SentinelAeon

Hi there,

I am running wide 2.0 schwalbe kojak tires. I am happy with them but sadly over the time they got a few holes in them. I dont want to replace them just yet so i want to fill those holes and hopefully get some more life out of them. A while ago i filled them with silicone ( the one for kitchen sink ) but sadly the silicone fell out instantly, i probably didnt apply enough pressure when filling the holes. Apart from silicone i got some universal glue at home ( the one u apply to both sides and press together after 10 minutes ). Would that glue be ok or should i try again with silicone ? I want to do this without buying anything else, since i will be buying new tires in future.

SquidPuppet

Pictures please.

Where are the holes? On the tread surface or the sidewall? How big are the holes? Is the casing/threads of the carcass visible?

fietsbob

Hard to add rubber to a tire after it's vulcanized .. and Cured .. when this came up in the past SHOE GOO was one response . look up past threads for more suggestions.

Matariki

I've used PL premium to re-coat damaged shoe soles with success. It would probably work fine for your purpose too, though I wonder why you just don't invest in new tires. I'd have no reservations about going for a stroll with repaired shoes, but heading out for a 20+ mile ride on a dodgy tire with a questionable repair seems silly. You must be more of a cheapskate than I am.

nfmisso

One thing that sounds crazy cheapskate but does work - of course it has a huge adverse effect on performance and ride comfort - is to get an old tire in the 1.95 to 2.0 size range, cut off the bead, and insert inside your tire, then tube inside of that. The old tire on the inside prevents the tube from escaping out the holes and provides a great deal of puncture protection. Old tires can often be had for free. If you are in San Jose, I'll be happy to give you a couple and lend you knife and scissors to remove the bead.

CliffordK

I put a half a park boot inside of a tire that got about a 1/4" hole (and it has held for 500+ miles), but otherwise I usually don't do anything to the small holes.

I have seen shoe goo, and super glue both suggested, but have yet to try them. I've got my tires from last summer with about 500 to 1000 miles left on them, perhaps I'll practice.

FBinNY 

I've used silicone caulk successfully (because I had it). never used shoe-goo because i didn't. They now sell all kinds of liquid rubber products, so you have plenty of choices depending on how much you want to spend, or maybe what home repair is needed, ie seal the gutters and use leftover on your tire.

Regardless of what you use, it's important to prepare the area for good adhesion. You can treat the area with acetone (not nail polish remover) or another rubber buffer, or sandpaper to bring up a clean dry surface. Then coat with patch cement and let dry completely. That will give you a surface that your filler can stick to.

GravelMN

I've used an inner tube patch (the real ones with glue, not the self-adhesive ones) on the inside of a tire that had been punctured and filled the outer defect with Shoe Goo. Prep the surfaces well and work outdoors or at least in a well ventilated area, Shoe Goo has a strong odor and is not all that healthy to breathe. Give it a full 48 hours in a warm place to cure before putting it into service.

Retro Grouch 

The rubber doesn't matter that much as long as the fabric casing is intact. If, after inflating the tire to operating pressure, I can't feel a "bump" or "blister" on the tire, I don't worry about it.