new tire!

i got a new tire today to replace one that had a nail in it.
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BACK STORY:
i bought 4 new tires about a year ago.
at $250 each, i decided to use one of my old worn tires for a spare.
(rather than buying 5 new tires)

unfortunately, one of my NEW tires got a nail in it.
the nail filled the hole it created, so it never went flat.
that was about 6 months ago.
i left the nail in the tire to act as a plug.
it held air, but at about 10 PSI lower than it should.

the low tire pressure on one side was causing bad things:
* inconsistent tread wear
* poor fuel economy
* undue stress on steering components
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i decided to buy a new tire to replace the one with the nail in it.
i had the shop fix the nail hole, and will use that tire as a spare.

heres my old spare next to my new tire.
you can see how worn the lugs were!
the tire's diameter was reduced by almost an inch!



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today, i got to learn about the professional tire repair process:

the tire is unmounted from the rim.
it is placed in a spreader for easier access to the inside.

the area surrounding the hole is cleaned and scraped.
the scraped surface will create a better bond with the patch.


a plug is inserted and pulled through the tire.
here is the plug before being pulled flush with the inside of the tire.

again, the inside surface is cleaned and dried.

a self adhesive patch is applied.

the patch is coated with sealer.

the tire is once again mounted on the rim.
the plug is cut flush with the outside of the tire.

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in the end, this is a good thing, because now i have 5 matching tires.
(rather than depending on my old worn tire for a spare)
this NEW spare will hold up for a long time!