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Safe to ride on plugged tire?

17K views 17 replies 12 participants last post by  Seanm222 
#1 · (Edited)
My son got a nail in his brand-new Street Twin rear tire. We pulled it out and I put in a plug from a kit I have to plug car tires. It's the kit that comes with a reamer to clean the hole, a 4 inch long 1/2 inch thick gummy rubber plug, and then a split needle-eye tool that you thread the plug half way thru, then jam it into the hole. It fixed the leak, the tire holds air even after riding it a bit.

Anyway, at first we called around to have someone do the repair, but all the Motorcycle tires shops refused to do it because it "violated their insurance" or something. And I've read that it's not safe to ride on a plugged tire, that you have to replace it. Is this true, or just a CYA on the shops' part so they don't get sued?

My son's already got a new tire on order, so he will get it replaced and I'm kind of glad about that "just in case". But I've always wondered if there's any truth to the claim that it's dangerous to ride a plugged tire. If that's true, why do those same shops sell tire plug kits for motorcycles??? Has anyone here just plugged your tire and then rode it until it wore out as if nothing had happened?

-Dan

EDIT: I should mention that he rode for a couple weeks not knowing the nail was in the tire, 60 miles each way to work on the freeway several times a week, and his tire didn't explode or anything. He just had to keep putting air in it every day... Seems like a rubber patch would be even less stress on the tire. Was he just lucky, or is this an urban myth that it's dangerous?
 
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#9 ·
Yeah that's what I figured as well. If it were me I'd probably chance it. But for my son, especially as a new rider, it's better to be safe. Plus he's paying for it not me! ;-)

-Dan
 
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#5 ·
Darn, I should have told him to just get a Gremlin Bell! He would have saved $200 bucks!

-Dan
 
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#6 ·
Seriously, if you feel that the plugged tire is safe, keep the new one in a cool, dry place and mount it when the other one wears out; no money wasted, then.


Just a thought: Jim
 
#7 ·
Best bet is to get a new tire and have it mounted and balanced. Keep the old tire. Take a razor blade or a VERY sharp utility knife and cut the plug that you put in so it's even with the inside surface of the tire. Get one of the patch kits that contains internal patches and not plugs. Follow the instructions and apply an internal patch over the place where you cut off the plug inside the tire. Keep the repaired tire as a spare for the next time the new tire gets punctured.

The danger with the plugged tire is that the plug may work lose over time and start to leak again. The internal patch repair of the tire makes sure that can't happen. The plug is still important though, particularly on steel-belted radial tires because if you leave the puncture hole open, water can get in there and start to rust the strands of the steel belt(s). If the belt starts to rust, it will separate from the carcass and may eventually come off which would be a major-sized calamity on a motorcycle.
 
#8 ·
the roadside recovery firms say that you shouldn't ride over 40 miles an hour with a ream and plug repair and that the repair is just a 'get you home' fix, but like everyone else on here I grudge wasting precious tread on expensive tires and have safely ridden hundreds of miles with a plugged tire without a problem although I have ridden a bit more cautiously with the plugged tire.
I normally would only use that type of repair in an emergency as the reamer makes the hole bigger in order to accept the plug and that means the preferable 'vulcanised' repair method cant be used.
I would leave the nail in it and get some more air in it if it has deflated a bit and then find a tire shop that does hot vulcanised repairs, most will do it for a little cash with no paperwork as the tire manufacturers say you cant repair their tires so you have to buy new ones.
The hot vulcanised repair is a mushroom patch that is applied on the inside of the tire without reaming, it is a far superior repair and will allow the tire to be used at its full performance capability and costs as much as a ream and plug repair kit.
Like others have said this is just my experience and opinion and in no way constitutes safety advice, you should satisfy your own safety concerns with advice from experts like your local tire shop, just bear in mind that tire manufacturers want you to buy more tires.
 
#10 ·
Great info. I hadn't heard of this type of repair. Not sure who I could get to do it, though. The tire shop that I've had patch my car tires occasionally refused to touch a motorcycle tire. Everyone else I've approached about this seems to say the same thing.

-Dan
 
#13 ·
I come from what the up-to-date and "cool" people and those who care to be these aforementioned would call "old school." A motorcycle tube was never patched and a tire never plugged - at least to be ridden on.

Just my two pence.

Rich
 
#17 ·
I assume the bike has alloy rims not spokes (in which case you just change the tube). I recommend an internal radial patch. Make sure you grind off any internal ribs around the hole first.
I have used plugs in the past, but find they dry out and start leaking.
I remember re-treads. Dad had them on the morris minor. No danger of over powering them with that car. They did wear out fast though. I wouldn't use them now though, the carcasses are much thinner - no extra bands for safety - and a delaminating tire is bad news.
 
#18 ·
I've used the rubber rope stuff to plug a hole, and then wore the tire down to almost the steel, never had any issues, even when riding fast, in the rain, twisties. It is far easier to not properly install one of those though, and have them come loose, so it is better to get the mushroom style plug at a tire repair center if you want better peace of mind.
 
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