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North Central Iowa, Humboldt County | I spent way to much on flat tires this fall and wondered if any of you have went to fixing your own semi tires? The shop I used had one of those "golden buddies" tire tools and looked like it was something I could operate and not cost a fortune to buy. Are they as easy to operate as the service guy made it look? Do you replace the valve stem each time like the tire shop does?
Where do you purchase patches and valve stems? I've looked at Amazon and they seemed to have a descent amount to pick from but wondered if you have found anything else ? Do you purchase your own tires on line or buy them in town from your tire shop?
Any info will be appreciated.
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Dearfield Co. | we buy ours from a tire supply place it starts with a M but thats all I remember lol----------------------local parts places like napa and the like will sell you old hard stale stuff in my area so we stick where we know the stuff is a little fresher .Our local tires shops arent even remotely competitive and we got set up with michelins program which allows us a higher grade tire for the same money as we paid local for second line.The only deal is we still buy from the dealers locally they are just paid from michelin direct |
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Northern Illinois | Tech patches, plugs and glue. Gaither super slickum lube and tools. Cheetah bead blaster to inflate unless you like the excitement of either. A drill and a reamer bit to drill and clean injury out and a die grinder with buffer to clean for patching. We have a fancy tire spread machine but everyone seams to just wedge a 2x4 between the beads. We fix a lot of tires but I don't know if we save any money it's more a convenience. Also a piece od carpet for aluminum wheels. |
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SE Nebraska | You can get tire supplies from NAPA. Truck tires are easier to change than car tires. All you need are a couple of spoon irons and a long bar to pop the tire off the rim. Also get a Cheetah bead blaster. Don't use either! If it is split rim use a cage! |
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ECMN | I just use a couple of tire spoons. Make sure you use plenty of lube it makes the job
a lot easier. I get my supplies from one of the big truck parts places like FleetPride.
Make sure you get a Cheetah Bead blaster they pay for themselves in short
order. |
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NW Minnesota | For puncture repairs I have a tool from NAPA that inserts a mushroom shaped plug with vulcanizing fluid. Ran belly dump in Arizona for awhile and could fix a tire on the jobsite. Saved a lot of money.http://www.ebay.com/itm/Tire-Plugger-Tubeless-Tire-Wheel-Repair-Gun-Kit-With-Plugs-Rubber-Plugging-1075-/271266732823?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item3f28c1db17 Just like this one. |
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NW Minnesota | I sure messed that up, try again. http://www.ebay.com/itm/Tire-Plugger-Tubeless-Tire-Wheel-Repair-Gun... |
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Dearfield Co. | the patents have ran out on the cheetah and others are available cheaper now.
I must admit since we went national account and only buy michelin unless we have to buy a occasional BFG when we cant get a michelin the bead blaster sits in the corner gathering dust.Those tires will seat them selves even if they are laid flat 10 high.
Edited by a4t-1600 12/15/2013 10:51
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| Our blue cobra we don't want to live without. Makes dismounting a breeze. Most of our supples come from Gemplers. We also swear by own home built Cheetah, the duckbill hammer and slide hammer for bead breaking. One of the latest tools we love is a brass bead holder. Saves having a second spoon when re mounting a tire, it holds the one side in place. Plus for those nasty tires to break the bead we have the worlds greatest bead breaker: a backhoe. Never had a bead it couldn't break. |
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Colorado | Video of plug gun
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cmdG86ZQ-Co
http://www.napaonline.com/Catalog/CatalogItemDetail.aspx/Tire-Repai...
http://www.ebay.com/itm/230951612363?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trks...
Edited by Radiehl 12/15/2013 12:00
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west tn | get you a gt tool an roll on myers tire you can order on line everything you need for tires
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Dearfield Co. | thanks for the myers tire I was tossing invoices trying to find it ----------- |
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Phillips Co NW Kansas | The blue cobra is the best. I've tried the ones the op mentioned & thought they sucked. |
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Wi | There is all kinds of miracle tire changing tools out there, I worked in tires for a few years and can't see the point of many of them really. With regular truck tire irons and spoons you learn the essentials of how to remove any tire, the magical truck tire changers dont work on every tire and you may be left struggling when you try something else. Believe me, truck tires are arguably the easiest tires you will ever change. Believe it or not stupid little wheel barrow tires and other small ones will kick your ass more than a lot of the bigger ones.
I just have Ken tool spoons, duck bill hammer, cheetah, and the rest of the stuff I buy through Hanson or at the dealership I used to work at. I use Tech products as I am familiar with them. one thing that is very important is that regardless of the brand you choose, you must stay with that brand. Their products are designed to work together. You don't want to be mixing brands.
If you are going to be doing your own repairs, do them properly. You will need some carbide drills, buffer, stiching tools, scrapers, reamers, and then the various size two piece plug patches and just patches themselves. Keep some baby powder around for the tubes. Also keep various valve stems around also. You will want a wire wheel to clean the wheels as well.
When you remove the tire to make the repair, which you will always do on anything other than a mower or ATV, (do not plug auto/truck/semi tires from the outside unless its an emergency, but the fix properly immediatley) mark the location of the valvestem, this will allow you to keep the balance proper without having to rebalance it. Before mounting tire clean the rim entirely. A lot of places get lazy on this step.
