Slime for tires

Jeanie

Jeanie

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Jeanie
Got 2 flats the other day on landing because of mesquite branches with humongous thorns all over the first third of the runway. Left main and nose wheel. The student was dismayed, I was irritated, they were new tires!

Anyway, got them changed by 10pm in the terminal building where there was heat and light, blah blah, and someone suggested putting that green tire slime stuff in the tubes. The guy said that bush pilots put it in their tires as a matter of course. Doesn't sound like the greatest idea but maybe in a pinch it would be ok? Stayed over and flew home next day

What do y'all think.

Have another 2 sets of tires on order
 
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I don't like the slime stuff (or fix-a-flat) for vehicle tires. You need to drive immediately to get it dispersed evenly around the tire, or it gets imbalanced.

Same line of questioning though, how about the push in plugs for emergency repairs? Ive got a kit for the motorcycle with Nitrogen inflator and everything. I wonder what bush pilots have in their bag of tricks.
 
For my vehicles, Fix a Flat is the absolute last thing I would use. All of my off road vehicles, 4x4, tractor, etc have Slime in them. I would not use either in a road vehicle or airplane tire.
 
There is just something about the idea that doesn't set right ... bush pilots in Alaska do outside the box things and get away with it
 
Gotta remember that most current tires do not have inner tubes anymore. GA tires are really different. I have no clue how slime works with the inner tube.
 
murphey said:
I have no clue how slime works with the inner tube.
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It doesn't.

I helped a guy with a motorcycle fix an innertube flat on the side of the road once. The slime came out the spoke holes in the rim and around the bead. It is the definition of a useless mess. Carry a patch kit and pump or forgetaboutit.
 
Jeanie said:
Got 2 flats the other day on landing because of mesquite branches with humongous thorns all over the first third of the runway. Left main and nose wheel. The student was dismayed, I was irritated, they were new tires!

Anyway, got them changed by 10pm in the terminal building where there was heat and light, blah blah, and someone suggested putting that green tire slime stuff in the tubes. The guy said that bush pilots put it in their tires as a matter of course. Doesn't sound like the greatest idea but maybe in a pinch it would be ok? Stayed over and flew home next day

What do y'all think.

Have another 2 sets of tires on order
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Can you tell me what the difference is between a bush wheel/tire is and a regular aviation tire?
http://www.akbushwheel.com/
 
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Just say no to slime - or any other goo-like miracle fix-a-flat stuff. It can cause balance issues, doesn't work very well, and makes performing a 'permanent' repair a royal pain.
 
murphey said:
Gotta remember that most current tires do not have inner tubes anymore. GA tires are really different. I have no clue how slime works with the inner tube.
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it settles to the bottom of the tire and causes an out of balance condition, If it gets hard there you can throw the tube away.
 
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CJones said:
Just say no to slime - or any other goo-like miracle fix-a-flat stuff. It can cause balance issues, doesn't work very well, and makes performing a 'permanent' repair a royal pain.
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Do you really patch an aviation tube?
 
We had a couple of foreign commercial students in Port Aransas a few weeks ago. While they were in using the bathroom, the left main went flat on their 152.

I saw their plight, and lent a hand. Unfortunately, my air pump died after adding just a few pounds. While I was fetching another pump, they walked to a nearby gas station and bought some Fix-A-Flat.

Luckily, I got back with the new pump before they could pump that crap into their tire. Got 'em aired up enough to make it back to San Antonio. That stuff would not have worked with an inner tube tire.
 
Tom-D said:
Do you really patch a aviation tube?
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No. Have you ever worked on ANY vehicle when this stuff blows out? I've worked on non-airplane tires with this crap in them and when you puncture the tire, that slimy, sticky, snotty stuff gets all over EVERYTHING - not just the tire. I can't imagine dealing with a wheel-pant covered with that stuff.
 
CJones said:
No. Have you ever worked on ANY vehicle when this stuff blows out? I've worked on non-airplane tires with this crap in them and when you puncture the tire, that slimy, sticky, snotty stuff gets all over EVERYTHING - not just the tire. I can't imagine dealing with a wheel-pant covered with that stuff.
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Yes I love the stuff, a normal 30 minute tire changes becomes a 3 hour labor fee for me.
 
Tom-D said:
Can you tell me what the difference is between a bush wheel/tire is and a regular aviation tire?
http://www.akbushwheel.com/
Click to expand...

Not sure if you are asking the question, or trying to answer... Basically larger tire with less air pressure, so it will float over terrain. Kinda like a 4 wheeler. They tend to not have tread grooves on them. Though we have 8.50's on our 206. Not a true tundra tire, but lets us land in um... more interesting places...

