I have plugged a few tyres and never had an issue with them, many bike shops wont repair a puncture, and will only sell you a new tyre, not great when you only have a few hundred miles on a tyre. Fixing your own is a useful skill to learn.
Had the same issue, brand new tyre on my bike, maybe 100miles in and got a nail, they wanted to sell me a new tyre so I went to walmart gor a repair kit since I had already seen the "how to fix a puncrure" video from lemmy, did that, pumped some air, 5k miles on that tire and still holding strong lol
been places the nearest shop is near 100 miles and a few days to opening. Carry a self built compact compressor and plugs with a set of plug-patches (prefer Tech but Camel works too) Keeping glue in usable condition is the big issue.
@@inkydoug When using a patch-plug you need the glue. Or if you are using certain brands of plug, Tech has a design, the 220 and 222 that won't seal well or install worth a flip if you don't have glue for it. Any way, I was talking about the glue for the Tech 249 and 250 Uni-Seal. I ended up buying an elcheapo rubber repair kit from the C-Store as my glue had not survived the months of Texas heat.
I used a plug patch on my new street triple with 40 miles on the tire. Pain in the butt to take off tire with hand spoons. But the tire is holding air fine now 2000 miles later
When I was a teenager I worked at a gas station. I remember patching tubes, doing rubber plugs in tubeless tires, and internal patches on tubeless tires with more than a round hole. I held my share of dirt bike tires together with patched tubes and internal patches over tears. One day a salesman stopped by with a new gizmo. It was the cord tire plug with the installation tool. The salesman had to demonstrate his product so he stabbed a hole in his sidewall with an awl. He them set up the plug in the tool and plugged the hole. He showed us his tires which all had at least a hundred brown cord plugs in them. Many of them were in the sidewall. They beat the glue and rubber plugs we had been using though the tool for those looked like a space gun. My boss bought 2 kits and I bought myself a kit with extra plugs. Tires in the 70s weren't as tough as they are now. Flats were much more common. I still have the original tool somewhere but I've also put the newer versions of the same thing in every car, truck, and motorcycle tool kit I've owned with tubeless tires since. I rode a truck tire 65K miles with 2 plugs in it. I have no concerns about using plugs anywhere on a tire. They aren't any good if you don't have something to inflate the tire with once the plug is in place however.
agreed, I've also patched plenty of car tires before. my dad, however, uses the old tire glue (don't know where he got it) with the cord plug cause he believes that'll seal better. never had any issue with them for as long as i can remember.
Yep me and my mates have all plugged and we don't hang about either , they plug car tyres so to me as long as it's within the meat of tread no probs , would be cautious near the edge of the tyre though .
Got two nails this season: first was on used set with 50% of life - changed the tire, second on a new set of beefy 50/50 tire at 2k miles - plugged, arrived to the shop plugged &patched properly - still riding it on and off road.
I had a catastrophic flat at a track. There was an accident and I must have picked up some debris that were not swept up later in the day. I was moving pretty quickly, the rear end started feeling like it was wiggling back and forth kind of like how sone racing tires talk to you when they are the limits of gripp. It was peculiar because I was nowhere near the limit of grip. Eventually had the rear end step out quite a bit as I was transitioning back on to the gas mid corner. It was a completely inappropriate amount of step out for the throttle application. I knew something was wrong and I thought my bike was dumping fluids. I eventually rode off into the grass off the track in case I was spraying oil and found that my rear tire was completely flat. Once we got it over to the tire Guy you could almost see daylight through the hole. If you ever experienced a catastrophic flat tire it will feel like you are riding on a oiled up road in the rain and the bike won't want to steer and it will wiggle. If it was my front tire I would have went down for sure. Just wanted to share some people have an idea of what it might feel like.
I travel with a "Stop n Go" mushroom style plug kit. And the compressor out of a portable car unit. I once plugged a tire for a fellow in Arkansas. He rode 2 days in AR on it, then rode home to Delaware on it. No problem.
Great video! I plugged many, many tires when I worked at a bike shop with zero issues. Told the customer to keep it off the track and lose a speed rating. I plug my own car tires too and it's saved a lot of money, did one last week. Great skill to have and highly recommended.
Dude it's good to see you back. I didn't think you were doing any more videos after your accident. Good on you for staying strong and doing what you love. Keep up the great work!
