Tire repair options

RedNigel

RedNigel

0
Joined
Jun 14, 2012
Messages
1,429
Location
Richardson, TX
Bike
2010 Red NT700
My rear PR4 sprang a leak last week. I was losing about 2lbs /hr while in Arkansas.
I kept an eye on it and looked at it when I got home. I found a sliver of metal no thicker than a piece of fishing line stuck in the tire.
I finally pulled it out last night
Now the leak has slowed to about .3 lbs/hr (4 lbs in about 12 hrs)

The hole is imperceptible to the naked eye. I can only find it with soapy water. It would be a shame to make a hole ten times bigger to make a repair. I dont even know if I could actually find the hole to ream it out
Short of paying the shop to patch it on the inside, do I have any alternatives?
 
RedNigel said:
Short of paying the shop to patch it on the inside, do I have any alternatives?
Click to expand...

Well, if you had a way to inject some rubber cement into the hole, that might work. Other than that...?
 
As far as I know the only good options are to patch it from the inside or ream and plug it. The internal patch is probably the best long term option but it means having to remove the wheel and tire which unless your are doing it yourself will cost you something. A long shot might be to inject glue into the hole but I think most rubber cements are to thick to make injecting them with a needle unlikely.
 
If you don't mind ticking off the guy that installs your tires, then slime it. Will probably work for the life of the tire.

PS another good reason to have TPMS :) Keep track of it while you ride.
 
Just plug it... either with the worms or the mushroom pluger, should work great on a small hole but you may have to ream out the hole first to get the plug in it. I've done it numerous times and keep both with me all the time on the bike.
 
Mellow said:
Just plug it... either with the worms or the mushroom pluger, should work great on a small hole but you may have to ream out the hole first to get the plug in it. I've done it numerous times and keep both with me all the time on the bike.
Click to expand...

I have the mushrooms and the tools to do it.
I'll just put in a mushroom

The biggest challenge will be finding exactly where the hole is. I guess some really good lighting will do the trick. It's amazing something as thin as a piece of fishing line pierced the tire without bending

Thanks guys
 
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I've had good luck in the past with Slime..... let all the air out of the tire; remove the valve stem; put a quantity of slime ( I used about 1/4 of a bottle in a m/c tire ); replace the valve stem; spin the tire a few times; fill will air; spin the tire a couple more times; and off you go..... repaired one tire this way about 5 years ago, the tire never lost air...
 
Clay, I seriously recommend a rope type plug over the mushroom. that is what I wold uselube it good with the patch glue and after ou put itin inflate tire and place a het lamp close to it and leave it set for 24 hours if you have the time to do so. I did that on my ultra classic after removing a horseshoe nail from it, that ws with about 100 miles on the tire. Ineverhad a problem withit nor lost air, Took bike to shop when down into wer bars and a bit later the tech came out and told me I had a Plug in my tire, I said yep from just after you put the new tire on. He looked at me nd shook his head, LOL.

Now if you lived close to me I would say YOUNEED to REPLACE it and I would offer to dispose of it for you:rofl1:

Eldon
 
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In my opinion, the mushroom is a superior option. Because it is shaped like a mushroom, it wont ever sling out like a worm could
 
RedNigel said:
In my opinion, the mushroom is a superior option. Because it is shaped like a mushroom, it wont ever sling out like a worm could
Click to expand...

I have used both. Never had a gummy worm come out, but have had the metal belts, in the cord, cut the mushroom in half and then sling it out. The secret with the Red gummy worms, is to be liberal with the rubber cement. Of course the best way is to replace the tire, but sometimes it is not the most practical at the time of the leak. What ever works for you and what you are most comfortable with is what you should do. After all it is your bike, not ours.:wink::D
 
I concur with what chuck just said. If you decide to replace it check and see how much the freight on it to 97071 is! I will dispose of it for you .

Eldon
 
RedNigel said:
You ain't gettin' my tire, Eldon!!!:wink:
Click to expand...

LOL I don't need it for awhile anyway, I just put on a set of new PR#'s for trip est, I kept my old ones that only have 10,000 on them and have aa lot of miles left, If I was sure I was just going to TN I would have ran them, but looking a possibility of Fl as well I wanted to be sure of enough rubber to get home again on and not have to worry about changes on the road.

I know several wing riders that panick with a nail puncture, I aquirerd 3 differentGL1800 rear tires from GWRa them all with less than 5K on them , patched them/ plugged them and ran them to the wear bars. some do, some don't! If you were going to belong to the never run on a repaired tie group I would be willing to assist you on disposal and not charge you for it as your friendly Honda dealer would. On a repaired tire I check pressures very regularly both cold and warm and keep a eye on the rope plug particularly the first 1000 miles after the
tire repair.I hope you put plug of choice in and get 18 K out of it., BUT I do recommend gummy ropes!

Eldon
 
AS Rick says it is a bit of a ob, I have not done a NT tire yet, but it can't be as hard as Gl1800 or HD Ultra
 
If you shove the gummy worm type through till you only have about a 1/4" outside the tire the remaining part inside balls up like a dog knot and will not come out. Have looked a many of them after the tire wore out and could never find it again on the outside and only found the little round bubble looking thing on the inside. I carry them with me all the time (truck and motorcycle).
 
The PR3 Rick talked about trying to plug on my NT in Spearfish two years ago had four mushrooms inside it. The last one held for 1500 miles and then got cut. I've still got mushrooms and have had one of those last for over 10,000 miles. I've also had gummy worms last for that long. I don't know which I'd use if I had a flat on the way home today.
 
I've had a gummy in my rear tire for a couple k now and it's starting to leak. Think I can push it in and replace?
 
The only time I've had a gummy fail is when used on a car tire sidewall (you aren't supposed to use them there, and for good reason). But, it held long enough for me to order a new tire.

For a really tiny hole I'd still use slime. Have done that before on several tires of different types and have not had a problem. Yes, sometimes the hole is too big or is higher on the sidewall. I have some lawn tractor tires with slime due to multiple cactus punctures. Even holds after sitting for over a year. The more the tire rotates the better.

My regular practice when I get a flat is to use slime first (unless it is a big hole). If it doesn't hold then I plug it with a worm.

On a couple of occasions when I knew I was going to be in rougher territory I put slime in the tire before leaving.
 
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