Originally Posted by
79pmooney
I am on fixed income. Money spent on tubes could buy me something more permanent or better food or simply be kept in the bank. Tubes cost $5-6 each. Patches 25 cents each. A good patch job is permanent. Patches cannot be seen and weight very little so riding on them isn't an issue. So I see absolutely no reason not to keep patching tubes until they no longer work. I've tosses tubes from valve stem area failures and other un-patchable events with as many as 8 patches already. By my simple math, that is $38 I didn't spend. Or about 7 tubes I didn't put in the landfill.
Works for me. If the patch holds, then the tube is equivalent to a new tube.
Install the patched tube in a wheel at home to make sure it holds for a day, before using it.
I take 2 spare tubes on rides, and patch the flat later at home.