glass shard in tire (no leak): leave it or take it out?
 

I am running tubeless tires. A few days ago, riding home from work, I noticed a bit of white sealant bubbling out of the front tire just off the center line of the tread. It stopped leaking nearly as soon as I noticed it. On inspection there's a tiny little slice in the rubber (less than a mm long) with just a glint of shiny stuff beneath, presumably a glass shard. It isn't leaking any more and the tire has held its pressure over the last three days without any drop - which means the sealant has done it's job (for now, at least).

Question: should I leave well enough alone or should I try to pry the glass bit out of the tire and then, if necessary, plug the small hole with a...plug of "bacon?"

I'll do whatever you tell me to do.

When I get those, I remove them.
Last one I had, the cut was significant. So I patched the tire from the inside.

Barry

Remove the glass, it it leaks the sealant will plug it.

I would leave well enough alone. Digging it out will only make the hole larger.

Put me in the "take it out" camp. Likely you'll get a bit more bubbling, but pump up the tire, spin it to spread the sealant, and then leave it overnight with the hole at 6 o'clock. I'll bet it seals up. If not, then you can patch it.

For those who are advocating removal, a question: why?

A drop of super glue fixes that.

Mostly because I don't like foreign objects in tires. If it's the thing that's keeping the hole plugged, and it comes out during a ride, you might end up with a larger hole that sealant won't plug. I'd rather find that out in my garage than 10 miles from home.

remove it. If it doesnt add speed, it's impeding.
if you leave it in, you might give it a name. Like, Glassy? Rashard?

If you leave it in and forget about it, you might cut yourself when handling the tire in the future.

Both seem reasonable to me.

I asked the question because I recently noticed a tiny piece of steel wire embedded in a tire...probably a very small piece of steel belt from an auto tire. I dug at it with a pick and a tweezers for a few minutes, saw that I would only extract it by digging a much bigger hole in the tire, and so quit trying. The tire is set up tubeless, so I suspect it'll be fine -- the debris has become part of the tire, with sealant dealing with any air leaks.

When in doubt pull it out. It will throw the tire off balance

thats what he/she said.

Send me $4000 and donate another $4000 to World Bicycle Relief. Just PM me and I can give you my PayPal info so you can send it along. You can put the 4k to WBR in whatever name you want or if you have your own local bicycle charity you love throw some money towards them as well. Also after you have given myself and WBR (or local bike charity) the money, go out and have your self a frosty cold one of your choosing (beer, root beer, cola, cold brew, iced tea...) or something heated should you also be dealing with cold weather (hot chocolate, hot toddy, hot coffee, mulled cider or wine...)

You will note I was quite fair not only did I take some money I donated some to charity and made you enjoy a nice cold or warm beverage. Most people would take advantage not I but you did say so be a man of your word.

Leave it in and we can start a betting pool based on accumulated mileage until it fails from today forward. You should get 10% of the pot which you can put toward a tube of super glue.

Glass, if left in, can continue to cut into the tire as it flexes, making a deeper hole. Basically any sharp object can do that as well.

i use a mag glass, flashlight and dental pick every night on my tires, usually remove about 2 or 3 small pieces of glass a night.

glass is tough, it will not break down into little pieces and leave the tire. it will continue it's journey inward until it's mission has been completed, which is to get a cab out to your location for a ride back home.

keep an eye out for more glass because it's a comin. but if you get it at an early stage, it will end up down at the dump where it belongs.

i gotta try this superglue thing to see if it will bond to a gatorskin hardshell,
https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...b79c38203a.jpg

Put me in the Remove column. If the sealant doesn’t stop the leak, plug it. Dynaplug kits work great. If you don’t remove it, two things will happen...the glass shard will make the hole larger and the shard will fall out when you are on a ride.

Remove it now while at home and see if the tire is good. Otherwise it could get worse and leak, making for a horrible day.

I vote to remove it also.

I used to live in a city that liked to put cinders down on the roads in the wintertime, instead of salt. The crushed cinders were just like shards of glass; tiny and razor-sharp like knives. I was using tubes of course but it was a constant struggle to find those shards and remove them before they cut all the way through into the tube. A year-round struggle! Unlike salt, the cinders didn't wash away in the spring rains.

the salt rocks are so hard in my area, that it minds well be glass. Whatever doesn't float off into the water tables, is a flat waiting to happen.

Think of it as a wound that never heals. An object in a tire with sealant is going to move every time the tire rolls over the object. It opens the gap and allows air to escape as well as letting more sealant escape. The hole never really seals.

Remove the object and the hole seals properly.

1. $4k submitted to World Bicycle Relief - good suggestion and a worthy cause, thanks.
2. Attempted $4k deposit to your PayPal account but received error message: "Sorry, that account has been temporarily locked pending investigation of possible fraudulent activity. PayPal regrets the inconvenience."
3. Invested some of the $4K I tried to send you (you sneaky rascal, you) on a six-pack of locally brewed, hand crafted and curated Sound Sound Porter. Nice strong chocolaty overtones and a strong malt finish.

Thanks again!

UPDATE:
First I appreciate all the suggestions that have been offered. I read each and every one and considered them all carefully.

After yet another (nearly) sleepless night pondering this dilemma, this morning I decided to test the old dictum "The Enemy Of Good Is Better." So I went to the garage, strapped a headlamp on my forehead, procured a pair of fine-tipped forceps, and pulled the little glass shard out of the tire. It was a small bugger, about the size of a wooden toothpick head. As soon as I removed it there was a hiss of white liquid air- sealant. This did not stop. I attached the pump and kept re-filling the tire to a pressure of about 30 PSI, while orienting the puncture side down so that the sealant inside would pool over the hole and (I hoped) plug it. But the hissing and bubbling continued. For about five minutes, Then it stopped. I pumped the tire up to 50 PSI (My riding pressure) and the leak resumed, but only for a minute or so.

It's been three hours and on repeated pressure checks the tire has remained at 50 PSI.

I am looking for some SuperGlue to instill into the tiny crack in the rubber.

Tonight, I will sleep well.

Thank you.