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Ugh another flat tire, any tips?

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Ugh another flat tire, any tips?

Old 07-15-04, 07:45 AM
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Ugh another flat tire, any tips?

ok I have now put 3 tubes in this front tire in the last 2 weeks. Before this last 2 week I only ever 1 or 2 other flats on the front and just 1 on the back (blow out on first ride)

I have tried and failed to find anthing in the tire that would cause a flat. Am I missing something? What can I do to make sure?

any suggestions on reducing flats would be greatly appreciated.

The Tire is a Kenda Koncept 700x23c. The rim is Alexrims DA22. Same Rim and tire on the back and only ever 1 flat there. I have tried various tubes recommended by the LBS
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Old 07-15-04, 07:56 AM
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Is the tire bald?

Are the flats occurring on the 'road' side of the tube, or the inside, or near the valve?
 
Old 07-15-04, 08:07 AM
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Originally Posted by Fat Hack
Is the tire bald?

Are the flats occurring on the 'road' side of the tube, or the inside, or near the valve?
The tire only have about 400 miles on them.

The tubes seem to hold air when I pump them up. I can't hear any air escaping. Then 5 to 10 miles into the ride it is flat.

Not sure where the flat is happening on the last 2 tubes. The most recent one I have not torn apart yet as I was in a hurry to get to work.

The one before today, I was never able to find where it went flat.
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Old 07-15-04, 08:12 AM
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IMO, if you are in doubt, I'd take it to your LBS and spend the couple bucks to have them check it out...sometimes those "mystery" flats can be the worse!

I've put several thousand miles on my armadillos...not the lightest tires in the world, but man I haven't had them flat yet...(great now I will get one tonite during the fast paced ride! )
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Old 07-15-04, 08:13 AM
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you could just be having a bad run. I've had times where I'll go for a few months without a puncture, then get four in a week!

However, if you can find the holes, and notice they are not occurring on the road side of the tube, then you could have a tiny side-wall cut, or your rim tape might not be as good as it looks.
 
Old 07-15-04, 08:21 AM
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rub your hand or a rag around the inside of the tire to ensure there isnt a small thorn or other sharp object. Also check rim tape to make sure no spoke holes are visable (sharp spurs around those holes sometimes)
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Old 07-15-04, 08:28 AM
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thanks for the tips I will try all of that tonight. I have never checked the rim tape, but I did run my fingers around the tire inside and out last time
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Old 07-15-04, 09:23 AM
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as i've learned after wasting two tubes: if your tire has a hole in it (even slight) sometimes that will be enough to blow the tube. i had less than 100 miles on a set of expensive road tires and i had to end up replacing the tire. it had a hole about 1/16 in diameter in it that poked through to the inside.
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Old 07-15-04, 09:34 AM
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Diagnose that sucker, and then you can find the problem. Sounds like you're using new tubes instead of patching the old one (there's NO reason not to patch, but leave that for another day), and if you're not seeing the hole every time, that's contributing to your problem.
It's important to find out whether you're having the same puncture over and over, which would indicate a problem in the tire or the rim, or a new problem every time. Next time you get a flat, pump the deflated tube up and put it in a sink full of water to see where the bubbles come up. Mark that spot and patch the hole, then look at the rim and the tire right where you got the hole. If it's on the tire side of the tube, you probably have a little piece of broken-off thorn or something stuck in the rubber. If it's on the RIM side, look for a break in the tape or the end of a spoke protruding too far. A really tiny thing will do it--there's a lot of pressure in there.
One more tip: When you mount a tire, mount it so the label is right at the valve hole in the rim. Then when you have a flat, you find the hole in the tube and use the valve and the tire label as landmarks to see where in the tire you should look for the thorn or whatever. Saves a lot of time over the years.
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Old 07-15-04, 09:37 AM
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I have gone through 3 tubes before finding a small piece of glass in the tire. I ended up taking the wheel in to have the rim checked out by my LBS. They also checked the tire and missed the glass. Good luck.
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Old 07-15-04, 10:07 AM
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Originally Posted by Velo Dog
(there's NO reason not to patch, but leave that for another day.
Are patched tires good for long term use? I have always replaced the tube because I did not think the patch was trustworthy

Originally Posted by Velo Dog
Next time you get a flat, pump the deflated tube up and put it in a sink full of water to see where the bubbles come up. Mark that spot and patch the hole, then look at the rim and the tire right where you got the hole.
Good idea I had forgot about that trick, will try it tonight





Originally Posted by Velo Dog
One more tip: When you mount a tire, mount it so the label is right at the valve hole in the rim. Then when you have a flat, you find the hole in the tube and use the valve and the tire label as landmarks to see where in the tire you should look for the thorn or whatever. Saves a lot of time over the years.
This I have been doing so that should help me find it





Thanks for the tips.
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Old 07-15-04, 10:08 AM
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When you take off the inner tube, see if you can line it up with the placement in the tire, then go and see exactly what's going on with that area of your tire. If there really isn't anything embedded in the tire, I'd say it's the rim tape.