Personally I install a new stem every time I put a new tire on. Not for repairs though, if you are worried though you can pop one in. I keep some o rings around for the aluminum wheel stems and will change them when I do a repair.
Another tip, Stoner Skid for dismount. Makes them pop off like butter. I use Hanson lube for install though.
Make sure you get an awl to locate the hole in the tire. I am not trying to "dumb things down" but there is enough little things tire guys do that many people don't realize or do not understand what the purpose is. You use the awl to locate the hole. Just because the nail is in one spopt doesn't mean it went in straight, it may have went in at a 45* angle, if you just start drilling with the bit you will accidentally make a new hole and thats not good. You use the drill to enlarge the hole to the proper size and to clean it out some. Its nice to have a tire spreader with a light inside but you can get by without. On the inside you need to buff away the inner liner in the area that the patch will go. Don't go too deep or you can hit cords. Then use some cleaning spray and a scraper to remove the excess. Then apply the vulcanizing cement, LET IT DRY. Remove the protective wrap from your plug patch and do not touch the grey area. Apply a little cement to it for lube, then stick it though and grab it with a pliers and pull. Then stitch the patch. Remove the plastic backing and apply the security coat/liquid inner liner over the entire area you buffed off. Cut off the plug 1/8" above the tread, if you cut it off too short it can pull back in some and let moisture into the cords and cause issues. The tire can then be mounted immediatley, vacuum any residue out of it first, clean up the beads if needed, then mount.
You will need a cage for split rims, its a good idea to have a long hose with a clip on chuck and gauge anyways so you are not directley in the "danger zone:. If you get a cage its a good practice to inflate every tire in it due to the potential for zipper ruptures. Always inspect the sidewall and note if the tire has been run under inflated. When inflating the tire, if you hear snap crackle pop, get out of the way. Zipper ruptures don't happen often but they have done soe serious damage to a lot of tire professionals.
A lot of people want to do their own tire repairs to save money, in the long run you really have to do it to save time because you will invest a lot in it and not save money for a long time. What you do save is time and hassle. Instead of having to run to town, you can just do it in your shop. Now some people are slower at dong it than if they just went to town, but the nicest thing is that you can repair after hours and onm your schedule. |
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Wi | a4t-1600 - 12/15/2013 08:54 we buy ours from a tire supply place it starts with a M but thats all I remember lol----------------------local parts places like napa and the like will sell you old hard stale stuff in my area so we stick where we know the stuff is a little fresher .Our local tires shops arent even remotely competitive and we got set up with michelins program which allows us a higher grade tire for the same money as we paid local for second line.The only deal is we still buy from the dealers locally they are just paid from michelin direct
x2 on the Advantage program, great deal especially considering its free, you just have to sign up. It can be a hassle with some dealers that don't know whats going on but most of the ones authorized to sell to fleet customers are larger and know whats going on. The two I deal with have many stores across the midwest.
Truck tires will always be cheapest though it, but ag tires and off road tires you gotta watch as the prices tend to be higher than I can get them through our Michelin ag tire dealer.
I used to work for a B/Fstone dealer and still have them do large tractor tire work for me and such but kinda feel bad I don't give them any business anymore. They loose a lot of sales to Michelin too as they are a Fendt dealer and none of the Fendt owners want big Firestones because they ride rough and don't wear well. I see bridgestone is finally going to give Michelin some competition though which is good. If they setup a nice program like Michelin too they may get some more of my business but I like the Michelin product better to begin with so it would take some better tires and good service to switch me back. |
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| We had a lot of tires going flat on the truck we used to get sawdust with. Their whole lot must have been filled with nails and screws or something because I was constantly taking tires off to repair them or replacing blow-outs. I got a pump and a bucket of this product called Ride-On that you pump into the tire and it fills in nail holes and anything up to like 1/4". It is kinda pricey the first time because you have to buy the pump too but well worth it in my opinion. Now I'm able to replace tires because they wear out rather than blow-out. |
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| Why do you say not to use a plug for permanent repairs? I have heard this on and off all my life. However I have plugged atvs, mowers, half and three quarter ton trucks, and lots of trailers. Hardly ever do I ever repair a plug(virtually never) and I have never had a failure associated to a plug.
Curious on the logic?
Good info in the post! Thanks!! |
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Wi | FSAguy - 12/15/2013 17:25 Why do you say not to use a plug for permanent repairs? I have heard this on and off all my life. However I have plugged atvs, mowers, half and three quarter ton trucks, and lots of trailers. Hardly ever do I ever repair a plug(virtually never) and I have never had a failure associated to a plug. Curious on the logic? Good info in the post! Thanks!!
From both where I worked and TIA training. A two piece plug/patch is needed to prevent anything from getting access the inner structure of the tire, like the cords and such. Air can do some funky things and moisture can be even worse.
ATV tires and such are fine, its what they are designed for. Passenger tires don't always have issues, the logic comes from being a professional shop and doing the job right versus the potential for failure.
When you get into commercial tires though its a different story. |
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Boone, Iowa | Myers Tire and www.yournexttire.com is where I buy most of my tire repair tools. |
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semi tire changing tool?
