naked without spare?

[gklugie]

Do any of you folks run without a spare tire? I think i have read about some people running naked of spares. Presumably the reasons for this action include weight savings and hitch cargo room.

By the way...Merry Christmas

[avanti]

Originally Posted by gklugie

Do any of you folks run without a spare tire? I think i have read about some people running naked of spares. Presumably the reasons for this action include weight savings and hitch cargo room.

A typical reason for no-spare is that the space designed to carry it is often used for an Onan genset. That is the case in our rig. I HAVE a spare (Great West gave it to me for free), but I don't carry it. I might think about it on certain trips, but generally I don't give it a thought. Lots of vehicles come without spares these days. With today's tires, it is really not much different than, say, driving without a spare alternator (or a dozen other things). The failure rate is probably no higher than with those items, and replacements are usually easier. If I had a good place to carry the spare, I would probably carry it, but I carry all kinds of stuff that I don't really need.

Spare tire anxiety is a carryover from 20th century technology.

[Davydd]

I carried a spare for 65,000 miles in my first Class B and never used it. No spare now in over 130,000 miles in two other Class Bs in just about every state including going to Alaska and back and every Canadian province plus the Yukon territory's On Top of the World 90 mile unpaved highway. My luck may run out some time but I have had other incidents on the road that have inconvenienced me more than a flat tire which I have not experienced.

[mumkin]

My first rig had a spare on the back door... never touched it. My Libero didn't come with a spare, never missed it. Roadtreks tend to come with a continental tire... that I didn't purchase because after testing I found that I couldn't get it up and down... and access to both back doors is crucial to me. So the spare is in storage.

I've been driving for 55 years and realized that the only time I ever needed a spare the car was sitting in the driveway and vandals had slashed three of the four tires (on all the cars up and down the street), so a spare didn't really help all that much.

This is why I have Roadside Assistance.

[BBQ]

Originally Posted by avanti

.... it is really not much different than, say, driving without a spare alternator

...

Spare tire anxiety is a carryover from 20th century technology.

LOL... So true.

[sebtown]

I initially had a lot of concerns when I realized my Lexus did not come with a spare tire. After seven years and no flats my concern has been abated. My 2007 Sprinter has the original spare tire which has never been used. I will probably replace it someday even though I may never use it as I find myself in more remote places where a tow or replacement may not be readily available.

[Davydd]

In my high school days I had two spare tires in my trunk. Of course they were all bald tires and tires were not of the composition of today and had inner tubes as well. I routinely changed flat tires. My dad had a tire changing stand in our garage. I plugged tires and patched inner tubes and went my merry way. I was young and strong and usually had a "posse" in my car to help me while cruising. The posse had another function. I didn't have reverse in my car and had the extra hands to get me out of predicaments. Those were the days...

[jrobe]

If you don't want to use valuable space in a Class B, there is nothing wrong with getting rid of the spare tire. There is also no need to carry a lot of other emergency equipment that take up space.

Myself, I carry a fairly wide assortment of tools, a small air compressor, a small battery jump starter, a tow strap, a good jack, a shovel and axe and quite a few other emergency items. I also carry a spare tire. I haven't had very many flats over the years but I did pick up a nail on a remote Forest Service Road once this year (a long ways from cellphone coverage). I was back on the road in 15 minutes with a new tire. The alternative would have been walking a long ways for help, trying to hitch a ride to the nearest town, trying to find a replacement tire of the correct size and then a ride back to my rig. To each his own.

[BBQ]

.

I have had nails in my tires a couple of times.
But they were slow leaks, so I had time to get to a tire store.

[avanti]

Originally Posted by jrobe

I did pick up a nail on a remote Forest Service Road once this year (a long ways from cellphone coverage). I was back on the road in 15 minutes with a new tire. The alternative would have been walking a long ways for help, trying to hitch a ride to the nearest town, trying to find a replacement tire of the correct size and then a ride back to my rig. To each his own.

