Puncture repairs

[ebikeerwidnes]

Hello all
just a proper follow on to something I posted on the Retirement Thread
Anyway - to my annoyance the LBS helped me out by replacing my front tyre while they had the bike for something else
The price was cheap but I prefer to choose my own tyres - they had used a Schwalbe - but not a Marathon as I normally use

Anyway - naturlaly a few weeks later I got a puncture in it - OK as I just changed the inner tube
but when I got home I was faced with fixing the hole in the old tube

ANyway - to the point (at last the cry!)
In the old days I used to have a tube of rubber solution and a box of rubber patches
I just cleaned up the area round the hole - covered the area with rubber solution and put the patch on it
a minute or so later and it was sealed

WHen I started cycling more reguarly again I got a puncture repair kit and it was as I remembered.
but when I started to run out of patches and rubber solution I did what I have always done and got bigger tube of solution
and a larger sheet of patches
only the patches were rubbish. They have orange edges which are extremly fragile and rip very easily and hence are almost impossible to get of their backing

every shop I go to seems to only have the very small full kits - or self adhesive patches

now self adhesive patches seem the best way to go
But i have tried 2 brands and none of them seem to work for any length of time

In this case I had loads of time so I stuck the self adhesive patch on and held it on under light pressure using a g-clamp - for a couple of hours

this morning it was flat again




so - the question
finally
are there better quality self adhesive patches around - and if so what brand/version

and

are there any old fashions patches that are designed to work with rubber solution and are string enough to come off their backing without ripping???


Thanks

Mike

 

[IrishAl]

Watching this with interest. I’ve been suffering for a while with the exact same issue. As you say the self-adhesive patches are next to useless and it seems the rubber solution and traditional patch is no longer as sticky as it once was back in the day.

Photo of my bike last weekend when I suffered a puncture and the spare (repaired tube) went soft within a minute so the phone call of shame looking for a lift home had to be made. Thats me indebted for another while. 😂

 

[cyberknight]

https://www.wilcodirect.co.uk/product/puncture-repair/patch-strip-we-04001/WE-04001

 

[cyberknight]

https://www.wilcodirect.co.uk/product/puncture-repair/rubber-solution-tube-15g-we-02022/WE-02022

 

[cyberknight]

i have also noticed that inner tubes now have more pronounced ridges on them to make it harder to mend the puncture , i have thrown away 2-3 this year as the patch cant stick down properly unless i sand the tube down enough which might make it weak ?

 

[roubaixtuesday]

It still works just as it did bitd.

The orange edged patches are best IMO.

You don't need to take the backing off both sides, simply take off the foil backing and press on firmly with the other backing still on. You can take it off later when the glue is fully dry.

Sanding down the tube very well beforehand is essential.

I've done about ten this way on tour this year without a failure.

 

[theloafer]

found these good ... no probs the last year of use https://uk.slime.com/products/bike/tools-accessories/tube-liners-skabs/1-skabs.php

 

[ebikeerwidnes]

It still works just as it did bitd.

The orange edged patches are best IMO.

You don't need to take the backing off both sides, simply take off the foil backing and press on firmly with the other backing still on. You can take it off later when the glue is fully dry.

Sanding down the tube very well beforehand is essential.

I've done about ten this way on tour this year without a failure.

I think the ones I got might have been a cheap version then!

 

[ebikeerwidnes]

https://www.wilcodirect.co.uk/product/puncture-repair/patch-strip-we-04001/WE-04001

Thanks
That looks the very thing!

 

[presta]

I always use the Weldtite sheets that you cut to the size you want, but I've never had any problems with individual patches either. I keep a few patches already cut to size along with a bigger bit that I can use as needed. It tears easily with your fingers, you don't need to carry a pair of scissors. The pieces I use are much smaller than patches you buy: about 11-12mm square.

I don't recognise the problems people say they have with getting them to stick, I suspect it's poor preparation. You need to make sure the tube is adequately roughened with the mould flash completely removed, that you keep it clean of dirt & grease: no fingers on it, use fresh solution that's not going off, don't use too much, and make sure that you leave it to go tacky before putting the patch on. I've only had one patch lift, ever, and that was one that had been on for donkey's years, not a new one. Don't pressurise the tube until it's back in the tyre, the air you need to give it shape for installation isn't any more than you can blow in with your mouth.

I always patch my tubes as punctures happen, at the side of the road, because I don't want to get lumbered with two punctured tubes, and rain preventing me from getting a patch to stick. I don't throw tubes away unless there's no more room left to get patches on them.

I switched to using a small wire brush for roughening the tube a long while ago, but that was nothing to do with reliability, I stopped using the scrap of sandpaper because I started riding in more remote areas and didn't want to risk it getting blown away on the wind.

 

[fossyant]

Don't know what you are moaning about. Blob glue on, let dry, shove patch on. Simple or use a Park glueless patch.

 

[Dogtrousers]

I only use self adhesives for on-road repairs, if I've punctured both my spares. I can only remember doing it once. I used "skabs" patches. It worked OK. I've given away packets of Skabs patches to stranded riders in the past and none of them have tried to hunt me down and kill me (that I know of). So I guess they must be OK.

As to getting patches for use with glue I've never had a problem. I don't know where I get them from ... they just sort of breed in my cycling junk boxes.

 

[Yellow Saddle]

Ditch teh self-adhesive patches and use those fragile, feathered patches, but modify your technique.

Put the new patch, foil-side down, on a flat surface. Take a sharp knife and hold the blade, edge-down on the plastic covering. Push down. You will feel a slight popping as the knife bursts the plastic film. Stop. You will notice that the knife has not penetrated the rubber since that gives. Only the film is severed. Do this again at 90 degrees from the original cut so that you have a criss-cross cut in the film.

Now fit your patch as usual and wait a few mintues for the patch to adhere. Press and massage it all over so that you get a good bond. Now, fold the patched area between your fingers to stretch the film. Peel the film away from the centre outwards where it has been cut, being careful to not put tension on the feathered edge - always pulling away from the patch. Voila!

Alternatively, just leave the scored plastic film on the patch and fit the tube.

Feathered patches are infiniteldy better than square-edged ones. It just takes practice. Two brands stand out in quality: Maruni and Rema. Some of my tubes have ten or more patches.

 

[ianrauk]

Park Tool Blue patches have never failed me. One patched tube still holding over 2 years later.

 

[a.twiddler]

The Skabs look good but I've had no problems getting a patch to stick. Since punctures are like buses -none for ages then several in a short space of time, my problem has been finding that my rubber solution has evaporated if I have a tube that's been opened a while ago. I used to buy a fresh puncture outfit just for the glue, and make sure that I had an unopened tube along with one that had been opened. Since I found that you can buy rubber solution online separately that's not been a problem since.

One suggestion to prevent drying out has been to open the glue at the "wrong" end and thoroughly re crimp it after use. It seems to work, but I still like to carry an unopened one with me.

The mini wire brush idea is good.

I suspect that I've got sets of puncture repair patches far older than the nominal four years that Skabs guarantee their stickiness for. One doesn't wish for punctures so that you can use up your stock of patches before therir stickiness runs out, no matter how convenient they are.
Obviously, I don't ride enough!