redbeard77

I posted this in my intro in the intro thread but I think I should post here as well if I want more people's thoughts. I'm an overweight (5'11" 250lb) rider who has recently started riding a lot more (yay weight loss, healthy life etc). I bought a bike for the first time since college about 6 months ago and started riding fairly short/daily trips to the train station (I live in a small city in Japan). About a month ago I worked up the endurance to start commuting to work (7 miles each way). Since then, I have had issues with flats. In one month I have managed to have 4 flat tires. 2 were blowouts, two were punctures. I ride a Trek 29er MTB (I grew up mountain biking and was comfortable with the brand/style). I do a good portion of my route on the sidewalk (its also the designated bike path) next to a major road because the road is not great for riding (traffic!). This means lots of bumps and ups and downs etc but I figured hey, mountain bike, there ya go. Anyway, I am wondering, does anyone know what could be causing my blowouts/me to get punctures so easily or what I can do to avoid them? If it is a result of my weight, that makes sense, but the guy at my local shop assures me that it should be fine. I have been very careful about keeping my tires pumped and none of them were pinch flats. Also, I spoke to they guy at my local and they don't seem to have heavy duty tubes or thorn resistant tubes over here so anything like that I would have to have shipped from the US and would be a significant investment therefore would definitely have to be worth the money. Any thoughts are appreciated!

dyneq

This works for me (no flats in 2 years): a puncture resistant tire (I am using Panaracer T-SERV PT, but have also used the RIBMO PT with similar results) with a regular tube.

jdfriesen

You could also pick up tires and tubes from a place like Wiggle in the UK (wiggle.co.uk). I purchased tires for my road bike from there, and I live in Canada. Assuming you meet their minimum spend, they offer free shipping. That minimum spend varies by country, but I looked it up for Japan, and it's 50 Pounds. I received my order in a week, so the shipping is free and fast. Can't really recommend a specific tire, as I don't have a MTB, but that source could certainly save you some money, and I'm sure there are other options like that.

GeraldF

You may want to lower the amount of psi/air pressure you put into the tires. From what I've read, mountain bike tires fare quite well in the 20-30 psi range, in terms of avoiding flat tires. Personally, when I had a mountain bike I would inflate to 40 psi and ride for three to four weeks. By that time the psi would be down around 20 psi (still feels somewhat firm when you pinch the tire between thumb and index finger). I was able to ride up to a year with no flats, riding 200+ miles per month.

If you happen to ride across a particularly gravelly portion of sidewalk you can stop your bike and rub the rocks and grit off your wheels. Can't hurt.

I doubt it's the case in your situation, but it's possible that some of these flats are occurring for the same reason. Make sure no spokes are protruding through the rubber strip inside the rim. Also make sure the rim strip itself doesn't have any rough edges. Carefully rub your fingers along the inner lining of the tire to see if there is a piece of glass or thorns lodged in.

One last thought is you could try Slime. It's a gooky substance that you squeeze into the shraeder valve. It lines the inside of the inner tube and supposedly seals flats as they happen. bikeforums folks may not think it's the greatest, but it gets 4 1/2 stars on amazon. Slime: https://amzn.to/15H3n4g

FenderTL5

I have posted about the frustration from multiple flat tire before. I'm still relatively new to commuting, I started May 21st, 2012 but I've been riding consistently since (I've driven to work fewer than 10 times in almost a year).

I had repeated rear, blow-out flats. I experimented with air-pressure. If i ran over 80lbs, it would blow-out. Under 70lbs would blow-out. Within the 70-80 lb window, blow-out would occur every 2-3 weeks. Finally, I had enough. I took the tire/wheel to the LBS for a second opinion. The mechanic found a missing section of wire bead on the rear tire, either a defect or damage.
I replaced the tire (tires actually, I bought a new matched set). I've been riding since April 13 incident free (so far).

All of that to say; check the tires. The culprit may not be what you'd expect. I kept looking at the rims/tubes. I had new rim tape applied three times. The wire bead never occurred to me.

