RC drift tyres can take some damage depending on your technique and the surface you are drifting on. Many people have invested in a sweet looking set of matching rims so don’t want to throw them away once the tyres are damaged. So how do you remove glued drift tyres?
There are a couple of methods to do this, but we’re going to focus on boiling the tyres and rims. It is perfectly safe for both the wheel and the tyre. So no matter which you are trying to reuse, you should be fine. However it should be noted that the chrome finish on some wheels may be dulled or removed by this procedure.
This is the equipment you will need to remove drift tyres:
- A Pan big enough to cover your tyre in water + extra + room for boiling bubbles
- A towel
- Flat head screwdriver (slightly smaller then the gap where the wheel will glue in)
- A heat source (e.g. Hob or gas ring (NO MICROWAVES!))
- Towel
- Wooden Shaft or frying pan flipper
- A Cutting/Hobby Knife
The first thing you’ll want to do is boil some water in the large saucepan. We advise using an old pan or you may find yourself in trouble with your mother/girlfriend/wife for ruining her best saucepans. Once the water is boiling place the tyre in the pan. You want to make sure you boil the entire tyre for 15 minutes. You can hold the tire underwater with a utensil for 15 minutes or, since the tyre will float, you can boil one side for 15 minutes and then flip it to boil the other for 15 minutes. Either method will work, it doesn’t matter.
Be very careful during the whole process, the water, kitchen utensils, tyres and the rims can get hot enough to scald you!
If you do not plan on reusing the tyres, you may want to slit them in half all the way around the tyre before you boil them. This way no water will be trapped in them, and the boiling water can freely access the glue all the way around the tyre bead.
After the tyre has boiled use a pair of tongs, or other kitchen utensil, and pull it out of the water. I will usually cool it down by running cool tap water over it. This will not cause the glue to re-stick, as once the glue’s hold has broken it will stay loose. Alternatively you can also just set the tyre to the side for around 30 minutes or so.
Once the tyre has cooled, you can simply pull it loose from the rim. Be careful though, as there can still be hot water inside the tyre which could burn you. You may still encounter a couple of tough spots that do not want to break loose from the rim. You can the hobby knife to trim around these stubborn spots. If you find that a lot of the tire is still stuck to the rim, boil the tyre for another 15 minutes.
Once the tyre and the rim have been separated, clean the parts you plan on reusing and set them aside to dry. You may find it necessary to sand some areas of the rim where the rubber had adhered to it, but overall it should be a pretty clean separation.
Top Tips
* BE CAREFUL – It’s boiling water dummy!
* Wash excess dirt and mud off the wheels before hand
* If tyre has little actually still attached – it MAY come off when been twisted
* The hotter the rim stays the easier it comes off
* DONT be too aggressive with the rimk and it may bend or buckle
