Dave39 Posted July 3, 2008 Share Posted July 3, 2008 A bottle of Monkey Grip EZ Seal stopped my rear tire leak. Have made two 200+ mile trips to the high Sierras so far on it. So far, so good (but I do carry a Slime pump just in case). Link to comment
Sp8er8er Posted July 3, 2008 Share Posted July 3, 2008 this site needs an 'ignore poster' feature. Link to comment
David Posted July 3, 2008 Share Posted July 3, 2008 this site needs an 'ignore poster' feature. It has one, I believe. But anybody with ca. 20 posts talking about "ignore this user" needs an adjustment. Link to comment
SageRider Posted July 3, 2008 Share Posted July 3, 2008 Have you ever seen a photo of a plane crash? How about the national database.... http://www.ntsb.gov/ntsb/month.asp Link to comment
smiller Posted July 3, 2008 Share Posted July 3, 2008 Man... I'm never flying on an airplane again... Link to comment
Joe Frickin' Friday Posted July 3, 2008 Share Posted July 3, 2008 The major factor that sealed the deal for me: the photo they showed of a plugged tire that delaminated. They found that once compromised the steelbelt just falls apart. Every time? 10% of the time? 0.001% of the time? Three of my car's tires are currently plugged - one for nearly 20K miles. None of them has yet spontaneously delaminated. I have heard of the occasional leaky plug, which results in nothing more dramatic than yet another flat tire somewhere down the road. If one is terrified by the prospect of a flat tire, a pressure monitoring system may be a worthwhile investment, since flats can happen even on unplugged tires (for that matter, new punctures can also happen just as easily on plugged tires). With the possible exception of the MCN article you refer to, I have not yet heard of a properly plugged tire that has later disintegrated at speed. This, despite the existence of the internet, on which everyone and his dog posts the slightest malady their motorcycle has suffered. (By "properly plugged," I mean a tire that has suffered a simple, clean puncture by a nail or small screw, not one that has been slashed by a jagged piece of scrap steel.) If catastrophic failures of plugged tires were even slightly common, car tire shops would probably stop doing plug jobs altogether due to liability concerns. Regular inspections/pressure checks of a plugged tire for the remainder of its service are probably advisable, but a universal phobia of plugged tires hardly seems warranted to me. When someone says "it's just not worth the risk," I have to ask: 1. how much money/convenience is at stake? 2. What is at risk? 3. What are the odds? At stake is the cost/time of a new tire, if one chooses to replace. At risk is life/limb, if one chooses not to replace AND if said plugged tire fails at speed. The odds of losing life/limb are, I believe, exceedingly small. If someone says they will not tolerate any risk, well, that's not a reasonable position; there has to be some non-zero level of risk one is willing to tolerate. Your risk to life/limb during your morning commute is non-zero, yet you tolerate it in order to earn good money. The same mathematics apply to the decision of whether to ride on a plugged tire, and although we may disagree on the odds, I will again point to what I believe is an extremely low rate of catastrophic failure. Link to comment
smiller Posted July 3, 2008 Share Posted July 3, 2008 (By "properly plugged," I mean a tire that has suffered a simple, clean puncture by a nail or small screw, not one that has been slashed by a jagged piece of scrap steel.) Me too, but just FWIW... I did get to experience a tire slashed by a jagged piece of scrap steel (caused a 1" gash in the tread, all the way through to the interior.) Even from the time I first noticed some vagueness in the handing I was able to ride another mile to the next exit and stop at a gas station. Had I known the extent of the damage I would have stopped immediately, but the tire wasn't even losing air all that quickly. Just an anecdotal experience but if that didn't cause a sudden decompression of the tire I wonder what would. And no, I didn't try to plug it... Link to comment
Dave39 Posted July 3, 2008 Share Posted July 3, 2008 this site needs an 'ignore poster' feature. It has one, I believe. But anybody with ca. 20 posts talking about "ignore this user" needs an adjustment. That's OK. I'm used to it. My wife ignores me most of the time. Link to comment
MAT2CHI Posted July 3, 2008 Author Share Posted July 3, 2008 I'm all for starting a Sticky for those of us chicken-legged riders that toss tires away with nail holes. Maybe we could have a sign-up sheet for those that would want them and the next time I or someone else gets a nail we will post up the tire to be given away. Link to comment
