Originally Posted by
dscheidt
You should dig up and read Rema's patents (US Pat. no. 2,638,955, if my memory works is an interesting one), then. Like I said in my first post, it's a system. Three parts: tube, patch, fluid. The tube facing part of the patch is unvulcanized rubber, with an ultra accelerator in it. There are a number that are suitable, but zinc thiocarbamates are usual. Cyclohexamine in the fluid activates the zinc thiocarbamate, and you get cross linking. there are different chemistries in use, but the general idea is the same: patch contains an ultra-accelerator and sulfur source, glue contains an activator. (I had a long discussion about this with a chemical engineer who designed patch systems for all sorts of things, ranging from rubber boots to boats to military equipment. There are some very exotic chemistry in the specialized products.)
OK, finally a reasonable chemistry based explanation of what is being sold as "vulcanizing fluid" and how it really does cross link the bond between the tube and the patch. Thanks for the reference and it's nice to know it's not all marketing puffery and snake oil.
That said, plain, cheap Elmers Rubber Cement used with REMA patches has worked for me with complete success for patching tubes for many years. It may not be the best system from a chemistry or theoretical standpoint but it does work. Now, I don't routinely bomb down Alpine passes and heat my rims red hot but for the normal hilly conditions around me the patched tubes have been 100% reliable.