Tire Plugging

Any motorcycle street tire really only has a shelf life of three to four years, on or off the bike. If it was stored properly before being mounted add maybe a year. After that period a tire has less than 1/2 of the traction it could provide when new. Even worse, an old tires ability to regain grip after it begins to slide becomes pitiful. Don't repair a tire that should be replaced because of aging

50% seems to be a good balance between value and safety. Once a tire is repaired you will not be able to run it for as long or tread-thin as you normally would. The tire must be replaced when around 1/4 of its tread is left. Any repair relies heavily upon the tread area rubber for integrity. You've lost that last part of use, given up for safety

Longer objects may have caused hidden damage to the structure of the tire by leverage forces on the way in. They also have the ability to flail around inside and damage other areas

When a puncture is prepared for a patch/plug repair a larger hole is bored through the tire. This hole, usually either 1/4 or 3/8 inch, is made to ensure that the plug section has a uniform surface to bond to. The special plugs we use have a modified oval cross section that allows it to conform, within limits, to irregular injuries before bonding. Leaving an exterior slit unsealed is unacceptable because of the potential for water entry.

Punctures at a slant cause several problems. It's harder to determine the path so that the plug can actually do its job. The rubber squirms around the plug while in use, stressing the repair. Finally, there is a greater chance of air pressure escaping through the tire's plys internally, causing separation

The added rigidity and thickness of the tread area make safe repairs possible

Previous repairs will many times leave substances or additional damage behind when removed from the hole. The next attempt at plugging will be compromised; not good safety wise

Riding on a flat very quickly breaks down the sidewall cords. Also, any object in the tire can damage the inner liner in other areas besides the initial hole. The tire must be demounted for a close inner inspection. If it passes inspection, then a combo patch/plug can be used

Home Page----Tire Main----Plugging Tires

It is pretty easy to understand manufacturers' qualms when it comes to the subject of plugging their tires. With such a wide variety of repair methods used, the quality of repairs ends up being totally out of their control. No wonder their officials stance is " don't do it "!

Here at Motorcare we fix repairable tubeless tires using a special plug available only from Tech, a world leader in tire repair techniques. This special type of plug was originally designed to permanently seal injuries to the sidewalls of radial tires. That's a pretty tall order, but it does the job well. Wonder product or not, guidelines are still used when deciding whether to repair or replace.

You need to be able to answer yes to the statements below for a safe tubeless tire repair

Keep in mind that you have one shot at a suitable repair. If you have used an aerosol Fix-a-Flat, or some type of retail plug, such as the commonly available tree-sap plugs; you've taken your one shot. A new tire is in order. Don't compromise your safety by attempting a second repair.

Tire has not been ridden on while flat
No other repair attempts have been made to injury
Hole is in tread area
Hole is basically straight into tire, not at an angle
Hole is round, and rubber is not split or slotted
Object is not unusually long
The punctured tire has at least 50% of its tread depth left
The tire is less than 5 years old by DOT dating on sidewall

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Page last modified on Friday, February 9, 2007