Flip Flop Rider

really just a rant but, 2 new michelin tubes. 1 failed before the ride, the other at mile 16. Both where the stem attaches

had probably been over year with no flats, so guess I'm due

you got tube recommendations?

thanks

Eric F 

These things are rarely tube issues. If the punctures were in the same spot, I suspect there's an issue with the rim. In your case, check the stem hole for anything sharp or unusual. Sometimes, the rim tape will shift a little when you're putting things back together, and expose a sharp edge that cuts the tube at the base of the stem.

70sSanO

Lol! Can’t help you on that one. I only buy Michelin Airstop butyl because they have held up better than anything else I’ve used.

John

Flip Flop Rider

will check thanks!

cyccommute 

Stem failures are due to user error more often then not. Are you using a handheld mini-pump or frame pump? Pumping at 90° to the stem can often put stress on the tube connection, especially if you have to pump a whole lot like you do with many mini-pumps. A floor pump at home greatly reduces the stress on the stem. A pump like the Topeak Morphs does the same on the road.

Gresp15C

Agreed, and I think the hose is the key. The last mini-pump I bought was one that came with a little hose, for that reason. I don't have a lot of stem failures any more, but because I patch my tubes, stem failures are practically the only failure mode, so I notice them when they happen.

Troul 

a slightly too short of a stem can induce premature failure from an inflation device that has a poor connection; requiring firm force during the use of a handheld pump.

idk if it is just me, but it grinds my gears when a rum hole has sharp edges (burrs) that can cause a flat or factory debris rattling around within the double wall (that too, can cause a flat) . WTF is the QA inspection?

msu2001la

Agree with the poster above. This sounds like a rim tape issue.

alcjphil

I had a failure of a Michelin latex inner tube at the stem a couple of years ago, but that inner tube had outlasted 2 sets of tires and was well into its third when it happened.

Flip Flop Rider

I'm the user, so the error I'm sure is with me

lots of ding dings here..stem was very short on both tubes, and the pump connects at a 90 degree angle to the stem. It's a floor pump. And the rim tape is old

urbanknight

All of the suggestions above are great, but I'll add one more by asking how old are the tires? I always start to get frequent flats when a tire starts to wear thin and lose its puncture resistance.

wolfchild

I've noticed that there is a difference in quality between different brands of tubes...One time I bought a couple of very cheap tubes, they cost $ 2.99 and everyone of them failed while brand new while I was inflating it...This never happened to me with more expensive brands of tubes.

wolfchild

Sometimes stem failures or tube failures happen because of very poor quality control and they come defective from the factory.

bruce19

I've given up on tubes. More trouble than they're worth. The other day I changed a tube for a friend. As I was tightening it the stem just snapped off in my hand. WTF. I've got 3 years on tubeless and no flats or hassles.

Toadmeister

The #2 cause of flats is the first flat you had just fixed.

cyccommute 

Sometimes. But more often than not, it’s a user error problem.

Flip Flop Rider

put on new rim tape. Very lightly sanded the edges of the hole. New tubes coming in the mail tomorrow

while I've got you here, the tires are 26x1.50 Schwalbe marathons. Tubes were sized 1.0-1.5

rims are from 1994

thanks again guys

terrymorse 

I have questions:

1. You were tightening the valve stem?
2. The stem broke in two, or
3. The stem broke away from the tube, in one piece?

ofajen

Are you using Presta valve tubes in rims with the wider 10mm hole for Schrader valves? That might increase the likelihood of failure. Some of my 26er wheels use Schrader rims and I added those little adapters made by Wheels Mfg. That seems to reduce the chance of a sharp edge damaging a tube.

Otto

urbanknight

My guess is the nut that holds the stem in place, but that just goes back to the user error comment because it should never be that tight (and is not really needed at all).

rsbob 

Who you calling a ‘rum hole’ buddy!? And I believe you need a different forum to discuss the, ‘premature failure (of) an inflation device’.

bruce19

Valve core actually. Broke off in my fingers as I was tightening it down. It hadn't fully seated. I've never had that happen in 40 yrs of cycling.

urbanknight

Couldn't that happen on a tubeless setup as well? (Seriously asking because I have yet to use tubeless, but they still have a presta stem, no?)

bruce19

I don't know. Although the stem/valve core are not a part of the tube with tubeless. And. as I'm sure you know, not all tubes are of equal quality.

terrymorse 

Ooh, that's nasty.

I've never thought of that failure mode from CO2 inflation, but it makes sense.

I try to position the cartridge vertically, with the nozzle at the top. That reduces the chance that liquid CO2 gets squirted into the tube, where it then can evaporate (and make stuff really cold).

At least I think that helps.