old bones

used a cartridge for the first time. i tried slow the wheel must not have properly seated, the tube bilged out and way more gas went in and bang. cool that was pretty loud. walk to bike store.

any methodology tips for the uninitiated

2manybikes

The tube was probably pinched between the bead of the tire and the wheel. Or as you say the tire needs to be seated properly. Neither of those are cartridge specific problems. Fill the tire slowly and check the bead as you go. Check it with a pressure gauge if there is any question.

Find the Innovations tire size and cartridge size chart on line. Follow the recommendations. You don't want to use too big a cartridge for the wrong size tire. This could also unseat the tire from the wheel. Practice at home a few times.

old bones

thanks for reply. like portability and high pressure capablity of cartride, just want to be able to rely on it.
slow and check tire seating carefully seems to be the word. will check cartride compatibility for 27" tube

DieselDan

My method, which some will say is cumbersome, is to seat the tire with a mini-pump, then finish with a 12g cartridge in a 700c x 23 tire. This allows me to safely get started, then finish the job quickly. I do use the samller cartridge. I had the same bad experence, only I was holding the wheel in my hand when the tire blew off!

Also, carrying a mini pump allows you to limp home, or to the shop, by inflating a patched tube, or new tube, when you run out of CO2 or screw up using it.

old bones

thanks for reply. minipump then cartridge sounds like good method. the more i think about it , as you listed, there's a number of good reasons to keep a small pump along.

supcom

If you are using old 27 inch rims, they may not be hook rims. If so, you need to be very careful using CO2 because the tire bead can easily slip off the rim at pressures over 80 psi or so. Also, even with a hooked rim, if your tire has a loose fit (goes on nice and easy) you have to be very careful to make sure it's properly seated all around on both sides before using CO2.

I carry a pump as well as CO2. I use the pump first to make sure the tire is properly seated. Once it gets hard to pump, I use the CO2 to finish the job and get full pressure.

2manybikes

This is EXACTLY what I do too.

Well...not the exploding tire in the hand trick.

Caution: The co2 carts don't work below freezing and get weak when it gets close to freezing. If you are in a bind in the cold get everything ready, keep the cartridge under you clothes until it gets warm, then quickly fill the tire as fast as you can before the cartridge gets too cold. Even keep your hands on it until you start to fill the tire.

Also after keeping cartridges in your seat pack for two years throw them out and get new ones, they may be empty by then.

Brian

Never had one leak. Sounds like most of you suggest carrying a pump and CO2 and a patch kit and maybe a spare tube. Seems like at least one item is a bit redundant...

berny

..........and I got a little compressor, a hoist, three spare tyres (round my neck) a nut rattler gun........

Brian

Is that what you call an aluminium road bike?

2manybikes

You may never have one leak. But there is no way to tell if a three year old cartridge has leaked or not untill you try it. I have had all three cartridges be empty after three years in the seat pack. So for the price I just think it's convenient to replace them every two years. When I'm 55 miles from home I want to fill the tires right to the maximum, not just enough to get home. 120-130 psi is a pain with any pump.

I really don't need the cartridges with a pump, but it's very convenient, and I do an over 100 mile ride and another 75 or so every week, so I spend a lot of time in the dark a long way from anything. It's a luxury that makes a flat much easier. I still only get one or no flats in a year. But it seems like everyone else does, and guess who is the one that is prepared?

It's a LOT nicer when your friends need inflation after dark. Or in the rain or cold.

Faust

Just spoke with customer service at innovationsaz.com. They said that the CO2 cartridges will last just about forever if they have not been punctured. If the cartridge has been punctured, and not fully expended, it will still last for 6-8 weeks when left in the pump.

Apparently there is no reason to replace cartridges if they have been stored at home or in your saddle bag.

old bones

thanks once again finally for all replies and suggestions

and next time ill wear hearing protection

Brian

I think only the old BB gun style ones have the potential to leak, as they have some kind of pressed on crown. The GI ones don't.

berny

That's one of the reasons I DON'T carry a pump. I used carry a very nice, folding 'T' handle, folding footrest pump good for 120psi but everywhere I rode I would be pumping up other peoples tyres

Now with catriges I can answer the "do yopu have a pump?" question with an honnest "no"

operator

Next time you get a flat, your co2 won't be enough then you'll be stranded...

electronic stev

hey u losers

Atomic Aaron

Hey Hu U Calling A Nerd

2manybikes

I guess I'll be asking- Can you inflate this tire somehow?

2manybikes

You have never worked in customer service have you?

John E

I carry a conventional long frame-fit pump, either Zefal HP-X or Blackburn, on each road bike and a short pump on the mountain bike and the UO-8, both of which take 65 to 70 PSI instead of 100 or so. I like the control I get with manual inflation, appreciate the economy, efficiency, environmentalism, and reliability of a pump, and have yet to perceive any tangible benefit of CO2 cartridges.

Faust

A full 16 gram cartridge weighs 56 grams, and an empty one weighs 43 grams. An inexpensive postal scale can easily measure these weights, as I have done with mine.

2manybikes, as an applications engineering manager I have worked with numerous customers regarding engineering problems. This does not change the fact, and has little to do with the fact that it can be easily determined whether a CO2 cartridge is fully charged. Thanks for your response, though....it did encourage me to find a means of determing the charge state of a CO2 cartridge!