If you own a large adventure motorcycle, you may be thinking it’s best to change your tires at the shop. That’s certainly the easiest way – except you’ll likely be spending too much time on booking appointments, riding to dealerships, and shelling out $50-$80 or more per tire swap. So how to change BMW R GS 1250 tires on your own? We’re using the GS as an example since it’s one of the most popular adventure bikes out there, but bear in mind this works on other motorcycles too (including adventure, street, touring, and more).

There’s an easy way to change BMW R 1250 GS tires on your own. As long as you’ve got the right tools, even stiff adventure tires aren’t a challenge. The Rabaconda Street Bike Tire Changer was designed to help riders change their own tires wherever they are and whenever they feel like it, no pro skills or experience required.

Tubed or tubeless, adventure motorcycle tires have one thing in common: they’re often tough and hardy, and if you’ve ever wrestled a spoked wheel with an old, stiff adventure tire, you know the job isn’t exactly pleasant. That’s if you’re doing it with nothing but a couple of tire irons. With the Street Bike Tire Changer, on the other hand, the task becomes effortless – but don’t take our word for it.

Here’s what it’s like to change a BMW R 1250 GS front tire with our tool:

In this video, we’re swapping a Metzeler Karoo 3 for a Dunlop Trailmax Mission on a wheel that has a tire pressure monitor system. You know as well as we do that the Trailmax Mission is one of the toughest tires out there, and to add to the challenge, this is a cross-spoked wheel. If you’ve watched the video through to the end, however, you see that neither of those things was a match for the Street Bike Tire Changer.

How about changing a BMW 1250 GS rear tire? Much in the same spirit, we’ve tested it out:

Just as effortless as the front – and that, once again, was a Dunlop Trailmax Mission on a BMW R1250 GS.

BMW R1250GS Tire Changing Tips

As you’ve seen in the videos above, DIY tire changes don’t have to be a hassle. Before you get to work, remember these tips:

• Don’t forget to let the air out before you dismount the tire - this is an obvious one, but you’d be surprised how often people forget!
• Use soap water instead of bead grease when breaking the bead and during dismounting
• Use a wider duck head and a BMW Shaft Drive Type Adapter for cross-spoked wheels (you can get your cross-spoked wheel duck head kit HERE)
• Position the tire pressure monitor sensor at 3 o’clock
• To stop spoked and cross-spoked wheels from moving, use the rotation blocking strap instead of the metal pin
• Make sure the tire direction is correct before mounting
• Pay attention to where the valve is – it should match the yellow dot on the tire
• Before mounting, warm up the tire
• Use bead grease generously when mounting your tires (put some on the duck head, too)

Other than that, all you need is the Street Bike Tire Changer in your garage and a few minutes of your time. BMW adventure motorcycles may look like intimidating beasts, but with our tool, changing a tire on a BMW 1250 GS is a five-minute job.

Grab yours now:

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