Nail in tire

[mtrosclair]

Last night I noticed that I had a nail in my rear tire so of course after much cursing I pulled it out to see if it was all the way through.  It was not however it had somehow stayed between the layers of rubber and gone off to the side.  The nail was a bout 2.5 inches long!!  But no leaking.  So now I am concerned if the tires safety level has been compromised, or will it keep on rolling down the road.  Thoughts please. 

[L J VFR]

Damn, this is a tough one.  Me, I would ride around the house and not get too fast and see if it would hold up.  Then gradually get rough with it to the point you think it will hold.  Your call  bud.   I know some people are gonna throw rocks at me thogh...    Or,  SAFETY FIRST, and replace the dang thing, and sit it up on the wall and look at it...

[lragan]

Depends which tire it is.  I think the probability of throwing tread or losing pressure due to this wound is pretty small.  If it were my back tire, I would make a note of its location, run it a while and watch the tread in this area before and after every ride.

If it is were the front tire, I would replace it. 

It is much easier to deal with a sudden deflation (aka "blowout") in a rear than in a front tire.

[mtrosclair]

I rode about ten miles today and looked at it, it seems the same, i wonder if letting some rubber cement from the tire plug kit run down the hole would help?

[roboto65]

Do a Burnout problem solved

Did you spray some soapy water on it to see if was leaking. If it is not leaking you are probably fine ..

[mtrosclair]

no soapy water, but it has maintained pressure

[Capt. Howard]

Do a Burnout problem solved

    +1

[Greg Cothern]

Front tire for me would be IMMEDIATELY changed PERIOD...

Rear tire would think about it for probably a couple minutes then decide that my skin is worth more than what a new tire would cost and bitterly go buy a new one LoL...

[Herman]

If you are an aggressive rider, I'd probably do some good burnout's and get a new tire.  If you're pretty easy on the throttle I'd probably do some good burnout's and get a new tire.  If your tire is getting low on tread anyways, do some good burnout's and get a new tire. 

All it comes down to is how comfortable you are with the situation.  What's the worst that can happen if you don't change it and what's the worst that can happen if you do?  In all honesty, you'll probably be fine, but it all depends on how much chance you want to take.

[Sledge Hammer]

Front tire for me would be IMMEDIATELY changed PERIOD...

Rear tire would think about it for probably a couple minutes then decide that my skin is worth more than what a new tire would cost and bitterly go buy a new one LoL...

+1. I agree with GC's reasoning, especially the part about being bitter.

[lragan]

I have put two new tires on Maggie since we got together in September of 2007.  Both of the ones I replaced had plenty of tread, and both of 'em had punctures in the tread area -- but both were through holes into the air space.

After reading the other posts, I must agree:

"When in doubt, throw it out!!"

[MagnaDaddy]

I rode on a Dunlop with a similar nail wound for probably a year.  Cheap? yes...     But you know, I probably shouldn't test my angels like that, hindsight says it was kinda DUMB.

[connor]

A two and a half inch nail...Thats a pretty big nail.

Don't take any chances mate, hand over the money asap and have it replaced.

With only two wheels on the road you want those tyres as good as they can possibly be.

Put it this way, if the bike belonged to your wife, fiancee or girlfriend...would you be happy with her venturing out on the road with that tyre...?

Sorry, I don't want to sound like I'm dictating to you, but I'm a bit of an old fusspot when it comes to motorcycles and their tyres.

[TLRam1]

If you decide, I can get you a rear tire for 123.00 delivered.

How much tread do you have left are you an aggressive or fast rider or putt around town?

The problem you have to worry about are the belts separating from the tread layer. You might be fine but I don't have a reliable enough crystal ball to predict what will happen.   

[mtrosclair]

I am going to keep an eye on it, and not ride two up till I figure this out.  Looking at how it was in there it stayed in the treadblock only and did not get down into the cords,  odd, must have been lucky.  Judging by the rust and how worn off the head is I would say it has been in there a while, which included some triple digit runs.  Pressure is still holding and there is no deformity.    But I will probably just wuss out and buy a tire.