My tire has a bead protector. I'm trying to remove the tire from the rim. I loosen the bead protector but it won't move in freely like a rim lock should. Is the bead protector the same as a rim lock?
There is a rubber strap that protects your tube from chafeing on the end of the spokes this strap is often placed over the rim lock making it a tiny bit more difficult to push in. Simply push in on the rim lock and break the bead around the rim lock area at the same time. once you have have one side of the tire off reach in move the strap to one side and remove the rim lock you should now be able to remove the rim from the tire.
So a bead protector IS the same thing as a rim lock? In my 2004 KX250F Service Manual it calls that thing a bead protector.
Here's what I've done so far. I removed the valve core and the valve nut. I loosened the bead protector nut to the last thread. I tried pushing it in and out but it wouldn't budge at all. I used the tire iron to break off the beads of the tires all along the tire and on both sides. But the tired beads around the area of that bead protector won't budge. I tried pushing in the bead protector and using that tire iron to remove the tired beads in that area but nothing worked.
When you say push in on the rim lock, do u mean push down on the bead protector stem?
I'm gonna go try and push the bead protector stem in and use that tire iron to remove the beads.
Sometimes the rim locks get stuck with the bead and have to popped in to loosen. I think the tire will be fine, the tube holds the air, it doesn't rely on the tire to seal it. Usually, I back out the nut on the rim lock until it's flush with the top of the rim lock bolt then hit it with a hammer. Then, when that gets loose, I push it in and then push the tire down away from the rim to slip the bead.