Where do you buy your passenger car tire patch plugs?

[rbowman]

You asked a simple question about where to find small quantities of tire plugs and have been arguing ever since. Just an observation, no reply necessary or wanted.

[bob]

But my local Ford dealer repairs tires for a reasonable fee.  Why would anyone want to wrestle around with a car tire using amateur equipment when the dealership has the proper professional equipment?

[trader_4]

Say what now? You replied to my post and your silly remarks seem to be aimed at me. I suggest you go back and look at who started the thread and posted the question about where to source patchs/plugs. It was not me. It's been abundantly clear that I'm not the one dismounting tires and patching them for friends and family. Try reading a bit next time you drive by. BTW, good choice for a screen name!

[trader_4]

Did you find those patch/plugs yet? I'd suggest the simple fact that you haven't found anyone here in AHR that mounts and dismounts tires at home suggests there are very few doing it. And that it's not just like having a leaf blower, mower, chainsaw or any of the other analogies you tried to draw. If you asked a question about any of those, you'd have many people weighing in with answers who have and use those things. Nuff said.

[Ed Pawlowski]

Rather judgemental of you. If I kept those tools outdoors they would be under a couple feet of snow when needed. When snow is predicted I bring a shovel into the house so I can dig out to the garage.

[Unquestionably Confused]

Read it again, in context. It was directed at the OP.

The segment "had to stoop to asking via this group a question that the answer(s) to he a) either already had solved to his satisfaction or b) didn't want to listen to. I mean, he's a self-professed expert in this endeavor and yet he slipped in that he didn't know the best plugs available and wanted us to opine on that as well." should have been a clue, but maybe not.

In any event, relax, it wasn't directed at you.

[trader_4]

Just what I need more items that are the size of another floor jack, a drill press, and a shop vac, that I use once every three years. And that has to be bolted down to the floor. And with all that, it only statically balances the tires, while I can get them dynamically balanced at the shop when they install them. Oh, and then they will rotate and balance them for free for the life of the tires.

I don't think anyone said they were more bulky than certain other tools, just that they are bulky and they need to be BOLTED down to the floor.

It would take me a decade to break even. And that includes the shop doing dynamic balancing. Have all that stuff, taking up space, do all the work, to break even in ten years? No, don't think so. And there are other issues. For example, the shop disposes of the tires for me. If the shop doesn't mount the tire, do they still warranty them? What happens if you buy a tire online and you have a problem? I get free rotation and balancing for the life of the tires.

Well, that's demonstrably false. I have a pair of pliers. They cost less, store easier and are orders of magnitude less bulky. IDK of a single tool set that costs so much, is so limited, that takes up so much space, that needs to be bolted to the floor, that does so little.

[Blake Snyder]

Of course I *found* them, as they're on the Internet. But, in the end, I simply *guessed* as to which ones were good.

I was hoping there would be some related experience here, and not just a bunch of whining by people who didn't like doing the job.

Thence, other than all that useless whining, I found out only *after* I had asked that nobody here has done the job except Clare.

There are two elephants in the room, when it comes to facts.

1. Nobody here except me is doing it at home (as far as those who posted).
2. Someone must be purchasing the tools that are sold to do the job.

Remember, you won't be able to find anyone on the net who says the tools don't work (because they do work), so the elephant in the room is that the tools work just fine (there are people on the net changing tires in pajamas for heaven's sake).

So I think this group just doesn't do basic stuff on their cars, which I guess makes sense since it's a "home" repair group and not a car repair group (since things like oil changes, brakes, tires, etc., are as basic as basic ever gets).

And that it's

I agree with you. This is a "home" repair group. They have no experience with even the most basic of basic car repairs, it seems.

It's my fault for asking for advice. Not theirs for whining that they don't like the job.

Had I not asked, they wouldn't have whined that they don't like the job.

[Blake Snyder]

The last time we saw even a *dusting* of snow was about five or six years ago. The kids were screaming. It lasted, oh, maybe 10 minutes, at most.

But the kids loved it!

[Blake Snyder]

My fault for asking.

The word "stoop" is apropos since I stooped down to the level of this "home" repair group to ask an extremely basic question about 'car' repair.

Since tires are the most basic of basic tasks on cars, it was wrong of me to stoop to the level of asking here a basic car repair question.

Lesson learned. Thanks!

[Blake Snyder]

You seem to be the only one here who has actually *done* the job, so your thoughts echo mine, with the exception that you keep talking about those spoons which are no longer needed if you use the right tools.

The only time I need a spoon (and note that it's singular) is when I have a tire were the last bead won't get over the rim, usually due to a shallow drop center (which I'm sure is a term you're very well acquainted with).

In reality, with most drop centers, you don't even need the spoon (singular), but it's helpful to use the spoon to add a bit of friction since everything is slippery with dish soap on that very last bead.

