Tire Issues: To Plug or Not to Plug

[rockmeupto125]

Okay, I'll start. We gotta repopulate this place. 

 

Mentioned in the PUB, but we are back from North Carolina and I have to do some catch up maintenance. I put a brand new Bridgestone S22 on the rear of the MT09 just before we left, and sure enough, had an puncturing encounter with a decking screw, resulting in kind of herpes situation for the tire. We can live with it, but it will never go away. 

 

Although I didn't have my patch kit, a local auto parts store did have one, and a crappy manual pump that might have been worth what I paid for it.  The simple gooey strip forced through the puncture hole and drawn back held well for a couple hundred miles with no leaks.

 

So now my dilemma. The repair worked. Do I leave as is and go about my business wearing the tire down? Or do I pull the tire off and put a glue patch on the inside?

 

That's my head scratcher today. 

 

And I'll be figuring out how to use these TPMS sensors I got. Maybe now would be a good time to get "in-tire" sensors. 

[poida]

ive had up to 4 of the string type plugs in a rear tyre with no problem.and when i was in usa back in 2013 the rear tyre of the bike i bought off racer picked up 2 3 inch nails on my first day on the road.the plugs lasted until i had worn the tyre down later in the trip.

for peace of mind if your not sure about riding with them you can get mushroom plugs installed inside the tyre

[SwampNut]

5 hours ago, poida said:

ive had up to 4 of the string type plugs in a rear tyre with no problem.

 

LOL, I was going to type exactly the same thing.  It was probably stupid, but I did it.  I did not, however, ever run that tire into three digit speeds.  I'm stupid, but slightly less than THAT stupid.  Ok, maybe not FAR into three digits.

 

But you know the answer Joe, it would be smart to patch it, and you have the tools.  I replaced a 500 mile tire on the Zero because of a tiny hole, wasn't carrying plugs, dealers won't patch them any more, and we had people to do and things to see.

 

[02XXCA]

I use the stop and go plug kit that are mushroom style.  I just leave them and ride until worn out.

[SwampNut]

This reminds me that I need to get another kit for the other bike.  I'm way to lazy/forgetful to move it around.  And I have two mini-compressors already on the bikes.

 

Speaking of which, I did a review on this, and really like it.  Two of my friends have them too, and one uses it a lot, without noticeable wear or issues.  I got this because the XR has no electrical system or battery.  For the XX I have a cheaper wired one from Stop-N-Go.

 

 

[CALCXX]

2 hours ago, 02XXCA said:

I use the stop and go plug kit that are mushroom style.  I just leave them and ride until worn out.

 

 

Agree 1000% even though I have never used mine.

 

I watched Hobi patch Randys tire on his RC51 at the Sanora XX Meet in California. 

So I bought one.

 

Carried the patch kit and small compressor to many XX meets thru the years. 

Never needed it. ( knock on wood )

 

I could not find the the kit in 2017 when Jeff and I went to Montana to meet up with Mike ( RodeRash) so,

I bought another kit just days before we left for Montana. Didn't need it so now I have 2 complete patch kits 🙄

 

(Hope Zero finds his proprietary tool kit)         I feel your pain Mike.

 

Hey, just remembered I did use it a couple years ago. On the riding mower.

It was easy. Still working great. Have been on many top-speed runs with that mushroom plug.

 

https://www.ebay.com/itm/224797157467?chn=ps&_trkparms=ispr%3D1&amdata=enc%3A1m61uc3acT5yQNS1EbdN1hg9&norover=1&mkevt=1&mkrid=711-117182-37290-0&mkcid=2&mkscid=101&itemid=224797157467&targetid=2320274087695&device=c&mktype=pla&googleloc=1024569&poi=&campaignid=21404247963&mkgroupid=173029506908&rlsatarget=pla-2320274087695&abcId=9450094&merchantid=101500018&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=21404247963&gbraid=0AAAAAD_QDh8RBPWrt0JEzoRtX8bQuimnM&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI8ozmtc-5lAMVLiutBh023xHiEAQYAiABEgJDu_D_BwE

 

Much better than the strip type kits.

 

Joe, I see this kit is complete. I had to buy the small compressor separately. 

This kit has it all.

 

Edited May 14 by CALCXX

[CALCXX]

I see Amazon has it also --

The last 15 seconds of the Amazon vid pertains to your needs.

No need to remove from the wheel/bike.

 

https://www.amazon.com/Stop-Go-5001-Tire-Plug/dp/B07WWQF78H/ref=sr_1_1?crid=1EBH8FME54VOD&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.CGXUT8Y82WBnyoel1Yd1YEGTLkURzyo-9wRvr4oL-JGj_iRfMOI0EFJNk3LSFRQIPf9s1CdZsqQRCNOZGQIPLfgoA_tjd8m45POVRP-r9Q3H0aarn_vYDwbs25iYDXA8BeMa1GrVIaQc2c7lMsSomnid6bAqxezk_d4IWpWmCB-cfVakfWX-FgXy3NOEOyYjlkoxxo4fG2oqVLxTmklIKq5vvC2JK9G8rc3kr0or2YR03xd_KPqvNwBjtfFuas5nzS8cy4ruzJPP8o6A7WeetDsuBAhwAb0RpYOWxbT7dyo.cdqFEhpzWF9fK8ZwpVwk1DHPGxIbLqp-FR07UylTgUA&dib_tag=se&keywords=Stop+%26+Go+5001+Tire+Mobility+Kit+with+15+Plugs%2C+3%2F4"+x+5%2F16"&nsdOptOutParam=true&qid=1778791248&sprefix=stop+%26+go+5001+tire+mobility+kit+with+15+plugs%2C+3%2F4+x+5%2F16+%2Caps%2C177&sr=8-1

Edited May 14 by CALCXX

[SwampNut]

3 hours ago, CALCXX said:

Much better than the strip type kits.

