tubeless tire repair for a hand truck

[Sue Hirsch]

got frustrated today..i tried to air up my hand truck tires and "nothing" so I read an article on this site that said to put a band around the tire tight enough so there is no air seepage, I though what kind of band???? Hugh! no air seepage, then i got a brain storm, "a girl thing"...I put earthquake putty all around the inside of the rim on both sides...tada! it worked, when the pressure started pushing the putty out, I just pulled it out. Amazing what a little ingenuity can do. It is better that the guy from Texas, hitting the tire with a butt of an Axe.

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[aemeijers]

1. What the hell is earthquake putty?
2. It won't hold, and they will be flat again when you really need the hand truck. Take it to a tire store and pay the to have tubes put in. It is worth it just to stand in the service bay door and watch them fight with those itty bitty tires. Did it to mine maybe 8 years ago or so, and I only have to top the tires off about every other year or so now. Any tire store that says 'farm and industrial' on their sign or yellow pages ad, will be able to fix you right up.
3. I only paid around for the hand truck- not even sure where I bought it- either big lots or TSC- maybe15 years ago? So, counting the tubes I had put in, it has cost me a year, and has many useful years left. Best worth of tool I ever bought, has saved my ass and my back many times over. Nobody with a garage and a vehicle with a tailgate should be without one.

[gfretwell]

They mean you just wrap a rope, big bungee cord or web strap around the center of the tread and pull it tight. That spreads out the sidewalls and seals it until the air comes up.

[Jim Yanik]

jammin4sue_at_earthlink_dot [e-mail] (Sue Hirsch) wrote in news:5166f$4cabd93a$45499b77$ [e-mail]:

The "band" is to squish the tire around it's circumference to push the beads of the tire onto the rim to seal them to the rim. Then you can add air without it leaking around the rim. A piece of rope and a bar to twist like a tourniquet works fine.

what is earthquake putty?

[Jay Hanig]

Since I have compressed air available at home, I don't sweat the occasional flat of a wheelbarrow or handtruck tire. I use a ratcheting tiedown strap wrapped around the center of the tread. When I ratchet it down, the sidewalls expand out to the insides of the rim enough to accept and hold air. Then I just release the strap and I'm good to go.

These are the same tiedown straps I use to tie my motorcycle to my utility trailer. Harbor Freight sells them cheap.

Jay

[Harry K]

Same here. I have tubes in jusst about every piece of yard equipment I have. I don't fool with them. First flat it is off to the tire shop for tubes all around.

Harry K

[hallerb]

YEP ME TOO!!

Tubes are the only real solution. You may have to find a real tire store for a handtruck tube.

I had mine tubed maybe 6 years ago and have only added air twice:)

[gfretwell]

They are less than $10 at Northern Tool.

[Roy]

=3D=3D My hand truck came with Chinese made tubed tires. They have NEVER held air for more than a week. Where do you get quality tubes that don't cost more than the hand truck did? Thirty dollars for the hand truck and ???? $$$ for the tubes a rip-off for sure. =3D=3D

[Jerry - OHIO]

I had eight tubes of PL 400 constructions adhesive and pumped my tires full of that, no more flats. Did take a week to get hard. Old man used to take a funnel and remove the stems a pour sand in his David Bradly tires. Jerry

[HeyBub]

You can get a tube at HF for $2.99.

Of course the one you get won't look like the picture 'cause you have to put air in it.

[Bob Villa]

Have you tried changing the valve stems (or tightening them) ?

[George]

Why would it be a "rip-off"? There are hand trucks that are better made but would cost more.

[Jules Richardson]

How much extra do they charge you for the air?

[Jules Richardson]

Brought a couple of lawn tractor wheels that I had back from the dead, that did. They'd been sitting, flat, for around 20 years, and the tires had even pulled off the rims. Cleaned them out, seated them as best I could back on the rims, then ran a ratchet strap around them as tight as I could get it. They needed a lot of pounding on with a big hammer, but they've been holding air for the last 6 months or so now (I built a little 4x6' trailer around them for yard use)

[Jim Yanik]

Smitty Two wrote in news:prestwhich- [e-mail]:

I prefer to live on stable land. ;-)

But thanks for the answer. Do they sell it labeled as such?

[Eric in North TX]

I put lots of flat proof (the gallon jug, not the spray can) in all of my off road tires and seldom, if ever get a flat. As to seating the bead the tourniquet method is time tested and works well, though it keeps you busy as a long tailed cat in a room full of rocking chairs. The most fun way is to shoot the tire partially full of starting fluid and throw a match at it, then hit it with air before the walls can retract. That is the only way to seat mobile home type tires.

[LSMFT]

Any kind of band. A rope with a stick so you can twist it tighter and tighter will work. A big wire tie will work. One of those load straps with a ratcheting tightener will work. It's not rocket science. Even a small chain binder will work. I had tires and tubes on my snow blower that were always flat. I put new tubeless tires on it and they have been hard ever since.

[Larry W]

If your are careful and patient, you can install the tube without unmounting the tire.

[dpb]

...

...

Wasn't what she said...she used it as an air dam in order to be able to seat the bead w/o a high volume air source and/or compression band.

Actually, quite a clever gal, Sue... :)

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