humancongereel

it's a few days until payday, and i had three flats today while working. obviously,this will not do. i have a couple of old tires that have served me well; i don't mind putting on an old armadillo or something, but i do mind putting a patched tube in there, because (in my experience) patched tubes don't hold up as long as i'd like. hell, the ones i patched today didn't make it through the afternoon.

so...what i'm asking is, if i can meet up with someone tonight or before noon tomorrow to get a tube, after payday (like friday or saturday) i'd be happy to get you two tubes and a six pack, or some food at takahashi, or whatever token of appreciation we could agree upon.

humancongereel

oh, and i know i should always have spares, but a) i used up my spare and most of my patches today and b) everything was going so well until i put on a schwalbe stelvio (worst tire i've ever used) that i only carried the one, which...well, refer to a).

dutret

are you using real patches or glueless?

sloppy robot

you need to learn how to patch a tube son.. ill give you a hint.. when they say let the glue dry.. they arent kidding

humancongereel

well, sort of hard when you have to get going again right away....i know ceya rides on his flats, but with clinchers, the sliding reduces control enough that i won't do it.

i'm going to patch up a few tonight just as backups. that'll give 'em all night to dry.

oh, and yeah. real patches.

i have also have the option of taking some other tires and tubes and mxing 27" and 700c on a road frame i have...basically putting together a really hastily-made conversion. i'll probably do that...the only part is that getting straight chainline on this other bike will probably be a *****, but we'll see.

ZachS

ian, the cement simply will not work unless it's dry.


if you're in a hurry, burn the solvent off with a lighter. a correctly patched puncture does not leak - it's one of those situations where the bond is as strong/stronger than the material it joins.

Dostoy

I keep a ten tucked in my tool pouch. If you did the same, you could go buy a tube and a pack of smokes.

I recommend this practice.

humancongereel

huh, yeah. good idea. an emergency fund. i always want to do that, but spend it before i can think of way to keep myself from spending it.

humancongereel

this thread--and this day--is kind of making me feel like a dolt, but at least i'm getting good ideas like the "ten in the toolbag" idea, so i'm learning from my dolthood.

dls333

PM'd!

trons

better yet, learn how to patch tubes

Dostoy

hey... it happens to everyone, or at least everyone who's not a budget-dork.

humancongereel

doesn't seem like there's much to it.

dammit, i should have known. any time i think "hey, this is easy", i'm usually doing something wrong.

but i think it's just a matter of patience. i've patched tubes okay, before...but those tubes are the ones that i put in my bag when they flat, and patch at home, and let them sit till i need them. today...i didn't have the luxury of patience and burned through a bunch of ****.

thurstonboise

The trick is
1. Scuff the tube around the hole.
2. Spread glue in an area bigger than the patch.
3. Let the glue dry.
4. Apply patch from the center outward.
5. Done.

Steps 2 and 3 are the most important in the patching part. The only thing more important is to make sure whatever caused the flat isn't still in your tire. If you mount your labels in line with the stems, you can get a pretty good idea where the offender is.

humancongereel

step 2 i think is where i **** up.

but nevermind, folks, i've got the situation figgered out.

freebird

Step 1-- "Yay, I'm a messenger!"
Step 2-- "Um, hey, could you spot me a beer/tube/eighth 'till payday?"

I would use one of those smiley faces to let you know that I'm just fooling with you, but I find them distasteful. Also, I'm not kidding.

zelah

shoulda called me, i got mad tubes, all fresh

humancongereel

freebird...i thought about that...not something i feel comfortable doing, but i am somewhat acquainted with a mechanic at one shop, and i could have tried hitting her up...also, there's a shop that's really messenger friendly i could have tried that at.

tehz...if i'm really in a bind ever again...i'll try you.

freebird

At your service, dog. Seriously, I'm gonna track you down in P one of these days. I'll bring tubes/beer/eighth.

humancongereel

oh, i was talking to tehz. cuz he lives downtown. in fact, one of the flats i got today was blocks from his apartment.

track me down, though, beer/eighth shall be had, riding shall be done, nights shall be spent not sleeping,e tc...

sivat

So i guess what i should take from this is that the slime, self-adhesive patches are crap?

LóFarkas

They work... sort of. But they don't seem to last long. One guy says that it helps to stretch out the tube while you apply the glueless patch so it doesn't have to expand when you pump it up. Several others say that glueless patches let go after a couple of days. Who knows? I used the Park thingie, but then I put that tiny patch on snakebites, so I was expecting it to give up the good fight sooner rather than later. Eventually, it did, but it got me home both times.

And the "let the glue dry" thing is for real. You gotta give it 5 minutes before you apply the patch. I guess you could glue up the patch first and let it dry while you take off the tyre and look for the hole... If it's ok to glue the patch only. I usually glue both the patch and the tube.

Or you could run Vittoria Rubinos. I can't remember if I had a puncture flat since I put'em on in December. Just the two snakebites, which is my fault, of course.

humancongereel

i dunno, first thing i was ever told in regard to glue was to check it with your fingernail--no set time.

SCARFACE

I believe the purpose of the glue is to fill in the area were you have used an abrasive to tear the surface of the tube. That is why you place a patch after the glue is dry. I have observed by the time it takes me to peal off a patch after applying a thin coat of glue on the tube, The glue has already set in. Blow on it if its still kind of damp. Also try rubbing out air pockets that can be trapped easily in the ridges of the tube. After Living in the south west, with thorn and all, paching tubes all sumer long is a way of life.

max-a-mill

to speed it up if you in a hurry or its raining light the glue on fire... seriously.