Getting it on seems separate from centered.

As far as getting it on goes, I always have to remind myself to pull hard as I put the tubular on the rim as it's pretty easy to let it get a bit slack which just kills as far as getting a tight one on the rim. Holding that pressure throughout is where I run into trouble, my $0.02

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Jason
Dig It Triathlon and Multisport
http://www.digittri.com

drink a couple beers and try again.....liquid muscles and you don't mind the pain as much.

other than that, i have a specific technique of no shoes and leaning against the wall sitting down on the floor and pushing/pulling the rim/tire into place. i warn you, it's very possible to knock over your beer so proper prior planning prevents piss poor performance

good luck.

Tim

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Tim

I let the last coat of glue dry a few minutes before I mount the tire. Seems to give me an extra couple of minutes in which to center the tire.

Let the last coat of glue dry for 4-5 mins make sure you pull hard while putting on the other parts any slack in the tire will make it harder to get the final part on. Also add one or two pumps of air before mounting so you dont accidentally roll your tire into the glue getting it all over the tire lesson learned the hard way. Centering it is easy pump up to 20 psi and just move it around till it looks good pump up check it make any small adjustments then pump it up again to cure.

If you're having a hard time stretching it over the rim, it can be easier to mount the wheel on an indoor trainer (without the bike) as it allows you to use more force to stretch to tyre down/on while you're mounting it. My LBS also told me to mount the tyre when the last layer of glue was wet as it allowed to tyre to be centred on the rim before the glue dries.

+1 on this, install the tire with the final mounting coat (rim only) still wet. Stretch the tire equally out and down starting from the valve (with the wheel in a truing stand or trainer) and really stretch as you go so there's enough slack to lift the final bit up and over with just your fingers and thumbs. Then very quickly pinch, lift, and center the tire again with just a finger/thumb grip working all the way around from valve hole back to valve hole. Spin to check and you should be good to go.

It's strange to have trouble remounting a tire that's already been ridden but sometimes the first base tape layer can shrink up a lot making the tire much tighter. If that's the case then after the base tape layer has dried overnight restretch the glued tire on a clean rim for a few hours or more before tackling the final mounting job. That and practice dry mounting the tire a few times till you get the sequence and motion dialed and then do the final wet mount.

-Dave