Re: oilheads-digest V3 #127

[Bill Moss <bill.moss@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

I have had two flats in the past 18 months, one front and one rear;
rotten luck or road construction, not sure. Both were MEZ6's. In both
cases the Ride-On in the tires sealed the leak well enough to get me
home, albeit with stops every 15-20 minutes to add 5-7psig back into the
tires with an electric pump I carry.

I successfully repaired both tires at home using a plug gun which I also
keep on the bike in case the Ride-On does not work. I purchased this gun
many years ago but I know it is still sold by JC Whitney and a number of
specialty houses. I  takes a hollow insertion tool in which a mushroom
shaped plug is inserted, the plug is coated with glue if you wish but
lubricant works better. The gun injects the plug into the tire and the
mushroom expands on the inside. When you pull the tool out, the stem of
the mushroom is sticking out of the hole and you trim it flush. The
plugs are chemically treated to vulcanize to the tire when driven.

Over about 25 years, I have fixed everything from 255x35-17 car tires to
belted motorcycle tires with this tool. I tried reading the name off the
two guns I own but age has worn away the markings .

Note: Slime, which I have used in trail bike tires, now has a high speed
formula and it may work as well as the Ride-On.

oilheads-digest wrote:
> ----------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> Date: Wed, 9 Aug 2006 06:34:36 +1000
> From: "Kit Scally" <kitscally@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
> Subject: Radial tyre repair ?
>
> Recently installed a pair of (new) Avon Viper radials. Less than 2,000kms
> wear to date.  Gutter-crawled at a set of lights the other day and picked up
> a nail in the rear resulting in slow deflation. Due to fear of litigation,
> most repair shops will now not plug/repair radials, so a new tyre was
> required - at A$290 (U$145) !
>
> Is there a "safe way" to repair radials for anything other than track-days ?
>
> What's the current trend in the good old US of A ?
> Has anyone successfully sued their local council for the (here at least)
> terrible state of garbage in the gutters on most suburban roads ?
> Should you just lie back and think of it as "doing your bit" for the world
> tyre economy ?
>
> Kit Scally
> R1100s Mandarin, 110,000kms
> Sydney

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