Tubeless Tyre Puncture Repair - fail

[rsstler]

Talk about bad luck... My bike has been parked up for 2 weeks, I've just sold her so I gave her one final test ride before the new owner came to pick her up in the evening. The back was all over the place so I checked the tyre pressure which was horribly low. I pumped it up but could hear an air hiss, I got out the soapy water and found a rather large but clean puncture.

Being a tubeless tyre with loads of tread on them still, I thought I'd plug the hole with the standard puncture onboard repair kit

I used the reaming tool to clean out the hole. Inserted tyre cement using the reaming tool. Placed plug on reaming tool. Inserted plug into hole

However, every time I pushed the plug in it split in half before making it into the hole fully. I tried this several times, each time scouring the hole more, same thing. So now I still got a leak, no better than what I started with...

From the thread described below, I can't seem to find anything that I did wrong.
http://www.ukgser.com/forums/showthread.php?t=336

This is only the 2nd time I've plugged a hole, the first time went rather smoothly.

The only think I can think of is that the plugs have perished, hence them splitting in half. It's an 03 bike so the plugs could be anywhere up to 7 years old.

Does this sound valid? Do these plugs perish and if so how often should you replace them?

I think my old bike is seriously pissed off with me for selling her, I knew I should have parked the new bike around the block until she was gone. Jealousy does nasty things...

Thanks in advance

Rsstler

 

[rsstler]

Other points worth noting are: I did not remove the wheel as I did the first time.

I deflated the tyre, but not completely I was not sure if I would break the bead in the process. Could this have been the problem?

 

[E. Buygum]

Talk about bad luck... My bike has been parked up for 2 weeks, I've just sold her so I gave her one final test ride before the new owner came to pick her up in the evening. The back was all over the place so I checked the tyre pressure which was horribly low. I pumped it up but could hear an air hiss, I got out the soapy water and found a rather large but clean puncture.

Being a tubeless tyre with loads of tread on them still, I thought I'd plug the hole with the standard puncture onboard repair kit

I used the reaming tool to clean out the hole. Inserted tyre cement using the reaming tool. Placed plug on reaming tool. Inserted plug into hole

However, every time I pushed the plug in it split in half before making it into the hole fully. I tried this several times, each time scouring the hole more, same thing. So now I still got a leak, no better than what I started with...

From the thread described below, I can't seem to find anything that I did wrong.
http://www.ukgser.com/forums/showthread.php?t=336

This is only the 2nd time I've plugged a hole, the first time went rather smoothly.

The only think I can think of is that the plugs have perished, hence them splitting in half. It's an 03 bike so the plugs could be anywhere up to 7 years old.

Does this sound valid? Do these plugs perish and if so how often should you replace them?

I think my old bike is seriously pissed off with me for selling her, I knew I should have parked the new bike around the block until she was gone. Jealousy does nasty things...

Thanks in advance

Rsstler

Had exactly the same problem trying to fix a puncture with some old REMA type plugs. They all split as I pushed them in so I assumed they were perished. Used some "Rats Tail" type from eBay which worked perfectly although the repair has degenerated into a slow puncture 2-3,000 miles later (about to replace the tyre). Have subsequently bought a Stop and Go Plug kit as recommended by Steptoe and other luminaries of this forum (haven't had to use it yet). Lots of threads on this.

 

[Bem]

I think you have it in one. If the plug falls apart before going fully in then something is amiss. Do you have a local tyre company who could patch it for you? Or could you face going and buy another repair kit? And I have also been a big fan of the Stop and Go Plug kit recommended above, as well as being a serial user.

 

[rsstler]

Have subsequently bought a Stop and Go Plug kit as recommended by Steptoe and other luminaries of this forum (haven't had to use it yet). Lots of threads on this.

Please don't tell Steptoe about this. He must never find out. I think he has only just forgiven me after he fixed my last "home repair" job...

 

[rsstler]

I think you have it in one. If the plug falls apart before going fully in then something is amiss. Do you have a local tyre company who could patch it for you? Or could you face going and buy another repair kit? And I have also been a big fan of the Stop and Go Plug kit recommended above, as well as being a serial user.

Yeah, I got a tyre shop not too far away. I'm more concerned about what the cause of the problem was. It seems that the standard BM$ repair kit is not what it thought it was...

Stop n go must be the way forward...

Thanks for the advice.

 

[Number 6]

It seems that the standard BM$ repair kit is not what it thought it was...

Where were the plugs stored and were they still in the foil packet?

 

[roddy]

I had the same experience when I tried to plug a hole using the REMA stuff, I found if you heated the plugs up then they tend not to split, but I still used them all and all the glue to fix the puncture.

After that experience, I bought a Plug'n'Go kit and I think it's brilliant first time used it no problems plugged the hole first time no messy glue solidily impressed with these kits

 

[andyclift]

I have had one REMA split and I think the problem was not enough glue on the plug which until it dries acts as a lubricant. When the RAC guy arrived (as I had run out of glue to try again) he was also using REMA but instead of a little tube of glue he dunked the whole plug in a pot and the plug slid in the tyre without difficulty and sealed perfectly.

I have since bought a pot (£4.00 from www.bikestopperz.com). I have fixed a friend's bike using the pot and the plugs definitely slide in the hole easier when covered with a good layer of glue.

Bikestopperz also sell the plugs and a pot of glue plus five plugs costs £8.00. Much better value than the £20.00 normally charged for a tiny tube of glue and 3 plugs. You don't of course get the compressed air but I carry a small electric pump anyway as relying on the cylinders assumes one puncture per trip and that the repair will hold first time.

 

[Steptoe]

A plug can split/cut due to the metal banding in the tyre not being reamed out adequately.

 

[rsstler]

Where were the plugs stored and were they still in the foil packet?

All stored on the bike. Some were loose so I can understand why they perished; some were still in the foil which may have been the originals.

 

[Taff]

... every time I pushed the plug in it split in half before making it into the hole fully. I tried this several times ...

Did you warm up the plug before using it? You don't want to cook it, just make it pliable enough to help prevent splitting.

What I was advised to do was to put the plug between the colling fins for a minute or so.

 

[Littledumptruck]

I think I'd go with the 'not enough glue' answer. Some years ago I had a bit of a lesson from an RAC man at the NEC and he reckoned the trick was lots of glue.
I've just used the third of my three on my lads YBR. The kit was at least 10 years old, maybe more. I have had to get a new tube of glue after the second fix in France a few years back, but the plugs have been fine.
Just ordered two new kits, one for each bike, as my GS didn't come with one.

 

[Captain Beaky]

Never used the repair kit.
I've had very good success with tyre sealant though - the one I have used for many years now is "Ultra Seal".

It has got me out of the brown and smelly stuff more than once - saved me a packet in lost wages (used to work as a contractor)