A nail has gone through my back tyre, not a major leak but its slowly depressurising the tyre. Well I asked 2 bike savy mates the best cure and one said a inner tube while the other disagreed and said a mushroom plug was cheaper and better.
I'm just wondering what the general consensus is here? The tyres only 9 months old and has lots of tread left.

 

Most people will probably say scrap the tire. Tire installers won't normally fix them. I got a nail inbrand new tire and couldn't just toss it, so I put a "plug" in it and it has been just fine. No air loss at all and no detectable difference in the tire. It will be interesting to see the comments on this one.

 

I also had a puncture in my tire and plugged it with a good tight plug. It worked fine until I replaced it. It really all depends on the location of the puncture, and the size of the hole (thas what she said...heheh) and if you are comfortable riding on it then I would at least try it. I never liked the tube method personally and it changes the weight of the tire too much. I once had a tire that had four plugs in it and rode it til the end of the season! Mushroom plugs are good but I find the "rope" type plugs a bit better holding especially if you use plastic/rubber glue with it. Good luck!

 

At one time I had mention to my brother that I had a plug in my tire, he then told me that he also had a plugged tire.
I like the idea of tubeless tires as they go flat slowly. I had a tube type rear tire go on a bike in a turn just before a steal deck bridge. I thought the grating and wind had me all over the place until I had cross the bridge and the bike would not go straight.

i don't think there is anything wrong with a plug as long as you keep you speed down.

 

On a similar line, do any of you carry a puncture repair 'kit' in case of emergencies?
Are there any good ones around that are small enough to hide in the bike?

 

I've found several of the local auto parts stores have some pretty small, yet comprehensive kits- mostly the rope type.

 

gotta say i had a puncture 3 week ago.. my tyre was quite worn so easy decision for me... new tyre...i'm pretty sure it would be a new tyre everytime for me...like to ride hard and would always be in my mind...thats justme...sure plugs are fine..

 

The plug/patch (mushroom type) are available Z-Rated and when properly installed have worked great for me, though I will not put one in a tire if the puncture is greaterthan 1/2" off center.

 

Where is the puncture?

If it is in a 2 inch strip in the middle of the tyre and is a hole and not a tear then it can be repaired easy. If its outside of that you will have to get a new tyre.

There are two types of repairs. Internal plug and external plug.

An internal plug is one where a bike shop removes the tyre and puts a mushroom shaped plug in the hole.
An external plug is one you can do yourself with a kit from a autoparts store etc.

When I have used external plugs that have always ended up leaking slowly. Only a few PSI a week, so only enough to annoy. I have had a nail go through the tyre at 180kph and I was still able to control the bike. It just felt like there was a fat passenger on board.

As for the speed of the external plugs, well I had one last for 4000km which included many high speed (200kph+) country runs and even a track day.

But if its in the front get it replaced.

 

+1 for Trips on the front replacement. Front tire I'd replace right away...the back I "might" limp on for a while but would be very nervous. Been riding over 30 years and believe you need to keep your tires in the best shape to survive.