can't patch a plugged tire?

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recently got a flat on the road. broke out my plug kit and compressor. 10 mins later back moving. took the tire to DT and showed the guy where i plugged it. he made the comment they may not be able to repair plugged tires because the plug increases the diameter of the puncture. he also said the reamers damage the cords

i left the tire there and ask them to take a look and try to fix. they were able fix it . So was what he told me about fixing plugged tires correct?
 
So he was going to remove the plug you added? Did you want him to add a patch to the plug? His explanation makes sense if you wanted him to remove the plug and then re-plug with a patch.
 
years ago when I worked at a tire shop , there were plugs called a "plug patch" one unit, a combination plug and patch worked every time never had problems,, plug patch went in from the inside of the tire...this was 40 some years ago...maybe they don't have such a thing anymore
 
Originally Posted by Chris142
I never use the reamer.



If I don't ream out the hole I couldn't get the plug in. FWIW I have a Safety Seal kit with the reamer that supposedly dousn't damage the cords; it spreads them so you can get the plug into the hole. Disclaimer: my plugging experience is limited.
 
I seem to recall seeing the guy at Discount Tire using a drill to enlarge the hole for the plug/patch. I wonder if that would be a good practice when trying to plug tires that have a hole too small to get a plug in.
 
Originally Posted by BMWTurboDzl
So he was going to remove the plug you added? Did you want him to add a patch to the plug? His explanation makes sense if you wanted him to remove the plug and then re-plug with a patch.


yes. i wanted him to remove the plug and then patch it. he was able to do it. Seems not too hard to remove a plug from the inside once the tire is off the rim.
 
Originally Posted by FT92
years ago when I worked at a tire shop , there were plugs called a "plug patch" one unit, a combination plug and patch worked every time never had problems,, plug patch went in from the inside of the tire...this was 40 some years ago...maybe they don't have such a thing anymore

My uncle had those in his service station and tire store. We used them for large punctures.
 
years ago Western Auto repaired a puncture my dad brought in. The rubber between the tread blocks looked to have been re-melted. It didn't bubble, I'm my assumption was this was also done on the interior.

Anyone seen this?
 
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Originally Posted by meep
years ago Western Auto repaired a puncture my dad brought in. The rubber between the tread blocks looked to have been re-melted. It didn't bubble, I'm my assumption was this was also done on the interior.

Anyone seen this?

Reminds me of a tire fix I had done on my Focus years ago.
Problem was the front tire had a nail in it, so I was losing air.

Shop told me since the tire affected is on the front, all I'd have to do is turn the wheels so the nail was exposed.
Once it was showing, he had some "goop" on something that looked like pipe cleaner attached to something with a "T" handle.

In one quick motion, the mechanic yanked out the nail with some pliers, then shoved the pipe cleaner goop into the hole.
He then proceeded to cut off the excess goopy thing, and all was well.

That was the fastest tire repair I'd ever seen.
Didn't even need to lift the car or remove the tire.
Never had a problem with that tire for the rest of the time I owned the car.
crazy2.gif
 
That was a hot patch. Used to be very common. They were the best ever.

Now most shops will not patch at all. I have never had a sticky string fail. I do use glue with them, mostly as lubricant.


Rod
 
Originally Posted by Lolvoguy
[
In one quick motion, the mechanic yanked out the nail with some pliers, then shoved the pipe cleaner goop into the hole.
He then proceeded to cut off the excess goopy thing, and all was well.

That was the fastest tire repair I'd ever seen.
Didn't even need to lift the car or remove the tire.
Never had a problem with that tire for the rest of the time I owned the car.
crazy2.gif




that is a normal string plug and I use them(safety seal brand), but they are not as good as a patch-plug.

I have a safety seal kit another amazon lightning deal... I have used it 4x so far worked flawlessly.. although with one rear tire I had to remove the wheel from the car for clearance and leverage.

safety seal kit on amazon
 
Patchplugs are still around. I have 2 boxes of them in lg and sm sizes. They are great for ATV/UTV punctures. My guess as why you never see them today for auto is that no one wants to pay $xx to put a patch when el cheapo tire new is not much more. The rest are the nervous nellies that wash their hands a lot and a plug patch is on their "Dangerous" List. The reamer cleans out dirt and whatever punctured the tire. Then the patch/cement can vulcanize to the clean rubber.
 
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In the past 2 decades, I've had two tires that the tire shop deemed not repairable due to the puncture being on the shoulder. Plugged them both, and they lasted the life of the tire. One only had 3K miles on them when it happened. I kept an eye on them for any swelling, but it never happened.
 
I use to work at tire kingdom, over 20 years ago though. We used a patch plug if it were something like a nail sticking out of it. From my knowledge there is nothing wrong with pulling a leaking plug and using a patch plug, unless the reamer damaged the inside of the tire or remaining tread wear was below a certain amount. Or, the manager wanted to sell a tire.
 
Most of the reluctance to plug a tire today at repair shops is due to possible lawsuits. That is all. It's ridiculous.
 
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