TonyXJ

Ok so had a bit of a misadventure today on my Sunday afternoon. Decided to take the family to Lake Sylvan (the lake in National Treasure 2, where Nicolas Cage finds the city of gold). I was almost there when I got a flat. The valve stem had dry rotted and air poured out. I got excited about using my Hi Lift jack. However it never occurred to me to buy a new breaker bar. The factory one is almost useless on my rims. Luckily some nice old man had a truck full of tools including a 3/4 socket and huge wrench. I broke the lugs loose and then tried to figure out where to use my Hi-Lift. Seems the only place is the rear bumper. However I was on a slight slope and it did not seem safe. So I just used the guy's floor jack right below where my shocks connect. Worked perfect. After I got the full size spare installed I headed to a gas station I had passed a few miles prior to top off the spare (it was about 20 psi). I also decided to make sure my other tires were at 35 psi and of course another valve stem breaks. I'm out of spares so I have to hold the valve stem in place where no air is leaking and then use half a bottle of rubber cement on the stem. Problem is the psi in the tire is blowing bubbles in the rubber cement. So I have to drain the psi low enough to get the cement to stick, but leave enough air to drive on (airing the tire back up kept breaking the cement seal). I used the other half bottle of rubber cement on the original blown tire (it was empty so the cement stuck), and I was eventually able to get that tire to hold air. I left second leaking tire on with a small leak, and added some duct tape to keep pressure on the stem. I opted to not swap tires bc I only had my factory wrench, and I drove the 30 miles home very carefully.

Lesson learned: buy a good breaker bar with plenty of reach and leverage.
Lesson learned: a tire repair kit is useless without an air compressor.
Question to ponder: should I buy the $40 plastic base for the Hi-Lift?
Question to ponder: is the bumper the best place to lift with a hi-lift?
Question to ponder: why were my valve stems so dry rotted?

On the plus side, I bet no one here has ever changed a flat with a view as nice as mine.

johnydoe

whens the last time you had the valve stems checked?, round here we change em out 2 times a year(winter, and spring)...basicly when we change tires they swap out the valves too, lol last time i had them put in some chrome ones for and extr 50 cents each

macgyver35

I was wondering about the condition of your valves stems too.
I get mine changed at each tire change, which is about every 3 years or so.

I'm in Texas where it is hotter than hell most of the year and I've still never had one get very cracked looking, much less fail.

Only thing I can guess is maybe from salt used on the winter roads up north, (they use sand here).

In the future, either get the ones with the chrome covers, or try giving rubber ones a squirt of Armor All or Black Magic every other month to keep the rubber soft.

redjeep1983

I opted for metal valve stems when my tire were installed

TonyXJ

I've never had them dry rot before. I'll have to start looking after them.

Btw, the nice view I was talking about was the side of mount Rushmore, not me Reaching in the back seat.

no rdplz

Proper tire care is huge. A lot of people overlook using a tire dressing on their offroad rigs and the rate of dry rot on the sidewalls and valve stems increases greatly when everything is exposed to salt, dirt, sand, and all sorts of other grime. Monthly use some tire dressing on the tires, valve stems, and even weather stripping. It makes everything last much longer.

bigfltruck

Get some all metal valve stems that bolt on then you don't have to worry about dry rot.

K2dark_xj

also before you go on a trip inspect your vehicle. tires, valve stems, steering components, bushings, brakes, ect... can help alot. and I would get the base plate for the hi-lift. it does help. and if your looking for on board air, Iron rock offroad sells what seems like a decent kit and it's not too pricy. it's basically everything you need to use/install/maintain it so no special fabrication is needed. I have a buddy that has had it for 6 months and so far he's happy.