shipinabottle

Okay...I had a message here but its gone.
I was wondering...
How many people patch and reuse their tires?
How many just treat 'en like they are one time only?
I was looking for a patch kite recently and had to go to a couple places...do people not do that anymore?

moxfyre

I patch 'em and reuse 'em. I have two hooks in my basement: one says "good tubes", the other says "bad tubes". I periodically go through the bad tubes, patch them, and move them over to the good tubes hook. If the valve is broken or the hole is too big, or the tube is too recalcitrant, I throw the tube out or cut it up and use it for various nefarious purposes.

I'd say I typically do 2-4 patches on a tube before throwing it out.

Scooper

I patch mine.

Wogster

Tires, well tires can usually be used until you see threads starting to come through the rubber, or they get a really bad gash or a large hole in them, and then a boot is always a possible fix. I always consider a boot a temporary fix, because tires are not that expensive, and it's not hard to damage a booted tire further.

Patches are more often used on tubes, and some tubeless tires, it really depends, you can get cheap tubes for $2 - $3 a piece, so some people just carry a couple of spares, and don't bother with a patch kit. Others, like me, carry a spare or two, and then patch the tube at home. A flat or puncture is most likely to occur when it's cold, raining, you forgot your rain jacket, and your running late, so being able to just swap tubes is a lot quicker.

Patch kits are still available, I bought a Park Glueless kit at the bike shop for a couple of bucks, MEC has a kit for $3 (the price of a cheap tube), Nashbar and Performance in the US also have them on their websites (just checked). Think about it though, if a bike shop can sell you a tube for $6 and make $2.50 then why would they want to sell you a patch kit for $3 (and make $0.75) allowing you to patch a tube half a dozen times.

ryanparrish

everytime I drop down to the LBS it is 10 dollars for a tube time for a new LBS I use presta 700 c tubes

operator

$10 for a tube is a pretty big rip off.

mlh122

i now just patch to get me back home then swap out the tube.. often a patch is good for a few rides then the patch blows again, however i might have shoddy glue or be doing it wrong though. but i like the peace of mind of a new tube, flats are pretty rare for me so it doesn't cost much.. if i got flats all the time i might have a different approach

TRUMPHENT

I patch tubes that are salvageable. My longest flat free run on the rear tire was with a tube with two patches. I remembered it had one. When the needle sharp roofing nail got thru, I was reminded the tube had two patches. The tire is a Schwalbe Marathon 2006. Over 700 miles flat free with a tube that had two patches, a milestone for me! I think I got the nail in an intersection that had my attention on the traffic and not the road surface.

miamijim

I junk them...every one.

spinbackle

I just junked a presta-valved 26x1.95 tube with at least a dozen patches on it. Irrepairable valve stem tear. Rema Tip Tops...never had one fail yet.

BikeWise1

Dang! We do a buy 2 at $5.99 and get a free one. That makes 'em $3.99 each.

Did they sell you a superlite or latex one? Those can be pricier, but for basic butyl, they should've given you at least a couple.

I am also assuming that you installed it yourself...

We do boxes of 50 for 2.49 a tube. There are guys around here that dole them out to their buddies at Christmas time....cheap stocking stuffers!

On topic though, sometimes we patch odd sized tubes, but it's hard to guarantee work on a tube that might be about to have other problems...

operator

Regular price around here for a tube is $3 CAD each w/tax. Man you guys pay a lot for tubes.

willtsmith_nwi

The garbage head at the trailhead (and the trail itself) is an excellent source of spares. And now I've discovered the Slime patch kits at Autozone that are much cheaper than what you can get at the bike shop. I carry multiple spares and I'm happy to give one away to the stranded rider (the trail giveth, the trail taketh away).

I do throw away some tubes that are too far gone. But I completely head-slapped myself the other day when I realized that I could have yanked the valve cores out of them.