Enthusiast

I have terrible luck with puncturing my tires; no matter what pressure, what tire, what wheel, what road surface, I seem to get a flat every hundred miles or so. As a commuter that's 1-2 flats a week on average, sometimes up to 8. I've resigned myself to carrying my flat fixing stuff, including a Topeak Road Morph mini-pump with me where ever I go since I'm inconvenienced so often. Mounting the pump on the bike and sticking the patch kit in a saddle bag isn't an option because of the sketchy neighborhoods in which I sometimes have to lock up. I don't want to haul around my bag whenever I'm on the bike, especially when I'm doing group rides with the roadies.

I'm thinking of sewing up something similar to the fabric horse utility belts but I can't figure out how to secure the pump without it flapping around, getting caught on my seat, poking me in the back, or looking like I'm packing heat. (Its a really bad idea to look like you've got a gun in New Orleans...)

Anyone have to deal with similar issues? How do you keep your pump near you or the bike without it getting in the way or stolen?

I posted in this forum instead of the Commuters forum because I figured folks would be more concerned with fashion and appearances here. FG/SS pretension pays off!

carbonjockey

new tires

peabodypride

somethings very wrong with the wheelbuild (horrible tension?), or else your rim strips are dead, or you are buying hair-thin tubes, or your tires are junk.

if you are not qualified, take your wheels to be looked at, buy new rim strips, and gatorskins. hefty price but beats crap components that are flatting every 100 miles. that's _not_ normal.

Thetank

Why don't you just carry Co2 instead of a mini pump?

stachemaster

Cause that's a very expensive solution to the problem.
Why not use the frame attachment that came with your pump? Or two old toestraps, or two velcro strips...
This isn't the hardest thing to figure out...

EDIT: just reread closer. if you are not going to carry the pump in a jersey pocket and have it poke you in the back, then take the pump and toolkit inside with you when you lock up. Short of carrying a bigger bag, which you dont want to do, you're outta comfortable options.

Thetank

He's spending money patching up or replacing tubes every 100 miles or so, a 12 pack of Co2 cartridges is like $8 at wal mart. You're right it's VERY EXPENSIVE!

And he won't attach his pump to his frame cause it might get stolen, please read the whole post before you make a comment.

peabodypride

You know what else is VERY EXPENSIVE? Dilly dallying with stupid solutions when the answer is clear -- something is mechanically wrong!

Both of you two, please ride a bike for a few thousand km before thinking it's okay to have flats every couple hundred miles. Even in goathead country, it ain't.

Gambutrol

nashbar has some "puncture" resistant tubes that you might want to check out. I bought one, but haven't installed it since they are so thick and heavy and I don't have much of a flat problem with my gatorskins.

I think I agree with peabody's assessment that there is something wrong with your wheel...or maybe the streets in your neighborhood are made of broken glass.

(edited for style)

sp00ki

You need to purchase better tires, bro. you should have a flat no more than once every five hundred miles (and that's being conservative). if you get a flat even twice a month, you're riding on crappy rubber. That said...

+1
If you ride, you should carry a co2 inflator. silly not to.

???
no it's not. not only is it not expensive, but it's far easier to fill a tire to 100 pounds with an inflator than it is with a mini pump.
carrying one instead of co2 is what people who don't know any better do.

Gambutrol

So what happens if you get 2 flats in one ride (which seems like a very plausible scenario for the OP)? Are you suggesting he carry handfuls of CO2 cartridges with him everywhere he goes? It is a very impractical- and costly- not only is he paying for lots of new tubes, but also lots of new CO2 cartridges- solution to what seems like a mechanical problem.

