Would you repair a tyre?

[7755matt]

I was looking over the bike yesterday and spotted a bir of metal embedded in the rear tyre, not a nail, more like a shard or swarf.

I pulled it out and it initially looked like it had made a hole, no air so its not punctured. I thought I could see a cord, but now im not so sure, its difficult to open the cut up.

http://i247.photobucket.com/albums/gg149/7755matt/6d9519bb.jpg

Having had a bit of a play with a tread depth gauge, the tread even in the middle is 4.5mm deep, edges are 5mm and the bottom of the cut seems to be 5.25-5.5 (ish) its a maxxis Supermaxx

Should I:
1) Man up and not worry about it, its a mere flesh wound
2) Get a tyre place to whack a plug in
3) Suck it up and replace a practically unworn tyre?

If the choice is to replace then would a maxxis supermaxx presa (proper sport) work ok on the rear with the current supermax m6029 sports tourer?

cheers

[mattSV]

If it is not leaking air then I would leave as is and forget about it. No point getting it repaired as there is nothing to repair (i.e. no hole right through).

That won't stop you being paranoid and having to stop and check it every few miles though;)

[jacksuzukisv650]

i would change it is it worth a blow out on the motorway!!

[Stu]

1)

It may puncture but there's no high explosives in it for it to blow up!

Just watch out for your steering to feel funny - that indicates wrong pressure - it's really strange how you feel it at the front even if it's the back
Could be worth getting a puncture repair kit so you can fix it yourself if it goes - actually scratch that. It's a good idea to have a puncture repair kit anyway.

No reason IMO that that won't last the life of the tyre if it's not leaking now.

[Damian]

just take it to a tyre shop they will tell you if its safe or not

[7755matt]

I will do tomorrow. The wife popped in to the local bike shop and asked him, initial reaction was fit a new tyre but I think it might be cos he didn't see it.

Guess I'm slightly paranoid. If it was the cage I have no problems leavng it.

[Stu]

just take it to a tyre shop they will tell you if its safe or not
Yeah right :roll:
choice 1 - they can make themselves liable
choice 2 - they can sell you a new tyre.

Does anyone see a slight conflict here?

[7755matt]

Im thinking I might just ride it and see what happens. Run it until it starts to get warmer and then get a set of Presas for it

[davepreston]

get the anti puncture liquid to be safe ,not the foam stuff the liquid its about a tenner but worth it

[davepreston]

http://www.demon-tweeks.co.uk/products/ProductDetail.asp?cls=MSPORT&pcode=USLUSEAL
like that stuff

[Dicky Ticker]

Get it drilled and plugged if you are worried about it, it is in the repairable part of the tread

[jambo]

http://www.demon-tweeks.co.uk/products/ProductDetail.asp?cls=MSPORT&pcode=USLUSEAL
like that stuff
I dislike this sort of product, so do tyre shops who have to deal with the mess.

The worst case scenario is that it'll start leaking air. Get a puncture repair kit and don't worry about it too much. Any bit of shrapnel you pull out that doesn't leak air is a winner.

Jambo

[Stu]

http://www.demon-tweeks.co.uk/products/ProductDetail.asp?cls=MSPORT&pcode=USLUSEAL
like that stuff
Are you my wife in disguise?

about a tenner


£53 delivered with VAT :shock:

[barwel1992]

my tire is pluged and no problems with it so far

[Orpheus]

F*** It

[Spanner Man]

I dislike this sort of product, so do tyre shops who have to deal with the mess. Jambo


I second that! I get fed up with having to clean green or pink snot off my tyre machine. :D

I have seen countless such cases where something metallic has been stuck in the tread, & once removed the remaining gash causes no problems.
However, I have seen many tyres that have deflated suddenly, for inexplicable reasons.
I would visit a reputable tyre specialist for a second opinion. For, if the object has damaged the cords it may be worth having a mushroom plug fitted, or the tyre replaced, to be on the safe side.


Cheers.

[Alpinestarhero]

I had a good MEZ6 which fell prey to a small nail one evening. Got the tyre plugged, it was excellent for the next 400 miles. When the small nails much larger uncle had a go at my rear tyre...and made it non-repairable.

There was still 800 miles in that tyre!!!!!!

[monkimagic]

Ride it and forget it

[7755matt]

Well I decided to forget it and just ride so I came out. On leaving the back end felt a bit weird but I assumed it was cold.

A mile or so in to th ride the oil light came on, pulled over to see oil pouri g out. That would be why the back felt rubbish, because it's covered in oil. What can you clean tyres with? Or is it game over when contaminated with oil?

[kwak zzr]

that'll be ok, stop frettin about the tyre but start frettin about why oils pouring out!

[Richie]

Where is it leaking oil from?

[7755matt]

I am! Just waiting for the wife to brig the trailer and I'll get it home and investigate.

Trust it to go pop on a Saturday afternoon as the sun comes out

[glang]

What I've done in the past with damage like that is wack in some superglue (theres 2 things that it loves: skin and rubber). If required you can let the tyre down to make it easier and then rest assured that you've carried out a repair but its cost nowt!

[Biker Biggles]

"Oil light came on"
Thats usually terminal.I hope you caught it in time.

[Stu]

What I've done in the past with damage like that is wack in some superglue (theres 2 things that it loves: skin and rubber). If required you can let the tyre down to make it easier and then rest assured that you've carried out a repair but its cost nowt!
:thumbsup:

[7755matt]

So do I. It flickered on then off. When it came back on I switched straight off and then noticed oil running out from the belly pan. Pulled into the curb to see more oil running out :-(

I'm hoping it's just a seal popped

[jambo]

In no particular order:
Scrub the tyre up with fairy liquid, and be very careful on it for a little bit.
"Oil light came on"
Thats usually terminal.I hope you caught it in time.
Hopefully the leak was a biggie, the oil level will have dropped fast enough that there was very little time without there being enough oil in it, limiting the potential for damage.
So do I. It flickered on then off. When it came back on I switched straight off and then noticed oil running out from the belly pan. Pulled into the curb to see more oil running out :-(

I'm hoping it's just a seal popped
Check where the oil's coming from. The seal behind the front sprocket's a favourite, and can often be fixed simply by re-tightening the front sprocket nut if it's loose.

Pointy SVs have been known to blow the lines to the oil cooler if they've been pinched or damaged, which can dump the entire sump in about 8 seconds flat...

Breather pipes coming loose of the rear of the engine case can occur too.

If all else fails, clean it up, add oil, and start it up, and keep an eye out!

Jambo

[7755matt]

It is indeed the seal behind the front sprocket. The nut wasnt too loose, and its running out that fast that I cant see tightening it will have any effect.

Does anyone have any idea where I can get a front sprocket seal at this time on a saturday or tomorrow, near to stoke/macclesfield/congleton?

[jambo]

That nut's supposed to be done up plenty tight ~145Nm, so it doesn't have to be too loose to cause an issue.

If you need a new seal, your local Suzuki dealer would be a good first port of call.

Jambo

[phi-dan]

Back on the tyre issue, I used the pink snot as it made the most bold claims, and promptly got a puncture. The hole was easy to find - it was where pink snot was squirting out (instead of fixing the flat before it happened :mad:). Plugged with the rep&air kit and the repair was still sound when the tyre was bald and replaced many thousands of miles later.

I tried the green snot in the new tyres, but that just earned me a death threat from the mechanic (wasn't my fault - the garage stockman "forgot" to tell him it was there). I didn't get a flat either (but then, didn't find any debris / metal / glass buried in the rubber when I changed the tyres out)