The BestRest TireIron BeadBrakR (TIBB) is a levering device that incorporates a trio of tire irons into the mechanism that's used to remove the rubber tire from the metal rim. When the bead is free you disassemble the device and use those same tire irons to remove the tire from the rim. What could be more simple, more efficient, more utilitarian?

The TIBB is also available with high-tech titanium tire irons. These are the same TIBB- compatible "Tar Arns" manufactured and sold by our friends at Aerostich. Same price, too. (Aero's old style titanium irons won't work with the TIBB because they don't have the proper holes) Scroll down for more information.

Every rider’s kit should include a variety of tire repair products, including tire irons, a tire inflator, AND a bead breaker. Why a bead breaker? When repairs require removal of the tire from the rim, or if you need to change your tires, you'll need special tools. That's because the rubber tire sidewall is actually glued to the rim, and the bead is held in place by the natural outward flex of the tire carcass. Breaking this chemical and mechanical bond is called "breaking the bead". Unless you can do this with the tools you’re carrying, you might not be able to fix your tire. Plain translation: you’re in for a long walk home.

We asked ourselves, "Why not combine bead breaking components into one unit? Why not make the tire irons part of the bead breaking device itself? Why not make a compact, collapsible, purpose-built device that’s designed for the solo adventure rider?" So we went to the drawing board and made a better mouse trap!

The design had to be small, lightweight, sturdy, multi-functional, and it had to be something you could easily carry on your bike. It took almost 2 years before we came up with the answer…

Compact, lightweight, and easy to assemble using quick release ring pins, the entire kit fits in your hand and rolls up nicely in the storage pouch.

To understand how it works, the left tire iron fits vertically upward thru the spokes. The tire rests on the lower horizontal tire iron, with the hub to the left. The line drawing at right shows the cross section of the tire. Scroll down to see step-by-step photos of the BeadBrakR in action.

Brilliantly simple but amazingly effective, downward force at the end of the lever forces the plunger onto the tire sidewall, breaking the bead. (Note - the term "breaking the bead" does not imply that the tire sidewall is damaged, this is just a common term)

Because we know the BeadBrakR will see some pretty rough conditions around the world we selected materials that’ll stand up to the elements: The 8.5” long tire irons are gold zinc plated to prevent corrosion. Other components are rustproof 17-7 and 304 stainless steel, precision laser cut and formed and TIG welded for maximum strength. (The 17-7 alloy we’re using also makes aircraft cockpit doors bulletproof.)

We added small plywood blocks that keep the BeadBrakR from contacting and scratching the rim. For working on soft surfaces we added a plywood “sand foot” to spread the load. We added a safety lanyard so you could string the assembly pins and blocks together and keep track of them. Then we laminated the instruction sheet and included a set of tire mounting / demounting tips. We also added a set of plastic rim protectors, a bottle of specially formulated BeadGoop tire mounting lubricant, a valve stem multi-tool, and a Cordura storage pouch that's big enough for your own collection of tire patches & plugs.

The BeadBrakR Kit contains the following items:

3 - Tire Irons (8.5” long) gold zinc plated (Titanium optional)
1 - BeadBrakR assembly (Corner, Lever, Plunger, Lock Bar) rustproof stainless steel
1 - Ring lanyard for storing the 5 quick release assembly pins
2 - Plywood rim blocks to protect the inside of your rim from scratches
1 - Plywood sand foot for when you're working on soft surfaces
2 - Plastic rim protectors for use during tire mounting / demounting
1 - Bottle BeadGoop tire mounting lube to make tire removal easy
1 - Valve stem multi-tool that tightens or removes cores and inserts new valve stems
1 - Laminated instructions with bead breaking and tire mounting tips

Overall size of the BeadBrakR kit with all the accessories is 2” thick x 5.5” wide x 12” long. Total weight is (3.1 pounds).

We've tested the BeadBrakR on big bore BMW R1150GS and R1200GS and other brands of motorcycle tires and it works like a champ. KTM riders may have to work a bit harder during the bead breaking process due to the double-locking rim design, especially when using stiff-walled tires such as the Karoo.