So while taking my bike out to ride one morning I found that it had a flat front tire. I went to pump air into it (floor pump of course) and I could hear the air escaping. I took it into my LBS (I didn't have any tubes with me at home and the LBS is a 7 minute walk from my house). The guy replaced it and I started to walk home, within maybe 5 minutes I hear a loud POP!!!

So I take it back to the LBS, the guy puts in a new tube. I actually made it home, was about to install the tire on the bike (I only took the rim in to the LBS, not the whole bike) and again, I head a loud POP!!!!

Ok so at this point I'm getting a little bit irritated.

I again walk back to the LBS, guy changes the tube again, I leave the LBS and with 5 minutes the tube pops again.

So in a single day the tube popped three times and was replaced three times. I tell the LBS guy to change the tube and that I will pick it up tomorrow.

So yesterday I go into the LBS to pick up the tire. The guy says that he fixed it last night and this morning it's still holding air. One thing that I noticed though was that the tire was not on the ground, in other words, it was hanging on a hook overnight.

He bounces the tire in front of me, looks good, doesn't pop.

I head home and leave the tire outside because it's dinner time, plan was to install it after I eat.

I finish eating and go outside and guess that.......flat tire again! Four flat tubes total, and this is without even mounting the tire on the bike!

At this point I have no idea what to do. I've been riding bikes for 20 years and this is the first time this has happened to me. My bike has disc brakes, I know that sometimes V brakes cause the rim to become thinner or something along those lines.

Is the rim broken? Tire with a microscopic sharp end in it? Bad batch of tubes? Bad installation?

I already ordered another tire and tube from Amazon last night.

I noticed that the tube tear(s) (sometimes it was one, sometimes two) was/were on either side of the valve stem underneath the tube, where the tube rests on the rim. It's like someone took a sharp knife and cut a small slit right down the middle. The LBS guy already replaced the tape on the rim and used powder as well.

The rim is stock, about 15 years old if that makes a difference or not.


Any help would be greatly appreciated.