I don't know about all of you but I get the bulk of my flats in the back tire only. I have YET to have one in the front on my fixie but the rear gets them all the time. Probably 2 a month, maybe 3. Today I got a flat, and while looking to see WHY, I noticed that the tread had worn down to the casing! This tire only lasted about 3 months of commuting. It was a Raleigh gumwall. Its getting replaced by a Bontrager with kevlar, thankfully.

So any guesses as to why so many of us only get them in the back? My guess is that we always steer to avoid stuff with the front, but the rear doesn't trail it exactly and hits the stuff we're always trying to miss. Any takers?

Attached is a poor phone camera photo of the worn through tread. It was VERY thin in that area.

Also, as you've seen, the rear tire tends to wear out faster.

Well, if you skid stop, obviously - you will wear out the rear first.

I noticed an earlier thread when you mentioned a problem with spokes...
have you checked your rim to make sure nothing is poking through?

I think 2 or 3 flats a month is kinda high...

Also, what gear combo are you using? Some combos create a higher possibility
of wearing out the same spot on your tire over and over.
(I had bookmarked a page explaining this, but the link is dead now)

I've had this problem, too. I have been blaming the added weight of panniers (no real evidence, just my suspicion). I've flatted twice in the last 3 weeks - both times in the rear. I've been more conscious of taking as much weight as I can off the rear wheel on bumps; we'll see if that helps.

Personally, I don't skid or skip. I run two brakes and use them when needed. Most of the time I just stop with my legs though. I do understand why a rear tire would wear out faster. More weight on it, etc. My question is only about flats, and why we seem to get them in the rear more often. And this isn't specific to this bike- my geared bike suffers the same fate.

you get flats in the rear tire because your ass and entire weight of your body is over your rear tire. the weight distribution of a bike is significantly weighted towards the rear of your bike. So if you ride over a nail, your front tire may just glide over but your rear tire will smash right onto it and the result will be a puncture. that's the same reason why rear wheels have more spokes. i've never flatted my front tire (ah, shoot i probably just jinxed myself!) but 3 times flats in the past 3 months in the rear.

That makes alot of sense, thanks!

I second what Monument Man said . . . he beat me to it : ) Same here by the way, I still have not had a flat in the front.

Had no front flats in 5 months. Had about 5 rear now im running an armadillo back there so hopefuly it helps.

yup, for the same reason, i only ever pump my front tire up maybe once every couple weeks but my back tire gets air daily.

rykola - you gettin crap stuck in your tires that much? you sure it's not pinch flats? i used to pinch flat my back tire quite a bit before i started airing it up daily (well semi- daily).

Try some Nimbus or All Conditions Armadillos... if you flat on those suckers, you've got issues. My best friend is around 450 lbs and hasn't managed to flat his yet.

Yeah the roads are pretty bad here. I'm not getting pinch flats, no snakebites here.

I don't know if you are a big guy or not. But if you are and you are skidding on your fixie or just skidding in general. This can make wear and tear much greater because you are wearing down the rubber and a little branch could puncture your tire. Look for a pair of specialized pro tires that actually have kevlar on the inside, that is what I use.

ahem...


I am picking up a kevlar lined tire today, that should help tremendously. And yes I am a Big Guy