I do not find 5-10 minutes as rushing it. I don’t remove the axle (unless it’s the rear in my time trial bike with horizontal drop outs), I don’t use the nut, I don’t patch it (unless I go through two tubes and even them I use glueless) and I use CO2. When you ride with others do they wait 20 minutes with you?
I used to ride with someone who took that long and we stopped waiting.
Originally Posted by
General Geoff
Having gotten two flats on my rear tire in a week's time, I've found it takes me about 20-25 minutes at a liesurely pace to:
remove a thru-axle,
pull the wheel,
unseat one bead,
leverage the bead over the wheel rim,
remove the tube and presta valve nut,
find the puncture in the tube,
locate corresponding point on the tire,
find source of puncture (both times it was a tiny shard of glass still embedded in the tire),
remove source of puncture from tire,
wipe off puncture section of inner tube with wet paper towel,
scuff with 220 grit sandpaper,
apply vulcanizing rubber cement and spread around puncture area,
peel and apply patch, knead with pressure for a minute,
re-insert tube, reinsert presta valve/affix nut,
tuck tube into tire,
leverage the bead back into the wheel rim,
and pump about a hundred times with a compact hand pump,
then re-mount wheel onto bike and re-insert thru-axle.
I've read on here before that a seasoned cyclist can replace or patch a tube in less than 10 minutes, but outside a race, I just don't see the benefit in rushing when you might botch something and end up with an unsuccessful repair. What are your experiences?