Can a motorcycle tire be repaired?

[Mackelroy]

If a tire plug works it's way out and totally flies out of the tire, then it wasn't installed correctly or someone tried to plug a hole that was way beyond what a tire plug should be used on. Even if a tire plug suddenly flew out of the tire, it would be nowhere close to a tire "blow-out". The tire would leak air fairly quickly, but it wouldn't be some instantaneous "blow-out" failure.

The tire hole was extra large, that tire would have been down instantly if the plug pop out, hole in tire was 1/4 inch +

 

[ZeeOSix]

The tire hole was extra large, that tire would have been down instantly if the plug pop out, hole in tire was 1/4 inch +

Like I said, sounds like a plug was used on an inappropriate situation. All the punctures I've plugged were from a nail or screw that if removed would take 10 minutes or more for the tire to go flat. And a plug in those kind of punctures, if installed correctly, will never "fly out" of the tire. And I've never had one ever leak.

 

[Mackelroy]

Like I said, sounds like a plug was used on an inappropriate situation. All the punctures I've plugged were from a nail or screw that if removed would take 10 minutes or more for the tire to go flat. And a plug in those kind of punctures, if installed correctly, will never "fly out" of the tire. And I've never had one ever leak.

What plug?

there's nothing special about Goop rope plugs, rain deteriorates them and course roads are hard on them too , very few Ive had last more than 500 to 1000 miles on a motorcycle.

I will use them to get some where to do a inside repair, if needed.


Now I had a company car, that had about 4 or 5 saftey seal plugs, and they held really well.

 

[KrisZ]

Well, a timely thread it seems lol. Yesterday I was pulling out of my work parking lot on my Valkyrie and I noticed it steered very heavy. Sure enough the front tire was really low, but not totally flat.
I asked around for a compressor with no luck. They usually have battery boosters, but no compressor.

I risked it and went on my way as there is a gas station fairly close by. Made it to the gas station, put air in it and made it home no problem. This morning, it’s flat again.

I have not inspected it yet, but if the puncture is in the repairable area I will definitely be plugging it.

 

[HangFire]

There are a lot of similarities between this thread and my BE CAREFUL thread... it seems there is a broad spectrum of risk assessment and acceptance here at BITOG.

 

[BusyLittleShop]

there's nothing special about Goop rope plugs, rain deteriorates them and course roads are hard on them too , very few Ive had last more than 500 to 1000 miles on a motorcycle.

Granted there is nothing special about the simple vulcanizing ropes except I discovered rain will not deteriorate them and roads are not hard on them... you plug it and forget it because they do last the life of my and my customer's tires...

My 2017 Camaro nail puncture fixed as easy as 123...

1) Find foreign object

2) Ream hole

3) Insert Safety Seal

 

[Mackelroy]

Granted there is nothing special about the simple vulcanizing ropes except I discovered rain will not deteriorate them and roads are not hard on them... you plug it and forget it because they do last the life of my and my customer's tires...

My 2017 Camaro nail puncture fixed as easy as 123...

1) Find foreign object
View attachment 149120
2) Ream hole
View attachment 149126
3) Insert Safety Seal
View attachment 149127

Thats actually a perfect place for a plug in between the treads, no road contact . But plugs do hold up much better in a car tire than a Mc tire, unless the MC tire is more like a car tire, and used that way.

motorcycle tire, especially sport bikes, totally differnt enviornment , very little tread, thinner carcus. Id say 10 to 20% full life, and 80% fail /leak within 1500 miles. Atleast that my experience.


Internal Fix 100 % best method , and really thats for any Tire , only 3rd party independant shops nowadays use plugs, National Business's all do internal repair.

 

[BusyLittleShop]

Thats actually a perfect place for a plug in between the treads, no road contact . But plugs do hold up much better in a car tire than a Mc tire, unless the MC tire is more like a car tire, and used that way.

When fixing either Auto or MC tire Safety Seals plugs have held up without catastrophic fails and thats my experience...

Internal Fix 100 % best method , and really thats for any Tire , only 3rd party independant shops nowadays use plugs, National Business's all do internal repair.

Nowadays due to liability concerns my customers are turn down when contacting a National Business for a price quote for an internal fix...

Note 7 critical steps for a shop to patch an internal fix...

Combi1) remove wheel from bike
Combi2) remove tire from wheel
Combi3) prepare carcass in accordance to instructions and flush with special cleaner.
Combi4) Insert combi and employ pliers to pull it through, employ pizza roller to press patch flat, trim excess
Combi5) Install tire on wheel
Combi6) Install wheel on bike
Combi7) Inflate tire to proper PSI

 

[KrisZ]

Here is the culprit for my flat front tire. Doesn't look like much and it was actually a piece of glass. Had to scoop it out piece by piece with a small flat head screwdriver.
The plug sealed the leak immediately, verified by soapy water. I cleaned the soap off afterwards, trimmed the plug and put some vulcanizing glue on top for good measure.