Tuesday, 14 Aug 2001
Marc gets a flat
I backed the bike out of the garage to check the oil and give the bike a wash. The oil level was down a few ounces and I topped it off. I noticed the bike didn’t roll smoothly, though so checked the tire pressure, too.
What’s that in my tire?
Front tire was good. Rear tire was at 15 lbs. It didn’t take long to find the shiny bit of metal stuck in the rear wheel. The picture shows just that the shiny bit of metal was the tip of a long nail.
Tire patched
This is after using the BMW plug kit. I gooped up the insertion tool and roughed up the hole and then put a plug on the tool, gooped the plug up real good, and inserted it (without twisting). Took a bit of effort. The end of the plug was cut off with a knife.
The dilemma is this: do I replace the (like new with only 2300 miles on it) tire. I know what BMW says. I also know people who’ve run with these plugs for many miles. I’ve a small compressor, so filled the tire up with air instead of using the CO2 tubes. It holds air. I rode around the block – it still holds air. I took it on the freeway when I picked up the latest batch of SMBC business cards. It still holds air. Hmmmm……