Harbor Freight sells a MC, and ATV Tire Changer for a little more
than a hundred bucks, haven't bought one yet, but it will come in
handy for my Honda Riding lawn mower, Honda Foreman, VN750, and
possibly other vehicles too. :beerchug:

http://www.pbase.com/fredharmon/tirechange

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/Displayitem.taf?itemnumber=42927
http://www.4strokes.com/reviews/harborfreight/mctirechanger/

Manual Universal Wheel Balancer:
http://www.marcparnes.com/Universal_Motorcycle_Wheel_Balancer.htm

Less than a hundred bucks if ya get it on sale.
I got the Harbor Freight tire changer for $37.99 (sale price) and the motorcycle attachment for $41.00.
The changer itself does tires up to 15 or 17 inches, and the MC attachment lets you do up to (I think) 21 inches.
I havent tried the streetbike tires yet, but on the dirtbike tires, I said goodbye to the tire levers for good !! (and no more pinched tubes !!)
I've also used it to change the tires on my Jimmy and it worked just as easily!
It does take some getting used to how to use it, but once ya figure it out and use it a few times, it's paid for itself in the savings of not having to get a dealer to do it.
When I do get to the streetbike tires, I plan on using some type of rim guard to protect it from any possibilities of scratching it.

Well worth it even at $100 :motorcycl

Hyperbuzzin,

Do you balance your new tires? If so, what type of balancer? :motorcycl

check this out (high speed needed):
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-7546109776315225781

That video was way cool, hope to build one of my own soon and save
quite a bit, plus tell the dealer to take a hike. I imagine that the
2x4 could be tripled up at the end for large ATV tires. :notworthy

In third and second world countries I suppose this is the way tire
changes are done routinely.

Now, where do I buy the 8.5 inch tire irons, and rim savers ?

The one in the video is a high end one. You can even build a temporary one easier than that. Just need a bolt, 2 pieces of 2x4s (long one and a short one) and a truck/suv/minivan - (don't know if a nail would work). The cage is used instead of a wall stud. The cheaper setup isn't quite as stable but should not be a problem.

Rim savers:

http://www.denniskirk.com/jsp/product_catalog/Product.jsp?skuId=&store=Main&catId=213&productId=pH53200&leafCatId=21303&mmyId=

8.5 inch Tire irons:
http://www.denniskirk.com/jsp/product_catalog/Product.jsp?skuId=&store=Main&catId=&productId=p28455&leafCatId=&mmyId=

Hyperbuzzin,

Do you balance your new tires? If so, what type of balancer? :motorcycl

I've never worried about balancing the dirtbike tires.
When I did my truck tires, I didn't balance them and (luckily) so far they seem fine up to 80 MPH.
Not having done the Vulcan's tires yet, I haven't thought alot about it.
My buddy & I were talking about how to balance the streetbike tires and might just try making a balancer like someone posted somewhere here, with the shaft and 2 cone shaped pieces w/ bearings, resting on jack stands or something.

I have the HF setup, and a great 'Mojo Bar' for removal/install of the tire.
I bought this to balance my wheels....

http://www.hondadirectlineusa.com/stores/product.asp?pid=376&str=6&ID=111314366

They had it on sale for $129 a couple years ago so I sprung for it.

The MarcParnes balancer that norsseman lists above is also an excellent product.

I bought this to balance my wheels....http://www.hondadirectlineusa.com/stores/product.asp?pid=376&str=6&ID=111314366

That's similar to the one I had seen, but it didn't come with any frame work to hold everything up.
They just suggested using jackstands, concrete blocks or whatever.
It was also cheaper at $105. It (or maybe one similar, I don't remember the maker) can be seen HERE (http://www.webbikeworld.com/motorcycle-wheels/balancer/).

I also found THIS ONE (http://www.wikco.com/mcwkbal.html), which looks like it's mounted to a similar version of the H.F. tire changer. It's $199 :wow:

I'd thought about just using one of THESE (http://www.jcwhitney.com/autoparts/Product/tf-Browse/s-10101/Pr-p_Product.CATENTRY_ID:2007599/showCustom-0/p-2007599/N-111+10201+600002092/c-10101) balancers, for lawnmower blades. Basically the same idea as the others, just that it lays on it's side.

As far as weight's, I've got some stick-on weights that I had bought for using on fishing lures that were originally intended as weights for golf clubs.
They are about 2in. long and can easily be trimmed with scissors.

I'm thinkin' the current tires on the Vulcan now will last the rest of this season, so it'll be awhile before I need to worry about balancing.