[mdehner]

I have heard it said that small cuts and nicks in tires can be repaired using super glue. Does this work, and is it as simple as jamming the applicator into the cut and squirting some in? Do you deflate the tire first? Seems like that would just leave you with a shard of dried glue in an already-compromised spot.

I am using Michelin Pro Races with <1K miles, if that matters.

Thanks!

 

[Cory]

Never had much success with it

I've tried it a few times, but never had much success--anything small enough for the glue to fix was probably so small it wouldn't have hurt anything anyway. Ordinary "checking" and tiny cracks in the surface rubber (down to, but not through, the fabric) aren't usually a problem, and if the casing is cut, I don't think any glue will hold it together.
All I've done is clean out the cracks with alcohol, let it dry, then try to fill the crack with glue. Never had a failure at a place I've repaired, FWIW.

 

[Dinosaur]

Try ShoeGoo...

I've never had much luck with Super Glue either. It usually hardens up like little rocks and becomes harder than the tire's rubber construction and gets pulled out. I use ShoeGoo to patch small nicks and cuts. You have to apply it just a little thicker than you need and it wears down after time. Too thick and it peels off. 1K is about the average life when I start getting nicks and cuts. Once I went around the entire tire tread with ShoeGoo and stopped and thought that it was ridiculious and I just junked the tire and slapped on a new one...ShoGoo is used for patching up the worn soles of running shoes, come in tubes, can be found in most sporting good stores. My tube is going on 2 years old and I've used very little of it, it goes a long way..too bad the bicycling industry can't come out with something that was designed primarily for bicycle tires......

 

[innergel]

If the cut goes all the way through the tire

you can tape a piece of electrical tape over the hole from the inside of the tire. This will add some strength to that little weak spot and should keep you rolling just fine.