Is anybody still using a manual tire changer ?

I found this "Coats Iron Tireman" on C List less than a mile away for $40.00. I hit it with the sandblaster & a few cans of spray paint & now its ready for some use. I plan on either bolting it to the floor or a larger base to stabilize it. Can anyone tell me how old it may be? Does anyone heve any recommendations how much distance I should mount it away from the wall to be able to use it effectively. (before I start drilling into the concrete to mount it) Thanks.

 

We've got one behind the barn I use to break em down with.

 

Neat, Don't dig into your slab though, use concrete expansion anchors. We use them all the time to anchor industrial equip. Fastenal has them, sometimes even Lowes.

 

Here's what I use when necessary



Please let us know how this works out!

 

A great find. We had one in the early 60s and it was not new then. I'd love to find one for that price. It will pay for itself in no time. My buddy has one that he bolts to a piece of plywood when the need arises. The rest of the time it's in his shed. I borrowed my buddies a few months ago. The plywood works well and lets you keep it out of the way when you are not swapping tires around. Some of the newer variety have an air piston for breaking the bead but yours will work just fine. If you permanently bolt it to the concrete it's in the way more than it's in use unless space is not an issue.

 

I used to use one years back for busting stock car tires. It wasn't bolted down and we wound up finding a gas station sponsor that let us use his Coats 20/20.

I would either bolt it down to a 4' x 4' piece of 3/4" plywood or mount it to a concrete pad outside. Get a big enough piece of sonotube, some j-bolts and a few bags of sakrete and you'll be there.

Bob

 

I used a twin to that one at Frank Weaver Pointiac in Waco, Tx in the 70's to mount Vogue bias tires. I also had one in the high school auto shop that I taught in.

Did you get the tapered hub that spins down on the post and holds the wheel down? that is the only thing I see missing in the photos.

Good old units that will put a bit of muscle on you. Use plenty of tire lube when mounting or dismounting tires though.

Mount it far enough away from the wall so you can get all the way around it with the longest bar and not get hung up or bump the wall. Once you use the handles to break the bead down you have to use the long bar to get the tire off and then back on the rim and need enough room to pull or push the bar clear around the tire without getting hung up.

 

They were still making them in the '70s. I worked for a Kerr McGee station for awhile to get going down the road money and the owner bought a brandy new one.

I have no idea how old this one is. Mount it so that you can get a full swing with your bars. You want to be able to get all the way around it.
Fooling with trad rods you may eventually want to mount a 16-18" tire so bear that in mind.

great find. I have a buddy that has one that he has had since the early '60s that I use all the time. could account for my back problems I guess.

 

i have one still use it you need about 4 ft from the wall . use lead anchors to bolt it down that way you can unbolt it and move it out of the way when not in use

 

I have a manual tire changer that I use often enough. You can still buy them here in Canada (from Princess Auto ... Yeah, it's Chinese). I dug a hole in my backyard, cut the bottom off a pail to use as a form and poured a very small cement pad for my unit. Saves taking up space in the garage, the changer bolts on so I can remove it and store it in my shed when I'm not using it. Extremely handy. I put a bird bath on the pad when the changer is in the shed.

I guess I should add ... I bought four of those really long nuts (like 3 1/2 - 4" long, that accept 3/4" bolt) and welded them to a piece of plate steel, I then welded the plate to a bunch of stuff (old front coil springs etc), supported the plate in the hole then poured the cement. I ended up with four "threaded holes" in my cement pad. This way I am not lagging and re-lagging anything, my attachment method is trully part of the cement pad.

 

Still have my bishman model and just got done using it last night to change four tires and rims.I had mine bolted to the concrete but it end up coming loose.I have a large pallet that i lag screw it to when i need to use it and then tuck it away when done.It works really slick it has an air cylinder to bust the bead and then just use the manual bar to dismount or mount.Still have a bubble balancer that works in a pinch as well.

