|
Post by scootdoggydog on Feb 20, 2008 23:08:31 GMT -5
has anybody used a can of fix-a-flat on a scooters tire
i know theyre used specifically for cars but ive used it in a pinch on my bicycle tires before and it has worked
does anybody carry it in their scoot for emergencies
|
|
|
Post by "Big Guy" on Feb 20, 2008 23:24:23 GMT -5
No, absolutely not... or Slime either
Now I know that a lot of people would disagree with me here, so here is a direct quote from the manufacturer:
|
|
|
Post by "Big Guy" on Feb 20, 2008 23:28:36 GMT -5
Cycles are made to be used with good tires only. Get a $5 flat repair kit and a mini compressor if you need to have peace of mind on the road, or AAA M/C, but if you do fix your flat, make sure you just ride it home slowly, or to a tire shop for that matter.
A blowout on your cage is an inconvenience, but on a scoot... it could be a death sentence.
Cheap Chinese scoots are great fun, but 'fixed' tires are dangerous.
|
|
|
Post by earlwb on Feb 21, 2008 11:34:20 GMT -5
I carry a CO2 inflator and several 16g CO2 cartridges. it takes about three to fillup a larger tubeless tire. I use one of the messy tubeless tire plug kits you can get from many places. Then you ride home slow and easy as the plug could come out on you. A motorcycle or scooter tire is a lot more thin than a car or truck tire. So there is less material for the plug to stick in good. Obviously if you get a blowout at speed, the penalty can be severe. A number of motorcyclists have started using Ride-On Tire Sealant. www.ride-on.com/This may be a better solution for emergency purposes. It is a permanent solution as well. But I don't honestly know anyone who has used the stuff or as to how well it works. But the major problem with any of the tire sealants is that you have to clean all the goop out when you replace the tire. That can be a PITA in some cases.
|
|
|
Post by stewntexas on Feb 24, 2008 20:19:51 GMT -5
Sometimes you have to use what you have, or what you can get, just to get your scoot home where it will be safe.
If you had to use a can of fix-a-flat, GET IT OUT OF THE TIRE NOW.
Most brands are not compatable with the metal used in scooter tires.
Use the stuff to get home if you have to, pull the rim/tire combination, break it down, wash very well with soap/water/brush. Have a tire expert look at your tire. You should probably replace it, but I would leave that decision to an expert.
|
|
|
Post by Nopster_H on Feb 25, 2008 14:28:27 GMT -5
I used the motorcycle plug (cone shape with notch) on my Helix rear tire. It lasted 1500/2000 miles until the tire is bald and need to be replaced. I was riding normally with the plug (~ 50mph and occasional 65/70 mph). Yup, it was kinda risky but I did took it easy (street speed, no fwy) the first hundred miles on the plug.
Best is to plug it, get home/garage and patch it from the inside.
|
|
|
Post by memturbo on Feb 26, 2008 21:07:10 GMT -5
My Vino had a problem with the tire leaking around the rim
I put a tablespoon of Slime in it at it hasnt went down yet .
I even got a nail in it pulled it out ran it and it sealed it right up .
|
|
|
Post by "Big Guy" on Feb 26, 2008 22:26:04 GMT -5
Write to Slime and they will tell you not to use it on a motorcycle... Something about pooling and throwing off the balance of the tire.
|
|
|
Post by motomech on Feb 27, 2008 3:11:04 GMT -5
Fix-A-Flat can be used in an emergency, but not as a permenat repair. Small, slow scooters(under 40m.p.h.)can use a convential tire plug as a permenat fix, but larger scooters should use an umbrella patch(requires removal of tire). As inexpensive as these tires are, replacement is usually the best route. I have used liquid tire sealent(simular to Slime) in my BMW for several years with no ill effects. Motomech in Costa Rica
|
|
|
Post by earlwb on Feb 27, 2008 6:37:42 GMT -5
Well with a car or truck you have four wheels. So if you repair a tire with a hole in it and it fails on your down the road, the penalty is usually not too severe (unless you are in a Ford Explorer or Expedition of course). But getting a flat on a motorcycle or scooter at speed typically results in a severe penalty. So it boils down to whether you really want to take a chance on riding at speed on a repaired tire or not.
