I fitted some wire beaded 28 gatorskins the other night, replacing the Vittoria Zaffiros which came on the roadie.
I can see why many would see them as a bit of a bugger, and I know they have caused many a foul mouthed tirade among cyclists, and they did take me a while to do but that was much in part to me not having fannied around with tyres much and a few schoolboy errors.
What really helped are my superb tyre levers which admirably coped with the beading. Mine are some old b'twin ones my dad gave me, which are much more robust than normal levers that come in kits. Spend money on your levers, they're worth their weight in gold!
Quick note: When I fitted the tyre, I fully inflated the inner tube, then fully deflated, massaged the tyre a bit, and reinflated to make sure the tube was correctly seated. Is this worth doing or did I waste my time?