I put my slicks on Friday when I got home and was pretty excited for the commute this morning. When I pulled out the bike my front tire was flat, I figured the valve stem was pushed up against another bike in the shed and let the air out because it stayed full when I pumped it back up. Mostly I was feeling too lazy to take the tire off and figured i could patch it at work if it really was leaking.

By the time I got to work it was almost flat, so I pulled out my patch kit and... the glue is dry. I had taken the spare tube for my studded tires out to replace it with my tube for the 28mm tires, except I forgot to actually put the tube in my bag. Le sigh.

I may have to get a ride to get a new patch kit / glue.

By the way, how to you guys keep your patch kit glue from drying out once you open it? Mine always is dry the next time i need it.


Edit - I meant studded TIRES. I don't normally wear a tie, and when I do I don't need the additional ice traction that studs provide.

Wow, early March is pretty early. The earliest I've ever been able to get my studs off is March 28.

I carry a spare tube and glueless patches. The glueless patches are only for emergency, I've only used them once, and as soon as I get home I take them off and put on a proper patch.

When I get home I use rubber cement from an office-supply style jar of Elmer's rubber cement. I've had it for 4 years and it hasn't dried up. The little tubes, yeah, they dry up once opened. I do have some but I don't open them unless I must.

I put my studs back on today, grumble. But I'm sure they'll be off by Friday and I doubt I'll need them again this year.


My fix for the patch problem is simple: A spare tube. Patches are miserable, and the only ones I have any luck with are the adhesive patches.

I took mine off about 2 weeks ago. I am back to riding on my skinny touring/trekking tires, not excatly slicks as they have some tread on them. There is still some ice along my commuting route so I gotta take it easy and be more careful. It does feel really good to take the studs off.

Still got'em on the one bike but I switch out bikes if conditions warrant a studless commute.

I think I'll have to do that and just get some glue for home, and use glueless on the road. When I do get home I'm definitely putting my spare tube in the bag though jeez.

Our snow has been pretty slushy recently, and we're getting mostly rain and sleet now so I'm hoping that I'm ok until next winter. If not I'll have to resort to using the mountain bike. This is my second season on the Schwalbe Marthon Winter's and the sidewall is starting to spilt in a few places, I was positive they would last a lot longer than that so now I'm double dissapointed.

But thats probably a good thing since the Lachine area got the better part of 12 inches of snow in the last 24 hours. Maybe the previous 2 days of rain was better.

I only carry a spare tube and pump and one lever. Its kinda pointless to try to glue a tube in the winter anyway and during the summer patching a tube is better done at home anyway with a vulcanizing patch.

Then you're not doing it right. I have no luck with adhesive patches. Proper patches with rubber cement, if properly applied, you can't get them back off after curing without destroying the tube. Note that "proper"patches are not that useful on the road; you need at least 15 minutes to do one properly, you must wait for the cement to dry before putting the patch on.

OP, bring an extra tube next time since it is much easier just to use a new tube instead of fussing with patching. Once you get home, then patch the tire.

+1 what they said, spare tube and glue-less patches. That oughta cover ya.

That's what I do. I have a couple of glueless patches in the kit but only for an emergency.

Adhesive patches only work the other way. You install the tube right after patching.

I'm aware that I'm doing the glue patches wrong, but no one is gonna do it for me and I've failed a couple tubes worth of cost into them so I see no benefit in using them.