Thanks everyone for the Conventional Wisdom - which I acknowledge and appreciate.
But I
refuse to believe that a perfectly good tyre, with what is effectively a pinprick from a thorn (in the tread), is not safely repairable.
Whether anyone has the equipment, or the will, or the legal authority to repair it, is another matter. As to the economics - well, that's obviously a decision for me to make.
Could it just be that the tyre industry has a vested interest in not encouraging such safe repairs? Could it be that they'd rather add to the vast stockpiles of scrapped rubber that pollute our planet just to flog more product?
Strikes me that there's an interesting business opportunity here for someone to invest in the technology to safely repair some of the many thousands of near-perfect tyres which are condemned to the scrapheap every year as a result of minor punctures near the tread edge. Note: I am not advocating repairing sidewall damage (although even that may well be possible with the right techniques and equipment - within limits, obviously). But I am interested in the possibility of effectively turning out a repair that's "as good as new" - and, incidentally, far better and safer than the mushroom plug that is currently the norm for allowable repairs.
Meanwhile: like everyone else I guess I'll end up paying up and cursing my luck
