Tire Plugs

[Daytona_Mike]

Rope plugs will leak eventually. They are temporary at best.
Slime will corrode the rim and destroy it. Never use it.  I know this from vast  personal experience  because I tried the above in different configurations and various manufacturers.
Replace the tire no if and's or but's.

[RickC14]

About 5k miles ago I ran over a nail and fixed it using a rope plug, still works. Ran over a staple a few days back and used up two more plugs. Curious now to see if they last till the cord shows. 

[JerBear]

You don't say for sure if it is the front or back but since it is the most expensive, let's say it is.  You say about 2k left on it and I get about 10K on PR2 55 profile tires that cost me $220 installed so that equals about $44 worth of tire left.  A tow would cost (at least) $75 and they would hose you for the labor to remove the tire ($40?) so you end up maybe spending $115 to save $44 worth of tire that we all know is the least fun part of the tire to use. 

Change it

If you don't karma will bite you in the butt and it will be flat at 11:00PM on a night that rain is coming in and her husband will be home at 11:30 from work.

[tjpgi]

Had my first flat on a bike about two weeks ago.  Ran over a roofing staple and got two small holes quite close to each other.  Reamed it into one larger hole and plugged it on the road with a rope style plug kit.  Worked fine for the first week, but the repair has developed a slow leak - about 8 lbs/day.  The tire is a Michelin Pilot Road 2 (rear).  It has about 2000 miles left on it.  What's the best way to fix the leak?  Should I re-do the plug (tear the original plug out and replace it with a new one), use some Slime (not preferred), just live with filling the tire each day?  I know plugs won't last forever - nor are they designed too, but I hear of plugs lasting thousands of miles.  I figure I have nothing to lose at this point just re-plugging, but thought I'd ask around in case someone has faced and solved the same problem.  What say you?

I was in the same place as you...low mileage PR2. I ran over a nail which entered the tire at an angle..tried DynaPlug but because of swelling of the ropes I could not load the tool.  Anyway I found Nealey tire repair. They advertise the product as a permanent tire repair ( cars and trucks mainly). They claim their ropes contain a solvent that vulcanizes the rope to the tire. I patched my tire and so far so good. A friend of mine on his BMW picked up a 16 penny nail ( he's lucky the thing did not puncture through to his rim). Patched his tire and also no problems.

Here is the link and fairly inexpensive: http://tirerepairkit.com/

Good luck

[maxtog]

What say you?

Look for a second leak.  If not, replace it.

Slime or other "fixaflat" magic:

1) Possibly going to damage your TPS
2) Makes a huge mess
3) Could cause corrosion
4) Could cause balance issues
5) Might not work anyway

[thundermax]

If you want to use the rest of the tire I recommend a "plug/patch". It is a one piece solution. The tire has to be off the rim. My motorcycle shop puts them in. It is a patch on the inside with a plug that goes through the hole. One piece. Think it works pretty well. Sometimes old plugs have to be drilled out to put a plug/patch in.

Is a terrible thing to get 200 miles on a new tire then get a nail. Crap. Bought two new tires, third time put a plug/patch on.
Would say you are alright if you are an average rider. Would not use if I was a super fast rider always going 90 mph +.

My 2 cents.

[thundermax]

One more thought.

I carry an emergency kit. Consist of light, plug kit, air compressor, other little things. If I get a flat on the road, with what I carry in the hard case I think and hope I will be able to plug and air and go till I get home. From there I will have it plug/patched.

Bad fear to be stranded on the road, day or night.

[MAN OF BLUES]

Rope plugs will leak eventually. They are temporary at best.
Slime will corrode the rim and destroy it. Never use it.  I know this from vast  personal experience  because I tried the above in different configurations and various manufacturers.
Replace the tire no if and's or but's.

I dunno Mike, a fresh rubber coated rope plug, properly installed WITH GLUE (when you rasp the hole, coat the rasp with cement and leave it in place while goobering the plug with goo also) will NEVER leak, and you will never be able to pull it out from the inside after the tire wears out and is off the rim....
It's all about the glue dude, and making it work.

I have ridden on at least 20 tires, plugged correctly in the last 35 years, and never once had a leakage or failure of the plug.

I also have a tire I drilled holes into, and repeatedly plugged, to teach folks how to do it correctly, during the Canaan National Rally. I just checked it. It still has 40 psi in it, I had it at 42 psi at the rally, there are 23 plugs in that bald tire.

[T Cro ®]

I dunno Mike, a fresh rubber coated rope plug, properly installed WITH GLUE (when you rasp the hole, coat the rasp with cement and leave it in place while goobering the plug with goo also) will NEVER leak, and you will never be able to pull it out from the inside after the tire wears out and is off the rim....
It's all about the glue dude, and making it work.

I have ridden on at least 20 tires, plugged correctly in the last 35 years, and never once had a leakage or failure of the plug.

I also have a tire I drilled holes into, and repeatedly plugged, to teach folks how to do it correctly, during the Canaan National Rally. I just checked it. It still has 40 psi in it, I had it at 42 psi at the rally, there are 23 plugs in that bald tire.

