thealiasofMarc
Junior Member
A few days ago I posted a thread describing how I wanted to lower my bike by about an inch. I thought it was going to cost me several hundred dollars between clip-on bars and a new rear shock spring... but last night I figured out a much simpler way to do it: just ride through a construction area!
This morning I walked out to my bike and noticed that the rear of my bike was about an inch lower than usual... sweet! I had wasted all that time coming up with an elaborate, technical plan on how to lower my bike by purchasing and installing parts, and all it took was a 2 inch wood screw! Genius. Why didn't someone think of it sooner?
Ok, so seriously, It was kind of depressing to see my baby injured and limping. I had to do something immediately... (after driving to school to take a test..) I went down to the good ole local Advanced Auto Parts and bought a plug kit, and a 16 oz bottle of Slime. Either one should have done the job separately, but I wasn't taking any chances. I don't exactly have $180 to throw down on a new rear tire/installation, especially when mine only has about 3k miles on it, so I had to do it on the cheap.
Plugging a tire is extremely quick and easy if you've never done it, and the Slime was just as easy, but it requires letting ALL the air out of your tire. (Lucky for me that had already been done for me..) The cap of the Slime bottle doubles as a valve core removal tool, so you just use it to unscrew the valve core (takes about 5 seconds) and then use the included bit of clear tubing to squirt the Slime into the tire through the hollowed out valve stem. It takes half a bottle (8 oz) to do one motorcycle tire, and the idea is that this stuff coats and seals the tire from the inside, kinda like a patch, but much easier. Also it is supposed to stay somewhat goopy inside the tire and continue working, should you have another puncture... patches don't do that.
I filled the tire back up to 36 psi and spun it to complete the Slime coating process. This is a good time to mention that I have this pretty sweet mini air compressor kit (also Slime brand) that is convenient to have for the bike.. Slime 40001 Power Sport Tire Inflator
--it includes a short harness that you screw down to the battery terminals, and leave hanging until you need to use the pump, at which point you just hook up the power cable to the harness via a quick connect and you're ready to go in seconds, no need to lift the tank each time -- I think that's pretty awesome. Here are some pics!
This morning I walked out to my bike and noticed that the rear of my bike was about an inch lower than usual... sweet! I had wasted all that time coming up with an elaborate, technical plan on how to lower my bike by purchasing and installing parts, and all it took was a 2 inch wood screw! Genius. Why didn't someone think of it sooner?
Ok, so seriously, It was kind of depressing to see my baby injured and limping. I had to do something immediately... (after driving to school to take a test..) I went down to the good ole local Advanced Auto Parts and bought a plug kit, and a 16 oz bottle of Slime. Either one should have done the job separately, but I wasn't taking any chances. I don't exactly have $180 to throw down on a new rear tire/installation, especially when mine only has about 3k miles on it, so I had to do it on the cheap.
Plugging a tire is extremely quick and easy if you've never done it, and the Slime was just as easy, but it requires letting ALL the air out of your tire. (Lucky for me that had already been done for me..) The cap of the Slime bottle doubles as a valve core removal tool, so you just use it to unscrew the valve core (takes about 5 seconds) and then use the included bit of clear tubing to squirt the Slime into the tire through the hollowed out valve stem. It takes half a bottle (8 oz) to do one motorcycle tire, and the idea is that this stuff coats and seals the tire from the inside, kinda like a patch, but much easier. Also it is supposed to stay somewhat goopy inside the tire and continue working, should you have another puncture... patches don't do that.
I filled the tire back up to 36 psi and spun it to complete the Slime coating process. This is a good time to mention that I have this pretty sweet mini air compressor kit (also Slime brand) that is convenient to have for the bike.. Slime 40001 Power Sport Tire Inflator
--it includes a short harness that you screw down to the battery terminals, and leave hanging until you need to use the pump, at which point you just hook up the power cable to the harness via a quick connect and you're ready to go in seconds, no need to lift the tank each time -- I think that's pretty awesome. Here are some pics!
