Flat repair

[schuylkill]

Quote:
But, anyone who's going to use them, I encourage you to step up to one of the pricier brands, not the cheapest made-in-China ones you can get. I installed a cheap Chinese plug in a tire a couple years ago and it got a slow leak in several thousand miles. I replaced it with a good quality Safety Seal plug and it lasted well over 20k miles. It was still holding fine when I replaced the tire.

http://www.safetyseal.com/

So are you familiar with the kit which I originally posted?

Quote:
Is anyone familiar with this plug system?
http://www.tirerepairkit.com/whichkit.htm

 

[Traction]

The biggest problem I see with a plug only repair is that there is no way to determine what damage has happened to the inside of a tire, or what angle the nail went in at. I bought a tire repair kit a couple of years ago, that I haven't tried yet, but it resembles the RMA requirements, and it is a plug kit. You still have to remove the tire, and install the plug from the inside, then use a liquid patch on the inside. Check the link.
http://www.safetyseal.com/safetysealplus.php

 

[KitaCam]

Originally Posted By: Wilhelm_D


The universally recommended repair involves a from-the-inside repair comprised of a patch with a plug which extends to and beyond the tread surface.

Michelin - Patch, Yes. Plug, No.



THIS....though a plug alone is at least better than running around with a nail in the hole...

I just read another WA poster who has knowingly been running round your state with a nail in a tire for weeks and losing air to below doorjamb specs...be careful out there.

 

[EA82]

I've used the harbor freight plugs with success too, one of the tires on my van has 3 plugs. The kinda work I do is almost impossible to to avoid screws. I wasn't aware that they were illegal, even the used tire shop I went to once just plugged it, I guess certain size tires tolerate plugs better than other.

 

[stephen9666]

Originally Posted By: laserred96gt
I wasn't aware that they were illegal


That's because the claims about them being illegal are greatly exaggerated and probably not accurate. I've done some googling and I've never found any documentation saying they're illegal in any state.

Some tire groups want to try to make it illegal to plug a tire, but I'm not aware of any state that has passed the bills they're proposing.

This thread was linked to earlier, but it includes info about the legality of tire plugs. In this thread, no one was able to provide any links saying tire plugs were "illegal" in any states or that they would cause you to fail an inspection:
http://www.bobistheoilguy.com/forums/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=3159567

 

[Eddie]

You are correct stephen: I googled and found nothing that stated plugging a tire is Illegal. I did find several recomendations that a tire should/must be removed and inspected from the inside before the repare is cosidered correct. Ed

 

[Rick in PA]

We were talking about plugs at work. The one fellow pointed out that it would be a good idea to wear a leather glove while inserting the plug. I thought that was a good idea. You may have to use considerable force to rasp the hole or install the plug. If the cheapie plastic tool handle chose that moment to break, you'd run the steel part through your palm or into your wrist.

 

[dailydriver]

Originally Posted By: Rick in PA
If the cheapie plastic tool handle chose that moment to break, you'd run the steel part through your palm or into your wrist.


One more motivating factor to step up (cost/quality wise) and buy the good, made in this country, kits with the steel, or hard alloy handled tools.

 

[CapriRacer]

My final word on the subject:

Regardless of what people say, plugs leak from time to time. Think about it. You are taking a roundish object, doubling it over into 2 roundish objects and inserting the doubled object into a roundish hole and expecting it to seal the hole 100% of the time? I don't think so. There are bound to be leaks from time to time and experience proves this to be true.

Even plugs that don't leak at first, may develop leaks later (Don't ask how I know.)

And high pressure tires (like LT tires) are more prone to leaks than low pressure tires.

I don't expect everyone to follow my advice, but I do expect everyone to understand the dangers.

Thanks for your attention.

 

[Ducked]

Here in Taiwan (and apparently also in the US) you can get DIY tyre repair kits.

Sticky rubber-coated string ("self-vulcanising"), T-handled rasp thing for cleaning up the hole, and a T-handled needle for inserting the string.

Costs a couple of quid to do 8 punctures, but probably only really suitable for the likes of nail-holes, not slashes.

You used to be able to get them in the UK because they were described in a Triumph Herald handbook I had. I don't think I've seen them for real, though I dunno if they are actually outlawed there. Someone in the trade said he hadn't seem one for 40 years.

Daresay a pro-repair is likely to be better (though I'm slightly less sure of that here), and I'm sure a real pro could repair damage far beyond the scope of these things, but (in the UK at least) it takes some effort to seek out tyre repair services. Most tyre outlets are MUCH happier selling you a new tyre (and charging you to dispose of the old one)and will discourage / misinform you on repair possibilities.

I've found these kits very useful, and anyway I don't speak Mandarin or Taiwanese which gives DIY extra appeal.

When I first saw them I was a bit unsure, and posted a query on the local furriner bulletin board. Ringing endorsements, including some people using them on motorcycle tyres, which is rather braver than I might be comfortable with.

My broken, abandoned Ford Sierra DOHC has a lot of them. Mostly substantial nail-hole repairs, possibly student-sabotage since I had some dodgy classes and failed a lot of people around that time. Install, inflate, drive on. No issues at all.

Hasn't been driven for 2 years and the tyres still have air.

Call me cynical, but whatever the merits/demerits of such a device, they aren't likely to be enthusiastically endorsed by the tyre trade.

They save too much money.

 

[Ken2]

The Nealy system in the original posting is interesting. It is gooey rubber coated fiber. The hole does not get the rasp treatment. The black rubbery string is inserted, twisted to form a head, pulled taut, and clipped off, forming a type of mushroom plug inside the tire. I used one successfully for a year in a rear motorcycle tire. (I need to examine the Nealy kit I carry to be sure the black goo isn't getting stiff from old age; if it is stiff, I'll buy another kit from Nealy.)

 

[WhyMe]

These kits are great for repairing a tire that the tire shop will not repair. i am not speaking of a side wall repair, but one that is just slightly outside the range, which has gotten smaller and smaller, that they will repair.

i once had a almost new tire that got a nail and it was just slightly outside. they would not repair it and said i needed to buy a new one at a couple of hundred buck. plugged it and drove it till it needed to be replaced with no problems

 

[schuylkill]

Quote:
The Nealy system in the original posting is interesting. It is gooey rubber coated fiber. The hole does not get the rasp treatment. The black rubbery string is inserted, twisted to form a head, pulled taut, and clipped off, forming a type of mushroom plug inside the tire. I used one successfully for a year in a rear motorcycle tire. (

I ordered a kit last night, going to give it a try on a tire I plugged with a Green Slime plug kit and it has a slow leak.

You don't need to get the whole kit, you can just get the "strands" if that is all you need. The needle insertion tool has a lifetime warranty, call and they will replace it "no questions."

I'm going to rotate my tires early so the plugged tire is on the rear and will leave it there until I get a new set.

 

[schuylkill]

From Nealy site:
Quote:
Our tire repair kits contain a non-bending, break-resistant insertion tool and non-tearing cotton repair strands impregnated with synthetic rubber... No glue or cement.

I plugged the tire yesterday with this plug and it is definitely the most thoroughly coated, stickiest plug I have ever used. The tool has a needle eye, not an open ended tool like all the others, so you pull the plug material out after rotating it 1-1/2 revolutions inside the tire. So now there are 4 strands plugging the hole, then you cut it off. The cotton material is completely saturated, you see this since you must cut it to get it off of the tool. I drove the car about 20 miles today and so far so good. I placed the order Tuesday night and received the kit USPS Friday morning. I'm in Pennsylvania and it shipped from Iowa.