Does Anyone Patch Tubes Anymore?
#51
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Eagle and order of the Arrow...and my dad was the first silver beaver award for leadership in montana
but I have had cases where I used both spares and then had to patch. I never used to use C02....but pumping a tire and then having to repump after the valve failed on a 105 day lead me to Co2
I also carry spare valves and valve tool
but I have had cases where I used both spares and then had to patch. I never used to use C02....but pumping a tire and then having to repump after the valve failed on a 105 day lead me to Co2
I also carry spare valves and valve tool
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#52
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#53
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#54
Junior Member
Patch kits are super cheap. I also patched a pinhole in a TPU tube using their supplied patch kit (RideNow).
#55
Junior Member
I use those peel and stick, find it helps to clean the area with alcohol before applying the patch.
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#57
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#58
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#59
Must be symmetrical
I don't patch - I replace. However, everybody knows that some patch and some don't, so I'll try adding something of value to the discussion:
If you don't definitively locate the source of a puncture and remove it, you need to accept the possibility that a sharp bit is still stuck in the wheel and may flat you again. Heck, even if you find and remove a shard, there might be more. Every time that happens, I would suggest slapping a dollar bill sized patch around the area to protect your new tube/new patch for awhile - even if the tire looks fine. You can always remove it later. I don't have any great suggestions about what might be the best material to use, but I suppose anything is better than nothing.
If you don't definitively locate the source of a puncture and remove it, you need to accept the possibility that a sharp bit is still stuck in the wheel and may flat you again. Heck, even if you find and remove a shard, there might be more. Every time that happens, I would suggest slapping a dollar bill sized patch around the area to protect your new tube/new patch for awhile - even if the tire looks fine. You can always remove it later. I don't have any great suggestions about what might be the best material to use, but I suppose anything is better than nothing.
You are joking right?
So i will suggest that you should just go ahead and replace the tire and tube after the flat, since might as well address all the possibilities and produce as much landfill as possible in the process.
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i patch, but as noted I only use Rema patch kits....I have tried other kits and the peel and stick patches and nothing works as well
IMHO silly economy to try anything else like contact cement and bits of rubber
I also have had better luck with quality tubes than cheapies
FWIW I carry 2 tubes, patch kit, co2 and a pump.
IMHO silly economy to try anything else like contact cement and bits of rubber
I also have had better luck with quality tubes than cheapies
FWIW I carry 2 tubes, patch kit, co2 and a pump.
I don't carry a spare left crankarm and bolt, though I did see one fall off a bike at PBP last year
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#61
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I use the glueless patches. If done right they last a long time. I have one tire that has a glueless patch that must be 3 years old this year. I wont trash a tube unless it has about 3 patches.
It depends on where I am at, if I patch on the spot, or put in a new tube, and patch at home.
It depends on where I am at, if I patch on the spot, or put in a new tube, and patch at home.
#62
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I carry two tubes and a patch kit and a pump.
#63
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Yes, I patch a lot. I save my punctured tubes into a batch and patch them all once or twice a year. I like Rema patches best, but no-name patches that look similar are OK. I found out the hard way that Rema vulcanizing fluid is far better than anything else, so it's the only thing I use. I tried rubber cement, and it's not very good. I'm sure it's been years since I patched on the road, but I still carry a patch kit when I ride, on the off chance I get two flats. I normally carry one spare tube. In that patch kit is a little squeeze tube of vulcanizing fluid. At home, I patch with a can of the stuff, and the can has a brush built into the cap. I avoid opening the squeeze tube, because once it is open, the remaining liquid dries out after a few months.
Some people have succeeded in patching their tubes many times. For some reason, the most I've had on a tube is eight patches. After that, something goes wrong, such as a hole near the valve stem or a big rip in the tube. Still, that's pretty good.
Some people have succeeded in patching their tubes many times. For some reason, the most I've had on a tube is eight patches. After that, something goes wrong, such as a hole near the valve stem or a big rip in the tube. Still, that's pretty good.
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#65
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You might be riding with too-low pressure if that happens to you. I've been riding for a lifetime, and I've never pinch-flatted two tires at once, and when it did happen to one tire, I blame myself.
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#66
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Pinch flats are a symptom, not a problem. Yea, the tire goes flat but if you have put the proper amount of air in the tire to prevent the tire from bottoming out on the rim, pinch flats aren’t a problem. Tubeless users make the mistake of saying that they can’t experience pinch flat, which is true. But if you run too low a pressure, the tire can still bottom out on the rim and, instead of pinching the tube, the rim gets bent. Now you’ve traded a 25¢ problem for a $200 problem.
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#67
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Pinch flats are a symptom, not a problem. Yea, the tire goes flat but if you have put the proper amount of air in the tire to prevent the tire from bottoming out on the rim, pinch flats aren’t a problem. Tubeless users make the mistake of saying that they can’t experience pinch flat, which is true. But if you run too low a pressure, the tire can still bottom out on the rim and, instead of pinching the tube, the rim gets bent. Now you’ve traded a 25¢ problem for a $200 problem.
#68
Newbie
My punctures almost exclusively come from thorns and sharp stones and stone chips, because I go from pavement to dirt with reckless abandon.
#69
Senior Member
I used to patch out on the road but now just carry two spares. I bought a box of Rema patches and a can of Rema cement and I'll just patch them in batches at home. It's lasted me many years already. Those tiny tubes in the patch kits always dry out once opened.
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#70
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I quit carrying a patch kit and now just carry a single spare tube. I leave the patching till I get home. And yes, I have carried my bike over my shoulder quite a few miles when I failed to find the culprit in the tire that caused the first flat.
#71
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I didn't say I'd done it, just that it could happen. TBH I don't recall using both spares in a single ride, other than giving them to less prepared clubmates. I have had a snakebite or two, probably from running too little air or mis-timing a kerb, so mea culpa.
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#72
Senior Member
I usually patch and keep the spare tube in case I have another puncture that is not repairable with a patch. The exception is when I'm commuting to work. If I puncture when commuting, I replace the tube and patch it later at home to avoid arriving late.
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I patch, but change the tube on the trail. Patch at home, reinstall the old tube and fold the new and stow for the next event.
If I e=get another puncture the same day, I haven't so far, I repair the old tube and then replace the punctured tube.;
It works for me but YMMV.
If I e=get another puncture the same day, I haven't so far, I repair the old tube and then replace the punctured tube.;
It works for me but YMMV.
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#74
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Adding to this thread, I ride 3 different tire sizes regularly, swapping one bike for another. My wife rides another fourth size, and I am normally expected to provide service. When I still tried to carry a spare tube, it usually turned out to be the wrong size. For me, carrying tubes makes no sense. The pump and patch kit are always the same .
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#75
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Interesting read! I use whatever off-brand stick-em-on patches if it's a small hole while I'm out on a ride. I do carry a spare tube but if a patch gets me home then I still have the tube if something worse happens during the ride. The intention is to replace the tube when I get home - which I never do. Probably have tubes that have been on a patch for years and no problems.