switches are functioning as intended, as dysfunctional switches can impair the tire changing process, and even potentially lead to damage.
Arguably the most important part of any tire changer is the Mount/Demount Head, or Duckhead - Since this is what encounters the wheel and tire during operation. With some customers’ wheels exceeding $2,000 per corner, its something that you simply cannot mess up. High quality nylon duckheads, or metal duckheads with nylon inserts are the best and most recommended way to ensure the customer’s wheel is undamaged by the tire change process. MT-RSR manufactures some of our nylon mount/demount heads in house, allowing your customers USA Made quality on most machines.
As with any complex system, there are numerous other parts and assemblies that you must make sure are operating properly to do the job correctly. MT-RSR has parts for most assemblies on most brands of tire changers. Shop today to fix your broken tire changer and make sure your shop does not lose any productivity!
If you have a tire changer that is not operating properly and you can’t find replacement parts for it anywhere – reach out to MT-RSR! Our team of experts in conjunction with our manufacturing plant and our suppliers are sure to be able to help you source parts for your tire changer machine. Whether new or old, manual or automatic, MT-RSR has top quality parts for any application!