I’ve had 2 of my tires plugged at a bike shop. One was like 5 years ago and the tire lasted me a good 8k miles after the plug was installed. The current tire I have (Pilot Road 5) also has a plug in it right now. I’ve put well over 10k miles on it without any issues at all. Also ride past 75 mph with ease. I feel like manufacturers say to get a new tire so they can obviously make more money.
If you check your bike manual it will tell you to check your tyre pressure, chain tension and so on before each ride! Does anyone do it? No, and the manufactures know no one is doing that before each ride but they put it there to avoid lawsuits. They want to void any responsibility if something goes wrong which is fair enough.
I wouldn’t guarantee a tyre after it had been punctured. The damage depends on where and what went through the tyre and how long it had been in there . Tyres that are run with low pressures can overheat and delaminate which isn’t always visible. Personally I regard plugs as a get you home measure as they will always be a weak spot in a tyre and my life is worth more than the cost of a tyre .
Have plugged several motorcycle tire in my last 25 yrs riding. Never had a problem with them leaking air. Had 1 tire I plugged 3 time still got the miles out of it with no problems. Always carry a tool kit and plugs. Ride on brothers.
Use plugs and sealant to get you home. Use combination plug-patches to properly fix your tire. I tried to run off of plugs, those mushroom style plugs, and tireject sealant for permanent fixes and they were all temporary-lasting a couple of weeks each. It’s only when I decided to take my tire off, inspect for repairability, prep and clean, and then plug-patch and cement it, was I able to run the tire without any more issues to the end of it’s life. I use balancing beads in my tire as well so I don’t have to do the suggested rebalance after several hundred miles. That said, that’s my experience. You should always do your own tests to confirm.
got a flat on a new bike with new tires 2 weeks after i bought it.. plugged it and replaced with q3s.. got another flat 2 weeks after that. been running on a plug its been good for 1 year so far. Have done a track day on it.
Followed ari here from mc garage and hes right try being stuck 20 miles from the safest place for u oe ur motorcycle and catching a flat. Imma use all plugs needed. I have plugged a tire and rode the piss out of it for 6 months and it never went bad
Agreed. It's amazing how many people I see sitting on the side of the road with a flat, looking forlorn and waiting for help. I've used my plug kit on other people's bikes as often as I've used it on my own.
good deal. i just started carrying a plug kits after years of riding. i used to think use my free tow from insurance co. new plan, plug away no matter how big a hole (nothing to lose) and drive slow.
@R6Ace just a plug on my angel gt. The rope plug ari mentions at the start of the video is what I used. Wood screw got me pretty far from center of the tire, probly the outer part of the 75% tread section ari mentions. Just plugged it up and trimmed the excess, seems to have basically become part of the tire at this point.
I had a broken file that got me once. 4 rope plugs just to get back into cell service, but being a Sunday and out in the middle of NoWhere Texas, I limped it to a gas station and slapped a plug-patch in place as well, then limped home. It was a 100f+ day and the tire was blistering a bit much (110f, 75 to um 80, yeah 80 (100) mph, harsh chip-seal, over loaded Shinko 705 on 730lb bike), then ridden low really killed things. Blistered off most of one block. Got me home, though, and I learned how to modify the blocks (drill holes and sipe) to keep them alive when abused like that. If I didn't hit something I got over 10,000 miles from them. Best was 11,000 miles but that tire was Texas winter used, then I moved to Michigan. I've otherwise been lucky in getting flats on tires about at the end of their life.
I know car tire plugs work on motorcycles because on my sport bikes I would do burnouts until the tire blew and it was never at the area where the plug was installed. I’ve also rode 182 mph with plugs and never sweat it. 🤪It’s amazing how you can see chords and it takes another 2 minutes spinning the tire before the tire pops
30 years plugging motorcycle tires with rope plugs and dynaplugs without fail. do it right and you don't even lose psi for the life of the plug. Maybe I've been lucky? Just my anecdotal experience
Just got a flat on my brand new Michelin road 5 rear tire. Made it to a gas station where the air pump actually worked. I had a plug n go kit. Made it home 45 miles and it is still holding air. With only a 100 miles on it, there is all the tread left and the puncture was from an 8D nail. It's about 10 mm from center. I'm going to repair it with a plug patch myself. Yamapro certified in the early 90s, I'm capable of doing that, like we did in the 90s. Not the first time it's happened. Just glad it's in the center of the tire
Good Day All : I've also plugged bike tires . When I think of the situations that I was in at those times , it was certainly good that I knew what I was doing . Other riders told me of bad situations wherein the motorcycle shop refused to plug the leak and were stuck buying a brand new tire . They also commented on that bike shop would then plug that tire and sell it to someone else . I think probably yes , that's what would happen .
