A very unfourtunate discovery

[Wraith81]

Hey all. I finally figured out the best way for my lightweight self to get my Kat up on her Center stand without a hassle. Unfourtunatly, i found something on a tire inspection that didn't make me very happy at all. Now i do try and do a quick inspection before every ride, but it's not like i roll the bike around the garage checking the entire thing. I found my first nail yesterday.

Generally, i take nails in tires as part of owning a car, but i just started riding less than 3 weeks ago! LOL I've put maybe 50 miles or so on this bike, it's my first bike, and the tires had less than 100 miles on them when i got it. Needless to say I'm kinda bummed, but everyone is telling me, don't worry about it. it's in there good. keep the PSI at a good rate and carry a plug kit and miniature pump under the seat in case it does come out. When it does, plug it, air it, and start looking for new tires.

Any of you seasoned riders have any suggestions and or thoughts on this? I'm not an aggressive rider, I am still learning as this is my first bike and season. I was not expecting to drop the cash for new tires this quick. Picture below:

[BRN8KID]

nail!

Oh man. That's bad news all right, especially since otherwise you seem to have lots of tread left. You'd better start looking for a replacement. It may flatten at any moment. I've had a few nails, but they have never stayed inflated for more than an hour. That nail may have been pushed to the side at the cords and not gotten through. That would be lucky.

Rather than plan to fix it on the road, it might be a good idea to deal with it head on. Pull the tire and patch it for now. Then keep a spare tire and just change it if it won't hold air at some point down the road. You may still get another 5000 miles out of it.

[steves]

I've known people who have ridden the heck out of a plugged tire, and those who won't touch a plugged tire...

If you don't know what to do... get a new tire, and sell the plugged one on eBay

[GytRDunKat]

I'd say get a new one as well, especially as a newbie. Small pressure changes make huge differences in stablily/cornering. Not a good way to learn.

[thetable]

get a new tire, and sell the plugged one on eBay

+1, but make sure to tell people it has a plug. Not worth the chance in my world. Moisture can get into the tire's steel belts and cause them to rust and the tread to separate.

[SuzukiJoeDirt]

I reccomend getting it fixed man. Tire's are your life out there. I had my tire patched last year, and that has been working fine for me with no problems wat so ever. But I don't reccomend leaving the nail in the tire and riding that way.

[tdrcomm]

Looks plugable... should give you enough time to get another tire.
I rode a plugged tire for about 1000 miles before and was sweating bullets all the way.


I was in Amarillo at the time and I had no choice.

[scottynoface]

Plug/patch it, and don't hit the curves too hard until you can get a new tire.

[mcmahonm]

I had a nail in my 300 mile new tire exact same spot, talked to some guys here that I trusted, and plugged it. been 6000 miles since no issues

[Kreylyn]

Conti road attacks or Pilot Power 2cts......

Both will serve you well.

Krey

[hardlydangerous]

Get a stop and go tire plug kit
the mushroom plugs wont leak or pull out, plug it and ride it !

$30

Ive plugged tires and had the owners go 15,000KM + with no issues
just make sure you get the proper kind.
I would not recommend setting land speed speed records or track days but for normal daily use it will be perfectly fine

[Slofuze]

Get a stop and go tire plug kit
the mushroom plugs wont leak or pull out, plug it and ride it !

$30

Ive plugged tires and had the owners go 15,000KM + with no issues
just make sure you get the proper kind.
I would not recommend setting land speed speed records or track days but for normal daily use it will be perfectly fine

+1 ....... HD knows what he's talking about. Just don't be doing any track days on it.

[crackedpot]

thanks for all the advice guys. I'm going to go ahead and get it plugged somewhere that way the work is "covered" rather than do it myself. I've priced it out and its 15 bucks, so nothing huge. I am also going to look into new tires. Does anyone have any recommendations on tires for just everyday casual riding? A buddy of mine is recommending some of the hard middle, soft side type tires but.. i am clueless and want more than one opinion. Besides, my buddy does wheelies and rides his bike like it's the last ride of his life and always has. LOL

Bummer, I'd have a hard time fitting a new tire into my budget right now, too.

You'll find almost as many opinions about tires as you will about oil! Unless you're out dragging a knee in every turn, a decent longer-lasting touring/sport-touring tire should suit you well.

I don't have a lot of first-hand experience, either, but a lot of people seem to recommend Michelin Pilot Road 2 (especially for rear), Yokohama's tires (apparently very long-lasting), Metzeler Marathon ME-880 (a long-lasting touring tire), Continental Road Attacks, Dunlop D220ST, Dunlop RoadSmart (for rear), Dunlop D205 (original equip on a lot of Kats), Pirelli Angel ST.

Compare costs and deals. A local dealer/shop may charge more but give a deal on installation. You'll likely get a better price online (Bikebandit, newenough, competition accessories, whitehorse, etc.), but shops will charge a premium for installation and it may not work out to be cheaper. Have to make some phone calls and do a little research.

As far as plugging goes, it's kind of frowned upon, a sudden deflation could be catastrophic, but many people have good luck with it, as you've seen. Everyone is raving about Dyna Plug for an on-the-road plug kit (dynaplug.com).

God bless, Doug

[zuma]

We pulled a nail out of my back tire at the rally (NC) last summer; I rode it back to Texas and rode around 800 miles per week on it until October and never thought about it. I'm agreeing with the Hobbit on this one...but being new to this, you might go ahead and get one. I'm somewhat unorthodox in my environment.

[BRN8KID]

...............
Does anyone have any recommendations on tires for just everyday casual riding? A buddy of mine is recommending some of the hard middle, soft side type tires but.. i am clueless and want more than one opinion. Besides, my buddy does wheelies and rides his bike like it's the last ride of his life and always has. LOL

Well,
You are going to spend some money, no matter what. Expect over $100 for anything that you can be thoroughly confident on a GSX600F. Mettzler Lasertec is an excellent tire that will help you keep the wheels under you. It is fairly soft and has great hold, and recovery characteristics. But it is not cheap. You can save lots of money on something like a Bridgestone spitfire (don't laugh guys!!). The Spitfire is actually a very durable touring tire that Mark can get good use out of, sticks very well in moderate driving and will last. Mark... Check tire prices at tiresunlimited. It is a good index that will help save you money even if you find something else. Also, look for sales, and ask here abbout a tire that you see on sale.

If you are serious about driving fairly conservatively... that's no extreme hard cornering.. your options really open up. The Spitfire is a good place to start.

When you want to begin pushing limits a little more, you can spend some money on a high performance tire.