Well I had two pumps, one that failed somewhere in the piston and the other one that had a rotting hose from the pump to the chuck. I only have to send one back, so I put all the bad parts in the return box and assembled all the good parts into a working pump. I then used that pump to get my tires back up to the minimum 70 pounds per square inch to prevent pinch flats on potholes.
And after I did that I felt like Superman™ so I tried to mount the tires to the wheels I had just mocked up that afternoon. It was a struggle, but as you can see:
I got the front edge even with the bead on the tire, but I need to pump the tire so the back side matches the front.
It’s hard to see from that angle, so this is easier.
So what I do now is talk to my diabetic friends about getting some used needles and syringes to pump up the tires to meet the beads of the rim.
And there’s something good coming on Science Channel, so I have created enough with the words and pictures, Opus the Unkillable
Witch on a Bicycle 