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Fix a Flat

D

danrev

It hasn't happened yet, but "an ounce of prevention..." you know. I would be interested in learning what some of you do to fix a flat on the road. What product do you recommend to fix the puncture? And what method do you use to re-inflate the tire after it's repaired. I'm interested in actual experiences. What worked and what didn't? Thanks for your help.
 
Having had MANY flats on the road as a Bicyclist/Tendemist, I can say that a small hand held bicycle pump is enough to re-inflate the motorcycle tire IF (big IF) you are patient enough. Consider: Road bicycle tires run at 100 PSI. Most small hand held pumps can get you to 90 PSI. The NCX tire pressures aren't even close to that. 36/42 PSI for Front/Rear, so the pump is up to it. What's different between the two kinds of tires is VOLUME. A bicycle tire (700x23) is a lot less volume than the NC700x tires, but you could pump one up with a bicycle pump. (I have inflated car tires with a floor pump... takes a long time, but possible.)

Patching the hole is the part I haven't solved since bicycle tires use a tube and motorcycle tires do not. SLIME? Fix a Flat?
I, too, would like to hear how well this works and what it does to the rim after you've squirted all that GOO in there.

Inflating the tire? Can do!
 
Never seen it in a motorcycle tire but I have dealt with both slime and fix a flat in car tires. Slime is just pure nastiness inside the tire, it does tend to ruin valve cores over time and I have killed some pressure gauges with it.(didn't know it was in the tire, put a gauge on it and blew it in that dude, does not work well after that) Fix a flat for lack of a better description melts the inside of the tire. In my opinion I would not use either one but definitely stay away from fix a flat because it is bad for the rubber.
 
670cc said:
I carry a Stop N Go mushroom tire plugger kit Tire Pluggers - Repair Flat Tires With Ease, a 12 volt compressor, and a small hand pump as a backup. I need to get some CO2 cartridges.

There have been some prior discussions on the forum. Here is one: http://nc700-forum.com/forum/garage-mechanical-help/2308-new-learning-opportunity-ive-got-flat.html

Greg
Click to expand...

I too have used the Stop and Go tire pluggers with some success. I had a sheet metal screw in my rear tire on my last bike and fixed it with the mushroom type plug and it stayed in there for a couple thousand miles until I got new tires due to wear. I now also use the Ride-on stuff in my tires to help prevent the need for the plugs, but I still carry them with a 12v compressor just in case. I haven't seen the Ride-on stuff in action yet in person, but if you Google or YouTube it. They have info and videos of it in action and I thought it was impressive enough to give it a try. The Ride-on stuff is safe for your tire, I've never had any trouble with it plugging up a valve stem or pressure gauge. I've even bought some for my car and used it there too. So far of course I haven't picked up any punctures that I know of. Will let people know how it works if I do though.
 
As fate would have it, I just went out for a ride, and discovered my rear tire was flat! :mad:

No culprit found stuck in the tire, just a wee hole:



Remove false duct to access tire pump storage:



Get flat repair kit out of inner trunk compartment:



"String" or "gummy worm" type repair plugs, rasp tool, insertion tool, 3 CO2 (16 gram size) threaded end cartridges, razor blade, valve core removal tool caps (not required in this instance) rubber cement (also not really required, the gummy worm plugs are sticky as all get out, but I put some on anyway just for the heck of it) and the thread-on adapter to connect the cartridges to wheel's valve stem.



Dig out my Battery Tender type SAE 12v plug from under the trunk:



Plug in the 12v cigarette socket extension cord (wrapped up inside and along with the Slime Mini compressor zip case) to the SAE power lead:



Plug in the Slime mini air compressor:



Stoik in and do the old in 'n out with the rasp tool to make the hole the correct size for the gummy worm (and rough up the inner sides of the puncture to give more grip for the plug to work with)

 
Put string plug in insertion tool and glorp on some rubber cement:



Insert plug and pull tool back out, leaving about 1" of string plug sticking out of tire:




I didn't need to use any of the CO2 cartridges, I could have just used the pump alone, but I wanted to see how well these worked, and how many it might be wise to carry in future. These are my "back up" air source, in case the pump kaffed it in, and I was without an air source)

Thread on cartridge adapter to valve stem:



Thread in a cartridge:



I put in 3 of them, in total:



Thread on the air pump, and the guage read just shy of 20 PSI for three of them. You'd need at least 6 to get back up to 40 PSI:



Completed the fill up with the pump, took about 4 minutes to get to 42 PSI:




Finish with cutting off excess plug flush with the tire, and letting it sit for about 5 or 10 minutes, before riding off into the sunset:



:)
 
Last edited:
That was an OUTSTANDING pictorial tutorial!
Made me think I could do this.

  • The battery tender cable and 12v cigarette adapter are a must. (Time to figure out where those come from.)
  • I can order the same "kit" as you, so I think I'll do that.
  • I'd like to figure out where you stored it..."under the fake duct"?... I wonder how the duct comes off, but I'll have to inspect to find that out.
  • When you threded the gummy worm through the "eye of the needle", you then pushed the worm into the puncture, then pulled the needle out. How does the worm slip out of the eye? Seems like it would just pull the worm back out when you pulled out the needle.

I am grateful you took the time to take step my step pictures during the repair. The photography is excellent, and you photographed each step! Wow...Great, Great, post!
 
Last edited:
The closest I can find to what you used L.B.S. is THIS, but it doesn't have the CO2 adapter that screws on to the valve or the "slime" 12v pump.

What kit did you use?
 
