Can anyone provide suggestions in regard to truing a 21 inch split rim with the "balloon tire"? I believe that when I installed a new tire, that I twisted the rim out of round. I now have a "wabble". Thanks for any suggestions.

Bob Curry

The best thing would be to start over with an unspoiled rim.

If you don't have that luxury, you'll have to remove the rim from the wheel and remove the tire to straighten the rim. Of course you know to bend the rim beyond the correct profile so that it when it returns to its unstressed position it assumes the correct shape in three dimensions. You can do this by hand except for small sharp bends, which can only be hammered out on an anvil.

Perhaps the best advice I can give you is suggest that you acquire a three-legged tire mounting crank. The biggest swap meets will have them and they usually are priced at $20-$40.

If you are not familiar with these tools, they are designed expressly for mounting tires on split rims. They contract the tire rim and hold it till you mount the tire, then expand it till it snaps shut and locks. They resemble a small car jack but have one fixed leg at the top and two pivoting legs which form a three way grip on the rim. I consider them indispensable for mounting tires on split rims.