Would you ever patch a tire?
 

I never have.

But, I have a pair of tires that came stock on one of my bikes, about 4-5 years ago, and I really loved the feel of them on the road. Unfortunately, that only lasted about 350-400 miles, then I got a small cut in one of them - dead center through the tread, roughly 1/4 inch long, clean edges. I hit some metal debris in a parking lot at night.

Ordinarily, I would have thrown them out - but at the time, I went online and tried to order replacements, only to find out they weren't available to purchase. And, I loved the feel of them so much I hung them up.

Seem to be in great condition other than the cut.

Patch or Pitch?

My test is to boot the tire with dict tape or something similar, replace the inner tube and pump the tire up to operating pressure. If I can't feel a bump where the cut is I assume the tire cords are intact and I will continue to use that tire.

Yep, into the recycling.
Cheaper than a trip to the emergency room. :twitchy:

-Bandera

I'd use a boot... but I wouldn't expect it to be a long term fix... maybe long enough for a mail order delivery.

There are lots of nice tires out there - I'm sure you'll find some that are just as good as your originals.

1/4" is pretty small. not familiar with tire boots but if you can apply rubber cement or another flexible glue between the slice & the boot it would probably be fine until the tire rots

http://www.bicyclebuys.com/park-tire...FRBXDQod0FwJeg

https://images.amain.com/images/larg...ol/tb-2c_1.jpg

of course the manufacturer says: NOTE: Always replace a cut tire as soon as possible.

If the cut goes through the casing, I'd toss it.

Boots are for returning home from the boonies , if you can write about the tire you can and should replace it

Best tire goes on the front.. you really don't want a front tire failure.

Pitch

Somewhere in the archives is a post describing how to patch a damaged tire with sail cloth and heavy duty contact cement. I'd consider it for some tires, especially those that already have a 1mm or thicker puncture shield since those are usually aramid fiber or something similarly strong and reinforcing. I probably wouldn't try repairing a lightweight high pressure racing tire.

Huge thumbs up on the Park boot!:thumb::thumb::thumb:
I was riding through some leaves in the bike lane and found a hidden sharp rock that sliced a hole in the sidewall, big enough to push my thumb through. I didn't think any boot could hold in that situation, but since the alternative was a 7 mile walk home, I gave it a shot. To my pleasant amazement, it got me home w/o problem. I think the self-adhesive on the boot made the difference between success and failure.

I did some experimenting with the Park boots.
Marathon Plus 700x25 tire, and another tire???

Anyway, when I fist installed the boot, it bumped very badly. Bumping was reduced by cutting the boot in half and re-inserting. After about 500 miles or so, the edges of the boot wore through the tube.

I went ahead and used black electrical tape to tape the boot to the tire carcass. About 200 miles later, the boot delaminated and absolutely disintegrated. But, also a hole was worn through the middle of the boot, 100%, and dug halfway into the tube (very lucky it didn't cause a flat).

I think I used a Park boot on another tire. Very thin Panaracer? A few hundred miles and my hole wore through middle of the boot and caused a flat.

I haven't given up on the idea of patching and booting. But, my interpretation is that the Park boots are for temporary use only. I've considered booting with tire liner.

I also filled a bunch of holes with super glue. It seemed to hold in place, but I keep getting confused between glue filled holes and debris filled holes, and picked some of it back out. I'm not sure how effective it is with holding rubber together.

I've been meaning to try Shoe Goo or a related product, but I don't like the adhesion of the product, so I'm thinking of something with a stronger adhesive nature.

Oh, on another tire (Gator Hardshell), I experimented with using a radial tire patch on a sidewall (inside + ordinary patch on the outside). It seemed to help, but bulged slightly without harm. The tube was fine (1000+ miles). However, eventually I lost a chunk of tread rubber elsewhere on the tire without a fully penetrating hole and it was removed from service.

Right.

What's the point in taking a chance with a cut five year old tire when G+ are $25 each?

It's not like the OP's tires are the only nice tires ever made.

Toss! I've tried several boot techniques and eventually the boot ends up giving where the hole is, another flat!

As an emergency measure have booted cut tire with piece of Tyvek, a folded dollar bill, a candy wrapper . . .
Pedal on TWOgether
Rudy and Kay/zonatandem

A couple of times I have used a patch on a tire plus some super glue to hold the cut together. It's worked long enough for me to ride it until replacements came in, maybe four or five hundred miles. However, I would never do that on a tandem. I can be stupid on my half-bikes, but when my better half is involved I've got to get it right.

