I thought I would save a few bucks and just buy the tire and put it on a spare rim I came across.  Big screwdriver and a tire iron was all I had.  Next time I think I will just pay the extra $10 and get a mounted tire on a new rim. Pain In The A.. to put that little sucker on there!!  I finally got it on, but did not find an easy way to do it.

Anyone have some tips on doing this that would make the job easier?

Soap/Shampoo/Grease and THREE big Screwdrivers

I used to change truck tires years ago (tractor/ trailer) 22" and 24"

The smaller the tire, the tougher they are.

Anyone who's done it will back me up on this one. You had your work cut out for you.

I used to change truck tires years ago (tractor/ trailer) 22" and 24"

The smaller the tire, the tougher they are.

Anyone who's done it will back me up on this one. You had your work cut out for you.

yup them lil suckers aint got no give

I don't feel so bad now. Even the pros have trouble!

I feel your pain.  A couple of years ago I thought I would save the few extra bucks and just bought the front and rear tires for my Snapper rider mower, after all, I've changed thousands of tires working in service stations during high school and college.   I think I spent about 30 minutes just getting the old rear one off and the new one on, chasing the thing all over the drive way trying to find a way handle it.  I then took the other three back and bought the mounted tires.

I just replaced my trailer tires and I got some pointers from auto tech.  Never use oil or grease b/c it will stay on the tire and affect the seal.  Soap is the best thing.  Also when using soap if your beed didn't get a good seal you can look at it in the water and see more bubbles. Next thing we did was made a jig in a vice to hold the rim still that was the best thing b/c the rim kept slidding around.  Once we got it to sit still we got it rite on with a taped up screw driver to prevent damage.

Go to Northern tool.com Portable mini tire changer item # 13473-2806 works great use it for riding mower tires