Harbor Freight Tire plug kit is a fail

[Torn Mind]

Tubeless Tire Repair Kit, 9 Piece

Amazing deals on this Tubeless Tire Repair Kit 9Pc at Harbor Freight. Quality tools & low prices.

www.harborfreight.com

Whether the plugs are too big or the plugs too thick, the end result is a bent handle for the plug insertion tool. I was, in the end, able to get it in after enlarging the hole just enough and putting my full weight on it like the tire was a throne to sit on. .

A few years back, I was, with the Walmart/Slime version of the tool, not only was the handle able to survive, my weak self was somehow able to do it while the wheel was still on the vehicle and thus the leverage I had was considerably less.

Promptly returned, but I kept the mini razor blade, rubber cement, and remaining plugs for myself, as the destiny of that broken tool would be to the mystery pallet reseller auctions or the dump.

So, whatever was done to reduce the price by a dollar plus was enough to make the tool truly "one use only" at best.

 

[herm0016]

i have the slime branded kit and it has been used at least 5 times in trailers, garden tractor, pickups. seems to be holding up. the secret is to ream it out enough that its not so hard to get the plug inserted, and use a little cement as lube.

Slime 11-Piece Deluxe Tire Plug Kit with Plug Bond - 2040-a - Walmart.com

Buy Slime 11-Piece Deluxe Tire Plug Kit with Plug Bond - 2040-a at Walmart.com

www.walmart.com

i have thought about upgrading to this setup. the slime kit still has kinda crappy plastic handles. but it does work.

Boulder Tools Heavy Duty Tire Repair Kit for Tubeless Tires on Cars, Trucks, Trailers, Motorcycles, ATVs, RVs, Tractors

AVOID THE TIRE SHOP & REPAIR ANY TUBELESS TIRE WITH OUR VERSATILE HEAVY-DUTY FLAT TIRE REPAIR KIT FOR TUBELESS TIRES. Our professional grade comprehensive tire plug kit gives you everything you need to repair punctures that occur in the tread of a tubeless tire. Great for cars, trucks, jeeps...

bouldertools.com

edit: and get rid of the "lube" and replace with some rubber cement. I would never use Vaseline or whatever it is on the plug. I don't know who decided that you should lube up something you are wanting to stay in the tire. the rubber cement provides a little slip and then holds fast after a few min.
its amazing that the cheapo kit gets this right and the ones with the nice tools do not.

 

[Jimminy]

Years ago, I got tired of the el cheapo plug tools. I bought a heavy duty, well made tool from a real auto parts store. It was designed for use by tire or mechanic shops. I still have it somewhere, but don't know if you can find a good one these days.

Try an independent parts shop or napa, or similar chain. All you'll get at autozone type stores is junk.

 

[Torn Mind]

i have the slime branded kit and it has been used at least 5 times in trailers, garden tractor, pickups. seems to be holding up. the secret is to ream it out enough that its not so hard to get the plug inserted, and use a little cement as lube.

Slime 11-Piece Deluxe Tire Plug Kit with Plug Bond - 2040-a - Walmart.com

Buy Slime 11-Piece Deluxe Tire Plug Kit with Plug Bond - 2040-a at Walmart.com

www.walmart.com

i have thought about upgrading to this setup. the slime kit still has kinda crappy plastic handles. but it does work.

Boulder Tools Heavy Duty Tire Repair Kit for Tubeless Tires on Cars, Trucks, Trailers, Motorcycles, ATVs, RVs, Tractors

AVOID THE TIRE SHOP & REPAIR ANY TUBELESS TIRE WITH OUR VERSATILE HEAVY-DUTY FLAT TIRE REPAIR KIT FOR TUBELESS TIRES. Our professional grade comprehensive tire plug kit gives you everything you need to repair punctures that occur in the tread of a tubeless tire. Great for cars, trucks, jeeps...

bouldertools.com

edit: and get rid of the "lube" and replace with some rubber cement. I would never use Vaseline or whatever it is on the plug. I don't know who decided that you should lube up something you are wanting to stay in the tire. the rubber cement provides a little slip and then holds fast after a few min.
its amazing that the cheapo kit gets this right and the ones with the nice tools do not.

