Drillium Dude

Because I had the wrong saddle wedge, that's why - no spare tube/presta adapter, which is what I usually carry in the wedge when I'm "in civilization". A ***** I won't soon repeat

I walked from 8:30pm to 12:30am, so about 4 hours. I was really slowing down at the end - every step was painful.

DD

OldsCOOL

This one?

OldsCOOL

What's the red line across the top of the brake caliper for?

3speedslow

That's the light reflecting off that stunning paint job !

3speedslow

My turn.

Hi, my Nom de plume is 3 Speed Slow and it's been zero days since my last flat. Walking by my commuter bike this late afternoon I give my tires a poke like I do. Fronts fine, what the heck ! Back is soft as get out.

No 12 mile hike but again, that was my last tube for this bike. I love riding this bike to work !


Have to pick from the rest of the readies which to use tomorrow

jimmuller 

Maybe. It's worth checking. Perhaps something gave way as I was riding.

I would have thought the term saddle wedgie referred to something entirely different.

That's the one.

I saw four or five new glass splatters today. Tomorrow and until either it rains or the towns sweep those streets I will commute on a bike with Pasela TGs.

Drillium Dude

3speedslow has it right

Sun was setting, so got a really good reflection. In fact, I took this pic of the sunset since I had nothing better to do at that moment (well, except to start walking):



The small saddle wedge can be seen here. Was attached to a 3ttt saddle I swapped from another bike for a test-ride (hadn't ridden on one of my 3ttts for quite some time). Totally forgot it had no flat-fixing stuff in it:



DD

OldsCOOL

Both are great photos! I looked at that caliper several times wondering if it's paint reflection or some braking tip I may have been missing.

rhm

There's a slow leak in the rear tire of my freshly overhauled and powder coated Falcon commuter. It gets pretty flat over night, and I have to pump it up before every 5.5 mile commute. Sooner or later I will have to patch it.

noglider 

@Drillium Dude, I have made that mistake several times lately but not had to pay for it. That is, I didn't get a flat those days. And I rarely ride far from civilization. I did on my century ride on the 12th, and I was ready for a two flats. I had two tubes but couldn't find a patch kit. I didn't get any flats, but my rear dérailleur failed at Mile 35, so I rode 61 miles with three gears (from my front dérailleur), none of them low.

3speedslow

As a Mechanic, I am interested in what was the failure. Was it just worn out, road debris or broke but not having the right tools to fix it ?

rhm

I mentioned the rim strip problem I had a few months ago that caused a tedious series of punctures. And I mentioned one ride in particular where that was a real problem. I neglected to mention that on that particular ride I didn't have a good pump with me, just the chromed steel "dog beater" frame pump. On that ride I used up my spare tube, all my patches and glue, and wore out the hose on the pump. To make it home I had to borrow a tube and a pump (and a spare patch kit that I didn't end up using). It was very bad, but could have been worse. It was too far to walk home, like 25 miles. I would have been hitch hiking.

OldsCOOL

Man, that's a ride from hell. Rim tape is off most folks radar for tire flat prevention. "Dog Batter"

noglider 

Rim tape problems can be bad and can be subtle to solve. I've come full circle and prefer to use only Velox rim tape. No more scrimping on rim tape.

@3speedslow, my derailleur didn't really fail. It was the housing. The strands of wire punctured the ferrule at the end of the housing. Ferrules are very important to indexed shifting housing!

GordoTrek

i've been riding a lot lately with my dad and older brother ( who hasn't ridden in 20 years) my father got a flat on his hybrid coming down a descent on our riverway trail bridge,



huge bang and pop, and then flat.. i take his tire off and inspect, nice little puncture, i quickly patch it and remount the wheel.. as i'm pumping i notice a bubble of tube protruding from the tire

i remember the dollar bill trick that people have used, and i was able to successfully boot the tire and get home, he had also blown a spoke in the process, so i had to detach his rear brake so the wheel could get through... crazy, still not sure exactly what happend. Luckily I had a replacement tire and I was able to replace the broken spoke once we got back.

squirtdad

+1 velox only

ThermionicScott 

+2. No amount of extra flats would be worth saving a couple bucks on rim tape.

jimmuller 

Rim tape. WHen I built the Torelli wheels I picked up some Velox and the guy asked what width I wanted. The choices were 10mm and 16mm. I figured they were pretty narrow so I said 10mm. It was a tiny bit narrow visually and in practice it would migrate and expose the spoke nipples. I replaced it with 16mm which fit perfectly and flats on the inside fo the tube stopped.

3speedslow

Curiousity slated, I have seen the same problem cause tremendous shifting problems as well. Easy to fix on the stand. Not on the road. Glad to hear it was not the more expensive item, dérailleur.

Drillium Dude

I've always been lucky - until that evening - too, Tom. My heart dropped to my cleats when I opened that seat wedge up

I figured I'd walk about 2 miles to the nearest service station, replace the tube, attached the Presta adapter and be on my way. Interestingly, when I replaced the tube the following day I realized I'd snakebitten it. Weird, as I had the tires up to about 125psi and couldn't recall any large bump/hit prior to the rear going soft. A bit of a mystery, that.

+ bazillion on rim tape. Velox. Check it after every flat.

DD

rhm

Remember, you can make a presta adapter from the little black cap that comes with every presta valve tube. I've never done it, but I understand you just cut the end off. It's not prefect, but it will lit you pump up your tire at a gas station.

jimmuller 

I spent the evening with my sew-ups. First I checked the stitching on the tire that went lumpy earlier this week. The stitching was fine, but the cut in the tread right in the middle of the lump sure suggests the casing took a hit. That tire will become a spare not to be pumped up too high.

Then I spent a loooong time patching the tire that caused me to ride home on that one I'd previously repaired. I don't think Vittoria ever intended anyone to patch the Corsa EVO SC. This is the second one I've done and both were a pain to take apart. The rim strip looks to have been bonded on with a rubber coating that doesn't want to let go. The stitching is also buried under a layer of the same stuff. I got it patched but it was tedious.

I wonder if other tires are as difficult.

noglider 

Tedious, yes. Others may not have base tape that is as hard to remove, but no matter what, tubular maintenance is tedious. I think this is why some people love them so much. They devote all that time, so they are inclined to believe that it's worth it, because they've invested so much.

Tpgun101

My wife and I have only been riding for the last five years and until last week I have not had a mid-ride flat. Growing up a Boyscout, I always try to be prepared.

Last week, less than three miles into a 40 mile ride, my wife yelled that her rear tire was flat. Getting to use all the cool stuff that I stuffed into my seat bag and actually using a CO2 canister to instantly inflate her tube after patching was to be completely honest was the highlight of the ride. All told it took less that 5 minutes to find the leak, patch and remount the tire.

Don't get me wrong, I don't want to make mid-ride flat repair a habit, but once every five years or so is ok!

squirtdad

I personally like pumps vs c02 because in the past I have angered the flat karma gremlins and had more than one flat on a ride. Also lets me help people who have flatted but have no repair capabilities.