Rumors I have heard, (Was not me...) one guy used a three wheeler inner tube when his went flat on a beach. I have heard that in some places they have filled the whole tire with that insulating foam from a can. Skipped the tube altogether. There's a run flat for you. Heard people in Africa did that too. It's definitely not approved....:nono:

As for how do people get away with stuff up here in AK? When you have a problem 200 miles, or even 20, away from anyone else, and the only way you can get back to a town/village is by improvising, you do so. Then you get it fixed right before anyone else sees. And some if it, I get the impression that the FSDO doesn't go on a witch hunt until you show yourself to have a complete disregard for safety and regs.
 
bgdriveway said:
I have heard that in some places they have filled the whole tire with that insulating foam from a can. Skipped the tube altogether. There's a run flat for you. .
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That trick works GREAT in demo derby cars too.....
Don't ask how I know either.:no::no::no:

Ben.
 
All righty then... I'll stick with simply changing tires and tubes as needed and I'll tell the helpful "why don't you get some of that thar green slime stuff guy" that it's a bad idea and don't do it.
 
Jeanie said:
All righty then... I'll stick with simply changing tires and tubes as needed and I'll tell the helpful "why don't you get some of that thar green slime stuff guy" that it's a bad idea and don't do it.
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Do you really need to change the tire?
 
You do if the new (to the company) CFI getting night current in the plane lands with the brakes on. At least he had sense to clear the runway and stop.
 
Since I switched to Dresser Monster retreads and Airstop tubes, I have had zero tube and tire problems. I usually have to add about 2 psi of air to the tires at each annual to keep the pressure up and that's it.
 
murphey said:
Gotta remember that most current tires do not have inner tubes anymore. GA tires are really different. I have no clue how slime works with the inner tube.
Click to expand...

If you ever have to change a tire where the person used slime you will find out why it isn't a good idea. Inner tubes need some wiggle room inside the tire. If you slime it up, pun intended :goofy:, then the leak can spread some of it to the bead of the tire before it seals. When it gets on the bead it acts like glue and holds the inner tube to the tire and the next time the two move differently you will have a big hole in the tube.

On tubeless tires it pretty much makes breaking the bead next to impossible. You have to be careful to not damage the rim. If left in there for many years (at least on steel rims) it actually corrodes. I had one rim that I was able to poke a hole in with a soft jab from a screwdriver (flat head actually).

For all the other stuff on the market, they are mainly designed to buy a person enough time to get somewhere to have the tire repaired.... more than a product that repairs :lol:. Despite the label, anyway :wink2:
 
bgdriveway said:
Not sure if you are asking the question, or trying to answer... Basically larger tire with less air pressure, so it will float over terrain. Kinda like a 4 wheeler. They tend to not have tread grooves on them. Though we have 8.50's on our 206. Not a true tundra tire, but lets us land in um... more interesting places...

Rumors I have heard, (Was not me...) one guy used a three wheeler inner tube when his went flat on a beach. I have heard that in some places they have filled the whole tire with that insulating foam from a can. Skipped the tube altogether. There's a run flat for you. Heard people in Africa did that too. It's definitely not approved....:nono:

As for how do people get away with stuff up here in AK? When you have a problem 200 miles, or even 20, away from anyone else, and the only way you can get back to a town/village is by improvising, you do so. Then you get it fixed right before anyone else sees. And some if it, I get the impression that the FSDO doesn't go on a witch hunt until you show yourself to have a complete disregard for safety and regs.
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The huge Tundra tires are not really tires, as we think of tires and tubes, they are more a big heavy duty tube, they are soft, and have the filler valve in the sidewall of the tire.

the reinforcement in them is kevlar, they are very hard to puncture, and cost 5k for 2.
 

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Jay Honeck said:
We had a couple of foreign commercial students in Port Aransas a few weeks ago. While they were in using the bathroom, the left main went flat on their 152.

I saw their plight, and lent a hand. Unfortunately, my air pump died after adding just a few pounds. While I was fetching another pump, they walked to a nearby gas station and bought some Fix-A-Flat.

Luckily, I got back with the new pump before they could pump that crap into their tire. Got 'em aired up enough to make it back to San Antonio. That stuff would not have worked with an inner tube tire.
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Sometimes it's not wise to air up a tire leaking as badly as that. The leak can get larger as the tires flex during takeoff, and the thing will be flat when the airplane lands and cause control problems. better to take it apart and fix it right even if it's inconvenient. Busted airplanes are more inconvenient.
 
Yeah, we use it in our tractor, good for those tires.

In an airplane I'd do anything to get home but if i has a tube I installs it.
 
Skylane81E said:
Yeah, we use it in our tractor, good for those tires.
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I kept getting flats in my lawn tractor tires because of cactus in the yard. I put green slime in the tires and haven't gotten a flat in years. I wouldn't put it in airplane tires though, unless bears were coming after me.
 
