soyabean

I'm looking for tape that can be used to patch up tubes just for a few minutes as I continue soaking the tube in a bath to look for more holes.

Sometimes a hole doesn't reveal until the bigger hole has been patched first. Even the smallest pinholes can evade.

Sometimes I finish up a rema/patch, only to discover another smaller hole right after.

The tape would not only seal a hole, but also act as a marker telling me where to emery and rema it.

I would draw the line to toss the tube if I decide it has too many surprise holes.

pdlamb

FWIW, someone suggested marking holes with a silver Sharpie. Works like a charm.

I've put a thumb over one big leak to find a smaller leak, but I'll often just do a two-step. Fix one, let the glue set, and at least mark the next one if I'm too close to the end of the Patch Day to re-patch one at the end of the batch.

Mr. 66

I never had that issue, all leaks are evident under water. If it's loosing air fast I'll just hold the leak spot, mark and continues the water test. Pump the tube up more is the only other suggestion I could have. It also could be that you have a failing tube, it does happen.

Iride01 

I can't imagine a tape that would hold well enough as air is added to the tube and the rubber stretches. If there was such, then it will likely be a pain to get off.

Do you flat so often that just putting a new tube in wouldn't be quicker and let you spend your time on other things.

trailangel

Patch the hole with permanent patch.. your going to fix it anyway... right?

Jax Rhapsody

Tape? I saw somebody use that flex seal tape and it worked, but when I used it, it didn't... of course I may have used too much air. If you're patching a tube that many times, just replace the damn thing.

RCMoeur 

Many of the tubes I patch are from donated bikes, where I don't know the history of that tube or what it's been rolled through. I like to identify all the holes in a tube prior to patching, because if a tube has 3 or more active leaks, I'm just going to toss it. Big holes can mask the presence of smaller holes, so yes, holding Mr. Thumb over the big hole (or rolling up the tube a bit) keeps enough air in it to locate the smaller holes. And yes, +1 on the silver Sharpie.

Kontact

How are you going to clean the tape residue off to make sure the patch bonds?

Rick_D

Duct tape adhesive is rubber-based and could perhaps work, but I've never tried it. Probably compatible with the rubber cement patching prep in case of residue.

Might give it a try, anyway.

veganbikes

At that point just get a new tube. That is a lot of work to save a $5-10 item.

tFUnK

This is almost good enough as a semi-permanent fix. It does still leak a little, and it doesn't bond to butyl so I'm not sure about longevity (if using as long term patch), but it's good enough to get me home, and basically it'll be a super slow leak with similar loss rate as a latex tube. You'll want to cut little pieces of it for your specific use case and it may not come off as easily as you would like. Not sure if it's worth the effort but it's an option.

grumpus

As I've probably written here before: I once patched a puncture with Super Glue (cyanoacrylate) and a bit of plastic bag. Not tape, but fast setting - might be worth a try, or I might just have been lucky (luckier would have been no puncture).