Good video! I got a hole in my rear tire a couple years ago. Plugged it to get me home. Since the tire had another 3k miles or so of life left, I put a patch on the inside of it when I got home. It's been holding well but I did buy a new tire in case it failed or to use when the tier wears out!
Funny, I picked up that EXACT screw (know around here, as a wafer screw) while on vacation and a brand new front tire, with less than 1000 miles on it. I ended up just finishing my holiday with the screw left in and topping up the air. It worked out fine and when i got home I had it repaired with the tire off the rim and pligged from the inside. Continued on the tire until worn out, no issues. On a car I have used the gooey rope plugs a zillion times. I went through about 5 years as the unluckiest guy. Every time a new car or tires and I would pick up a screw or nail. I got really good at road side fixes.
Second bike I ever owned, had brand new tires on it when I pru the bike. Got a nail in the rear tire the first week I rode the bike. Plugged it, worked for years with no problem. On the bike I own now, I got a MASSIVE screw in it last summer. Plugs wouldn't work because the hole was too big. Removed the tire from the wheel and used a patch/plug. So far so good, time will tell. Recommendation: when buying a plug kit, spend the extra money and get a kit with METAL HANDLES. You know when the plastic handles will break? They'll break when you're stuck on the side of the road and actually need to plug your tire. Also, have a multi-tool with you to help remove the object that caused your flat in the first place.
I recently caught a screw in a brand new tire - less than 300 miles!! My mechanic said that he too has rode long distance on a plugged tire without issue so now I've got a plug in the rear and have been watching the tire pressure daily. I'm still a little nervous about going against convention so it looks like I'll be ordering a new tire after the sting of throwing away $200 abates...
Ran over a small drywall screw on fairly new rear tire on my '05 Goldwing. Used 2 Dynaplug inserts and installed "Ride On" tire balancer/sealant. 2,000 miles later only normal air loss. The "Ride On" smoothed the ride.
@@IDYLBERRY I too ride a Goldwing (a '14 I picked up in '15 with only 1K miles) and hit a drywall screw as well. Love my GW ...best damn motorcycle I ever rode.
@@ronfriedman8740 I rented one in Reno, NV. It sold itself and I bought one within a week. I'm pushing 90k and the only thing I've had to replace was cruise control/starter setup on handlebar. Best improvement was a "Ultimate" seat.
I've run 3 plugs in my rear tire for 15,000kms until it needed a change and it was fine. Unless you ride like an idiot or install the ropes incorrectly then you should be fine. Keep a small set of pliers, a razor blade and some C02/pump in your tool roll along with the tire repair kit and you shouldnt need to worry about flats.
I'm so lucky today! just replaced the rear tire for new diablo Rosso 3 and first 200 meters got a huge screw stuck in it which cannot be repaired. But at least I didn't go far from the shop.
I wish I knew this info last summer. I had gotten a joke in my tire with only about 400 miles on it. I then went out and bought another tire instead of just rolling with a plug.
Right so I used a dynaplug and it got me home but it was to small to keep the tire inflated, so i bought an automotive kit (slime) and some rubber cement and the tire holds air just fine , I dare say I’ll be riding this till replacement time, I just make sure I pre trip the tire ( inspect tire and check pressure) before I ride just to be safe . And the plug still working like a charm!
There is nothing wrong with using more than one Dynaplug in a hole. I have had great luck with dynaplugs in small holds using up to two plugs. However, open holes bigger than about 1/8" I use rope plugs and if the plug is not really a tight fit, I use glue to lubricate the plug and add another. I use a pair of pliers to hold the 1st plug in place.
Angel ST's with a screw hey! reminds me of riding 100+ miles last year still with the screw in the tyre as I had no repair kit, nor did any of the 18 other riders. I repaired it another day and ran it until I got new tyres fitted a short while later.
Big fan of dynaplugs. I get tons of punctures on my commuter (usually 3 or 4 in a rear tire before it's worn out) and dynaplugs work great. No failures even tested at 140+mph. I ride them till the tire is corded.