Motorcycle and scooter tires are very thin in comparison to car tires, there isn't a lot of material there to help hold the plug in place. Plus you usually have to "clean" and roughen and enlarge the hole a little to use a plug as well. Which damages the tire's cords or plies at that location. Patching from the inside. I don't know. Many tire places don't seem to want to patch tires anymore either. There is a lot of differences in the rubber compounds on tires and they aren't sure the patch will stick properly or not anymore.
So anything you use is a stop gap emergency measure to get you home or to someplace where you can get a new tire installed.
|
|
|
Post by "Big Guy" on Feb 27, 2008 15:28:03 GMT -5
|
|
|
Post by griff10 on Apr 7, 2008 1:01:47 GMT -5
Yes I've used it, don't carry it though, might not be a bad idea if you have alot of extra room.
I had a slow leak, blowouts are uncommon on tubeless tires, in the evening on 4th of July a couple years back when I was 150 miles from home on the Kawasaki. Nothing open for auto service so, found a convience store that had cans of fix-a-flat and tried it. Only would trust it to about 40 mph, but it got me home.
Yes it's designed for cars only, yes it can work on a bike too, not forever, but can get you home.
|
|
|
Post by rattlemeter on Apr 8, 2008 15:53:01 GMT -5
Hmmm, perhaps this link www.slime.com/product_74_Tire_Sealant.html offers an 8 oz. bottle of SLiME for motorcycle tires only as a joke? I have not put SLiME in my scooter, yet, but I don't think I'd have a problem doing so. Fix-A-Flat I would avoid. I have used SLiME in my riding mower, my Toyota pickup and my wife's Windstar to no ill effect (so far). It for-sure fixed leaks in the mower and truck. I put it in my wifes van based on those experiences.
|
|
|
Post by lancecharming on Apr 9, 2008 22:06:39 GMT -5
I used to carry a can of fix a flat in my trunk until I put new tires on my car and the tire guy showed me the inside of my expen$ive Porsche rim all pitted and chewed up from some idiot who used one of the tire sealant products. He told me how the stuff eats through your rim from the inside and virtually ruins it. Didn`t look nice. I tossed the stuff into the garbage where it belongs.
|
|
|
Post by griff10 on Apr 20, 2008 3:00:45 GMT -5
It's a temporary fix to get you home, not something that you'll leave inside the tire forever. Sure some idiot will consider it a permanent fix and it'll ruin a rim, there are idiots everywhere, even apparently ones that drive Porsches.
Yes it makes a mess inside the rim, but it's generally better than hitching a ride home and leaving the bike somewhere unattended.
Bill H.
|
|
|
Post by magnaman on Apr 22, 2008 19:36:14 GMT -5
Write to Slime and they will tell you not to use it on a motorcycle... Something about pooling and throwing off the balance of the tire. NEVER use Fix-A-Flat in a motorcycle or scooter! They do make Slime for motorcycles... Click for Slime Kit Shown
|
|
|
Post by griff10 on Apr 23, 2008 2:23:56 GMT -5
So you've used fix-a-flat on a bike and had a bad experience or your just repeating what someone told you?
Bill H.
