Patching TIRES (i.e., not tubes)
10-07-16, 12:34 PM
#26
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I don't let my tires get anything close to worn down to the cords. I don't even let the wear indicator (on those that have them) get down to the bottom. I enjoy high speed descents on steep hills and I figure a bad blow out at high speed would be so disasterous that I consider replacing tires early and often to be a cheap insurance policy.
10-07-16, 12:42 PM
#27
don't try this at home.
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...snip...
The bills are just to get me home. THen I do a full repair with sailcloth (ask any sailmaker for some dacron sailcloth appropriate for dingies -a foot or so of scrap probably won't cost you anything and it is A-1 first class patching material for permanent tire casing repairs, even large ones). Cut the boot oversize. I often go bead to bead and and inch or more beyond the cut. Glue in with contractor's contact cement. (The stuff with real warning re: fumes. Take the warnings seriously.) This will last as long as the rest of the tire except that taking the tire on and off tends to be hard on the gluing and will sometimes need to have the edges glued down again. Sailcloth matches the feel and performance of tires really well and you will not notice it at all riding.
I regularly ride tires to the end of the tread with cuts early on that many posters here would tell me to scrap. I like riding $75 tires. I cannot afford to just toss them because something happened at 500 miles. Tires that get cut go into a pile. About once a year, I pull out the sailcloth and glue and go at it. Then I have a stack of nice tires for a while. (And to Demon Cyclist - using bills is just a low interest loan, it doesn't actually cost anything. They are completely usable later (and will do even better run through the laundry if needed).
Ben
The bills are just to get me home. THen I do a full repair with sailcloth (ask any sailmaker for some dacron sailcloth appropriate for dingies -a foot or so of scrap probably won't cost you anything and it is A-1 first class patching material for permanent tire casing repairs, even large ones). Cut the boot oversize. I often go bead to bead and and inch or more beyond the cut. Glue in with contractor's contact cement. (The stuff with real warning re: fumes. Take the warnings seriously.) This will last as long as the rest of the tire except that taking the tire on and off tends to be hard on the gluing and will sometimes need to have the edges glued down again. Sailcloth matches the feel and performance of tires really well and you will not notice it at all riding.
I regularly ride tires to the end of the tread with cuts early on that many posters here would tell me to scrap. I like riding $75 tires. I cannot afford to just toss them because something happened at 500 miles. Tires that get cut go into a pile. About once a year, I pull out the sailcloth and glue and go at it. Then I have a stack of nice tires for a while. (And to Demon Cyclist - using bills is just a low interest loan, it doesn't actually cost anything. They are completely usable later (and will do even better run through the laundry if needed).
Ben
10-07-16, 12:54 PM
#29
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[IMG]
009 by onedollarmiyata, on Flickr[/IMG]
This screw hit the brake stay and locked the rear tire up. Was about 400 miles from home. Just put a dollar boot in it and rode it for another thousand miles or so. Was an Armadillo, not every tire would do that well.
The only time I toss a tire is when the sidewall is cut all the way through. I have ridden tires down to almost an exposed tube on tour, but try to keep some tread on things normally. I do notice increased flats when the tire is worn down a lot.
009 by onedollarmiyata, on Flickr[/IMG]This screw hit the brake stay and locked the rear tire up. Was about 400 miles from home. Just put a dollar boot in it and rode it for another thousand miles or so. Was an Armadillo, not every tire would do that well.
The only time I toss a tire is when the sidewall is cut all the way through. I have ridden tires down to almost an exposed tube on tour, but try to keep some tread on things normally. I do notice increased flats when the tire is worn down a lot.
10-07-16, 01:13 PM
#30
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I always carry a couple of small (1 3/4" diameter) car tire patches in my patch kit to use as a boot if I need one. They're thick enough that they should get me home, probably about as thick as the tire itself.
10-07-16, 01:13 PM
#31
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2 years? Whew? It would depend on the tires, and your use. Mom's bike has at least 20 year old tires on it, but not a lot of miles. I'll probably replace them in a bit.
I've got over 5000 miles so far this year (a few months left to go). Distributed between a couple of bikes, but I'm not sure I'll make it to 2 years tire life with my primary riding bikes. However, I'm hoping my tires on my cargo bike will last a good long time.
I do find over time the rubber will dry out a bit, so the thousand micro holes in the older tires may be in part caused by weaker rubber.
As far as patching, I've been experimenting with radial tire patches. They have a little added internal strength/support. I put one on a tire with some moderate sidewall damage, and it lasted until I lost a big enough chunk of tread rubber down to the cords that I didn't feel comfortable riding the tire until I attempt further repairs.
10-07-16, 01:19 PM
#32
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2000 miles is barely broken in. It also depends on front or rear, or rotated.
