What does this tool do?

[noid]

Have had this for the longest time, but still cant figure out what its for

 

[klhitman]

Re: What does this tool dog?

tire plug tool

 

[g0ldfing3r]

Re: What does this tool dog?

tire plug tool

I agree.

 

[Lump]

Yup. Tire plugging tool. All you need are some "plugs" to thread through the hole, and a tire with a hole in it!

 

[Gary S]

Great tool! I haven't had to take a flat tire to a repair shop for the last 20 years!!!

 

[ecotec]

brings back bad memories.

 

[Krokodil]

I knew this one! Tire plug tool.

 

[lwlobo]

I'm sure they're right, tire plugging tool. However, I've also seen this type of tool made and used for threading leather cord, especially for baseball mits.

 

[hofferwood]

Vasectomy tool (old school)


Tyer phlugg tuel (lol)

Wow looks like my first one bias-ply tires.

Chuck

 

[noid]

Now for the fun part: Considering it will probably never be used for what it was meant for, what other jobs is it useful in?

 

[Hank McMauser]

Now for the fun part: Considering it will probably never be used for what it was meant for, what other jobs is it useful in?

1 tent peg
2 grind to a point and use it as a pick

 

[trout]

3 cut 1/4" of the tip off and you got a small fork

 

[turrican]

Now for the fun part: Considering it will probably never be used for what it was meant for, what other jobs is it useful in?

As with most tools that look anything like that, you know, the ones with a warning not to use it as: a prybar or chisel

 

[cortez]

A little tricky at first but easily figured out and Bam! a quick repair.

A can of "inflated-a-tire" and you're on your way. I always dip the plug into some contact cement and it is almost foolproof for the average nail or screw hole. And yes, this is a permanent repair. Even local tire shops use them for small holes for about 6 to 7 dollars a repair.

There are also slightly different designed tire needles which are easier to pull out without yanking the plug out with it.

 

[crewchief888]

3 cut 1/4" of the tip off and you got a small fork

+1

 

[Lump]

Believe it or not, this tire plugging tool can be really useful. Sooner or later you'll have a tire with a slow leak, and upon examination, you'll find a nail or something in it. You just remove the nail, use a phillips screwdriver or something similar to poke through the hole to be sure it is fully opened all the way through. Then insert one plug through the hole at the tip of the tool (the plug is sort of like a 6" piece of small diameter rope which has been coated with a tar-like substance), and dip the plug on the tip of the tool into some rubber cement. Now shove the tip of the tool with the plug into the hole all the way, pulling the plug all the way into the inside of the tire. Next pull the tool back out part way, until the metal tip clears the hole so you can cut off the ends of the plug, leaving two strands of the plug now lodged in the hole. Cut it off flush with the tread with side-cutters, re-inflate the tire, and you're finished. It is a permanent repair, unless the tire has been severely damaged, or had ply separation, etc. (Keep in mind that you should never plug a tire if the hole is in the sidewall. Such tires are ruined, and must be discarded, or be used with an inner tube.)

I can assure you that this is exactly how most tire stores have done it for decades, and if you do it right, it is a great repair. And the first time you find yourself with a leak and no time to go to a tire store anywhere, you will LOVE having that tool in your box.

 

[treasureseeker]

I was on vacation in Canada and noticed I had a low tire and found a nail in it. I just went to a store purchased the kit with the glue, plugs, that tool and reamer and was able to plug it on the car, drive to a gas station with air and not spend the day at a tire store. Now I bring a tire plug set if I go on vacation by car.

 

[Stephenw]

As already stated, it's a tire plug tool.

First pull the nail out of the tire.

Next force the rasp through the hole. Try to run it the same direction as the object that was removed. Work the rasp back and forth to roughen the hole.

Insert a plug into the the fork of the tool to form a "T" shape. Slather it with rubber cement. Push the tool into the puncture until about a half inch of the plug is sticking out. Give the tool a couple twists. When the tool is withdrawn, the plug will stay behind.

I found a YouTube video...

<iframe title="YouTube video player" class="youtube-player" type="text/html" width="640" height="390" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/wqzF8Vt03-k" frameborder="0" allowFullScreen></iframe>

 

[bchee]

Slather it with rubber cement. .....Give the tool a couple twists.

How important are these 2 steps?

I just plugged a tire without rubber cement. Now I'm worried.

Also, I read that you're not supposed to twist it, just push it in and pull straight out.

 

[trout]

I've done it a bunch of times w/o rubber cement. I think it just decreases the chances that it'll hold but I've never had one start leaking again w/o it.

 

[J.A.F.E.]

How important are these 2 steps?


... Also, I read that you're not supposed to twist it, just push it in and pull straight out.

Sounds like a great sig line.

 

[2oolhound]

I'm sure they're right, tire plugging tool. However, I've also seen this type of tool made and used for threading leather cord, especially for baseball mits.

Yes, they make sewing awls like that too but they have more of a point and are longer between the hole and the point. There for Hofferwood must be right, it's a Vasectomy tool.

 

[Hit-By-Thunder]

oh, and be sure there is no tube installed

done it a bizzillion times. twisting, no do it with air in the tire, coat the rasp with "chemical activator" (tires are not rubber any more, they are synthetic) coat the plug as well ONCE THE PLUG IS INSERTED IN THE TOOL. don't touch it once the glue has touched the plug. The glue on the rasp does 2 things, cleans the hole/makes the hole fresh/clean and makes inserting the plug easier (lubricates the hole).

the tool is very useful, don't cut/grind it down wheelbarrow tire, garden tractor tire the tool is still used today. old bias tires on an old trailer

Rob/HBT

 

[SpeedwayRyan]

tires are not rubber any more, they are synthetic

Really? I was under the impression that tires were mostly natural rubber, with some synthetic rubber mixed in. Synthetic rubber isn't anything new, it's been around for many decades, but I don't think standard automobile tires are made entirely from it...I could be wrong though!