Emergency Puncture Repair with Sealant
 

Does anyone know of a sealant-based puncture repair kit that's compact enough fit in a small saddle bag? Something you can use to fix a puncture long enough to get you home?

I really could have used one last Friday. I flatted while descending Mount Hamilton Road, about 12 miles from the bottom. I tried replacing the tube, but since the tire is extremely hard to install, I ended up pinching the spare tube. With no cell phone coverage, I was stuck there until some good Samaritan passed by and picked me up in his car.

If only I had a small sealant repair kit, I almost certainly could have fixed the original puncture and made it back to the bottom.

Searching online, I found this GUP combination sealant and inflator, but it's quite large, and I already carry a CO2 inflator.

The Slime company says it takes about 3 ounces of their sealant to repair a road tube, but their smallest container is 8 ounces. Too big for my saddle bag.

Any others?

Odd that there doesn't seem to be a smaller sealant container.

I think that most people are using sealant in their tubeless tires, so I don't find it all that odd.

In any event, 3oz is a lot - it's about twice what I'd use in my 28mm tires, so you can certainly get away with smaller. Also keep in mind that you'll want to be using tubes with removable valve cores, or things are going to get messy and gummy pretty quick. Aaaand one other thing: co2 and sealant often don't play well together, so at the very least, you'll want to rotate your tire so that the sealant is well away from the valve when you blast it.

I carry this but it's probably a little too big for a saddle bag. Slightly longer than a folded 700c tube but much thinner - the 80ml size.

https://www.wiggle.com/lifeline-tubeless-tire-sealant/

Stan's also has this small size bottle it's slightly larger than a CO2 cartridge.: https://www.jensonusa.com/Stans-No-T...2-Ounce-Bottle

You should also get one of these: https://www.wiggle.com/lifeline-tubeless-repair-kit/

ETA: Wait did you puncture your tubeless tire, the puncture didn't seal and then you pinched the tube? Or did you flat a tube and then pinch the replacement tube? Because the second scenario needs a patch kit not a tubeless sealant kit.

Thanks, I'll go with a 2oz bottle to start with. Trying Slime at first, since it reportedly is more stable over time than the latex sealants. We'll see.

I found this 2oz squeeze bottle with a narrow dripper cap that I hope will fit inside the valve stem. I can increase the cap's hole diameter to allow more flow out of the bottle (probably). The sturdy screw-on cover should help it survive the rough life inside a saddle bag:

https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...b100949c5c.png

Only tubes with removable valve cores, got it.

Sealant probably freezes in the cold temperatures. Slime claims their sealant is CO₂ friendly, but we'll see.

It wasn't a tubeless tire. The tube punctured, then I pinched the replacement tube (no patch kit).

Why do you want to use sealant instead of a patch kit? Sealant is at best, inconsistent, in sealing tubes.

Additionally the bottle you linked will not work very well with sealant as the opening is not wide enough to allow the coagulants to flow properly. Buy the Stan's bottle, you can refill and it works fine. You either want the injector to be wide enough to go over the valve stem or have a rounded end to fit right against the opening and shoot it in that way. Anything that fits inside the stem isn't going to be wide enough to properly inject any worthwhile sealant as they will plug the smaller hole. Those sorts of bottles are also low-quality and almost always leak, especially after the top has been removed a few times. I used them for sealant and lubricant for a while before I discovered them leaking after a few weeks.

Emergency roadside repair only. The tire is extremely difficult to mount, so it's best done back at the garage.

Is this the Stan's bottle you recommend? I was considering that bottle, but I was worried the cap wouldn't stand up to saddle bag abuse:

https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...7d86fde6f6.png

EDIT: I just found these bottles. Similar to the one from Stan's, but they have a screw-on protective cap. This will be test bottle #2 :

https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...e9716a4ace.png

Ah that makes sense, I wasn't understanding your post. Yes that's the bottle that works the best. The little red cap is not that important, it should come with a pin type stopper that is much more secure - even so I've taken to using a small dab of hot glue to secure the tip. It keeps either style tip on well enough to get bounced/squeezed around but can be picked off easily with a finger nail to open.

Huh? Carry spare tube, patch kit to repair tubes and tools to unmount and mount tire... like tire levers and koolstop tire jack. What do you use in the garage?
More reliable than trying with tire sealant.
If only you could repair your own tire on the road........

Leather work gloves and muscle.

I carry one of those- refill it from a larger bottle. The small bottle comes sealed so not likely to leak.

When refilled, I put a piece of plastic film under the screw-on cap.

Why not use a different tire?

I've used Slime for tubes for that very purpose. You can pour it into a smaller bottle with a plastic nozzle and precut it if you have a tight fitting cap, or cut it to suit the valve later.