|
|
|
Post by "Big Guy" on Apr 23, 2008 7:23:57 GMT -5
So you've used fix-a-flat on a bike and had a bad experience or your just repeating what someone told you? If you read the post at the top, you'll see the actual response from Fix-A-Flat themselves, so yes, I am repeating what someone told me, their tech support department! As for the slime product, I got a similar response from them as well. The MC product must be new, because they didn't have it about 2 years ago when I first wrote to them. I can't find the original email from them, but they originally stated that their product was NOT for use in MC tires because of pooling issues. I'm guessing this is a reformulated product made specifically for MC use. -Rich
|
|
|
Post by wandalouisa on Apr 23, 2008 7:25:14 GMT -5
I have just placed an order for two bottles of RIDE-ON! Seems like the best solution for my scoot. Although the price is fairly hefty, the peace of mind would be gratifying, if indeed, it performs as advertised. WL
|
|
|
Post by motomech on Apr 23, 2008 21:33:42 GMT -5
Fix-A-Flat, like all consumer product producers, have liability concerns. To recap, Fix-A-Flat(and like products)can be used for emergency repair, but never as a permanent fix. I have repaired/replaced many 100's of tires that had a tire sealant in them(this will not endear your mechanic )and have never seen any damage to alum. wheels. As an example as to what can happen when automotive tire sealants are left in as a repair, I will relate a little story. The P.O. of my BMW had let all the paper work expire and to avoid the traffic police, I decided to ride it home at night(they keep banker's hours here). When I had arrived at his house, the bike had a flat front tire. "It's just a slow leak that goes flat after a couple of weeks." I should have known better. Anyway, I aired it up at the "bomba"(gas station) and proceeded on my way as a light rain started to fall. About half way home, something didn't feel right. I immediately thought it was the rear tire(on motorcycles and scooters, a frt. flat often feels like the rear and visa-versa), but soon realized it was the front. Easing the speed down in the now moderate rain, I fixated on some stationary tail lights up ahead in my lane. It was then that I hit the 8 inch deep, 6 foot long pothole that put me down hard in a flash. Being very experienced at crashing, I balled up(please, no more dis-located shoulders) and rolled down an embankment where I ended up face down in a foot of water. Some locals stopped and were amazed that I survived, helped drag the bike back up the embankment and started to help me search for the missing hard bags. It was at this time, that another truck(the lights ahead of me was the first truck)hit the pothole and it's tire disintegrated, throwing pieces over our heads. We abandoned the search and I rode the rest of the way home on a flat. I didn't even realize that I was missing a shoe till I got home. The next morning, a close inspection of the tire revealed a hole about the size of a BB. I believe that the sealant had dried up and was flung out of the tire at speed. I return to the scene of the crime and found the bags, a hundred feet down the road and on the other side . I never did find my shoe. Needless to say, I was rather ,miffed at the P.O., but when I confronted him, I quickly realized that he didn't know any better. He felt so bad that he gave me back $500 off the purchase price. It didn't really cover the damage though.
|
|
|
Post by griff10 on Apr 24, 2008 0:38:33 GMT -5
<If you read the post at the top, you'll see the actual response from Fix-A-Flat themselves, so yes, I am repeating what someone told me, their tech support department!>
Ok, but I've personally used it successfully on a bike. Yes it's not a great idea and I'd not use it except in an emergency and then only with great care, but it will work, I know I've done it. And on a 650 lb. bike which stresses the tires much more than a 200 lb. scooter.
Bill H.
|
|
|
Post by 90GTVert on Apr 24, 2008 14:34:02 GMT -5
Another vote for use it to get home. I've never used it in the scooter tires, and I've blown plenty, but I would do it to get home and not worry about it too much. Ride one home on a 100% flat tire down a twisty road and then tell me how scary fix a flat is. I'm not saying what I have done is smart, but fix-a-flat is not a gauranteed death sentence either. All this talk of blowouts for scooters confuses me as well. I'va had a gash about 4" wide and lost pressure instantly, and had many tires lose pressure slowly, ans well as some that lost it pretty quick but not instant. Never had a tire blowout, explode, combust, or anything of the sort. Even the 4" gash at 55mph was nothing to be concerned about in my case. I am not saying it can't happen, but from my experience it is not common.
I'm no expert, but I would say the fact of the matter is this... blowouts got that name from truck tires with multi-ply construction that can sound like a gunshot going off from the amount of pressure they use... or at least thats what I call a tire blowout and I think a lot of people think of blowouts as something explosive and an instant wreck. Most cases in passenger cars and motorcycles are more like pressure loss than blowouts. If you can manage to fill a tire with air, it probably isnt gonna exit so fast that you lose control all of the sudden. What you need to do is monitor your tire pressure to assure your scoot is up to the task of riding. Check the pressure very often as you ride when you have used repair products, and adjust your speed accordingly. $0.02
|
|
|
Post by griff10 on Apr 27, 2008 2:36:03 GMT -5
Not all of Illinois and southern Wisconsin is flat, it's mostly rolling hills alot like Maryland. I rode my almost 700 lb. Kawasaki home with fix a flat in the rear tire in the twisties at night wearing sunglasses (really) wasn't a comfy ride, but it got me home. I'd feel safer (a little) on the scooter since the tires are much more lightly loaded.
