Carrying a plug kit paid off this weekend

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So we just left a restaurant 150 miles north of Boston Sugar Hill NH (middle of no where). On the way back we decide to schedule our flu shots at a CVS we were going to pass. So I pull over to get an ETA for CVS. Gravel shoulder. Nice clean and flat. Pull back on to the road and immediately hear click click click. Hoping it was a stone or something I could remove before puncturing the tire.

Unfortunately neither was the case.

Can you believe this punctured the tire in gravel. hard packed.


Well my wife had booked the appointment with 15 minutes buffer.

we still made the appointment on time !!

That would have been a hellish day with out the plug kit. With the plug kit it was a minor inconvenience.

Only lost 3 lbs of air. Almost didn’t even need to add any.

 

[bhorn]

Which plug kit do you have?

 

[zannman]

Really pays to know how to use one of these. So far I'm about half and half on needing to remove the tire from the car before plugging after about a dozen attempts over the years. So far I've never had a plug fail and tires have all made it to end-of-life treadwear.

 

[mswlogo]

Really pays to know how to use one of these. So far I'm about half and half on needing to remove the tire from the car before plugging after about a dozen attempts over the years. So far I've never had a plug fail and tires have all made it to end-of-life treadwear.

Yes, I have a jack with me in case I need to remove wheels. This was one of the very few I’ve done on the car. I think a rear tire needs to come off. But front was very easy to stay on. You had to push like a SOB to get it in. That would be hard on the rear wheel laying in the ground mounted on the car. You need to be on top of it.

Also if it’s extremely cold out I might need to bring tire in the car to warm it and the plug material up a bit.

I’ve never had a plug fail either.

 

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Which plug kit do you have?

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01E635PGA

Almost any plug kit will work. But I don’t like this kit. But it’s the same as most kits. The new kits have a split needle hole. but I prefer the closed needle hole type. It’s a slightly different method of plugging.

I was happy this kit included pliers to pull the bolt out though.

 

[teethdood]

I have a tire inflator in the car. I'm planning on just stopping and adding more air if I ever get a puncture. Should be enough to limp to a safe place?

 

[zannman]

I was happy this kit included pliers to pull the bolt out though.

Great point. I keep a cheapo mini plier set with needle nose and side cut pliers in it. Wally world sells one for a little over $10 that has a case and is convenient to carry the plugs in also.

 

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I have a tire inflator in the car. I'm planning on just stopping and adding more air if I ever get a puncture. Should be enough to limp to a safe place?

That works if you have a leak. But a puncture can bleed pretty fast. If I left the bolt in It would hold air but that would potentially do more damage. Your idea can work sometimes. A Plug kit isn’t a guarantee either.

I have no intention of getting the tire serviced. The plug is a permanent fix as far as I’m concerned. But a lot of folks won’t agree with that.