Good luck. It's frustrating when you have those kinds of problems.

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Old 07-15-04, 01:19 PM
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i was having a similar problem. tire was clean, so i figured it was the rim strip. i got some mountain-bike width velox and cut it a bit to completely cover the "bottom" of the rim. haven't had a problem since.
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Old 07-15-04, 03:31 PM
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I posted about a week and a half ago about having a tube blowout on me after just putting my own weight on the bike. The consensus was that it was caused by a pinch flat due to the small hole in my tire (from the shell that popped the original tube). I patched the tire on the inside and it's been fine ever since (200 miles or so).
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Old 07-15-04, 09:01 PM
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after dunking the tube in water to find the leak I was able to find the small thorn in the tire that caused it.

I missed the thorn the first time I checked the tire. The rim tape looked good, found no problems there

Thanks for all the tips on dealing with a flat tire
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Old 07-15-04, 10:37 PM
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Congrats on finding the leak. I don't think you should be buying new tube every time one goes flat, just patch them. I've had tubes with as many as 15 or 16 patches, and you can do that as long as one patch doesn't overlap another or its very near to the valve...which I have patched those before but it's not recommended.

Also if your trying to use your bike to commute or just plain tired of flats then do as Wildbill suggested and get the Specialize Armadillo, they are the most flat resistent tire on the market. I use to live where the Goatheads roamed and the thistles and thorns played, and averaged 4 flats a week! I was trying to commute to work as well as excercise training and was getting very frustrated, then an LBS told me to try the Armadillos...14,000 miles later and only 2 flats, one was due to a faulty tube and the other because I had wore the tire down to the cords and a pebble made it's way through. The tires are heavy but no flats equals no boss yelling at you because your late-AGAIN. I do use Specialize 65grm racing tubes in the Armadillo in a attempt to keep the weight down.

There is a tire on the market called the Conti 4 Seasons, it's lighter by about 125grms then the Armadillo, it has the best flat protection for it's weight class, and they even extended one of the three anti-flat belts into the sidewall, no other company does that except for the Armadillo.
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Old 07-16-04, 06:28 AM
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my next set of tires may just be Armadillo or similar.

I did not know that a patched tire was that good, I will definately start patching and using patched tubes

Last edited by Bolo Grubb; 07-20-04 at 07:15 AM.
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Old 07-20-04, 07:16 AM
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yet another flat tire

ok I am taking the tire, wheel and tube to the LBS tonight and ask for help.

Last time I rode was on Sunday, a nice hilly 22.7 miles course with WKrider. WE complete the ride with no problems. No flats noticed.

I go out this morning to go for a ride and my front tire is completely flat. A rim side blow out right over a spoke. But the spoke is good and tight with nothing poking into the rim to make contact with the tire.

The hole in the tire is a jagged hole, not a puncture.
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Old 07-20-04, 07:22 AM
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Originally Posted by WildBill
IMO, if you are in doubt, I'd take it to your LBS and spend the couple bucks to have them check it out...sometimes those "mystery" flats can be the worse!

I've put several thousand miles on my armadillos...not the lightest tires in the world, but man I haven't had them flat yet...(great now I will get one tonite during the fast paced ride! )

Man...I am glad somebody mentioned Armadillos...those are the best training tires anywhere...
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Old 07-20-04, 09:01 AM
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I've had a string of flat tires this year, so I've learned more about tubes, wheels & spokes than I ever wanted to. I hadn't had a flat in 30 years before this.

I've discovered my bike has crappy wheels, so:
(1) rim strips are required.
(2) proper tire pressure is required to prevent pinch flats.
(3) keep your spokes the proper tension, they break, and un-true your wheel.
(4) try not to use tire levers if physically possible, otherwise be very careful not to puncture the tube.
(5) smooth off any rough edges on the wheel that will touch the tube, emory cloth works well.
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Old 08-03-04, 02:36 PM
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Originally Posted by Applehead57
I've had a string of flat tires this year, so I've learned more about tubes, wheels & spokes than I ever wanted to. I hadn't had a flat in 30 years before this.

I've discovered my bike has crappy wheels, so:
(1) rim strips are required.
(2) proper tire pressure is required to prevent pinch flats.
(3) keep your spokes the proper tension, they break, and un-true your wheel.
(4) try not to use tire levers if physically possible, otherwise be very careful not to puncture the tube.
(5) smooth off any rough edges on the wheel that will touch the tube, emory cloth works well.


I happy to report that since 07-20-04 I have not had a flat tire. Of course I may have just jinxed myself, but following many of the tips posted above seemed to have solved my issues.
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Old 08-03-04, 04:16 PM
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As a customer, I want a tire that can go 2K-5K before flatting...err even with the Armadillos, I have not had that sort of success yet.

Regarding Thorns and glass shards. Try the Performance bike shop thorn proof tires. They're very heavy tho...But for me..so far so good.
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