Rubber cement for tire patching?
 

I've got several tire patch kits that the glue has dried up in. Stupid me, I tried to patch a tube on my sons bike using Contact Cement and it didn't hold. Is the glue in the kits just Rubber Cement or some secret formula? I'd like to just buy a bottle or large tube so I can use up all the patches I have laying around.

Mikey

I think so. My tire patch kit has a small tube of rubber cement. It says it is for all rubber repairs. I don't think it is anything special.

I'm not sure if it's the same as stationary type of rubber cement, but I am pretty sure it's the same as automotive tube patch rubber cement, available at auto parts stores. The key to the cement is the chemical vulcanizing action between the patch and tube.

Thanks guys,
I'm gonna try some plain ol' rubber cement and if that dosen't work I'll order the Rema. Thanks for the link.

Mikey

No prob, but you will be ordering the Rema. As Mudpie stated, patch cement is formulated to chemically vulcanize the patch to the tube, standard rubber cement is not.

Search around and you may find that Rema cement cheaper. I just posted the first link I found.

Yikes. Try this instead:
http://www.partsamerica.com/productd...egoryCode=3190

Monkey Grip is garbage. You get what you pay for, and Rema is worth it.

"Monkey Grip is garbage." Thank goodness we've been set straight. All those years of patches not failing, holding the air right in there in the tube....I wish I'd paid twice as much for the much, much better stuff.
Wordbiker, quit sniffing it and fix those flats! :)

Just speaking from experience Neil. IMO Rema is the best.

Ive been using a jar of elmers rubber cement for a while now. seems to work fine.

Do you know the history of that German Rema company? I'd rather find some other patch kits.

Enlighten us.

No way! You're gonna DIE! :) I've used contact cement and Barge cement and they work too, in a pinch. Does anyone remember the real vulcanizing patches you actually ignited?

Wait, lemme guess. Rema was the manufacturer of Der Fuhrer's latex fetish costumes?

Yes it does. I've been using Elmers Rubber Cement (about $1.50 for a 4 oz jar at any office supply or X-Mart, complete with applicator brush) for years to patch tubes using it and Rema patches. Done right, I've never had a failure.

You do want to have a fresh jar as it will dry out way before you use it up unless you have a ton of flats. That, BTW, is the problem with the large cans of Rema or other commercial patch cement sold for shop use if you buy them for home use. You will never come close to using even a fraction of the stuff before it dries to uselessness.

Elmers is also good for office work, kids projects and other household chores, which, of course, what it's actually sold for. :)

BTW, the little tubes of cement in the patch kits don't "vulcanze" the patch to the tube. The tube is already vulcanized and the cement is just thin rubber cement. You need heat to cause vulcanization and unless you iron-on the patches, that isn't going to happen no matter what's in the glue.

Is there any place to buy little tubes of the stuff - to replace the tubes I keep with patches in my saddle bags. I have a BUNCH of patches and a BUNCH of dried up partially used small tubes of glue.

Thanks.

Loose Screws sells the 5 cc tubes that come in patch kits for $3 each but notes that it is more expensive than just buying the entire patch kit!

Bike Tools Etc. sells individual 10cc and 20 cc tubes of Rema cement but, again, the cost approaches the cost of the entire kit and you will have a larger tube of dried out glue after a while.

That's what I suspected. At $2-3 for a patch kit, it's not worth buying little tubes. Maybe I'll buy a something in bulk for at home, since I do 90% of my patching in the comfort of my garage.

How long does it take for those large jars of cement to dry up?

1 day before you need to use it. :D

That's exactly why I ask the question in the first place. I carry a spare tube when I ride and patch the flatted tube once I get home. As someone suggested, I went by the local autoparts store and bought a 8oz can of 'vulcanizing cement'. Cost 6 bucks...enough to do hundreds of patches. Patched two tubes tonight...worked great.

Now I can leave the little tube in my patch kit unopened and ready for emergencies.

Thanks for the info everyone. I didn't think to go to an autoparts and ask for patch glue...:rolleyes:
Mikey

LOL

Longer if you store it upside-down. ;)

Seriously. Rema is overrated. And I ain't buying that german crap anyways. I tried Hillrider's suggestion on the Elmer's rubber cement glue and it works great. He's right. The key to good adhering of the patch to tube is to use rubber cement that is fresh and not dried up.