Of the 7 bead operations, only one takes any knowledge of the geometry:

1. Break the first bead (easily done with a mechanical bead breaker)
2. Break the second bead (child's play usually - feet can do it usually)
3. Remove the top bead from the rim (child's play usually)
4. Remove the lower bead from the rim (child's play usually)
5. Pop the lower bead back on the rim (do by hand - no tools needed)
6. Pop the upper bead back on the rim (requires drop center knowledge)
7. Seat the beads (child's play usually, but sometimes finicky)

Mine is typical, I'm sure. Table saw, chop saw, drill press, bench grinder, compressor, 16-inch vise and anvil, 6-inch vise and anvil, a billion different hand saws and routers and drills, etc. and outside are the steel tools such as all the garden tools (rakes, shovels, tree saws, etc.).

The automotive tools are the ones everyone has, which are chocks, ramps, stands, bottle jacks, transmission jack, floor jack, motorcycle stand, etc., where the main tire-changing tools are

1. Bead breaker
2. Tire mounter/dismounter
3. Static balancer

None of these tools are any more or less bulky than the rest of them. None are more or less costly than the rest of them. And none are used more or less than the rest of them (with wide margins).

Yup. I think we all must have tens of thousand invested in equipment, e.g., just the router bits equal hundreds of dollars alone, let alone the drill bits, and the impact tool attachments, etc.

The one thing I don't have is that snow blower! We get a dusting of snow maybe twice in a decade.

Yup. Wet/dry. I have so many vacuum pool pumps that it's not funny.

My car ramps are outside, as are most of my tire-changing tools. It only rains here in the winter, so 80% to 90% of the time it's dry. All my garden tools are stored outside (picks, rakes, shovels, etc.).

In the end, I ordered a set of the plugs but I had to just guess. I hate guessing.

But sometimes, you just can't find anyone with experience in even a simple and basic repair job such as repairing tires the correct way.

Thanks!

[trader_4]

From years of experience here I can tell you that's not true. Many of us do a variety of auto repairs. I just had the whole dash out in the BMW for example, to replace a blower motor. That's a major repair. But compared to taking it to the stealership and paying $1000, it cost me $50. Now there's a value proposition that makes sense to me. And every tool I used on the job has many other frequent uses too.

[Blake Snyder]

The fact you keep *forgetting* that it doesn't have to be bolted down ot the floor is what is odd.

Why can't you understand that? Do you not comprehend the simplest of things?

It's fine that you can't comprehend simple things, but then you can't argue things either, because *all* your arguments are wrong.

Think about what I'm telling you.

For a whole lot of reasons, *every* one of your arguments are wrong. When that happens with my wife, I figure out that there's *something* else bothering her ... which seems to be the case with you.

Since the tools do NOT have to be bolted down, and even when they are bolted down (which does make them easier to use), they only need to be bolted down for the hour it takes to do the four tires, and then you can

*unbolt* it (just like you pack up your tools when you're done with them).

The fact you can't fathom someone *packs up* their tools is the funny thing.

Did you ever use a ladder, for example, in your entire life? Never?

Well, let me tell you something ... you can "pack it up" when you're done with it. It doesn't have to be in the A shape or in the extended shape all the time.

Anyone who thinks all their tools have to be in the operating condition at all times .... seems to be just making up hurdles that don't exist.

Why don't you just tell *yourself* the truth? You don't like the job.

You don't have to like it. But stop making up imaginary hurdles that just don't exist.

The fact that you don't know how to unpack and pack up tools is obvious, but why do you use your ignorance of setup as a prime argument for not wanting to do the job.

It's *OK* that you don't like the job. You can stop lying to yourself. (We already know you don't like it.)

It's funny that you can't tell yourself the truth. Your argument is that a tool has "setup" costs of a few minutes and that's a major reason you don't like the tool.

Guess what? A ladder has a setup cost too. So does the bicycle I have hanging upside down in my garage. As does the router and router table.

What planet do you live on that you *expect* people to believe you when all you're really doing is lying to yourself that you don't enjoy tool setup efforts.

You live on some planet where the dollar that it costs to dispose of a tire properly is a hurdle?

You live on some planet where the manufacturer whom you bought the tire from doesn't warrant them? (Hell, they're all *registered* with the government for heaven's sake, for safety reasons.)

Whenever my wife throws up the type of *imaginary* hurdles you constantly throw up, it just means something *else* is bugging her.

Same with you.

What is it that is bugging you such that you imagine hurdles which don't exist?

I think you just don't *like* the job.

[Blake Snyder]

Thanks.

[Blake Snyder]

You're the only one who posted, it seems, who knows what he's talking about because you have *done* the job (albeit using professional tools and not the homeowner tools - which are markedly different in every way).

The "time is money" argument can be said about *anything* you do around the house, from cleaning the toilet bowl to pruning the trees to mowing the lawn to fixing the hotwater heater.

Every time the time-is-money argument shows up, it's *always* really just another way of saying "I don't like the job".

That's fine. But you need to be true to yourself, since the time-is-money argument works for repairing the kids' sneakers and for replacing a broken window pane and for cleaning the gutters, etc.