Hard to disagree with you when your right.... I've plugged many an auto and bike tire with them gooey string plugs and rarely had them leak afterward and when they did it was simply that the hole was too big or damaged for the plug to fill.

[lather]

I have found that  one key to successful rope repairs is the shape of the hole. Anything other than round has a good chance of leaking.  In this instance reaming two small holes from a staple into one larger one may be the problem.

[Conrad]

I dunno Mike, a fresh rubber coated rope plug, properly installed WITH GLUE (when you rasp the hole, coat the rasp with cement and leave it in place while goobering the plug with goo also) will NEVER leak, and you will never be able to pull it out from the inside after the tire wears out and is off the rim....
It's all about the glue dude, and making it work.

I have ridden on at least 20 tires, plugged correctly in the last 35 years, and never once had a leakage or failure of the plug.

I also have a tire I drilled holes into, and repeatedly plugged, to teach folks how to do it correctly, during the Canaan National Rally. I just checked it. It still has 40 psi in it, I had it at 42 psi at the rally, there are 23 plugs in that bald tire.

That's what I'm talking about,. The rubber cement is key to a long lasting non leaking plug.

[T Cro ®]

That's what I'm talking about,. The rubber cement is key to a long lasting non leaking plug.

I've always slathered the rope with glue as well as even put glue on the reamer too just like MOB explained... I'll go buy another small tube after using one too; no sense in getting caught with dried up glue the next time around.

[Daytona_Mike]

Every kit  I have bought in recent years never came with any glue. I was not aware that I was supposed to use glue.
Just go buy plain old rubber cement?  I have the newer fancy kits -- DynoPlug and Stop and Go and those dont have glue or directions to use glue.
I guess I have been in the dark regarding tire plugging info.

[connie14boy]

 I had a brand new PR2 rear punctured with an 1" screw a month ago. I was going like hell and the TPMS started flashing-this is the best safety feature ever and probably saved me from going to the hospital or worse. Anyhow, got out my trusty Nealy repair worms, and pumped the tire up with my mini Slime compressor. Down the road and crap- the tire is still slowly leaking. Tried 2 more worms and even more glue- better, but no cigar. It turns out that if the puncture is in the carcass and not in the raised tread area, the belts get broken, and the only fix is taking the tire off the wheel and using an inner patch or plug. Went to a bike shop and cost $60.

[Daytona_Mike]

I had a brand new PR2 rear punctured with an 1" screw a month ago. I was going like hell and the TPMS started flashing-this is the best safety feature ever and probably saved me from going to the hospital or worse. Anyhow, got out my trusty Nealy repair worms, and pumped the tire up with my mini Slime compressor. Down the road and crap- the tire is still slowly leaking. Tried 2 more worms and even more glue- better, but no cigar. It turns out that if the puncture is in the carcass and not in the raised tread area, the belts get broken, and the only fix is taking the tire off the wheel and using an inner patch or plug. Went to a bike shop and cost $60.

Really?  No bike shop around here or anywhere else that  I have asked  will touch a tire whether that be plugging or patching a tire for legal reasons.

[connie14boy]

The dealer that will plug and repair motorcycle tires in the L.A. area is:

Global Moto Outlet
7801 Canoga Ave. #3
Canoga Park,
Ca. 91304
818-703-5076
They also sell tires online, and have a great business. They kept open late (past 6:00) Saturday and waited for me to arrive- I was more than grateful as I had a real problem developing, and all the bike shops are closed around here Sunday and Monday.

[Conrad]

Every kit  I have bought in recent years never came with any glue. I was not aware that I was supposed to use glue.
Just go buy plain old rubber cement?  I have the newer fancy kits -- DynoPlug and Stop and Go and those dont have glue or directions to use glue.
I guess I have been in the dark regarding tire plugging info.

Here's the Slime kit that I bought.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000ET525K/ref=oh_details_o00_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1



I also bought some refills.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000ET8D0G/ref=wms_ohs_product?ie=UTF8&psc=1



http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003ASHIJK/ref=wms_ohs_product?ie=UTF8&psc=1

[Conrad]

Really?  No bike shop around here or anywhere else that  I have asked  will touch a tire whether that be plugging or patching a tire for legal reasons.

My local Kawi dealer won't patch a tire either. He said that it was for liability issues.

[Conniesaki]

My local Kawi dealer won't patch a tire either. He said that it was for liability issues.

x2 ... plus I'm sure they're assuming they'll likely get to sell you a new tire.

Got about 80 miles on a brand new rear on my RC51 when I caught a nail. I decided that after all the miles I've ridden on motorcycles, and that happening for the first time, I'm going to assuming that's a rare thing and just bite the bullet and replace the tire. So, yeah they sure did get to sell me a new tire.

We don't have much in the way of reputable motorcycle shops around me. I could've visited one of the not reputable ones, but decided it just wasn't worth it.

[gPink]

Does anybody remember the reason the fedgov banned hot patches?