On Wed, 17 Jan 2007 18:04:58 GMT, "Bewildered"
wrote:

I was reading a Popular Mechanics in a waiting room, and they had an article
on how to fix a flat.

They said that tire repairs involved putting a patch on the inside of the
tire. That is how mine were fixed in the past, but the last few have had
plugs put in. The plugs seemed to work fine. What is the proper method.

They also recommended a can of air and material to plug the hole for
temporary repairs, and then getting a real patch. I was told that those
cans ruin the inside surface so a patch can't be used. What is the story
there?


Taking the tire off and patching without gunking up the inside
of the tire is the best, strongest patch, but it means taking
the tire off the rim, which is a pain in the ass, and may
damage the tire more.

Plugs work, and are easier, to do, but more likely to
fail, and if they do fail, it means a bigger hole to
try to patch next time.

Latex squirted into the tire to try to seal the hole
is good for a temporary fix if you're just trying to get
home, or are planning on replacing the tire soon anyway,
but if you want to patch afterward, you have to clean all
that crap off the area around the hole. Its also
possible that the liquid goop will screw up the valve-stem.
I've driven a fair number of beaters into the ground,
and I've never had a tire "fixed" with spray-goop stay
fixed for more than a couple weeks. OTOH, I have a 12V
air-compresser in my truck, so adding a few psi of air
twice a week isn't really that big a problem.

--Goedjn