I've gotten hard beads off by stepping on the tire, heel closest to the rim as possible, and pulling up with the wheel.
With getting the tires to seal, I've had wheels that were super easy where my basic floor pump seated it with no problem, and some I needed a compressor with. Using a schrader to presta adapter limits the air flow to the tire so those didn't work. It does help to remove the core from the valve to get more air flow. Also, make sure your tape job is good, otherwise you may have to redo it.