You can get the air pump and gummy plug kit at WalMart. Can’t see it in the photo but the end of the gummy tool is open so when you pull the tool back out it spreads open leaving the gummy. Waiting a few minutes allows the glue to start setting up. You should drive it after plugging as heat helps in the bonding. Also the last step with cutting off the excess is very important to keep the gummy from sticking to the ground and pulling out before it fully sets up. Seen that happen.
 
StratTuner said:
[*]The battery tender cable and 12v cigarette adapter are a must. (Time to figure out where those come from.)
[*]I can order the same "kit" as you, so I think I'll do that.
[*]I'd like to figure out where you stored it..."under the fake duct"?... I wonder how the duct comes off, but I'll have to inspect to find that out.
[*]When you threded the gummy worm through the "eye of the needle", you then pushed the worm into the puncture, then pulled the needle out. How does the worm slip out of the eye? Seems like it would just pull the worm back out when you pulled out the needle.
Click to expand...


http://nc700-forum.com/forum/nc700-...8-so-what-did-you-do-your-nc700-today-31.html

***note: some of the items in that post have URL links, I did not put those in! They are horrible Autobot (Decepticon?) added links, that go to items different than what I bought, so just beware!***


If I've bolloxed up that link, it's post #301 on page 31 in the "So what did you do with your...." 2012 edition, in the General Forum.

It should explain enough I hope. If not, feel free to ask.

My particular tire plug insertion tool is, as Bamamate says, split in the centre, it's not a true "eye of the needle"

There are variations on the theme; some are split, and you just pull straight back out, others have an open side, that you use a twisting motion when pulling the tool back out.

image.jpg

image.jpg
 
Last edited:
StratTuner said:
The closest I can find to what you used L.B.S. is THIS, but it doesn't have the CO2 adapter that screws on to the valve or the "slime" 12v pump.

What kit did you use?
Click to expand...

It's a mish mash of whatever I could buy/find, from wherever. They are all dirt cheap, and available from nearly everywhere.

The CO2 adapter thingy is a "Red Zeppelin" made by Planet Bike, available in most any bicycle store, or anywhere on line:

Planet Bike Red Zeppelin CO2 Head - Stores and Prices

I also got the CO2 cartidges there (a local camping/bicycle outlet called Mountain Equipment Co-op)

If you ask around at most dealerships or Walmarts or search online for: Slime Top Up air compressor etc., you will be inundated with places to buy them cheap.;)
 
I am also very grateful for the detailed instruction and well-done photos. I've been hesitant to purchase a tire plugging set because I've never seen one used before and wasn't sure I wanted to go the "sink or swim" route of trying to figure it on my own for the first time all alone on the side of the road somewhere. Thanks to the instructions and photos provided here I now think I could stumble my way through it if I had to. You deserve some sort of prize for putting this together instead of just fixing it and moving on.
 
I went on Amazon.com today and found all the pieces including the electrical gear.
Adding the battery tender cable seems easy. I'm hoping to run it out of the "frunk" so that I can get to the battery tender cable connection without opeing the frunk. Then, I can conect the cigarette electical port, and then the air pump. It's a very compact system you've put together.

I can't thank you enough for the post. It was first class!

Here's what I bought.

1 "Slime COMP02 12-Volt Tire Inflator" $19.46
1 "Battery Tender 081-0069-8 Female Cigarette Adaptor for Quick Disconnect" $7.28
1 "iFlash Dual USB Car Lighter Charger Adapter with 3A Output -
fast Heavy Duty Ouput - Black Color" $11.99
1 "Battery Tender 081-0069-6 Ring Terminal Harness with Black Fused 2-Pin Quick Disconnect Plug" $4.96
1 "Slime 1034-A T-Handle Tire Plug Kit" $7.87

Shipping Method: Standard Shipping
Items: $51.56
Shipping & handling: $7.55
------
Total before tax: $59.11
Estimated tax to be collected: $4.75
------
Order total: $63.86

If I've missed something, please let me know! (Not a bad total for all that gear!)
 
Last edited:
Thanks for all the helpful information. Especially thanks to L.B.S. for the very detailed tutorial. I need to put a kit together before summer riding season comes. Thanks again.
 
Awe, thanks for all the kind words fellas twern't nuthin :eek:

I'm sure there are lots of members itching to say: "Never repair or plug a motorcycle tire, you will die horribly! Shops won't do this for Liability reasons, is your life worth the cost of a new tire, etc., etc."

I respect their opinions, and anyone wanting to fix their tires should give equal consideration to the other guys viewpoints on the matter. It's just one of those things you will have to make your own call on.

I'm ok with doing it, have never had one single failure in 40+ years, or any cause whatsoever for not wanting to continue fixing my tires. That's all I'll say about that.

This tire on my BMW got a giant nail in it less than 600 miles from brand new, the very day I was leaving on a trip. About 10 miles from home, *psssssshhhhh* on the side of the highway.

I did what I have always done, (pretty much what was pictured here, in this thread) repaired it, and never looked back. 21,000 kilometres later, that same tire looked like this:

image.jpg

I forgot I had even ever repaired it by this point, years later and all that mileage, when I changed the tire for a new one. It's also possible a number that looked like "205 KPH" appeared on my GPS during one of my longer trips out into the boonies with no traffic, but I will leave that to *cough* "hypothetically" for the imagination.
 
A few weeks ago I bought a compact manual air pump to throw in the frunk for emergency situations. Also bought a small stick-type pressure gauge, which i stick under the rubber tubing atop the tool kit.

Today I went out and tried airing up my tires a wee bit using the compact manual pump. I now understand why so many people carry electric compressors around with them. It wouldn't be impossible to air up a flat with the manual pump, but by the time you pack along the necessary lunch and bottle of liniment that the job is going to require you may as well have used the space for an electric pump.
 
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