Bill H.
|
|
|
Post by madwolf on Apr 27, 2008 11:04:06 GMT -5
First off, I have one of those little Slime air compressors and they are bad-@$$.
Secondly...... once you use slime ( or fix-a-flat )you ruin the tire permanently, so if you use slime motorcycle, that will get you home, and then you need to buy a new tire. A good buddy of mine owns a tire repair shop, and any of those tire repair stuffs, make it impossible for him to work with that tire again. A good clean nail hole can be plugged, and made perfectly safe again, if you don't use that stuff. Leaking around the rim? that can be fixed easily with rubber cement!
|
|
|
Post by motomech on Apr 27, 2008 16:55:50 GMT -5
What Tire sealants ruin nothing and it washes off with water. <<<...A good buddy of mine owns a tire repair shop, and any of those tire repair stuffs, make it impossible for him to work with that tire again.>> Well, how convenient. Then I guess his customers have to buy a new tire. <<<...A good clean nail hole can be plugged, and made perfectly safe again...>>> Tire plugs are not advisable for two-wheelers, an umbrella patch is the recommended repair.
|
|
|
Post by 90GTVert on Apr 29, 2008 10:18:03 GMT -5
oddly enough, when i took my tire to a bike shop some time ago and asked for a patch... they looked at me like i was crazy and said it should be plugged. i just replace the tire most of the time now, but have had plugs hold up very well in the past.
|
|
|
Post by griff10 on Apr 30, 2008 1:05:50 GMT -5
This is the downside of a tubeless tire, on a bike, if you get a hole in it, it's generally shot. Yes I've seen plugs work, on occasion for quite some time. I've also seen them blow out and that's not a great thing when you're at speed, specially in a corner. Your life, you make the choice, I'll spring for a new tire every time.
Once season a few years back I had to buy 4 rear tires for the Kaw, at $200 each, I have to tell you I seriously thought about plugging one, but having a blowout at speed specially in corners scares me, so didn't.
Bill H.
|
|
|
Post by jimk on Apr 30, 2008 17:08:13 GMT -5
though I have used fix-a-flat in a car, I don't recommend it for ANY tire.. If you do use it, PLEASE only use it to get you to a shop, and tell the guy/girl that you used it BEFORE they pull the tire from the rim. It is a VERY nasty surprise... The problem with fix-a-flat is the damage it can do the rim, not the tire.. If left in too long it will damage the rim, it is corrosive to many rims, steel and aluminum(depending on the rim).. My son works for Goodyear, he is an ON THE ROAD tech.. He comes and fixes flats for everything from Big rigs to rental cars.. He has seen the damage it does to rims.. It isn't pretty... As long as it's used only to get to the shop, it does in fact wash off with soapy water as Motomech stated... Slime is easier on the rim, though unlike the website claims, it can damage some aluminum rims.. which ones? Hard to tell, want to take the chance?), and easier to clean up... Fix-a-flat BAD.. Slime MAYBE OK... ;o) I don't have any experience with Ride-on.. I will ask Jerry(My son) and see if he has... It sounds much like slime though in the basic principle and idea, though the formula is a bit different, and they claim to not be harmful to aluminum rims, but then so does Slime.. so, hmmm... I dunno... BUt NONE of them will damage anything if only used in the proper method, TO GET YOU TO THE SHOP!..
JimK
|
|
|
Post by griff10 on May 1, 2008 2:31:24 GMT -5
Actually "ride on" is designed to be permanant. Good thing, it's not cheap.
Bill H.
|
|
|
Post by madwolf on May 2, 2008 1:04:36 GMT -5
"Well, how convenient. Then I guess his customers have to buy a new tire."
Well actually he can have a tire off the rim, fixed and back on the car in a little less than 15minutes, he charges 12$ to fix a tire, so he can do around 4 tires an hour so he makes 48$ a hour if all hes doing is fixing them and getting them out the door. He doesn't sell new tires, only good used ones, and since he doesn't want to wait on people browsing every single tire in his store as if there going to find the magical golden tire that Jesus himself blessed with the holy flying fish of Zarquon, it usually makes him more money to fix them and get them out of his one bay shop.
|
|