Is the Tyre Trick with Fire Real?

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the phenomenon of using fire to reseat a tire onto its rim, often referred to as the "tyre trick." Participants explore the mechanics behind the technique, its applications, and the potential dangers involved. The conversation includes personal experiences and attempts to locate a specific video demonstrating the trick.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Technical explanation
  • Debate/contested

Main Points Raised

  • One participant recalls a video showing the tyre trick and expresses skepticism about its authenticity, suggesting it may have been a hoax.
  • Another participant questions what is inflating the tire during the process.
  • Some participants explain that the technique involves spraying a flammable aerosol into the tire and igniting it, causing a rapid expansion and pressure spike that helps reseat the bead.
  • There is a mention of the potential dangers associated with this method, particularly if too much fuel is used.
  • One participant describes how the combustion inside the tire can lead to it jumping off the ground if the tire is wider than the rim, citing anecdotal evidence of large tires achieving significant heights.
  • Several participants express a desire to find the original video that sparked the discussion, noting that other available videos do not capture the same level of excitement.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants generally agree on the mechanics of the tyre trick and its common use among off-roaders, though there is no consensus on the authenticity of the specific video mentioned by the original poster. The discussion includes varying levels of skepticism and curiosity about the phenomenon.

Contextual Notes

Some participants express uncertainty regarding the exact mechanics of the trick, particularly about the role of air pressure and combustion. The discussion also highlights the potential risks involved, which may depend on the size of the tire and the amount of fuel used.

jostpuur
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I once saw a video, where some guys in the Iceland put a car tyre back on the rim using fire. It looked so unreal, I started thinking it could be a hoax of somekind. Unfortunately I cannot find the video anymore in the internet. :frown: Does anyone know something about this?

All I can find is this: But that is not the same video. They do the same trick here, but it doesn't look so unreal now. The video I saw earlier showed the trick from different angle, and the tyre jumped a lot longer distance than in this one. It was so long distance, it was difficult to imagine air pressure or something like that causing it.

edit: Oh.. dammit. I should have googled also without the key word "iceland". Keywords "tyre rim fire" only give more videos of this. I guess its real then.
 
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Huh? What is inflating the tire?
 
This is a common technique used by people that don't have access to a high-volume compressor, but need to reseat the bead on a tire before it can be inflated. Spraying a flammable aerosol into the tire and then igniting it causes a violent expansion and pressure spike that inflates the tire and sets the bead; sometimes with dangerous results.

Off-roaders do it all the time, heck even I have done it before with a friend. There's nothing to debunk.
 
So the tricks is to spray some liquid fuel/solvent into the tyre and then burning that creates the presurised gas. In the video it looked like he just heated the air in the tyre with some sort of torch.
 
Mech_Engineer said:
This is a common technique used by people that don't have access to a high-volume compressor, but need to reseat the bead on a tire before it can be inflated. Spraying a flammable aerosol into the tire and then igniting it causes a violent expansion and pressure spike that inflates the tire and sets the bead; sometimes with dangerous results.

Off-roaders do it all the time, heck even I have done it before with a friend. There's nothing to debunk.

Okey. Unfortunately I cannot find that one video I saw once. It looked really amazing. Lot more amazing than those videos one can spot easily now in youtube. If somebody finds it (or believes he found, I cannot desribe the video in full detail), it would be nice if he posted here a link to it anyway. Even though the OP is settled, I assume.
 
mgb_phys said:
So the tricks is to spray some liquid fuel/solvent into the tyre and then burning that creates the presurised gas. In the video it looked like he just heated the air in the tyre with some sort of torch.

It is probable that he lit the air/fuel mixture that was in the tire with the torch, and the resulting combustion was contained within the tire and difficult to see.

As for the jumping in the air part of the OP, this can happen if the tire is wider than the rim on which it is to be mounted. The rim is sitting on the ground while the tire is deflated sitting on it's side, but as soon as the internal combustion takes place, the tire violently expands in both directions. If the tire sticks out farther than the rim, liftoff. This can obviously be quite dangerous depending on the size of the tire and the amount of fuel inside it; i have heard stories of semi-truck tires jumping 10-15 ft. off the ground.
 

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