I carry 3 spare tubes and a patch kit, is that too much or what ? It never hurts to be overprepared. I have a peace of mind knowing I can handle any emergency.

I have a patch kit and spare tube in the seat wedge. I tend to just swap out and then patch when I get home so I can use the old look-for-bubbles-in-the-water trick. My vision isn't good enough to perform surgery in the field :(

+1 Except I carry 2 tubes and a patch kit. I buy the cheap patch-kits at Wally World or Target and always make sure I've got an unopened tube of cement. They'll dry out over a period of time. Mostly, I roll on flat-resistant tires which has lowered my flat rate to about one every other year.

Not so fast there friend...
I've always carried at least one spare tube along with a patch kit. The spare tube has allowed me recover from a flat and continue my ride home on numerous occasions; I don't recall that I've ever had to resort to my patch kit... However, one day I had a sidewall fail, and my lack of preparedness was rewarded with a 5 mile walk home. Ever since then, I've always carried a spare folding tire as well. That was before I learned about the dollar bill trick, so that's my backup if I fail two tires in one trip :)
In the interest of full disclosure, the bikes I commute on (all my bikes, for that matter) are road bikes, but I try to make reasonable choices for tires, e.g. 28mm cross-section, kevlar belt, mostly. The one that failed the sidewall happened to be a standard Pasela, not that a kevlar belt would have saved the sidewall.

I once thought the same as you. Then I nearly got stranded 70km from home by a broken valve (which cannot be repaired using a patch kit), and was only able to make it home because a riding partner had a (not correctly sized) tube that was able to inflate my tire enough to get home.

Needless to say, now I ALWAYS carry a spare tube with me, especially since I do mostly solo riding.

In the case of a bad puncture I use the spare tube and use a patch on the inside of the tire to protect the weak spot.

Yes! Except I use a cleat made from a pie pan covered w/duct tape about the size of a business card. The corners are rounded, though.

Agreed, or they've never ridden with a group and have had friends who have had multiple flats. By carrying a tube, a patch kit, a CO2 inflator, or a frame pump one is prepared for (hopefully) anything that might come up/go flat.

Try patching a tube in the rain.

I carry one spare and a patch kit with me and revert to the spare tube first.
I usually stock a spare inner at work for the return journey so I dont need to do a repair at my desk.
I find that bike repair generally gets delayed until the weekend if possible and I like to keep sufficient common spares so I dont need to go shopping for each repair.

This.

Huh?

Commuting bike Both and never needed either for MY bike in 5 years. My one flat in that time happened while the bike was sitting in my foyer almost 2 hours after getting home. Tube just blew and scared the hell out of my wife and I. Thought a water line went in the Laundry room. I have patched a few tubes for others while out.

on My hot rod road bike for Sunday rides I have had one flat and their was no fixing it. The tire actually split causing the tube to blow. Had to call the SAG (wife in the mini van).

The way I look at it on the commuter is I'd rather have it and not need it especially if on my way to work when it happens. Ten minutes of riding is about 40 minutes of walking/carrying a bike. Takes about 10 minutes to change a tube. 15-20 to patch.

When it's cold, dark and raining, it's so much easier to change the tube than try to patch it. You can patch the old tube when you get where you're going, and it then becomes your new spare.

If I ever get a second flat on a commute (which has only ever happened once) I surrender and put my bike on the bus.

For those that have long commutes and or more rural commutes, I understand the redundancy aspect.

I always carry an extra tube, 2 co2 cartridges & one of those glueless patch kits. The glueless kits are easy to use, but don't last very long. I've never had to use one, but it's a good backup just in case I have a multiple flat ride. But I'm like a lot of the others, if I have a really bad day, I'll just get a ride the rest of the way.

I suppose if I were going on a longer, self-contained ride, it might be worth it to pack heavier, but, knock on wood, so far I've been lucky.

Well thanks for this one folks. I got lured into making a simple quip on a flat thread and the gods struck me down on the way to work this morning. Next time I'm not even going to read it, let alone comment. Needed to boot the tire and we have no spares in the office. Looks like it'll be a nervous and careful ride home tonight.

Man, I hope this isn't spreading.

I got a flat this weekend on my Big Apples. Second time in the last few weeks. Again, a large chunk of quartz was embedded in the tire, and took some effort to dig out. At least the weather was in the 50s and sunny, so it was not so bad (mid 60s tomorow . . . I think this is technically still called "winter"). I used a Slime Skab patch, rather than spare tube, since I was only a few miles from home. Held fine.

