

- Slime tire plug kit instructions install#
- Slime tire plug kit instructions driver#
- Slime tire plug kit instructions full#
But we change bikes too often to make using the pre-installed sealers practical, and prefer to avoid irritating the mechanic who has to change a tubeless tire on a wheel full of messy sealer. If you’ve had good luck with liquid sealers, installed either pre- or post-puncture, more power to you - we often carry Slime for tube-type tires on bikes that have tubes in the hope of avoiding a roadside tire dismount. There are more convenient plug types, but the strings rarely let us down. Here at Rider we’ve fixed enough tubeless punctures to appreciate that the most dependable tire repair kit you can carry uses rubber strings or “worms” for the plug that gets inserted into the tire, preferably the large red ones like those in the T-Handle Tubeless Tire Repair Kit from Stop & Go. Give it a few minutes to set up, inflate the tire and then spray some water or a soapy solution on the plug to make sure it’s holding air. Use the knife in the plug kit or any sharp blade to cut the plug flush with the tread surface.

Gently pull the insertion tool free, leaving the worm in the tire. If it falls inside the tire, just start over with a new string. Put some rubber cement on the worm and a blob on the hole, too, and slowly insert the string in the hole about two-thirds of the way.
Slime tire plug kit instructions install#
Install a worm on the insertion tool - note that its tapered tip is split to allow the tool to pull free of the string once it’s well inside the hole. Take some extra time if the tire has steel belts. Use the reamer in the kit to enlarge and clean the hole-this is where large T-handles make the job a lot easier. You may need pliers if it’s really in there. Once you’re sure your glue isn’t dried out and you have a way to re-inflate the tire, pull the offending object out. (We’ll cover tube-type tire roadside repairs in another installment). Unless you’re lucky enough to be next to a motorcycle shop at the time, you’re going to need either a good roadside assistance plan or a tubeless tire repair kit. Of course, if it doesn’t stay put or is large enough to stick out of the tire (like a 6-inch gutter nail - don’t ask), the tire will probably deflate rapidly enough to strand you by the roadside. Hopefully you will have noticed its presence or even received a low tire-pressure warning before that happens. But even if that pointy thing does stay put and flush with the tread surface, as it flexes back and forth in the carcass the tire will eventually deflate enough to become a problem. The object usually stays in the hole, the only place from which the tire can lose air, so it deflates more slowly than a puncture in a tire with a tube on an unsealed spoked wheel (which can lose air through all of the spoke nipples and even the tire bead). We’re fortunate today that tubeless tire technology prevents intrusions by nails, screws and other foreign objects from becoming catastrophic blowouts.

Once you get the hole plugged, it’s off to your dealer for a new tire.Ĭonsidering how bulletproof the rest of our motorcycles have become, it’s ironic that it only takes a little 1 ½-inch box nail in a tire to bring the whole show to a halt. Don’t attempt to repair a severe gash or cut, or a puncture in the sidewall of the tire.
Slime tire plug kit instructions driver#
The vehicle is safe to drive to the destination, but the driver should take it to a tire shop within the next day or two to have the tire professionally inspected and patched (let the technician know that Slime tire sealant has been used).Sacre bleu! The discovery we all dread, usually right before a ride. In most cases, the vehicle is back on the road within 10 minutes! The sealant contains a coagulant (it works on punctures up to ¼" across) that finds and seals the hole while the compressor brings the tire up to operating pressure. The built-in compressor will automatically force air and tire sealant into the tire through the valve stem. Push the green button to turn it ON (wait until the tire is filled to pressure) Plug the inflator into the vehicle's 12-volt outletĤ. Turn the dial to select "Air + Sealant"ģ. Regardless of the weather, ground, or slope, all the driver has to do is remove the kit from its plastic pouch and follow some easy steps:ġ. The Flat Tire Repair Kit, on the other hand, dramatically simplifies the process and is much safer. It was miserable in the rain, and downright dangerous if the ground was soft, or sloped. The process would take about 30 minutes, even under ideal conditions. Traditionally, the next step was to pull out a rickety jack, remove the tire with undersized tools, and then hope the spare tire was inflated – more often than not, it was flat.
