tube

[slow mo]

hi all i discovered a screw in my new rear tire,, it was causing a slow leak so i have chosen to insert a tube?? does anyone see a problem with this i did not want to buy another tire when the one on the bike has less than 800 mi, on it ride safe ,,slow mo!

[SFerinTEXAS]

I'd consider it myself being cash strapped. If you do, then make SURE there is only 1 offending object that caused the leak. DAMHIK

And I would consider a button plug as well depending on various factors

[XJfan1]

I have a tire guy that is a retired fella and does it our if his garage. And he swears by patches he takes the tire off and lightly grinds a thin layer off the inside so the glue sticks better. He spreads a thin la yer of glue on the tire then on the patch. allowss them to dry for a minute the puts the patch in and rolls it with a small metal roller to squeeze out any xs glue. Put it back on the rim and balances it. He does all that for 6 bucks. I usually give ten. Money well spent. I have never had any trouble with one of his patches

[cywelchjr]

I have a tire guy that is a retired fella and does it our if his garage. And he swears by patches he takes the tire off and lightly grinds a thin layer off the inside so the glue sticks better. He spreads a thin la yer of glue on the tire then on the patch. allowss them to dry for a minute the puts the patch in and rolls it with a small metal roller to squeeze out any xs glue. Put it back on the rim and balances it. He does all that for 6 bucks. I usually give ten. Money well spent. I have never had any trouble with one of his patches

I have no problem with that for car tires, but on bike tires the only type I will use for other than temp repairs are the type of patch that is also a plug as well, as it both plugs the hole and does a patch on the inside of the tire.

[fredintoon]

hi all i discovered a screw in my new rear tire,, it was causing a slow leak so i have chosen to insert a tube?? does anyone see a problem with this i did not want to buy another tire when the one on the bike has less than 800 mi, on it ride safe ,,slow mo!

Hi slow mo,
a tubeless tends to leak slowly so a can of fix-a-flat will get you home.
A tube tends to go dead flat real quick so you are stuck with phoning a tow truck because fix-a-flat don't work on tubes and I don't see you fixing a flat by the side of the road in Ontario traffic.

[XJfan1]

I have no problem with that for car tires, but on bike tires the only type I will use for other than temp repairs are the type of patch that is also a plug as well, as it both plugs the hole and does a patch on the inside of the tire.

i agree for a large hole like pencil sized or larger but for a nail or screw hole a patch works fine the glue also filles the hole.

[ManagerMike]

I have full faith in a properly applied patch. Filling the hole is really only pertinant to steel belted radial tires, as you want to keep moisture out of the steel belts to prevent them from rusting over time, eventually resulting in tire failure. To the best of my knowledge, MC tires aren't steel reinforced, but made with nylon cord. Anybody know any different?

[crazy steve]

You see a lot of opinions about patching bike tires, as usual 'it depends'...

I'm not a fan of plugs as they don't really seal the tire properly IMO unless you use the ones that insert from the inside of the tire and seal to the liner. A tubeless tire is simply a tube tire with the tube built-in as an inner liner. So to seal it right, you need to repair the liner as that's what is holding in the air. Most plugs seal to the tire body/tread and can allow air to get between the various tire layers and can sometimes cause tire blistering; I personally would consider those 'temporary' and only good for getting home. I wouldn't have any problem with a properly installed internal patch. One downfall to patches is they don't like excessive heat, so on a underinflated or heavily loaded tire or if you're running at high speeds for extended time (80 mph +)they can be iffy. But if you're not doing that, they can be fine as long as the hole you're patching is under 1/8" in diameter. Same thing goes for installing a tube; this will reduce the load-carrying capability a bit and drop you one speed rating, but otherwise no problem.

The tire makers say either to discard any tire that's been punctured, or only have it repaired by a 'properly trained technician' which they won't define, but I personally feel this is driven by fear of liabilty and the desire to sell more tires.

[slow mo]

thanks to all!! i decided to bite the bullet and buy a new tire.. i didn,t want to chance getting stuck some where the great xs1100 has never let me down but a tire just might thanks again to those wiser than me ,,ride safe ,,slow mo!

[ViperRon]

I feel you made the right choice in getting a new tire. I personally have had bad experiences with tires on bikes one failed plug and one failed patch. Usually by the time you realize you have a leak you are in the position to loose control. There is nothing like making Z's accross a highway to make up yor mind never to patch again. I did not want to make you buy a new tire but now can feel good patting you on the back.

[tweeleft]

I'm agreeing with Viper. I had a staple in my rear tire and a tire shop and a bike
shop said it's safer to replace. Each said bike tires at speed take a lot of tourcher. I replaced don't care for a blow out at speed

[cywelchjr]

Personally it would depend on the mileage left on the tire. With only 800 miles on the tire, I would replace it, as I wouldn't trust a patch or a plug that long. However with a tire with only a couple thousand left on it, I would put my mushroom head plug in it and keep in mind to keep speeds down for the rest of the life of the tire.

There is a new plug that is supposed to be able to be a perm repair as long as a single plug will seal but you can do a temp repair with up to I think I recall like 5 plugs to get home. They have a brass tip on them and are vulcanized and are supposed to last the life of the tire. I'm considering one of their kits, as almost every hole I've gotten has been like a wire brad or similar type puncture that was actually just a slow leak as it was. I use a stop n go kit which are temp plugs (not vulcanized) which are rather soft, but they will actually plug a rather large hole and are easy to use. This other system doesn't use a reamer or anything, just a simple insertion tool.

[bikerphil]

I trust the leather/rope standard type plugs, never had one fail yet <knock>. I'll only use them on the rear tire but never on the front. YMMV. My recommendation to everyone else would be to replace the tire.
I don't know how well a tube would work in one of these rear tires without the bead locks, might rip the valve stem right off.