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Greetings
Found a nail in back left tire (BFG KO2). Firestone store guy said it was at an angle and they couldn't keep a patch on it.. I told them to put on spare (was doing a rotation anyway).

I suspect I should take to another tire shop to see if they can do something for it first... if not, anyone have any thoughts/feelings on slime? or old skool plugs?

At this point, it'll sit on the spare carrier until needed... Tires only have 24K on them. I'd buy a new one but plan on going to 35's next time (33" now).

Wish that going to buy 5 new 35's was an option today.. but better hold off a bit...

THANKS

ronjenx

I would plug it, keep it as a spare, and do a 4 tire rotation from now on.

karls10jk

Slime makes a ridiculous mess and won't seal as well as a patch. They should be using the plug/ patch combo piece but even then, they're limited to a particular angle.

That being said.....you could probably find someone to do it for you and it would hold. The tire guys are just adhering to guidelines set up by the tire companies (RMA).

rob_engineer

I'd find another shop. Slime can cause balance issues.

nthinuf

Where on the tire? Center of trad? Edge of the tread, shoulder, sidewall?

JKZinger

Buy a plug kit and plug it yourself.

rob_engineer

This. It is so easy to do. By the way, even if it's in the sidewall it can still be patched (maybe not plugged). A tire place I use did that for me on a Mini Cooper. The owner said he's been repairing tires for over 30 yrs and he never had a tire fail where he patched a hole in the side wall.

paintm4u

Having done tire patching and plugging for my entire adult life I have to agree with karls10jk the repair shops mostly have to listen to the manufacturer's recommendations and the insurance company's liability policy. That being said I have patched tires that they said couldn't be done, but they were and they worked perfectly. Plugs were meant to be a temporary fix and not to be left in permanently I have used them alot and they worked fine but have had a few fail when left in for a long time so I would not use them very long. I have found that a patch will stay on in any position if installed correctly. The right size patch is necessary for a good seal. If it was me I'd I'd put a good heavy patch on and then rebalance. Good luck

mr72

If it's a nail then a plug is a natural solution. I agree, plug it and use it as a spare.

However, bear in mind that the way most plugs "fail" is by slow-leaking over time. I have plugged lots of tires and run them a long time on many different cars for the past 25 years and never had any failure except that the plugged tire may require more frequent attention to air pressure. For a spare this is very important to pay attention to since it's often out of sight out of mind. Since your TPMS doesn't bark at you about it and it's not on the ground where you can see it bulging or feel driving changes you might not bother checking it. So just be on top of checking the pressure of your plugged spare and I'd bet you'll be fine.

BTW I think most home mechanics don't patch their own tires because they don't have the equipment to mount/dismount the tire.

NevadaZielmeister

I agree with this 100%. Might I recommend the ARB tire repair kit? It worked great on my 37 inch tire and I was still able to finish my hunting and get home, another 300 miles. Now, it is still plugged and sitting as a spare.