Tubeless tires would sure make things a whole lot easier. A plug kit is a five minute job that doesn't require removal of the wheel, and done properly, it's permanent.
 
Sac Arrow said:
Tubeless tires would sure make things a whole lot easier. A plug kit is a five minute job that doesn't require removal of the wheel, and done properly, it's permanent.
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Yeah, but for planes they see HUGE temperature changes.... both upon landing and normal flying. It would be difficult to have a plug that could cope with all that.... AND be reliable :)
 
Tom-D said:
The huge Tundra tires are not really tires, as we think of tires and tubes, they are more a big heavy duty tube, they are soft, and have the filler valve in the sidewall of the tire.

the reinforcement in them is kevlar, they are very hard to puncture, and cost 5k for 2.
Click to expand...


Yep, better explanation than I gave, but was trying to convey that idea.
 
Capt. Geoffrey Thorpe said:
Do you really need to change the tire?
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They have a lot of mesquite thorns in them that will work thru and ruin the new tube. So even though they are new they are beyond repair.

There is a guy at the airport who suggested pulling all the thorns out. Ha. I'm going to give him the worst tire and if he can actually remove all the thorn bits I'll pay him to do the other tires as well.

then I'll have another spare set. Until then the lovely dead tires are now planters marking the edge of my parking area at the hangar:(
 
It's not approved however I know lots of people have probably used it, and honestly I do not recall hearing about a single instance of it causing a problem in a light single.
There are times when it might save the day.
I too have garden vehicles whose insides must look like a porcupine because of all the mesquite thorns, but nary a leak thanks to to slime. First thing I did with my new mower was flatten all 4, share a gallon among them.
Right now my Tundra has a dozen thorns in the right rear, causing very slow leaks. Should I buy a new 150$ 10ply or try some slime?
 
Slime does have its uses. After Hurricane Andrew hit Dade County, the life expectancy of a police car or ambulance tire was 1/2 block. We filled everything with fix-a-flat, slime, and whatever else we could get out hands on. The tires looked like porcupines, but kept going.
We knew the wheels and tires would have to get thrown away at the end, but it accomplished its objective at the time.
 
Let'sgoflying! said:
It's not approved however I know lots of people have probably used it, and honestly I do not recall hearing about a single instance of it causing a problem in a light single.
There are times when it might save the day.
I too have garden vehicles whose insides must look like a porcupine because of all the mesquite thorns, but nary a leak thanks to to slime. First thing I did with my new mower was flatten all 4, share a gallon among them.
Right now my Tundra has a dozen thorns in the right rear, causing very slow leaks. Should I buy a new 150$ 10ply or try some slime?
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TRY SLIME!!!!!! Stuff works. On my garden tractor, my dual sport motorcycles, my Harley, and my plane. Had very very slow leaks on my main gear with Michelins. Got tired of airing them up all the time. The tread is like new on them as well...Not old tires. Slime sealed the leaks, and I have never noticed any out of balance issues that many people here have "guessed" would happen. Slime actually will balance your tires....Yes, really. Cold winter does contract the air and I have to add a few pounds when winter flying but otherwise. Don't listen to all these negative comments. I'm guessing they are from people that have never used it. With that said Slime in tubes will only seal holes that are 1/8" or smaller. If you ripped your tube open, you'll need to repair it. Same with tubeless, if you gashed your tire open or ran it until the tread is gone...That's on you. Slime will seal a puncture hole. Oh...And slime cleans up with water. Yup, get a hose out and say Adios Slime.
 
donjohnston said:
Almost 10 years...

Is this a record for a dead thread resurrection?
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Dunno, but it was interesting looking at the names of posters in this old thread.

I wonder how the OP is — I enjoyed her posts, but she stopped posting about five years ago.
 
Liquid tire and tube sealants work great. Green Slime isn’t the leader anymore. Stan’s No Tubes and Orange Slime are what’s in my airplane tires. And at $2035.00 EACH? I’m picky about what goes into my tires! Orange seal makes a sub-freezing formula. That’s what I used on the most recent tires. Easier to use than No Tubes. Green Slime is good. I’ve had good results with it, too.
 
Any progress made? I would think of bicycle tubes that have a slime type stuff built in or some that are like a foam filling. I can see problems from sitting over time though or amybe high rpms Entrepreneurs, here's another chance.

donjohnston said:
Almost 10 years...

Is this a record for a dead thread resurrection?
Click to expand...
Lol, thanks for the alert. I had to squint to find the dates.

Anyway...It should work, we've used it as described above but not being able to spin it over miles to let it even out to an equal film, congeal and seal...?
 
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