Radiorick

OK - I just got my first flat.

Mid-ride today, I decided to to check the pressure of my front tire and was horrified to find it quite soft. I was able to pump it up enough to get home without replacing the tube while on the road.

Once home, I pulled the tube and found it had a tiny pinhole puncture (I had to hold it underwater to find the bubbles). Hoping to find a obvious and satisfying cause of the pinhole, I pulled the tire and began searching the interior surface meticulously for a thorn, piece of glass, etc. I was able to find only one place where there was a barely perceptible nub (feeling with my fingertip). I looked a the outside and there did appear to be (when I squeezed the tire) a tiny cut.

I did run my fingertips around the rim, looking for any puncture risks from the spokes, but the rubber band around the rim covering the spokes looked and felt OK.

Since there could be remnants of whatever punctured the first tube still in the tire, I'm not sure if I should just replace the tube, attempt the probe the tire to see if I can dislodge any embedded foreign material, or just replace the tire. The tire is about 9 months old.

Also, I've heard that there are ways to reduce puncture risks - since the tire and tube are off the rim I'm open to any suggestions.

Best regards, Rick / Irvine / 2006 Fuji Roubaix RC

dekindy

How many miles has the tire gone and how much tread is left? Were there two holes which means it was a pinch flat or just one hole?

It sounds like you can run it as is. If it would make you feel better, you could put a tube patch on the inside of the tire or a Park Tire Boot.

I would repair the tube or replace, whatever your pleasure normally is (I used to patch now replace), and take it for a short spin around the neighborhood and let it sit overnight. If it has not gone flat return to normal riding. They usually go flat quickly just sitting around and definitely under riding pressure if there is still something in the tire.

Joe Dog

Check the tire carefully and pull out the piece of wire or glass that is almost assuredly still embedded in the tire, then good ahead and re-use the tire. It's almost certainly fine.

Post a picture of the tire at the spot you punctured if you want a better read on this, but I am pretty sure it's just fine.

aloysius

Did this cut penetrate all the way through the nylon carcass of the tire, or is it just a small crack in the rubber? In any case, if it's really so tiny as you say, you probably don't have any cause to worry. Flats are, unfortunately, all too common, but they don't usually warrant the replacement of the tire. If you can't see any sizable cuts and you have fewer than, say, 2000 miles on those tires, then you ought to be fine. Is this your first flat? One flat in 9 months (of regular riding, I assume) isn't half bad.

oilman_15106

Total mileage of the tire/tube is important to this discussion. Helped a guy change a flat several weeks ago. Asked him how long the tire/tube were in service. His answer: It came with the bike 4 years ago! Tire literally fell off the rim. We got home but you got to maintain things. The best part was the guy was going to use the rig for the MS 150 the following week.

Camilo

For future reference, there is a "standard" for mounting the tire on the rim so that it is easier to match the puncture in the tube with which part of the tire would have been right there when it happened. If you center the tire label on the valve stem, and put it on the right hand side of the rim, you'll be oriented when you take them off the rim.

As for your question, if you find and remove whatever made the little hole in the tire, it sounds like it would be fine to re-use. I've had, what sounds to me, quite a bit larger cuts in the tire, and I lined the inside of the tire at that point with some duct tape and re-used for several hundred miles until the tire actually wore out.

johnny99

+1. If you've found the hole in the tube, then finding the problem area in your tire should be easy. Half of the time, the glass or metal or thorn that caused your flat will still be in stuck in your rubber, so find it and pull it out or it will cause another flat pretty quickly. Patch the flat tube and use it for a spare. You do always carry a spare tube when you're riding, right?

Radiorick

All,

Thanks for the feedback. I took the tire down to the Performance store and the general consensus after probing the tire was that there was no foreign material remaining. The estimate of the tread used on the tire was only 25%, so I decided to replace only the tube. I bought some baby powder (talc) and rubbed it all over the tube, stuffed it in the tire, popped the remaining tire bead onto the rim and slowly pumped it up, squeezing the tire to (hopefully) help seat the tube properly inside the tire.

It's holding 110 psi and I'm back on the road.

Best regards,

Rick

roadgator

as long as it didn't leave a hole that you can see light through, a tire can always be reused after a flat. any thing bigger than that will keep the tire from containing the tube fully--more flats.

even then, one can still be limped along if you have to get home. i keep some duct tape rolled up on a tire lever in my saddle bag. whenever i get a flat, i put a little square of tape behind where the hole was on the inside of the tire for some extra insurance.