Good god...where the hell do you live? Must commute by a nail and screw factory...lol I have been riding and commuting for over 35 years and I have never had a puncture. I guess I've been very lucky! Going to place a good tire puncture kit on my new ride. Cheers!
@@Glockovich no that was a plug patch, you have to remove the tire and apply that from the inside. A mushroom type is installed from the outside like the rope type but has a head that somewhat seals it from the inside. Like this: smile.amazon.com/dp/B0006NE3KE/?coliid=I12866K7C1Y6G8&colid=YLTZJUJ0O4TY&psc=1&ref_=lv_ov_lig_dp_it
Must admit I've plugged a tyre before, and after doing around a hundred slow miles on it, I got confident to thrash the tyre, and it did another few thousand without issue. My next bike comes tubed so need to figure out what I will do with it.
Great info on the subject, i recently got a screw in my rear tyre and i went for the safe option of a new tyre but it did get me thinking , even with small punctures like thorns or small nails on a hardly used tyre it would be a pain to have to get a new tyre everytime . A repair kit for v minor punctures is worth looking into and being able to do thrm properly.
Just got 2 punctures in a week. Replaced the first tyre (£250) and got a puncture on the new tyre after 100 miles. I’m going to plug/patch this one. Even if I only do 1000 miles on it and then decide to change it, it’ll be better than £2.50 a mile.
I ride a puntured tyre for several miles, the nail was still on it so it didnt got flat...then I get it properly repair from the inside, Injust didn't wanted to use a plug cause the tyre was literaly brand new when it happened
Great Video, short, simple and to the point. SLIME mini compressors have great customer service. They replaced mine after screw on valve came off. Some motorcycle insurances come with road side service as well as AAA, ha if your phone has service in the boonies. Fan of side tire valve, makes checking air pressure easier.
I use rope plugs down to the wear bar every times on many tires/bikes/cars, sometimes multiple plugs on the same tire. The puncture does need to be round, odd shapes won't hold plugs.
they actually did a puncture test on repaired tires....puncture same hole that was plugged or patched and the rope repair kit was far stronger than other patch kits.......and sealed back up.... old school rope plugs are best bet and stronger.....
I had a big pen of silver in my 10inch vespa rear wheel in july in france.Stuffed it with a plug .Lastet all the 2500 km of my remaining journey.The hole was around 8-9mm but the tire was less then 1500km old. Even after around 6000 km by now,im trashing the last bit out of it.
The plug/patch is good as new? Would you limit the speed on that? I guess it depends on if it was run flat. If anyone is roadside plugging, nice to carry vulcanizing plugs and cement. If all you have is a rope plug you want to push it in so it’s almost flush to help avoid it pushing out.
Had less than 500 miles on a new rear tire and picked up a piece of metal that was about 1/4" wide, an inch long and shaped like a staple. It went in at an angle from inside a groove to under the tread. Pulled it out and plugged it. Dumped 4 CO2 cartridges into it to have enough air to get to the gas station. Stopped one more time to fill up before getting home (not more than 10 miles). The failure was almost instant and I ground the tire between the road and rim for about 50 feet. Wanted to plug it since it was new, and I'm cheap, but knew I'd never trust it. Hoping for better luck with the new new tire.
I remover working in gas station early 80’s and the repair was the ropes thru the hole, trim off/drive off see ya later come back if a problem, wouldn’t even take tire off car. Boss rule: if it holds air let it go, if not let me know.
I carry a plug kit in my car, ever since I learned about them (weirdly recently), and despite being lucky enough to have a full-size spare. It's so much faster and easier to throw a plug in than to put the spare on. I'm still glad to have the spare in case of catastrophic damage, but in 20 years of driving I've only had one of those, vs. a dozen or so screws/nails. I refuse to have a bike with tubes, both for trailside repairability and general safety. Both my current bikes have been converted. Honestly I think it's borderline criminal that cross-spoke rims have existed for years now but the manufacturers hold them out as a "premium" feature to nudge you toward the more expensive trim package or model. I can't imagine they cost all that much more to make. At _least_ make it an individual option, if you aren't going to make it standard.
