If you ride ATVs, then you must have come across a flat tire along the trails at some point. It's bad enough that your tire has a hole in it, but it's even worse if you don't have the proper tools to make a trailside repair that can get you quickly back riding. There are plenty of companies that offer repair kits to make a quick fix and reinflate tires with those handy C02 cartridges, but finding a place to store all of those items can be a pain. In addition, more and more people are riding with ATVs and UTVs that need more air than the standard C02 cartridges can supply.
This is what makes the Slime Spair Flat Tire Repair Kit such a handy item to keep in your arsenal of trail products. I spend a lot of time cruising trails in our Yamaha Rhino and keep this convenient little pack as a permanent staple in bed-filling products. The kit comes in a small, rugged storage case that contains a 12-volt tire inflator and can be powered by a cigarette lighter or off of a battery with the supplied terminal adapter. The inflator features a built-in air gauge and a bright light for when you're unlucky enough to deal with a flat in the middle of the night. The tire inflator is capable of inflating a midsize car tire in three minutes, so it should have no problem taking care of most ATV or UTV tires in the same amount of time
Before you can even think of repairing a tire, you need to fix the problem first, and this kit allows you to do it all. It comes complete with 30 black tire plugs, T-handle reamer/plugger, 24 ounces of Slime tire sealant and a mini tackle box filled with valve stem caps, cores and removal tools. This kit should be able to handle almost any kind of tire problems.
I've packed this kit for just a few months now and recently experienced two opportunities to put it to the test. The first was on a photo shoot when I unexpectedly ran over a four-inch nail with the rear tire of my Raptor 250. The air flowed out of the tire faster than steam out of a pressure cooker. I walked over to our Rhino, popped open the kit and proceeded to plug the tire and then reinflate. We were back on the trail within a matter of minutes and the tire has yet to leak.
My second opportunity to test the inflator was on our recent group Rhino ride. One driver blew the tire off of the bead and had to borrow someone's spare stock tire until he caught up to the group. We hooked the inflator to his wheel and let it run until we heard the popping sound of the tire bead reseating itself on the wheel. Many people didn't think it would be capable of reseating the tire, but to their surprise we didn't have a problem.
Slime set the MSRP of this kit at $109.99, but I've seen it advertised for less on its website. Even at that price, you are definitely getting your money's worth in a great product. The sole downside is that the kit is only good on the trail for those of you with utility ATVs and UTVs because you have the storage capability, unlike those who ride a sport quad. With that said, I highly recommend this kit to those who want minimal hassles from tire problems on the trail. -Eli Madero
| TOOLS | 92 |
| Function | 50/50 |
| Portability | 7/10 |
| Durability | 18/20 |
| Design | 8/10 |
| Price | 9/10 |
Bottom Line: The perfect do-everything tire repair kit for trailside tire problems.