DouglasR Posted July 3, 2008 Share Posted July 3, 2008 Dumb question: Where does one go (in NorCal) to get an inside-the-tire patch? I don't know how to do it, and the nearest BMW dealer says that their insurance won't let 'em. TIA. NAPA, Autozone, etc. The patches usually come on a sheet, buy several and a big tube of cement. I think six patches and a tube of glue cost me less than $10 last time around. I carry them, Bob's curvy tire irons, and my brain everywhere I go. I've patched several tires with the plug/patches and proceeded to put many more thousands of miles on them without incident. The hole has to be a clean puncture, though, not a gash and not in the sidewall. Changing your own tires or fixing a flat is not difficult at all and doesn't require brute strength or a garage full of expensive machinery. The last set of new tires for my RT were completely changed out and balanced in under 1.5 hours all by myself. Check out GS tire change and balance if interested. Doug Link to comment
smiller Posted July 3, 2008 Share Posted July 3, 2008 I'm all for starting a Sticky for those of us chicken-legged riders that toss tires away with nail holes. Maybe we could have a sign-up sheet for those that would want them and the next time I or someone else gets a nail we will post up the tire to be given away. I am dead serious in that I would be happy to pay shipping charges for any tire (120/70-17 or 160/60-18) in the first 25% of life with a simple nail hole in the tread area (and if it hasn't been destroyed by a poorly-done temporary repair.) I'll even send a prepaid FedEx shipping label via email, all you have to do is print it and slap it on the tire (FedEx Ground will take an unboxed tire.) Save the disposal fee, help the environment... PM me with what ya got. Link to comment
keithb Posted July 4, 2008 Share Posted July 4, 2008 I am with Smiller on his statement. My tire size is 120/70/17 front and 180/55/17 or 170/60/17 rear. I would be happy to send you a FEDEX shipping label and ship the tire at my expense. Link to comment
Whip Posted July 4, 2008 Share Posted July 4, 2008 I'm all for starting a Sticky for those of us chicken-legged riders that toss tires away with nail holes. Maybe we could have a sign-up sheet for those that would want them and the next time I or someone else gets a nail we will post up the tire to be given away. I am dead serious in that I would be happy to pay shipping charges for any tire (120/70-17 or 160/60-18) in the first 25% of life with a simple nail hole in the tread area (and if it hasn't been destroyed by a poorly-done temporary repair.) I'll even send a prepaid FedEx shipping label via email, all you have to do is print it and slap it on the tire (FedEx Ground will take an unboxed tire.) Save the disposal fee, help the environment... PM me with what ya got. 160/60-18......I just checked......WTF kinda tire size is that??? I know...I know........R1100RT.....did they have electric tools when they made them things?????..... Did they electricity?????? Whip Link to comment
smiller Posted July 4, 2008 Share Posted July 4, 2008 hey hey hey... they are modern enough... even have a holder for the hand crank. Link to comment
MAT2CHI Posted July 4, 2008 Author Share Posted July 4, 2008 I am with Smiller on his statement. My tire size is 120/70/17 front and 180/55/17 or 170/60/17 rear. I would be happy to send you a FEDEX shipping label and ship the tire at my expense. I still have a Metzler Z6 rear tire with less then 2,000 miles that is sitting in the garage that I will never use. I'd rather give it away to a member here than have it sit down there until it's no good. It's a 170/60/17 that came stock with my 2004 R1150RT. I live in Marin County, California, 94960. Link to comment
MAT2CHI Posted July 5, 2008 Author Share Posted July 5, 2008 Correction, I have a Metzler ME-Z4 rear tire, 170/60/17 with 1,900 miles that I'm willing to give to a member here. You arrange to pick it up and it's yours. Link to comment
Ken H. Posted July 7, 2008 Share Posted July 7, 2008 Usually Seth and I are 'on the same page', but on this subject I have to vote firmly for replace it. What's the cost of a tire vs the cost of (albeit small chance of) _________? Link to comment
smiller Posted July 7, 2008 Share Posted July 7, 2008 Darn, it would have been a lot cheaper to ship me your new tires with a nail in them from Kansas vs. Canada. Link to comment
mmmoore Posted July 7, 2008 Share Posted July 7, 2008 Personal opinion/experience. Plug while on roadside only. Small hole on new tire patch on inside. Experience has been that plugs can be cut (guillitined) by metal (threads) in tire and pressure alone is not enough to hold plug in. Link to comment
MAT2CHI Posted July 7, 2008 Author Share Posted July 7, 2008 I decided to get two new tires and call it a day. The last thing I wanted to do when I was out for a ride was worry about my tires. My new Michelin Pilot Power tires grip real nice. I think I made the right choice replacing them. Link to comment
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