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Haha! Thanks. Do your patches ever overlap? Mine do sometimes.

That's hardcore. :)
I toss the tube if patch overlaps. I didn't think patches would work on an uneven surface.

I use patches from Harbor Freight. $2.79 for a kit with 20 little patches and some bigger ones in it. I've never had one fail and in fact they're so well attached that it's pretty much impossible to get them off without ripping the tube.

http://www.harborfreight.com/inner-t...kit-47614.html

They're REAL patches, not glueless ones which I've never been able to get to work. They're very easy to put on. You use the abrasive (whether a metal rasp or sandpaper, whatever your kit comes with) to rough up the tire. You put on rubber cement in a thin sheet, then you let it sit and dry for 5 minutes. Then you remove the backing from the patch and press it on really hard, then ideally let it sit for a few hours if you're at home, though just putting it back into the tire and pumping it back up at that point would be fine.

I have NEVER had a patch fail, except for glueless ones. It's my opinion that they're stronger than the original tube.

As for the original question, I agree that the answer is "until the valve stem fails" though I suppose when I got to the point where there were more than 10 or so patches I'd probably go ahead and get a new tube.

http://ih2.redbubble.net/work.634030...5,white.v3.jpg

Though the most I had on a tube was five. Got new tires and replaced the tubes just to start fresh.

You're hardcore. As long as the hole is not under the existing patch, overlapping will work, sand well. You have the skills. I quit leaving the plastic on cause it gets kinda ugly after a while. I tear the plastic before attempting to remove it (makes it easier to get off) and I remove the plastic before applying the patch to tube.

If air is leaking from the edge of a faulty patch, overlapping isn't going to work. You need to remove the bad patch completely and start over.

A puncture on the concave surface of the tube can be patched but the patch will fail.

"ABOUT A HUNDRED AND SIXTY-SEVEN TIMES, AND IT KEEPS GETTING FUNNIER EVERY SINGLE TIME" - Beetlejuice

Tubes: patch __ times before replacing?

Zero? Why patch at all? I'm cheap as the next guy but my patches leak after awhile and like the other guy I sometimes feel the bump so I just toss the old tube.

I may have gone down the 'don't patch' road but then I realized glueless patches are crap and now I patch until the valve-stem goes.

Human error and the "bump" is all in your head.

Just sayin....

When you were a kid, your mother read you "The Princess and the Pea" too often.

Could be the bump is a result of human error, but generalizations like that are problematic. Doesn't matter though, in my head or not I don't have either human error or bumps with unpatched tubes.

Now when I was a little more strapped than currently I had patches on patches, and jury-rigged patches made from old tubes ... which is likely where the bumps came from come to think of it.

I replace them every time. Maybe I'm just lucky (knock on wood) but I almost never get flats. I've had one this year so far & none last year. Can't remember before that. If I get a flat on the road, I replace it with a new tube. I have a patch kit with me just in case, but haven't had to use it yet. The savings from replacing a tube are pretty insignificant unless you get a lot of flats.

The cheese grater style scrapers work fine. A patch failure is usually someone who does not wait long enough for the glue to set correctly before putting
on the patch. They come in good patch kits sold at bike shops too.

I'm thinking the number is 3. If it punctures again it goes to 4. My real consideration is when the tire goes flat too quickly.

3SS

+1

My rule used to be 3, or 4 if I wasn't paying attention. Lately, it's been none because I have time to buy new tubes but no time to patch old ones, and I ran out of vulcanizing rubber cement, and I was trying to get rid of my massive stash of 26x1.5-2.125 thin tubes... but I am accumulating a pile of tubes to patch, though.

One time, I went out in my garage, and counted all the patches on all of my spare tubes. Then I multiplied that number by $7 (the cost of a new tube if I didn't patch it). It came out to over $100.

Something I have not yet see mentioned here.
If you can identify the location of the puncture, and ensure the cause has been removed, it is possible to:
1. Unseat portion of one bead.
2. Pull out the tube.
3. Apply patch to the tube, (I use temporary glueless on the road).
4. Stuff tube back in.
5. Reseat bead.
6. Inflate.
All w/o removing the wheel or handling the chain.
Much quicker and less messy than changing a tube.

I would have to say I would patch as long as it didn't overlap, and it held air.

The other thing I do is, if I plan on going on a long tour like a cross-state ride, I would go ahead and replace the tubes that may have patches. I would also carry at least 1 new tube with me. That's just a quirky "me" thing really.

The thing I have had happen to me was a catastrophic blowout. one where it blew a big hole in the sidewall rendering the tire useless. I was 60 miles from nowhere. I tried to use a dollar bill, and even a plastic bottle I cut into a temporary wall in an attempt to ride it at least to the nearest gas station. This failed miserably too. I was out of phone distance so I was screwed.

I shouldered my bike, and started walking...(in the grass so I wouldn't grind my cleats up too bad.) I must have walked for about 15-20 min. This guy came up and asked me if I needed a lift, he took me to a local gas station where I called my wife. She drove out and picked me up. I got to listen to the "what you should have done lecture" all the way back to the beach.

So, lesson learned. If I go on a long ride, I look for a riding partner. I carry a spare tire in my shirt. Next time I get stranded, I call my brother.

Hahahaha. The one time I got a flat I was near the one payphone that I know of in this area, so phoned my wife. Ended up walking home anyway.

Come to think of it, I don't recalling hearing anyone else do this either! I used to have more success doing this before running kevlar-belted tires and punctures were often "dramatic." Now, the bulk of mine seem to be slow leakers from steel belt wire shards and I can't hear the hiss without dismantling everything. A tangent to this is that I have to get around to throwing some reading glasses in my tool kit because the eyes are starting to age and seeing those little wires to pull them out of the tire is getting to be impossible. :-/

I don't patch tubes on the road. I do carry multiple spares, and a patch kit. I did once get two flats on one ride home. The only reason I carry a patch kit is in the that I have really, really, bad luck with goatheads or glass and run through both of my spare tubes.

win !