rydabent

After having a couple of flats I wanted to buy a couple of new 20 x 1.5/1.75 presta tubes. My LBS was out of stock.

Then yesterday I went back to buy a couple of 20 inch 1.75 Schwalbe Marathon tires. They too were out of stock. Well my LBS did have one. So I was forced to buy two of the the heavier Schwalbe Marathon Plus tires. The owner of the LBS sold them to me for the price of the plain Marathons, saving me $20. Great guy.

I wonder when this shortage is going to be over?

10 Wheels

You needed TUBES, But bought TIRES?
buy new 20 x 1.5/1.75 presta tubes - Google Search

Phil_gretz

I wouldn't call tubes for 20" wheels common. Folding bike sales represent ~0.6% of the global bicycle market in the year 2018 (for which I could find data). I would imagine that recumbent bikes take a similar market share at best, so we're talking 1 - 2 % of the market. A fringe item.

My go-to on-line retailers (TreeFort and BikeTiresDirect) - don't have stock in 20" tubes at present. So, that's fair. But eBay has plenty available in both Presta and Schrader valves. So, there's that...

icemilkcoffee 

That is far from a common item. 20" is usually reserved for BMX. BMX riders do not use Schwalbe Marathons.

GlennR

There's plenty of 700c tires and tubes available.

When you ride a less popular size, availability is always an issue.

mstateglfr 

You said you dont ride unless its 65deg or warmer. You havent ridden in weeks and wont ride for months. Why the rush to buy some tires that are an uncommon size?
...i assume you shop at a bent-centric store since they had Marathon tires in 20" even in stock.

aplcr0331

I was looking at a bike rack at REI and noticed they have quite a few tires and tubes, if there's one near you check it out.

DrIsotope

Try shopping for something proprietary-- the seatpost clamp on my Cervelo stripped out. The part is out of stock globally, with no estimated date of new stock. I am fortunate enough to have the means and machines to fit it myself.

Broke the fence lock on my JET table saw a few weeks ago-- same story. Again, fixed it myself. So it's definitely not just bike stuff. The slowdowns in the supply chains are spreading out like ripples.

aclinjury

700c Conti and Vittoria lightweight inner tubes that used to be had for well under $3 a piece when bought in bulk, is no more

Koyote

”bent-centric store” sounds kinky.

Regarding bike parts shortages: I started stocking up on tires and chains back when toilet paper was scarce. I mean, it’s all going to get used eventually anyway, so I figured I might as well have it in the garage, just in case.

veganbikes

Good to have another parts shortage thread. We hadn't discussed the topic in so long.

Things are going to be out of stock for a while. Bikes are a boomin' if you haven't yet gotten the memo here you go. When things finally cool down and we figure out the new normal, we will start seeing parts coming back but that could take quite a while.

jay4usc

you know you can buy tires and tubes from the internet and you can have them delivered within 5 days

rydabent

Apparently you are unfamiliar with the size wheels most adult tadpole trikes use. Besides that this shop is a recumbent dealer mainly.

rydabent

Apparently you too are unfamiliar with the size of wheels tadpole trikes have.

Koyote

And tadpole trikes are not common.

rydabent

Actually I rode a week and a day ago.

The they are a Christmas gift. Over the winter I completely recon my bike and trike so they are ready for summer riding. For that reason, I have never had to walk home or call for a ride. Proper preventive maintenance precludes problems.

rydabent

I prefer to support my local bike shop when ever possible.

rydabent

Actually they are the hot item among older cyclist that want comfort and ease of use. Dont believe me, Google recumbent rallies, and most now have shifted over to recumbent trikes.

BTW even before bike sales got hot by middle and late summer, my LBS was having trouble keeping trikes in stock.

mstateglfr 

Well I heard that alliteration almost always allows all alcoholics allergic alternatives.

Koyote

And tadpole trikes are not common.

rydabent

I dug up that old say about proper preventative maintenance precluding problems from my old job. I was an IBM tech, and we used to tease each other about call backs when a machine wasnt fixed the first time.

icemilkcoffee 

It's probably a realization that recumbent bikes simply do not work well. They are awkward at low speed with a lot of turning radius limitations.
The idea is great. Who doesn't want a bike that's comfortable like an easy chair? Too bad the physics of it never works out.

79pmooney

There's a world-wide pandemic happening right now. Those tubes were probably made in an Asian country by labor that is paid poorly BUT in countries that are doing (in general) far better jobs of keeping this pandemic at manageable levels. To do that, I suspect more than one or two low paid workers are not working, tightening their belts and sucking it up. We complain because we cannot get the stuff we need to go on with life like nothing's wrong. (After all, our Declaration of Independence grants us Liberty, Pursuit of Happiness (and if doesn't cost us too much, lives.)

Let's celebrate the legacy of this country - inventive tinkerers. We had bicycle mechanics who figured out flight. I suspect most of us forumites can struggle through this pandemic with what we've got if we are inventive. And yes, there will be all sorts of creative ways to "get what we need", just like there were in WW2, the Great Depression, etc. Like those eras, we will be telling stories at cocktail hours that our kids will get tired of and our grand kids will flat out not understand. But let's be big, suck it up and not complain.

Ben

Phil_gretz

I stand by what I said. The recumbent trike market is said to be "a niche within a niche", said an industry insider when interviewed about total recumbent sales worldwide. The 1-2% total figure is about right for folding plus recumbent bikes as a fraction of bicycle sales for 2018. I was, however, unaware of the BMX use of the 20" wheel. Unfortunately, BMX accounts for less than half of the folding bike market globally (2018). So, generously, folders, trikes and BMX is maybe 2% of total global sales. That right there is a niche.

Why don't you understand what I said?

Gresp15C

20 inch is a common size for Kids bikes, just get Schrader and drill out the rims.