My newest bike is from the 80's and I know this might be strange but I am kinda confused with all the new stuff out there. I usually do not replace my inner tubes on my bikes till they are obviously old or with many patches and even then, hardly ever. But tiers have changed and so too tubes. Since I went to Touring Tires my incidents of flats is just about zero so on my bikes so I have some very, very old tubes and not so old tires.

So now days is it normal to replace the old tubes with new when replacing old with new tires?

I know its a simple question and may be I am just showing geriatric unsure-ness... Ha

I'm happy to keep using old tubes for as long as they prove themselves worthy. The tubes in my old 3-speed are much older than I am, and they're still in great shape.

When I buy an old bike, I replace the tubes and tires during the rebuild as I don't know the condition or age of them and they are cheap enough. On those bikes, the tires are generally dry rotted so the tubes are likely as old or older. When I replace my tires because they are worn and due for replacement, I don't worry about the tubes if I know they are good.

If there good I'm fine with older tubes and even fine with somewhat old tires if in very good shape. I would just go ahead and ride, carry a spare tube on long rides and stop worrying.

I could never figure out The Tubes. Was it supposed to be like Spinal Tap, but without the catchy, funny songs? I vote to get rid of The Tubes and replace it with something good, like Pavement.

If it's holding air it's doing its job...

I’m more of a Replacements man myself which is relevant(?) to the topic. I guess?

I used to replace all tubes with tires, no more. I test them, as long as they are good, I reuse them. Good tubes can last decades, tires not so much. I tossed far too many tubes in the past. I stopped this stupid practice several years ago.

I only replace tubes when I run out of room for new patches.

Reminds me of a guy I used to work with. He had these shoes that he refused to give up on. I think one was at least 50% Gorilla glue. An admirable degree of determination.


If a tube holds air and doesn't show any signs of degradation, I use it, unless it's really, really old.

Agreed. Patches are the married man's N+1.
Plus, a patched tube is grateful.

I saw them in concert, outdoors, at a farm.
They were real, had a sense of humor, played well, and jammed a little with Nantucket and some of Delbert McLinton's band.

So, no, not like Spinal Tap at all.

Their album work was likely a result of the AOR programmers in charge at the label.
Plus, it was the 80's. MTV and all that.
Every label had a gimmick, hired video people to promote music.
That approach just promoted video, like the first MTV song predicted.

But Gaslight Anthem is touring again, so that's good. Will catch 'em in KC.

I am one who goes through patch kits. I live in a rural area of the county and goat head thorns are common. I get about 2 or 3 flats a year , this year ...more! I patch tubes and then reuse unless there is something wrong with the presta valve. I do keep a supply of short stem tubes on hand, plus one with every bike in a seat pack just in case because the LBS only carry those very long stems.Relative to the OP question , no. If I replace the tires on an old bike that has aged or cracked tires , I inspect the tubes and reuse if I feel they are OK. I especially inspect the valve for any corrosion /oxidation .

This. I had a Schwinn Heavy Duti and the tubes were OEM, said "Schwinn Tractor" on them.
I never figured that out, but they were the thickest tubes I've ever seen, and they smelled awful.

I will toss tubes where the prior owner put slime in them. You can tell as the tubes are really heavy. I've cut a few of them just to see, yep, full of slime.

I replace tubes when they no longer hold air. I replace tires when the tread is well worn.

I never saw The Tubes but I did see Spinal Tap when I lived in Cleveland in the 1990s. They came out of pods onstage and when David St. Hubbins stepped up to the mic and said “Hello, Cleveland!” the place went crazy.

My sister was returning her friends bike from several decades ago. Asked me to try to clean it up some.
P1020849 on Flickr

Had the original tires on it. I pumped them up and the tubes held up fine.
P1020856 on Flickr

The rubber doesn't get exposed to UV or any other agents of deterioration while in the tire except for the air pumped in.

With 17 bikes and 6 for the kids when they visit I only replace tires when they are embarrassingly cracked and tubes when they can't be patched successfully, with the exception of extremely rare road hazard damage. There is little to connect automotive and bicycle tire life other than the name tire.

Fresh talc on the old tubes in the new tires.

From my experience the larger and lower pressure the tube the less cause there is for concern, I’ve also seen OEM Schwinn branded balloon tubes from the 1950s that held up fine but when I first began rebuilding old road bicycles I found that decades old tubes inflated to 75+ PSI could not be relied upon.

I grew up in Idaho and am also a firm believer in patching thorn punctures. I must be uniquely cheap as I save and reuse slime from otherwise unserviceable inner tubes.

They sure didn't look like that when I saw them.
No spandex. Shirts with collars, jeans.
It was in the afternoon, and it was a bluesy crowd.
That may have been it. They didn't sing that song, either.
"Talk to Ya Later," and "One in a Million Girl," and a couple of Dave Edmunds covers.
Then they played with Nantucket on "Is It Wrong to Rock and Roll" and "Heartbreaker."
Nantucket played a set, then Delbert McLinton got into the blues and owned it.

I doubt I'd have gone to see a spandex ballet.

I'll only pitch a tube if it can't be patched or has an issue with the valve or valve-stem. I've had a few where a burr on the rim's valve-hole punctured it, and that can't really be repaired.

I learned to repair some Dunlop valve issues when I lived in Europe, one of the advantages of Dunlop tubes. I hold them in high regard.

As long as they keep giving away patch kits at centuries and bike expos, I'm patching.
My cheapskateness overrules a lot of good sense.

Has anybody patched a tubless tire? Curious.
We used to patch auto tires all the time (better than a plug).
I'd imagine it's a bit more delicate work on a bike tire.

I saw them in the early 80's when they played at Cal Poly. I was already a fan of the album "The Completion Backwards Principle" and I thought it was a great show.

As far as bikes go. I usually re-use the tube when I replace the tires.