flat!

[Greg Galinsky]

Rocky Mullin wrote:

> 
>     wow, cool, thanks for the advice!  i'd like to try the fixing
> route.  i'll stop by various places and see if someone will do it.  any
> pointers from listers in the SF area to shops that will would be 
> appreciated.
> 
>     i would do just another tire under warranty but because of the
> diffs i need to do all four corners, yikes!
> 
>     is the patching difficult?  maybe i could do it myself.  plugging
> is actually pretty easy, i bet patching is too.
> 
>     thanks again!
> 
> 
> At 4:27 PM -0500 1/20/04, Steve Sears wrote:
> 
>> Rocky,
>> I've had similar experience with punctures in both my summer (Dunlop 
>> D60A2)
>> and winter tires (Blizzak WS15).  Three punctures - all just outside the
>> tread blocks (I work in construction - many trips through construction 
>> sites
>> will find many sheetrock screws and roofing nails) were deemed 
>> "unfixable"
>> by a number of places who will remain nameless, but their initials are
>> Canadian Tire and Beverly Tire.  Bob, the guy at Frank's Tire here in
>> Hamilton, informed me that small punctures in tires can be fixed right 
>> from
>> one bead to the other - not just in the tread blocks alone.  All three
>> punctures have been repaired (the first about 3 years ago) and the tires
>> hold air just fine - as a matter of fact, I took the rest of my snows to
>> Franks last winter after the unrepaired ones developed bead leaks over 
>> the
>> summer.  You can guess where I send all my family and friends to get tire
>> work done.
>> If they can get you a new tire under warranty, then go that route.  If 
>> they
>> can't, find a shop that will attempt to patch (not plug) the hole 
>> before you
>> get new shoes on all 4 corners.
>> [OK, now I'm ready to have my wrist slapped for advocating fixing the
>> tires....]
> 
> 
> 
Exactly where on the tire is this small hole?  If on the sidewall I 
think that there may be too much flex for a patch to stay properly in 
place.  On HD off road equipment tires they can vulcanize a new section 
into the sidewall; but they are designed to do that.  Passenger car 
radials have more flex in the sidewalls.

Never under any circumstances do a plug in a sidewall; not even good in 
a tread. Maybe in an emergency.  The patches that I use and that are 
common need about a 1/4" to 3/8" hole  to be inserted.  If not that 
large they need to be drilled out to that size. The inside of the tire 
is then buffed and ruber cement applied.  The patch is like a circular 
patch with an integral rubber plug at the center.  With the right tools 
then the tip of the plug is then pulled thru to the outside.  The base 
of the patch has a sticky surface that adheres to the rubber cement. 
The inside of the patch is then rolled over with a small knurled roller 
to make sure that it is in full contact with the rubber cement.  The 
excess end of the plug that sticks out is then cut flush.

Greg Galinsky
G & G SERVICE

Selling Nokians since 1979; so I kind of know what I'm talking about 
with tires.