Sunday, March 16, 2014
How to Ship Tires to an APO
APO (Army Post Office) addresses function almost exactly like standard post office addresses within the United States. In fact, the Military Postal Service Agency (MPSA) is an extension of the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) that aims to extend postal service to military and diplomatic personnel stationed overseas. Some limitations apply depending on the country to which you are shipping, but, generally speaking, sending an item to an APO address involves the same steps as sending the same item to a standard USPS address.
Instructions
- 1
Determine the exact APO address to which you want to ship the tires.
Based on the APO address, look up any relevant restrictions for the country or post to which you are shipping. Some APO stations are forced to restrict mail by contents, size or weight because of in-country complications, but most should be able to accommodate a shipment like tires. You can check for the latest restriction status at your local post office or at the USPS website.
2Package your tires.
Package the tires for shipment as you would any other parcel for international delivery, taking basic precautions to cushion the tires. If you are shipping to an APO address that has size limitations, consider sending the tires individually to fall within the size restrictions on parcels. Weight should not be a problem when shipping tires.
3Print the full APO address on the package in clear readable handwriting. Include the recipients full name, box or destination details, and APO number. The USPS offers the following address as an example of a complete and full entry:
SSGT Kevin Taylor
Unit 2050 Box 4190
APO AP 96278-2050
Be sure to also include your return address.
4Send your parcel to the APO from any U.S. post office. You will need to pay the applicable shipping charge for the delivery.
Saturday, February 8, 2014
How to Mount Low Profile Auto Tires
Many cars today are designed with low-profile tires, which improve handling and support on the roads. Low-profile tires can prove difficult to install because their sidewalls sit so low to the ground. The sidewall doesnt offer much flexibility, which makes for a hard removal. You can change these low profile tires without much hassle using special equipment. Most newer rim clamp tire machines have the functionality to mount low-profile tires.
Instructions
- 1
Put on eye protection and gloves.
2Familiarize yourself with the rim clamp tire machine. You should find it quite self-explanatory because every functioning pedal and lever has arrows and labels. Notice that it has a plate with clamps where the wheel will sit and that it has a bead breaker on the side. The machine has an installation arm and an inflation hose to inflate tires to the correct level of lbs. per square inch (psi). The rim clamp machine also has a pressure arm designed to push the tire below the drop center to make it easy to install a low-profile tire.
3Lift the wheel up onto the plate, and press the pedal that locks the clamps to the wheel. Lift up your tire, and look at both of its sides. You will notice a directional arrow or a note if the tire has a side that should face outside. Look for instructions written on the sidewall of the tire.
4Push the first bead of the tire onto the rim with force in a rocking motion. You should be able to simply push the first bead on the wheel by hand.
5Swing the tire installation arm over, and position the tire between the head of the installer and at a slant onto the wheel. Press the pedal that will rotate the plate to move the tire onto the rim. Slide out the pressure arm, and use the lever to push the tire down and hold it under the drop center bead of the wheel while the plate turns and until youve installed the tire on the wheel.
6Inflate the tire with an inflation hose by pushing it on the valve stem and pressing the inflation pedal. Look at the tire to find the proper inflation, and fill it to that number. Check the psi with your tire pressure gauge.
7Press the pedal to release the clamps.