I admit that at first, I did not ream it out enough nor use the rubber cement. I used cement with the Slime kit years ago and I pretty much wasted it as I struggled for a while as I was trying to shove it while the tire was on the car; it dried up for sure.

However, the width of the Harbor Freight tool was also small and thus I had to do plenty of reaming at an angle to expand the hole so I could just get it in, and having to deal with a compromised insertion handle ready to bend again. The experience made me think, "well, if I just drilled a hole....I'd be saving some real time right now"....

The damaged area was not in the long recess but in the "raised section" of the tire, and the hole was not round as the metal was not a nail or the like, but rather a rock like piece. .

The Boulder Tools seems to be expensive for the lifetime warranty provided by the company. Otherwise, cheaper yet similar kits with exist on Amazon.

https://www.amazon.com/Cordless-12-Volt-Rechargeable-Batteries-Accessories/dp/B07GXWD4NS/ref=pd_di_sccai_1?pd_rd_w=9lATU&pf_rd_p=c9443270-b914-4430-a90b-72e3e7e784e0&pf_rd_r=8KP3TRKHWJKVVMCGFN0E&pd_rd_r=4df678fa-45da-4d1e-bdcf-56bb5e81b9fa&pd_rd_wg=KlYii&pd_rd_i=B07GXWD4NS&psc=1

https://www.amazon.com/Quality-Tools-Repair-Punctured-35-Piece/dp/B01IU8PVT8/ref=asc_df_B01IU8PVT8/?tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=312094794461&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=11828628547305058420&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9007790&hvtargid=pla-571637933708&psc=1&tag=&ref=&adgrpid=62497261819&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvadid=312094794461&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=11828628547305058420&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9007790&hvtargid=pla-571637933708

Possibly, they share the same assembly line but Boulder gets the "best metal", logo stamping on the handles , and a special case mold with their logo.

 

[herm0016]

yea, that's possible. I try to not buy off amazon if I can help it, and 38 bucks is not all that bad for something you will keep basically forever.

 

[manly]

Since my car has RFT tires and no compact spare, I've considered getting a Stop & Go plug kit for unplanned future road trips:

https://www.amazon.com/Stop-Go-1085-Deluxe-Repair/dp/B00ZPITSKK/

It's a little pricey, but appears to be easier to use than the standard tooling.

 

[Torn Mind]

https://www.napaonline.com/en/p/BK_7101639

If the pics are accurate, this $10 kit is Made in USA.

 

[mindless1]

I'm a fan of Boulder, once got their tire inflator, it had a defect, and they not only let me keep the bad one, also sent me a replacement, AND they sent me their tire patch kit for free to make up for being inconvenienced.

I like having it with a place for everything including the pliers and knife, though the knife is cheap junk but it doesn't take much to cut a plug off.

As far as the lube goes, why not? It is not as though the plug is going to fly out from having lube on it, unless you were trying to use it on too big a hole in the first place. Cement really isn't needed for this tire-on-rim type plug, though using cement with a patch kit instead of plug kit is the superior solution but on the roadside you just want it to hold air and then decide later if you're going to patch it off the rim.

It is an extra step, that if you plug it with lube then later want to patch it, to clean the lube off, but for the situations where I just want to plug and get going again, if you don't want to use the lube, don't need it, then don't use it.

I suppose I'm contrasting between having everything you need and the cost of a tow. You can definitely put together miscellaneous products and/or things you already own to arrive at a cheaper total cost, except for a case for it all where everything has its place instead of just a big bulk container... and yet, a big bulk container where you can put even more in it, makes sense too, especially if it has room for an inflator since patching is only half the job.