 

cool thread. I've got that exact model in the garage, but never tried it because I'm too lazy to bolt it down! Just need a bubble balancer and you've got your own tire shop...Armstrong Tire, LOL

 

i've used one for years ,I sawed up the concrete and enlarged the hole about the size of a 5 gallon bucket. Poured it full of concrete with a receiver hitch square tube in it. Put another sqaure tube o the base of the machine,Then just insert the machine in the tube ,when done lift it out and put it back in the shed.

 

Pure genius...I'll be "appropriating" that idea , thank you very much

 

I have an old one I use from time to time to save a few bucks putting on or changing rollers. I have inserts in my floor and only bolt it down when I need it which isn't often enuff to leave it there to trip over. The rest of the time it is in the corner out of the way. Pat.

 

i used one much like yours for about 6 years starting when i was 13, my first real job, it had air to break the bead on the bottom and the same lever you have for the top, it has a screw down cone to hold the rim and a double ended arm to remove and install the tire, i must of changed thousands of tires, i only weighed about 170 at the time and an old rusty rim with a stuck tire was tough to break down, i would have to jump up in the air and come down on the arm to break it down, move a little and jump again, round and round..lol..we had a michlen tire plant in town and anyone who worked there for 6 months got free tires as test tires, but they had to pay to have them changed every 6 months with new ones, now i have just a cheap import one i use, i have it set up so i can leave it outside and bring it in and bolt it to the floor when i need it, it doesnt work that well and i had to fix a few things the first day but it does do the trick, now i need a bubble balancer and i'll be all set.

 

harbor freight sells them. I've got one I use on both car and motorcycle tires.

 

I have that same model. (the Coates site has info on them, mine was mfd. around 1955)
a friend gave it to me as a 'tip' when he hired me to wire his '40. I had searched for one of these for years...
I sanded and painted it, (dark forest green) and my wife and I mounted it on a 3'X3' concrete pad we poured. (she welded up an 'X' shaped scrap metal 3" X 19" straps with long 1/2" bolts that we placed in the form before we poured the concrete)
It's dark green because it sits outside the shop at the edge of our lawn. (almost invisible in the yard)
When you place yours, set it down 40" from the wall, then put your long tire roller in the spindle, and walk around to check how much room you need. 40" was fine for me, measured from the spindle center.

 

That's great, I would get one if I could for that price. Many years ago I made up a bead breaker out of some angle iron and some scrap flat stock. Then I just use pry bars and large screw drivers to get the tire off.
Allways have a hard time with 14" tires, it seams that the dip in the rim is not as deep on a 14" rim.

 

I bought one new like yours in 1973, still using it today

 

might be nice mounted outside. maybe pour a cement slab it will save shop space and keep the mess outside.

 

Dang, I'd LOVE to have one of those for $40!! Nice score!

 

I have the same one I love it I drilled 4 holes in my car trailer deck I just bolt it on when I need it

 

"Iron Tireman" is a takeoff on the Iron Fireman coal furnaces that were top of the line in the '40s-'50s.

 

I used one long time ago. FINA WITH FLASH.
If i had one now , i would have to sell for $40.00 , to mean for this old bastard.
"AND THE BOWTIE ROLLS ON"

 

My back says "Hell no!" Life's too short for that when anyone can do it for a couple bucks. Unlike other parts of the build, mounting tires has no excitement for me.

 

Damn.......I still use Harley tire irons on ALL tires I change.

 

i have one i bought for 50 bucks ,its a coates the bottem breaker part is missing. i called the co they said parts are not available . but i still use it, used one when i was a kid always thought the more automatic the changers were the bigger pita they were. oh buy the way 50 chevy suburban where do you get them changed for a couple bucks????????

 

I got one of them newfangled automatic tire changers

 

spent alot of time on a tire mawl, looks like a sledge with a duck bill end.
was alot younger then, now i have a cheap tire shop that i gladly pay.
but have used those models before and they do work great.