I carry a tire-plug kit, fix-a-flat, and an inflator.

[booster]

Originally Posted by avanti

I carry a tire-plug kit, fix-a-flat, and an inflator.

We do similar, and we have a spare, so way overkill for us. No inflator, though as we have an onboard compressor.

Plug kits are very well worth the price, but get a good complete kit, as probably 90% of the time you don't even have to take the tire off the vehicle.

[peteco]

Originally Posted by booster

We do similar, and we have a spare, so way overkill for us. No inflator, though as we have an onboard compressor.

Plug kits are very well worth the price, but get a good complete kit, as probably 90% of the time you don't even have to take the tire off the vehicle.

Same here. Spare was handy when I had a tire failure and plug would not have worked. Plugs have worked great over the years for me though some say they are not a proper way to fix a tire.

[booster]

I had a good talk with a very competent tire shop owner a number of years ago about how good or bad plugs are, and it was pretty interesting.

Bottom line was he put repairs in 3 categories, plugs, internal patches, and both.

I would have expected both to be the best, and he thought that also.

But he put just plug as better than just internal patch, which surprised me. His reasoning made a whole lot of sense, however. The point was that the patch will cover the hole very well if done well, but it does nothing for the hole through tread that exposes the belts to the elements. Sand can work it's way in and abrade away more belt material or the patch itself. Water, especially with salt in it will rust the steel belts, if there, weakening them and expanding the casing a bit causing separations.

As for plugs themselves, there are two typed normally used, the treated rope type and solid rubber type. In general he liked the rubber plug type, but stressed they are hard to put in correctly, as most places make the hole to big because they are hard to insert, especially in steel belted tires. The also need to be trimmed below the tread surface so they don't hit the road fits and get flexed loose (almost no shops do this regularly). The rope type generally are easier to install and require a smaller hole, but also don't expand as much, so if leak is not round they might not fill it as well.

I have used both types of plugs and hate the solid ones because it pains me to make a small hole big just to plug it, and they do go in hard sometimes. The rope is easier to install and a smaller hole, so that is what I carry and use. In an emergency, for a bigger slice, I have even seen multiple rope pieces used so they could get air to hold enough to get to a tire shop, very slowly.

[peteco]

Originally Posted by booster

I had a good talk with a very competent tire shop owner a number of years ago about how good or bad plugs are, and it was pretty interesting.

Bottom line was he put repairs in 3 categories, plugs, internal patches, and both.

I would have expected both to be the best, and he thought that also.

But he put just plug as better than just internal patch, which surprised me. His reasoning made a whole lot of sense, however. The point was that the patch will cover the hole very well if done well, but it does nothing for the hole through tread that exposes the belts to the elements. Sand can work it's way in and abrade away more belt material or the patch itself. Water, especially with salt in it will rust the steel belts, if there, weakening them and expanding the casing a bit causing separations.

As for plugs themselves, there are two typed normally used, the treated rope type and solid rubber type. In general he liked the rubber plug type, but stressed they are hard to put in correctly, as most places make the hole to big because they are hard to insert, especially in steel belted tires. The also need to be trimmed below the tread surface so they don't hit the road fits and get flexed loose (almost no shops do this regularly). The rope type generally are easier to install and require a smaller hole, but also don't expand as much, so if leak is not round they might not fill it as well.

I have used both types of plugs and hate the solid ones because it pains me to make a small hole big just to plug it, and they do go in hard sometimes. The rope is easier to install and a smaller hole, so that is what I carry and use. In an emergency, for a bigger slice, I have even seen multiple rope pieces used so they could get air to hold enough to get to a tire shop, very slowly.

Interesting. I have used the cheap Walmart sourced China plug kits with black tarlike plugs. I recently read about a few people having the cheap insertion tool break and jam the plug install shaft through their hands. So I just bought a US made Safety Seal kit which is very high quality. The plugs are a different color: brown vs black. There were 2 different sizes of Safety Seal plug: thin and regular. Are these the rope style you are referring to?