Leisesturm

Just say no to the Slime. The flats are not due to your weight. Tire pressure should be higher than the minimum posted on the sidewall of the tire and, of course, lower than the maximum posted. It will be a lot higher than 20psi I can assure you. The advice of an earlier poster to purchase a tire considered puncture resistant and call it good is very sound. It is hard to go wrong with tires made by Schwalbe, just about all their tires have some kind of kevlar or rubber barrier to resist punctures. You can also use tire liners, Mr. Tuffy is the main example. I can vouch for the combination of Schwalbe Big Apples and Mr. Tuffy's. Schwable Marathons can be used without any additional flat resisting. Marathon Pluses are even more flat resistant but at the expense of ride quality and they cost $55. Each. Just about every tire manufacturer has a model that is biased towards flat resistance. Buy it and call it good. Gravel does not cause flats. Glass, nails, construction debris... those things cause flats. If and when you flat, ALWAYS, go over the entire inner and outer surface of the tire with your fingers, feeling for anything sharp poking through the tire carcass. Often, but not always, a run of flats like you described is caused by the same object embedded in the tire carcass puncturing each new tube or repaired tube that you put in. Go and flat no more. And pay it forward will you. I've used up all the flat free Karma I've got for the year talking to you. Next time this topic comes up I won't be able to post, so you do it for me. Ok? Thanks.

H

Jehannum

I've had good luck with true goo. I commute fairly often (around 4x per week), and I've had the true goo tubes in my 700x23 tires for over a year now, without a blowout or a flat.

Given that I live in New Mexico, and commute past an air force base (that's essentially a goat-head farm out around the security perimeter), it's a fairly impressive accomplishment. With my former "slime" tubes, I was replacing one at least every month.

The disadvantage is that the heavy duty tube is just that - heavy. I'd estimate it's about double the weight of the slime tubes (though I did dump the tuffy when I swapped tubes, so there's a little bit of weight saving).

redbeard77

Thanks everyone. I might try the Schwalbe Marathon tires that someone suggested, I know they have those over here and they might not be difficult to come by since it's a Japanese company. Thanks for all the help! Any more suggestions are still welcome!

sauerwald

+1 on Schwalbe. I commute on Schwalbe Marathon Plus tires. The current set of tires on my bike has over 9,000 miles on it, and has flatted once. Also, don't put too much air in the tires - you will get fewer flats and a more comfortable ride. I keep mine at 70-80PSI

AusTexMurf

Ride quality tires suited for mostly paved surfaces towards the upper half of the recommended inflation on the tire.
Schwalbe marathons, big apples, supremes, Panaracer TServs, Maxxis overdrives, Continental contact series.......
All come to mind......

I wouldn't use any slime or goo or whatever inside my tubes. No go, unless I had to cover ground in the arid southwest US or mexico, w/o other alternatives, in my riding experience.

Walter S

I concur with Mr. Tuffy recommendation. That can make a huge difference. And never fix a flat without finding out why it went flat. Put air in the tube to help you find the leak and then carefully check that part of the tire and wheel. And watch out for pinch flats (you'll see two tube punctures on opposite sides of the tube) especially at your weight. That always means you need more tire pressure. I used to be haunted by regular flats too. I ride in a city with lots of glass and manufacturing debris in the road. Mr. Tuffy made a huge improvement. I won't tell you how long its been since I had a flat because I'm bound to go get one right after saying it. But it's been *quite some time*. Who said that? Not me!

jdstoledo

I've used 3 sets of supposedly puncture resistant tires: Bontrager Hardcase, Performance Strata K and Schwalbe Marathon Plus. Hands down, the Schwalbe is the way to go. Yes, they're a bit heavy, but having the peace of mind that I won't get a flat is worth it. I've ridden them through all sorts of bad road conditions without a flat for 100's of miles of city commuting. They aren't the cheapest, but when it comes to tires you get what you pay for. I don't think you'll have any luck adjusting the psi or riding style - I tried all sorts of techniques to avoid flats without luck with the former 2 sets of tires.

MarkvW

Totally second this. You absolutely MUST get the cause. If you want to be super type A, mark the tire at the valve stem BEFORE you do anything else. Then, find the hole in the tube and use the pre-marked tire to find the approximate location of the puncture. Super-important--you may not be able to see the cause of the flat! A fragment of a steel belt formerly part of an automobile radial tire can be unseen on the outside of the tire, and unfeelable on the inside of the tire. But that sucker is there and if you don't get it out, you're going to be fixing another flat in a very short time. Be very reluctant to conclude that the cause of the puncture is no longer inside the tire. Reminds me . . . I've got to get some tweezers before my next tour.

The Marathons are good heavy tires. There's a lot of stuff between the road and your tube. You're still vulnerable to caltrops-like pieces of glass, but there's nothing you can do about that. That type of tire will stop a lot of the little fragments, though. I've got some Mavic commuting tires that have worked pretty well, also.

Make sure that your brakes are not rubbing against your tires every time you patch your tire. Seat the wheel properly on the rim. If you don't, that's an excellent way to cause a blowout.

Hopefully you'll benefit from the mistakes I've learned from.