DiabloScott

OK, I get this, but with a TUBE, when you have to really reef on that last bit of bead... that valve is going to get in the way of your hands, and there's a good chance you're going to rip something.

Drew Eckhardt 

Thumbs pushing on the bead in the middle and palms to the sides are no where near the valve, and with the extra slack you don't need to push that hard.

Iride01 

I've never had a tire be difficult to get over the rim once you get to the end point. It's usually well to either side of the ending point that the bead of the tire stops and seems like it can't possibly go any further. Once you get past those first stopping points, everything gets easier.

Brocephus

Believe it or not, I actually broke one of these things ! Fortunately, since I just bought it, my shop covered me and gave me a new one (I never knew if they got reimbursed themselves, or if they ate that loss.)
I don't think I've had to use it since. The tires I'm currently using on my 3 bikes are all surprisingly easy to re-mount.
Anyway, I can relate to the OP's woes. I've never been so close to walking out side and wrapping something around a telephone pole as I've been when trying to mount a difficult tire ( in fact, some Rubino racing tires way back in the day come to mind). That probably about the most pissed-off I've ever been.

DiabloScott

Well maybe my technique is a little different - I put my thumbs through the spokes, wrap my fingers over the tire, and pull the bead up from the other side. So the valve would be in the way and vulnerable if that's where I were doing it.

ThermionicScott 

That's a bummer about Bontrager rims, but some other brands are getting it right. Depending on the model, my Pacenti rims have a 2mm or 3mm deep well between the bead seats, providing a fair amount of slack when mounting or dismounting. Also using Pacenti-branded tires I can mount or dismount without tools! I'd use these rims over old-school clincher rims with a flat and shallow bead seat any day.

BCDrums

Scott, what are the "Pacenti-branded tires"?

ThermionicScott 

Pacenti Pari-Moto, made by Panaracer but spec'd by Kirk.

trek330

OP here.Got the Koolstop Tire Bead Jack and it was easy as pie!!Thanks for all the suggestions but this tool makes it easy!

sch

Pacenti apparently only a 650b road tire, not 700c.

At least the Koolstop jack is small and light enough to go
into a reasonably sized under seat bag. All of my road tires have a tapered edge to the bead so I can imagine
some difficulty getting the jack edge to snag that bead, but once it did the jack might work. Still have to
watch for tube pinch and the jack, unlike a lever does not push the tube ahead of it. It does look a bit flimsy.
Still need levers to get the tire off the rim, jack no help there.

rumrunn6

you gonna carry it on your bike?

ramzilla

Got tired of stuck tire tools and pinch flats. So now, I use an old spray bottle filled with water. Partially inflate tube and spray water all over it. Spray water on tire bead. After that, everything just slips & slides together. Plastic tire tools with steel inside help too.

trek330

I've never needed one in 10 ears of cycling and these wheels are for sale so probably not.

seedsbelize 

I've only used mine once, but it was nice to have it. I have broken more than my share of Pedro's levers. The new tire I mounted earlier in the week went on with just my hands.

Metaluna

Now that I have a couple of wheelsets with tubeless tires, my old Koolstop tire bead jack has become a permanent resident in my Camelbak. I actually ride regular clincher tires w/tubes more often lately, but it's too much work to move the Koolstop in and out of my backpack just to save a few grams, plus I'm likely to forget to pack it someday when I actually need it, so I just leave it in.

seedsbelize 

I broke two Pedro's levers today, trying to mount the second bead on an mtb tire. Then I remembered my bead jack. Whoosh. Done.

J.Higgins 

I use exactly what I use on our granite counter-tops: 50:50 ratio of isopropyl alcohol and water, with a dash of Dawn dish soap. Its even easier with the Kool-Stop jack. Out on the road, I'd use some water, but honestly I've never had problems with any tire after the initial grunting to get it on.

J.Higgins 

Polly says, "Pedros is da best!"

Metaluna

That touches on something I've wondered (worried) about -- is it possible to actually damage a rim with excessive force on a tire lever? I'm talking about typical plastic levers, not those huge steel Park ones, which can easily make at least cosmetic gouges in my experience (unfortunately). Sounds like the Pedro's will break before anything bad happens though (other than leaving you stranded on the road!).

The bead jacks seem to apply the force in a little more controlled way, or maybe that's just purely subjective because you have so much more leverage so everything feels easier and gentler. Also, because of the way they hook the bead from above, they only need to lift it the minimum amount required to get it over the rim wall. With a lever you need to lift the bead high enough to account for the thickness of the lever too, so that much more force is needed.