 

Mostly.  But in the case when I had to use three strips, not sure the single mushroom would do.  

[CALCXX]

fwiw, I have used strips in the past.

They did not work for me (leaked) but then again, those were the heavy steel belted days.

 

[rockmeupto125]

Cal....reference my "no excuses" tool box 

 

 

[SwampNut]

Now I see why those kits currently show out of stock on Amazon.  You got them all.

[02XXCA]

8 hours ago, rockmeupto125 said:

Cal....reference my "no excuses" tool box 

 

 

They don't appear to be on the bike.  So failing, if not available when riding.

[CALCXX]

Got 12v compressor?

 

Ya know, I haven't ran that little compressor in well over a decade.

Joe, please text me tommorow and remind me to run it.

Edited May 16 by CALCXX

[RXX]

I ran a mushroom plug in my rear tire some 1500 miles out west one year. Thanks, Hobi!

[blackhawkxx]

I had a slow leak on the wife's car and was thinking it was leaking from the bead area so I pulled the wheel and with soapy water, no bubbles.  Looking closely with a bright light I saw something little that was brown in the tread.  Yes, it was a nail 1.25" long with no head and slightly below the surface. It was really hard to get out with a toolbox full of pliers and with thinking how much fun this would be laying on the ground with a bike on the side stand.  Also the "reamer" that was twisted rather than a reamer, was very difficult to get in using all my weight because the steel belts which seemed very concentrated in the area .  I have never plugged a bike tire, they may be easier than a car.  

The reason for posting was a reminder to include a needle nose pliers with your kit.  Without it, there would have been no way to plug my tire.

 

 

 

[rockmeupto125]

On 5/16/2026 at 3:55 AM, CALCXX said:

Got 12v compressor?

 

Ya know, I haven't ran that little compressor in well over a decade.

Joe, please text me tommorow and remind me to run it.

 

Cal, did you run that compressor?

[SwampNut]

11 hours ago, blackhawkxx said:

The reason for posting was a reminder to include a needle nose pliers with your kit. 

 

And wire cutters though you may never need to cut a wire.  It's how I got a nail shard out of the XX tire, missing the head.  No grip with anything else.  Flush-cut is probably the most useful, certainly smallest space requirement.

 

[CALCXX]

4 hours ago, rockmeupto125 said:

 

Cal, did you run that compressor?

 

Little late.

I will run it when I get back from Ohio.😀😀😀

[CBRXX]

I ran a rear with one of those from the Pocket Plugger kit from when the tire was almost new until the tire was bald and overdue to replace w/o issue.

Thoughts on these I saw today?   Looks pretty simple anyway on the side of the road to get you going again.
https://wildbeartools.com/products/screw-plugs

[rockmeupto125]

If you have a straight puncture they are a quick fix.  The mushroom plugs can cover an irregular hole with the larger sealing surface inside the tire.

[SwampNut]

5 hours ago, rockmeupto125 said:

If you have a straight puncture they are a quick fix.  The mushroom plugs can cover an irregular hole with the larger sealing surface inside the tire.

 

I'm also thinking that these may not work well on an angled hole, if it's not irregularly shaped.

 

After this thread, I am pretty sure that this is what I need to carry on the bike for all punctures.

 

 

[SwampNut]

Wait, I have a drinking game for the next NeXXt...we get a tire that is at the end of its life, make a few punctures, and let everyone have a go at fixing it.

 

[rockmeupto125]

Oh my. We could try out different plug hlubes.

[SwampNut]

23 minutes ago, rockmeupto125 said:

We could try out different plug hlubes.

 

 

[Zero Knievel]

2 hours ago, SwampNut said:

I'm also thinking that these may not work well on an angled hole, if it's not irregularly shaped.

 

After this thread, I am pretty sure that this is what I need to carry on the bike for all punctures.

 

Laugh if you must BUT I wish I had a photo of my kit layout for the XX.  It seemed every trip was a Murphy's Law on what tool I needed but didn't have on me.  Eventually, it seemed like I was ahead of the curve and could "field repair" any likely breakdown enough to get me to the next shop.  I remember getting THREE punctures during a two week trip out west.

 

Frankly, I want a plug that's "one and done."  Plug the tire and see if it maintains pressure for the remainder of the trip.  If so, you're good.  If not, stop at the next shop and see if the tire can be professionally patched.  The mushrooms plugs (so far) have never let me down, but I've only needed to use them maybe twice since switching to them years ago.