[booster]

Originally Posted by peteco

Interesting. I have used the cheap Walmart sourced China plug kits with black tarlike plugs. I recently read about a few people having the cheap insertion tool break and jam the plug install shaft through their hands. So I just bought a US made Safety Seal kit which is very high quality. The plugs are a different color: brown vs black. There were 2 different sizes of Safety Seal plug: thin and regular. Are these the rope style you are referring to?

The rubber plug type would be a small cylinder of regular looking rubber that you insert with an insertion tool. The ones I have seen have all been black, but they could be made any color. You would usually lube with rubber cement when you put them in, unless of course, the rubber cement is all dried up in the tube like it always seems to be for me.

The "rope" type I refer to look like kind of flattened out pieces of very heavy twine soaked with some kind of a waxy, rubbery, gooey, coating. Depending on who you believe, the coating is said to react with the rubber to make the seal better. You install the product with a tool that looks like a big sewing needle eye end, that is split. Thread the material through the eye and double over so you are pushing two layers of it into the hole, go in far enough to be about 1/2" side the tire, and then pull the tool out quickly so the plug stays in place in the hole as the tool split lets it get out. Most of this type I have seen are a dirty brown in color.

I have also heard of people having a tool T handle fail and the metal tool which is not teed going through their hand. shudder

[peteco]

Originally Posted by booster

The rubber plug type would be a small cylinder of regular looking rubber that you insert with an insertion tool. The ones I have seen have all been black, but they could be made any color. You would usually lube with rubber cement when you put them in, unless of course, the rubber cement is all dried up in the tube like it always seems to be for me.

The "rope" type I refer to look like kind of flattened out pieces of very heavy twine soaked with some kind of a waxy, rubbery, gooey, coating. Depending on who you believe, the coating is said to react with the rubber to make the seal better. You install the product with a tool that looks like a big sewing needle eye end, that is split. Thread the material through the eye and double over so you are pushing two layers of it into the hole, go in far enough to be about 1/2" side the tire, and then pull the tool out quickly so the plug stays in place in the hole as the tool split lets it get out. Most of this type I have seen are a dirty brown in color.

I have also heard of people having a tool T handle fail and the metal tool which is not teed going through their hand. shudder

The Safety Seal plugs are round. The T-handle tool is all metal, not a steel shaft embedded in a plastic handle.

[booster]

Originally Posted by peteco

The Safety Seal plugs are round. The T-handle tool is all metal, not a steel shaft embedded in a plastic handle.

Those Safety Seal kits look really nice. I like the tool that holds down the plug while you retract the needle.

That is what I would call a rope plug, and very good ones. The one I have has all metal tools, but not the hold down feature, and of course, not the probably better Safety Seal rope.

[Hondo]

I have a spare on my Roadtrek.

It being there guarantees that I will never have a flat

[JPMcG]

Well I'm the odd ball. On our very first road trip to Canada from Rhode Island we found the outside duel wheel flat. We have a spare but in the first week of ownership --I hardly knew where the jack was. I called the Good Sam guys--they came and fixed me up nice and quick. Replaced tire with spare and then repaired original tire. 5K miles later all still ok. But I did buy a small compressor and 'flat fixer for truck tires" I'm old school belt and braces!!!

[JPMcG]

Originally Posted by avanti

I carry a tire-plug kit, fix-a-flat, and an inflator.

Well I'm the odd ball. On our very first road trip to Canada from Rhode Island we found the outside duel wheel flat. We have a spare but in the first week of ownership --I hardly knew where the jack was. I called the Good Sam guys--they came and fixed me up nice and quick. Replaced tire with spare and then repaired original tire. 5K miles later all still ok. But I did buy a small compressor and 'flat fixer for truck tires" I'm old school belt and braces!!!