Tyre sealants

[Blackbird]

The writings below are from the UK Honda Super Blackbird website in response to a query about tyre sealants. The respondent is the owner of a large motorcycle shop and a Blackbird owner himself.

Use strictly in emergencies only and it looks like one would have to be very cautious about the stuff that stays in your tyre all the time.

Yes, lots of people.. and almost everyone has had very VERY bad experiences with the stuff.

Put it in a low performance bike by all means, but do not put it in bird wheels for gawd sake..

The bird can out accelerate it and make the whole bike leap about ..
It has also caused high speed weaving.

Oh and do not stand around when you have your tyres changed next.. You will proly end up wearing a tyre iron as an ear ring ( and most places now make a surcharge of up to £30 if you have the stuff in cos of the mess it makes )

Also, you should be aware that Bridgestone and Avon have stood up and stated catagorically that they will not accept any issues re delaminating it a tyre is found to have had that stuff in it.. Now they would not have said that unless they had a reason !

One last thing.. You know it says the stuff has been tested at 150mph ?

Well see if you can spot where it says it PASSED the tests ...

[Sniper]

Haha, thanks for that BB. Will make mental note, not to use it

[Oakie]

I used to use the stuff years ago and it got me home on a few occasions with no ill effects. They were hardly powerful bikes though (I think I used it most on an XL175 and maybe once on the Z400). That was back in the days of inner tubes though.
I still carry a can under my seat and if faced with the choice of using it out in the wop-wops then riding home sedately and perhaps paying the bike shop a few extra dollars to fix it ... or pushing the bike home, it's not a hard choice.
As far as safety is concerned I treat it the same as anything you add to your bike. You start out slower and gradually push it so you don't get caught out by any differences the change has made to your bike.

[Blackbird]

Yep, there's still a place for them used with caution. I stilll carry a tyre pando, but also have one of those kits with rubber plugs and CO2 cylinders. I'd use the kit first.

[Biff]

Yup, I've got a Co2 driven kit too.

In all honesty though if I’m stuck in the middle of nowhere I wouldn't think twice about using the kit. But I would then ensure that I rode as an even slower pace than I normally do and get the tyre repaired/replaced properly at the first place I could.

But as a permanent repair- no, no, no.

[WINJA]

I USE THE BROWN STICKY INSERTED REPAIR AND HAVE PERSONALLY TESTED IT TO WELL OVER 200KMH

[Pixie]

Yup, I've got a Co2 driven kit too.

In all honesty though if I’m stuck in the middle of nowhere I wouldn't think twice about using the kit. But I would then ensure that I rode as an even slower pace than I normally do and get the tyre repaired/replaced properly at the first place I could.

But as a permanent repair- no, no, no.

I've used dog turds (plugs) and backed them up with Slime as soon as I got home and that's ok for the rest of the tyre's life.
PS the tyre guys really don't like the slime.

[Kickaha]

I've used dog turds (plugs) and backed them up with Slime as soon as I got home and that's ok for the rest of the tyre's life.
PS the tyre guys really don't like the slime.

Bad idea,the tyre needs to be stripped and the interior of the tyre examined to make sure it hasn't sustained any damage while it was deflating or from the object that went thought it

the "dog turd" repairs aren't legal as they don't meet the NZ standard for tyre repair and should only be used as a "get you home" measure and then it should be stripped and repaired properly

We don't like crap like slime and pando's cause they're so bloody messy when you do strip the tyres

[Jantar]

I carry a pando on the RE5 (tubed tyre) and a CO2 kit on the GS1200SS.

I have used a pando a number of times in the past, but only ever on tubed tyres. They have worked in about 50% of cases. Fortunately any time its been raining, or at night, they have worked fine.

I have yet to need the CO2 kit, and hopefully i'll never need it.

[pritch]

Just lately I have heard that the Pando type stuff can cause the materials in the tyre to break down over time. At the rate modern sports tyres wear, the stuff wouldn't be there all that long anyway.

I put sealant in mine a coupla months ago when my tyres were starting to get down a bit but it was too soon to replace them. Have had a couple of trips away now and have replaced the tyres with new BT 020s.

The mechanic told me that the particular sealant didn't stay as a goo it came out like a big rubber band. It wasn't "Slime" but I don't know what it was.