When do you deal with a puncture?

[Landsurfer]

Well ... tempting fate i know ...
I use Schwalbe Marathon and Vittoria Radonneur tyres on all my bikes, 700 x 28c ....
Here we go .... I've not had a puncture in 4587 miles .... quite a while ....
I ride on gravel paths as well as tarmac on a daily basis ...
So, how do I deal with a puncture ...
Luckily i don't ....

 

[Ajax Bay]

it’s easy to lose the dust cap or metal ring (from the inner tube valve) in the long grass of verges.

OT. So put them both in the bin in the first place: they are unnecessary / have no useful function. Nothing to lose then.
ETA: Confess I keep the dust cap on the spare tube(s) to remove the risk of damage to the rolled tube by the tip of the Presta valve. It's transferred to the valve of the punctured tube before rolling and stowing.

 

[Ming the Merciless]

OT. So put them both in the bin in the first place: they are unnecessary / have no useful function. Nothing to lose then.
ETA: Confess I keep the dust cap on the spare tube(s) to remove the risk of damage to the rolled tube by the tip of the Presta valve. It's transferred to the valve of the punctured tube before rolling and stowing.

Disagree but no need to discuss why. We each have our reasons.

 

[PaulSB]

@FitMum thought of this thread today when I was sorting out spare tubes.

A good tip is to cover your spare tubes in talc. This will make it much easier to slip both the tube and in particular the tyre back on after replacement.

My routine is to unpack and unroll the tube. Save the rubber band. Cover tube in talc, roll up tightly, secure with rubber band, wrap in newspaper and then cling film.

It works.

 

[FitMum]

Don't worry - I'd dragged the subject off topic. @Sharky was responding to my question about the complexity of fixing tubular tyres, which are specialist racing tyres, and a bit olde fangled.

Normal (clincher) tyres aren't a terrible problem to fix. Annoying maybe, but ok as long as you have the right bits with you and you've practiced it beforehand!

Relieved ;-)

 

[Ajax Bay]

it is invaluable to practice the puncture repair process at home, using the kit you will carry with you when out on the bike, BEFORE you have a real puncture.

makes so much sense to practise before

So have you taken a (front) wheel off then its tyre off, and then put it back on yet @FitMum ?

 

[rogerzilla]

Fun one last night. Rear tube blew with a big hiss 45 miles into a 55 mile ride. Tyre had a decent-sized hole just above the bead - the tube had bulged out and eventually popped. Oh dear.

Weirdly, I found a Park tyre boot in my rummagings last weekend and, for the first time in 15 years, happened to take it along.

So...flip bike over on grass, remove rear wheel, pull tyre off (I don't normally need levers), fit boot, blow a bit of air into new tube by mouth, fit tyre and tube to wheel, attach CO2 inflator, allow a bit of gas in to check boot isn't messing up seating, allow rest of gas in, refit wheel, chuck old tube and canister in nearby bin, ride home. The tyre is scrap but it all worked.

 

[MichaelW2]

If it is dry, I fix punctures the old way with patches and rubber cement. If wet I’ll put a spare tube in.

For the majority of riders who carry spare inner tubes, they are the first resort. The patch kit only comes out when you are out of spare inners. It is just easier to fix inners in the comfort of your home, hotel or campsite.

 

[Sharky]

I must be in the minority. Using a new inner is for me a last resort. The security of having a sound new tube in the saddle bag is comforting for the rest of the ride. If I can see the hole in the punctured tube, I would always repair if I can and continue the journey.

Although I always try and find the cause, sometimes you don't or if you had a double thorn in the tyre. Using a new tube straight away could be another fail in a very short time and then I would be left with two tubes, both in need of repair.

 

[rrarider]

For the majority of riders who carry spare inner tubes, they are the first resort. The patch kit only comes out when you are out of spare inners. It is just easier to fix inners in the comfort of your home, hotel or campsite.

I agree that fitting a spare tube is the best and quickest thing to do. Repairing the punctured tube at home and at leisure is much less stressful. Having done this, I then take off the spare tube fitted on the road and replace it with the one I've repaired at home. If it holds air for a few minutes, then I leave it on the bike and roll up the spare tube fitted on the road, and put it back in the bag on the bike.

This way I know that I have an airtight tube available in case of another puncture on the road. Who would want the first test of a repaired tube to be conducted out on the road?

 

[IanSmithCSE]

I almost wonder if am being a bit over organised as my routine is :-)

1) Locate the puncture with the valve still stuck through the rim, this gives a very precise match of the puncture to the tyre.

2) Put rubber solution on the inner tube and remove it from the wheel, pump it up a bit to get a white area in the solution where the air passes through it so I get get the patch centred.

3) Put in a replacement tube, re-seat the tyre and pump it up. I have small Wilko pump that gets a 700x25 up to pressure pretty quickly, no gas canisters.

4) By this time the solution has almost dried so a patch can be applied, the tube rolled up and put away.

5) Ride on.

This means that the patch has time to set if I get another puncture, or two (if I have 2 spare tubes) and need to use the tube again.

6) Back home take the repaired tube out, put in some air and leave for a day of two to check for leaks.

However I find that most repairs have a limited lifetime of a few months as the hole in the tube grows until it is about 4-5mm long and the patch no longer seals.

I envy those puncture free people, but most of mine are pinch flats, (I ride 25mm tyres so I accept that a few punctures are inevitable) except last Saturday.

There was a small tear in the tyre just above the bead. Very difficult to see and only located after the 3rd puncture gave me a hint to pay a bit more attention, helpfully using my biggest patch on the inside of the tyre lasted long enough to get home. Kits no longer seem to include the bit of cloth that they used to.

 

[rogerzilla]

A double-thickness piece of crisp packet works in a pinch, but may be hard to trim to size. Cardboard only works for a few miles, then it shreds, although it is easy to tear to size. A literal fag-packet repair got me within walking distance of home once, when I couldn't find any better-quality litter. The new polymer fivers are probably very good.

 

[FitMum]

So have you taken a (front) wheel off then its tyre off, and then put it back on yet @FitMum ?

Nope.... left it to my hubby....I know I know ....

 

[vickster]

Nope.... left it to my hubby....I know I know ....

Men don’t have many uses, so may as well exploit the ones they do...

 

[I like Skol]

Putting the bins out, fueling up the car and..... Can't think of any more