Just be sure your tube has a removable valve core and you have a good tool. For example, my Topeak RaceRocket HP and HPX claim to have valve core tools, but they're crap -- just soft plastic that won't handle a tight fitting core. My Blackburn Core Slim includes a metal valve core tool that's actually useful. I used it last night to snug down a core that unscrewed into my Topeak threaded chuck. I prefer threaded chucks for mini pumps, but you do need to check the cores on new tubes to be sure they're snug.

The one time I Slimed a tube rather than patching was over a year ago, before I got a Kool Stop bead jack. I'd just gotten a new set of Continental Ultra Sport II, which were just as tight fitting as other users reported/complained. I tried to seat the bead with tire levers and managed to pinch a hole in a new tube. I was too annoyed to change it because it was so difficult. So I Slimed the tube and ordered a bead jack that day. The Slimed tube held air for a couple of months before finally leaking all at once. Made a huge mess inside the rim. I tossed the tube because it's a huge PITA to clean up a tube so it'll hold an adhesive patch.

I'd also used puncture resistant tubes pre-filled with sealant, but had the same mess when a puncture finally occurred. The goo only slowed the puncture to a slow leak and made a huge mess.

After that I switched to Lezyne self-sticking patch kits. Got one from Mellow Johnny's to test and it worked fine. The whole patch kit -- several paper-thin patches, scuffer and tire boot printed with instructions -- all fit in a plastic envelope only slightly thicker than a credit card and half the size. I keep 'em in every saddle bag now. The Lezyne patch kits are no longer available locally, but I refill the same envelopes with MSW self-stick patches that work even better and are only slightly thicker. These are perfect for patching ultra-snug fitting road bike rims, such as using the thicker Conti Race 28 tubes in 700x23 tires on rims originally intended for 700x20 or narrower tires. Thick glued patches can be a PITA in those situations, but the thin self-sticking patches are perfect.

Get a bead jack. No more pinched tubes from using levers. Kool Stop is probably the best, but not the most compact. I just stuff it in my jersey middle pocket. Doesn't weight much, just has a long handle for leverage. It's actually functional with a shortened handle, so some folks saw it off. And when I strap a spare folding tire onto my larger saddle bag for long rides where I'm beyond Uber/Lyft range, I strap the bead jack under the saddle bag with the spare tire. I've used it twice on my own bike and another two times to assist other folks who were minimalist types -- no spare CO2, no pump, no patch kit, just one tube that they pinched trying to use their one tire lever to horse the tire over the rim. Whatever time and weight they thought they were saving was all expended in one flat, needing help from a passerby.

^ This.
I wouldn't ride on a rim / tyre combo that I knew I couldn't repair roadside.

I carry 2 spare tubes. :D

I had a tire that was a bear to replace without pinching tubes. I swapped the wheel for one that was more compatible with the tires I use (Conti 40000).

I had stock Bontragers on my ride and hated getting a flat. Much better with the replacement wheels. Some tire rim combos don't do so well together.

Then one need not worry about carrying strange stuff. :D

That is high up on my list, being able to get the tire off in the field. I don’t ride at the limit, so most tires will work for me in terms of performance, but if I can’t get home because I can’t take them off, deal breaker.

All you need is one of these, a frame pump, and some road bacon:
https://ride.lezyne.com/products/1-pk-tbls-v104

The residual sealant in the tyre should seal it up unless it is huge puncture

I'm worried about the residual road bacon...

Yeah, I'm reconsidering my tire choices. The Conti Ultra Sport II are good and cheap, but very difficult to mount barehanded. Easy with a bead jack.

But the Conti Grand Prix Classics can be remounted with just my hands, and that's with old injuries and arthritis to my wrists and thumb joints. Some days, like in winter with barometric pressure shifts, I can barely hold a coffee mug without pain. Those tires would be easy for most folks. And they look good too, true skinwalls, classic tread pattern for folks who care about that stuff. In price and performance they seem like a good compromise between the lowest priced Ultra Sport II and GP4k and GP5k high performance tires.

I've also noticed it's trickier to mount tight tires with Continental Race 28 Light tubes -- those ultra-thin, ultra-light butyl tubes. I got 'em to save space in my tiny Lezyne Road Caddy. So far no punctures. But I managed to nick one this weekend even using the Kool Stop bead jack. The tube didn't want to stay put and kept sneaking across the rim, and I pinched it with the bead jack -- first time that's happened in in more than a year of using the thing. The thicker Conti Race 28 tubes are easier to work with -- ditto any standard tubes. I doubt I'm strong enough to take advantage of the lighter tubes for everyday use, so I'll keep those as spares for my smaller saddle bags.