Man, I Really Love Your Videos & Have Even D/L A Few, You're A Great Instructor But It's Hard To Believe You Rode From L.A. To Boston & Never Went Over 75!?! 8-)
Great video and right up my alley. I got a hole in a tubeless tire exactly three weeks ago today on my KTM Superduke GT. The tire had about 2300 miles on it and it was the rear tire. A Dunlop Sportmax, not that it matters. According to the video where it was a pretty round hole in pretty much the center of the tire and I would say within the smaller size range, pretty sure it was an ideal candidate for plugging. Despite all that the bikes been laid up for three weeks now. It's currently on jackstands and waiting for my dealer to simply change tires. I personally don't like changing tires but I did take the wheels off to do it which was kinda annoying because I didn't have the 60mm socket to remove the rear wheel, hence why something that should've taken a day or two turns into nearly a month with mail order for that tool plus a rear wheel stand. I know I should just change the tires myself or maybe risked a plug but thru experience I know I like to ride a whole lot faster than 75 mph and I also can very easily grind knuckles whilst gouging the lips of my KTM's pretty wheels. However at least I have a good running back up bike! But if I had watched this video first then perhaps I would've risked a patch. Heck I would've even did it just for good experience/practice had I not taken the wheel off but the bottom line is it all kinda sucks wasting money and messing around with it when you know you just wanna put on some new tires anyway. Besides in my case the tires weren't even matching brands and the front tire was kinda old with slight dry rot and nearing the wear marker bars on center.
In Malaysia the mechanics always use that emergency plug. Never seen them use that repair kit. I've ridden bikes and driven cars with plugs in the tyres until they wear to the limit then I replace the tyre. However, I ride a very slow motorcycle. Top speed 120km/h lol.
I never use my tires at 100% 75 their out, both off them. Good tyres tolerated a lot but use tire dont. You can even roll on good tyre flat in an emergency but you gona scap them. Some roal two set off tyre in back for one in front. Na not for me. Both out. And yes plugs are ok like you said. My tyre had 5000 kms and a bolt came in one and i have plug it and now i have 12000 they are ok to be change. Its good to know that the side are not mean to be plug.
Anytime I got a puncture, I would pop the tire off, and run a patch plus vulcan compound. That would always hold up for the rest of the time of the tire with no issues even on track. I ran those emergency plugs once or twice and can hold up for longer than emergency too, but its not wise.
I've got a plug in mine from a small brad nail. I'm waiting for new rubber before I see how my Blackbird stands up to my friends' 07 CBR1000RR and 18 ZX10r, but so far my plug has held up to a few blasts at double the 75mph recommendation.
@@gilbertalmariego775 it's not bs, per se. It's just a recommendation. That way if you do 160mph with a plug and your tire blows apart, they can say it's not their fault because you weren't following the recommendation. It's not that the plug will fail at speeds above 75. It's that anything can happen at high speeds, and they want to be able to say it's not their fault.
Are patches superior? When I worked briefly at a tire shop, was taught that patches are a better/more reliable long-term fix. (I've used plugs for the entire life of car tires, fwiw, so not saying it's true. Still, I'd like whatever is best--dismounting not a big deal. Oh, and there are patch plugs too?
Neighbors were doing renovations and ended up leaving tiny trim-offs of scrap ducting in the street. Small triangle of aluminum made a 1 inch slice in my 2000mile young rear tire....felt the wobbly control of a flat rear a few miles down the road...anger....Got a worm plug in there and got home, its going to take me to the shop for a new tire, dont trust the worms in slice punctures. Always carry a plug system and a small air pump, it’ll keep the day from being ruined.
Ok, I have a half life worn center treaded tire that got a nail in it. It's on a z900, I could patch it technically but... What I took away from this was I'm definitely just going to replace the tire because of my riding style. From what was said I definitely agree on patching to make it home in an emergency situation and the info provided on that was great, but to continue riding the patched tire as if nothing happened to the tire doesn't seem smart in my opinion. Especially with the mention you made of not really going over 75 mph. When I ride on my bike I want to not have to care about things like that. I had my fair share of bikes that I had little nuances with and quite frankly it takes away from what riding should be.. an escape. Anyways, thanks in aiding my decision to just buy a new tire instead of trying to save my current one. Even though the nail was directly center I don't want to randomly be going over 75 mph and be always worried about my tire plug blowing out in the back of my mind. Lol.. im kinda just really upset I didn't get the chance to burn off the rest of the tire tread like I usually do 🥲
