For the members evening in March, our guest speakers were Martin Edwards and Andy Bull of Rema Tip Top UK who specialise in tyre repair materials, products and machinery.
The majority of the evening focussed on repairing tyres in line with British Standard AU 159f that, believe it or not, has actually been in force since 1st January 2004. Concentrating on light vehicle tyres, they initially explained the differences between minor and major damage as well as issuing everyone with the Rema minor repair tread gauge that helps the technician identify whether any potential puncture is classed as minor or major and is located within the correct ‘repair window’.
After manufacturing some minor repairs in a tyre, the evening continued with a practical demonstration on the correct repair technique once a puncture has been identified as minor damage. This included the correct cleaning and preparation techniques, the selection of the correct patch and corresponding glue and the correct methods of installing and trimming the patch. It really was an eye opener that, for something you take for granted and that is regularly not trained within the garage environment, how specific and meticulous you need to be to ensure that your ‘repair’ doesn’t actually do further damage to the tyre. Also on display was their very impressive tyre repair spreader, I want one!
After a short refreshment break, the evening continued with a presentation on tyre markings, in particular build dates, and a discussion on run flats and how they currently sit outside of the repair legislation although this is due to change.
The evening was very well received and both Martin and Andy were kept extremely busy with a vast quantity of questions and scenarios. I also know that both Martin and Andy would like to pass their thanks onto the guys from F1 Autocentres who supported them with some expert experience during the evening.