The time-is-money argument works for *every* home repair, so it has

*nothing* to do with this, the most basic of all car repairs, which is changing and repairing tires (which is about as basic as doing an oil change or replacing your brakes).

As for "who is responsible", that's another "odd" argument. If you wound your own garage door springs, who would be responsible? If you vacuumed your own pool, who would be responsible? If you chainsawed a tree branch, who would be responsible? If you replaced your brakes, who would be responsible? If you fixed a leak in the kitchen sink who would be responsible?

My point is that both the "time is money" and "who is responsible" arguments are non-specific ways of saying "you don't like the job".

And that's ok. Just don't lie to yourself. Be true to yourself.

It's OK that you don't like the job, but it's not ok to throw up imaginary hurdles which can be applied equally well to *any* job you ever did at home or on the car.

We get it. You don't like the job. That's OK.

[cat]

we should all have one of these too

[Blake Snyder]

My bimmer blower motor is a lot of work to access.

I don't wish that job on anyone just like I don't wish a BMW CCV replacement on anyone, or even replacing that damn air injection valve near the driver's side bulkhead of the I6 or some of those heater hoses in the V8.

I agree. My bimmer is approaching 20 years old and has *never* been to a mechanic after the original factory warranty expired.

That means DISA repairs, VANOS repairs, multiple Behr-to-Nissans cooling systems, serpentine belt and tensioners, seat twist, God knows how many FSUs, trunk loom repairs, vapor barrier repairs, jack pad replacements, power steering leaks, transmission flushes, Axxis brakes and Brembo rotors, trifecta ABS, pink-tape pixels, Dorman to URO regulators, fuel pump, etc., and that's just off the top of my head.

Oh, yeah, and I had the rear camber set to as close to 0 degrees as possible (from the default of negative 2 degrees) and that alone saved me thousands of miles in tire wear where I replace the tires about every two years, and yes, they're BBS alloy rims, which the tire-changing tools do nothing to other than leave a bit of red or blue paint (depending on the brand of the tire-changing tools).

As I said, my ancient bimmer has never been to any mechanic after the factory warranty expired, so you can rest assured that I've bought a few tools specific to the bimmer.

For example the set of wrenches for the cooling system is something that gets used *only* on the bimmer, as is that old IBM laptop with the serial port for the INPA, EDIABAS, NCSExpert, NCS Dummies, DIS/GT1, EasyDIS, & Progman tools.

What I do is figure out what tools are needed to do the job, and I buy those tools if they make sense to me.

Everyone has a different calculation, but for the two times I've changed the clutch, the transmission jack, for example, was a God send for the angles it allowed me to get when buttoning it all up.

Same with the Motive oil extractor. And the screw-cap brake system pressure flusher (I wish all cars had that kind of a beautiful screw cap on the master cylinder!).

Rest assured both the beemer and the bimmer eat up tires like you can't believe, and, yet, I find time to easily replace them all, myself.

[Blake Snyder]

I can never justify the cost to the wife over a $150 floor jack and $100 of jack stands, but my oh my, wouldn't it be nice to have one of those bolted to my garage floor!

[Vic Smith]

I've rebuilt a 352 and a VW engine from the crank up. But I took the 352 crankcase to a shop for tank cleaning, and miking the bores. Same with the crank. I've pulled plenty of heads and replaced plenty of intake gaskets. Except for the VW, I let a shop do the heads. VW I ground the valves with a drill. Done ball joints, struts, heater cores, gas tanks, mufflers and pipes, etc, etc. But I found out long ago that it doesn't pay to do exhausts, tires and transmissions. And if I had a failed engine nowadays and wanted to keep the car for some reason, I'd put in a new crate engine. Tires are a no-brainer for me. They are shop repaired. I haven't had one repaired in at least 5 years. YMMV.

[Unquestionably Confused]

The question of quality was not in the original post. It apparently entered somewhere along the line when you felt the need to increase the longevity of the thread and your bullshit about whether or not we were idiots or losers because we wouldn't invest in the equipment to change our own tires every time we had a flat.

You asked:

"Looks like I have to get my patch plugs online, but I don't need a box of five hundred. Five would do me well for the next couple of years or so.

Where do you buy small quantities of patch plugs to repair passenger car tires?"

See anything there related to quality? You rejected suggestions - mine and others - to buy a limited quantity from a local repair shop.

[snip]

That's likely an erroneous assumption on your part. I, and I'm sure many others, like doing minor (and maybe even major) repairs on cars and other projects around the home.

It just isn't a smart use of one's time or money to purchase the equipment to do a job like tire repair when one can get the job done professionally for free or under, say, $20. I currently own three cars and during the past 20 years or so have owned as many as five at one point. I have experienced a grand total of 3 flats or leaks that needed repair. One was on a run flat tire that I repaired using the "rope patch" and drove for another 15,000 miles before replacing all the tires. The other two were handled, at no cost, by the tire dealer. The only one I ever paid to have fixed at a local garage cost me $10 about

25 years ago.

At last we can agree on something.