I run tubeless, so I superglue (well, technically AKA r/c tire glue) nicks and cuts in my tires all the time. At least once a week. I've glued plenty of tubed tires in the past as well. As long as there aren't a bunch of cords cut, the tires hold up fine when glued. The r/c tire glue is the key, it has dissolved rubber in it, and is designed to hold little rubber tires on little plastic rims, at 10,000rpm. I've hand-built r/c tires where the left half of one tire is glued to the right half of a different tire, and the glue holds. A bike tire sees nothing even remotely close to the r/c level of abuse.

A patched tube will get you home and out on the next ride provided it doesn't leak.

A patched tire is designed to get you home. That's it. If it is through the entire tire, throw it out. If it is only partially through the outer rubber then maybe fix it with a tire boot, squirt some Gorilla brand super glue into the cut and use it until you find a suitable replacement but I would still not do any serious or long distance riding on it. It's just not worth risking safety for a tire. If it's a bum-around bike then you're probably ok in the later scenario to ride it around. There are so many great tires out there available today that you will find one you like.

If you don't mind me asking, what brand and model tire is it? Maybe folks on here can help point you to a good, or maybe even better replacement.


-

It takes practice.

I helped a friend with a flat one day.

He had 18 Patches on his tire.

On MTBs I've patched more than inch-long sidewall gashes using liqui-sole and a patch of nylon fabric. Those patches have outlasted the tires. I wouldn't hesitate to use the same technique on a road bike tire. Might double up on the fabric though. Even if I shouldn't get the same life as on the MTB tires, it'd surprise me considerably if there was a sudden failure.

I've had success patching a small cut in a tire with a glue patch used for tubes. It lasted for a while, a couple hundred miles, and was a worthwhile experiment. The tube was on my everyday bike, not on the weekend long-ride bike.

For an emergency repair of a large cut, I carry a Park Tool tire boot. I've had big cuts twice, and in each case, the boot allowed me to ride back in. It was a bumpy ride, but I made it. When the cut is big enough to require the Park boot, the objective is to get home, and typically the tire is trashed.

Thanks, Guys, for all of the responses.

Well... about as much concensus on a tire patch as on "Trump v. Clinton", lol.;):D

I think I have to play it cautious - time to put practical considerations (not crashing) ahead of sentiment. Into the trash they will go next week on garbage day.

correct

what tire are you looking for? some of us are pretty good internet shoppers

Trump v Clinton :innocent: :roflmao2:


I'd pitch them too. Health insurance deductible v new tire :foo: I'll use a boot to get home.

I had a bad blowout while coasting down a huge hill during my most recent out-of-state overnighter. It was quite scary regaining control of the bike while trying to steer clear of fast-moving traffic. I booted the tire with a patch cut from a FEDEX envelope and survived the 11-mile ride back to the nearest ferry terminal, where I had to abort the rest of the ride home. But I would never get back on that tire again.

I have fallen in love with many different tires over the years, all of which I started out hating. You will find something else you can ride, and you will not have to worry about a blow-out that can put your life at risk.

I have superglued a gash with long term success. A couple layers of gorilla tape as a protecting liner in the tire did well to protect the tube. It's my opinion such repairs are safe but the risk factor multiplies as speed increases. That's when you begin to get antsy for good rubber.

Well, it's your money, but I'd try to patch it with something like duct tape. Since it is the middle of the tread,it isn't as likely to blow out catastrophically as a cut on the side wall might. But a lot depends on the construction of the tire.

Maybe if you rephrased your question as "How do I fix a tire with a small cut in the middle of the tread?"; and post it on the bike mechanics forum you might get some better advice. People on that forum like to fix things. You could also use the search function, and read about tire cuts. There must be hundreds of threads concerning the subject.

One thing I've observed over the years on these forums is that if you ask a question such as "Should I do A or B?"; you'll get 10 votes for A and 10 votes for B.

Thanks - I know technically how to do it - or at least how I would do it - a small tire patch kit. I've patched enough lawnmower tires, wheelbarrow tires, etc. over the years that way. There are various ways to do it, a lot of people use superglue, some stitch up the cut, etc - lots of youtube videos out there.

I was coming at this mainly from a "is it safe to ride it" perspective. I see what you mean about responses running neck and neck. If it had been 70-30 saying "it's fine to ride it" I wouldn't hesitate. But, as said, not really worth risking it. :)

Absolutely not particularly if the casing is cut--don't be penny wise and pound foolish!
Not worth the risk!

I've tried the gel pack patch and the dollar patch with no success. I now keep a Park tire patch (or two on the tandem) in my kit.

I will run a booted tire to get home, and that's it.

On the tandem if I see any cut in the tire when we have a flat, I toss it.

I have become very risk averse as I've aged because it takes so long to heal.

To get home, sure. Sometimes I am 25-30 miles from my starting point, I really wouldn't want to walk that far.