2 years? Whew? It would depend on the tires, and your use. Mom's bike has at least 20 year old tires on it, but not a lot of miles. I'll probably replace them in a bit.
I've got over 5000 miles so far this year (a few months left to go). Distributed between a couple of bikes, but I'm not sure I'll make it to 2 years tire life with my primary riding bikes. However, I'm hoping my tires on my cargo bike will last a good long time.
I do find over time the rubber will dry out a bit, so the thousand micro holes in the older tires may be in part caused by weaker rubber.
As far as patching, I've been experimenting with radial tire patches. They have a little added internal strength/support. I put one on a tire with some moderate sidewall damage, and it lasted until I lost a big enough chunk of tread rubber down to the cords that I didn't feel comfortable riding the tire until I attempt further repairs.
2 years? Whew? It would depend on the tires, and your use. Mom's bike has at least 20 year old tires on it, but not a lot of miles. I'll probably replace them in a bit.
I've got over 5000 miles so far this year (a few months left to go). Distributed between a couple of bikes, but I'm not sure I'll make it to 2 years tire life with my primary riding bikes. However, I'm hoping my tires on my cargo bike will last a good long time.
I do find over time the rubber will dry out a bit, so the thousand micro holes in the older tires may be in part caused by weaker rubber.
As far as patching, I've been experimenting with radial tire patches. They have a little added internal strength/support. I put one on a tire with some moderate sidewall damage, and it lasted until I lost a big enough chunk of tread rubber down to the cords that I didn't feel comfortable riding the tire until I attempt further repairs.
10-07-16, 01:41 PM
#33
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Two separate problems:
The most common is a simple hole in the tire. If your inner tube is sticking through, you obviously have to patch the hole with something. If I'm on the road, I usually use a dollar bill. If I'm at home, I'll stick a piece of duct tape over the inside of the hole. If, after re-inflating my tire to operating pressure, I can't see or feel a bump where the hole is, I feel that I'm good-to-go.
Cut or broken tire cords are a different issue. After a puncture these sometimes show up as a bump in the tire. Sometimes they show up, even without a puncture, as a kind of "Z" shape in the tread. I've heard that some folks have various methods of repairing such damage but I replace the tire.
The most common is a simple hole in the tire. If your inner tube is sticking through, you obviously have to patch the hole with something. If I'm on the road, I usually use a dollar bill. If I'm at home, I'll stick a piece of duct tape over the inside of the hole. If, after re-inflating my tire to operating pressure, I can't see or feel a bump where the hole is, I feel that I'm good-to-go.
Cut or broken tire cords are a different issue. After a puncture these sometimes show up as a bump in the tire. Sometimes they show up, even without a puncture, as a kind of "Z" shape in the tread. I've heard that some folks have various methods of repairing such damage but I replace the tire.
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10-10-16, 05:24 AM
#34
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A puncture doesn't need any repair for the hole, as long as no threads are damaged.
A chuck of missing rubber can be filled in with things like Shoe Goo (if no casing threads are damaged) but it may not hold in use. The usual problem you have when bonding two pieces of rubber together that aren't the same density or hardness is that when flexed they tend to develop a tear where the density/hardness changes, due to one not being as stretchy as the other.
If enough casing threads are broken that the tire doesn't hold its proper shape when inflated, then the tire is trash. There is no way to effectively repair it. If you are on the road when this happens then you can do whatever you have to temporarily just to get home--maybe while running a lower-than-normal pressure!--but the tire is ruined and you need a new one.
A chuck of missing rubber can be filled in with things like Shoe Goo (if no casing threads are damaged) but it may not hold in use. The usual problem you have when bonding two pieces of rubber together that aren't the same density or hardness is that when flexed they tend to develop a tear where the density/hardness changes, due to one not being as stretchy as the other.
If enough casing threads are broken that the tire doesn't hold its proper shape when inflated, then the tire is trash. There is no way to effectively repair it. If you are on the road when this happens then you can do whatever you have to temporarily just to get home--maybe while running a lower-than-normal pressure!--but the tire is ruined and you need a new one.
10-13-16, 06:04 PM
#35
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I recently did use a GU gel pack to limp another 10-15 miles and the hole in the sidewall was big enough to put my thumb in easily. Even that was bulging at over 40 PSI but I lowered it and it held. It was a serious emergency fix. I would prefer to keep a couple of boots handy. My shoe, on the other hand, will need a bit of black duct tape.
The tiny bit of remaining GU seeping out after 5-6 miles..., yes, it was an empty pack.
The tiny bit of remaining GU seeping out after 5-6 miles..., yes, it was an empty pack.
Last edited by Chandne; 10-13-16 at 06:08 PM.