When i ride it is easier to swap the tube and patch the old one when i get home. sometime times somebody forgets to bring a tube when they have a flat and yours wont fit theirs so patches come in handy.

swap the tube.. if i have time, I'll patch it and shove it back in the bag. btw.. patch it with a real patch kit(glue and sandpaper) and not one of those sticker ones. The glue fuses the rubber where as the sticker..well.. is just a band-aid.

Also..you really need a spare tube in the event you rip the valve.

Same here. My commute is all urban/suburban and our buses have bike racks from April to October. I only get a flat about once a year. Usually I discover my flat tire before leaving home/work. I do carry a spare tube but no patch kit. I certainly don't want to be fiddling with a patch kit in dark winter conditions.

No spares in the office? How is that even possible for someone who works for Schwalbe?

I guess it's true that the cobbler's children have no shoes.

Warehouse is in Ferndale, WA I'm in Victoria BC. We literally have almost zero stock here. A few samples every now and then, but right now nothing in a 700x23 - 25 - 28. I've got my backstock at home but right now that's 5 miles away. And, just so that I feel the same pain as the end consumer these days, the tires at home are not the size that I want on this bike and we're out of the tire I want. I have to either put an old tire on my bike to get me through or use up a new tire that I was saving for the spring. I guess I'll see what I have at home and see if there's something that I have that'll get me by.

I will say this. The tire that blew is an Ultremo DD (Double Defense) 700x25 that I've had on my commuter bike for almost exactly 2 years (not sure on the mileage). It only flatted because I wore through the casing and the tube blew out. Other than today, 2 trouble free years of commuting and winter training rides on this set of tires.

For a tire guy, I find that rather ironic...! :lol:(no offense) ;)

None taken. The funny thing is, I looked at my front tire this morning as I was airing up and I thought to myself, "I haven't really inspected my tires too closely lately..... maybe I should do that". This is the downside of having a fully fendered bike, outta sight, outta mind. On my racing bikes this never would have happened as I would have noticed that the contact patch had totally flattened out and the tires would have been switched out long ago. To the tires' credit, one of the reasons I hadn't taken much time to inspect them is I've never had a flat on this pair. My 1st flat (especially on rear tire) is my "better check the tires" barometer. Since that never happened with these tires I was lulled into a sense of complacency. But yeah, it was an especially boneheaded inattention to detail on my part.


OR

Product Research........ hmmmmm spin doctors are busy at work now.

why a spare tube and a patch kit?

Well lets say that you are thinking about lunch and remember that the new Jimmy Johns about a mile and a half up the road dropped off coupons for a free sub last week and you have one on your desk. And your new permanent crown just got put on this morning. So off you go to get your sandwich, and when leaving you realize the back tire has flatted. Unload the bike and get the tools out, change the tube. But you were in a hurry and didn't get all the glass out of the tire, and the tube flats again in 50 yards. fortunately, you have a patch kit, several swear words, and a cell phone to explain why you be a little late coming back from lunch.

I was also reminded that I hate my planet bike mini pump, and am ready for a new one.

I made a disparaging remark about my PB mini pump yesterday. I figured out how to fix it last night for those interested, although having dissembled it and seeing how it is put together, I still plan on taking a Lezyne on tour this spring.

If you cant get the pump head over the schrader valve enough to get air in the tube cut 1/8 inch off of the rubber tube piece that is directly under the screw-on cap on the pump head. This brings the little nub at the bottom closer to the top of the schrader valve body. You may find that you dont need to do this with some tubes and with others it is a necessity.

Thank you.

I've had one occasion where I flatted out twice within about a mile. And it was a dark and lonely forest in Germany. I don't know if I missed the puncturing particle after the first flat (I did check) or if I was just really unlucky. But the patch I'd put on my first flat wasn't dry enough to ride on by the time I got my second flat. I decided to just walk it for a while and I came to a town before long, so I just found a hostel and left both tubes' patches to dry overnight. That's one occasion over a couple of decades of riding, but it was enough to motivate me to always carry a tube and patches--even though one tube wasn't really enough on that day.

Commuting on an internally-geared bike, if I get a small puncture I'll patch the tube with the wheel still on the bike. (Usually only takes a couple of minutes to find, patch, and get the tire back on, a bit faster than removing a nutted-axle internally-geared hub.)

But I carry a spare tube for larger gashes that don't patch well.

On my touring bike I usually carry both 700C and 26" tubes -- if the person I'm riding with has a flat, that slows me down as much as it does them. (But then, on my touring bike I also carry a chain whip, crank puller, BB tools...)

IF you don't understand, perhaps you should carry only a spare tube. throw just one CO2 cartridge in there and leave your pump at home for good measure.

resurrect this thread once you see the light.