Enthusiast

I'm sorry if I didn't make it clear but this is with multiple tires: conti contact securities with tuffyliners, gatorskins, Panaracer T-Serv, vittoria ricorso, avocet 27 inchers, even had relatively frequent flats on the 1.5" slicks on my old ss mtb commuter. This is with 4 different wheelsets, including 2 I built myself. Fonde de Jant (sp) rimstrips are well seated and have no tears. Rim edges are free from all burrs. I've used different brand tubes, opting for thicker walls when possible. Tires are inflated to 5 psi more than the rated sidewall pressure and are frequently checked. A few flats have come from pinch flats but the vast majority are caused by road debris poking, gashing, and tearing through tire tread, casing, kevlar/aramid belt, tuffyliner and tube. I check the tires and tubes thoroughly after each flat and always find and fix the cause of the flat before re inflating the tire. I rarely ride on shoulders and do my best to avoid obvious detritus. Me and the bike are less than 200 lbs so excessive weight isn't an issue.

In short, I do everything I should to prevent flats. Thanks for your concern but I've heard it all before. I've accepted the fact that my Irish heritage has decided to express itself though terrible luck with flats. Now any ideas on how I carry my pump easily?

Surferbruce

jersey pockets, but yeah that's WAY too many punctures. somethings up with that...

dervish

have you done something to enrage the bike gods?

Enthusiast

As my tires get worn out or too cut up I've been replacing them with different brands, trying to find something with sufficient puncture protection. (Gatorskins were terrible btw) Next up are Schwalbe Marathons. So I'm not riding crappy rubber.

My pump goes up to 125 psi and has lasted for 8 years now. I shudder to think of the cost and waste if I used a co2 inflator.

Jethro

Enthusiast -- Yeah you right! I too experience flats here in New Orleans on a regular basis. The road debris has been exceptionally bad this year. I did make it seven months last year without a flat on Gatorskins but have been averaging no less than a flat per week now for quite some time. Also, my frame pump was "borrowed" recently while I was in the Post Office on Louisiana. I guess the guy parked to me with the new bike (still had the tags on it) needed the pump more than me.

So here is what I have done recently, but it may not work for you because of your original post. I bought a saddle bag, a second hand one, that shows some wear. I put the pump, tools, and u-lock in it. So far, no problems and that includes lock-ups for extended time in Quarter.

Just my two cents . . . hope this helps.

Enthusiast

Thanks Jethro, it's nice to have someone from New Orleans corroborate my story on how rough these streets are on tires. A saddlebag would work ok as patch kits are only 2 bucks so I'm ok with those getting lifted infrequently but I'm not sure how I'd fit the pump or u-lock back there. How tiny are your u-lock and pump that they fit in a saddle bag? My u-lock isn't a mini and the pump is 13.5" long.

Oh, and I'm guessing that new bike was probably stolen shortly before your pump. Ah NOLA...

kergin

in the bum.

peabodypride

A prostate massage and a workout in one. Awesome.

AndyOrg

Hahahaha, best response, since the guy already got his information.

Jethro

Enthusiast -- The pump, which I am going to replace with a Topeak, is just under a foot long. The u-lock is an Evolution Mini-LS. I bought the bag at Wald on Oak Street but normally shop at Bicycle Michaels. I have several thoughts on improving the bag to minimize the threat of theft and may one day have someone local make a bag or two to spec. Good luck. I hope this helps. Jethro

sp00ki

a single cart can fill multiple wheels. it's apparent you haven't used co2, so why are you being so dismissive of it?
i've used both, and trust me-- co2 is far superior. there's really no way around that.
Please stick to what you know when doling out free advice...

i would put bontrager race lite hardcase on that list-- at the very top, actually. it's the most puncture resistant tire i've ever used:
https://bontrager.com/model/00443/en
https://bontrager.com/technology/hardcase/

it really, really works.

ZiP0082

specialized armadillo for the win!

dutret

not most cartridges. Certainly not the cheap airgun ones.

I fail to see why you can't just use the attachement method that comes with the pump. Do you lack waterbottle mounts? Not all pumps require them.

You should just get tireliners anyway.

Enthusiast

Perhaps I'll spend the 20 bucks and give co2 a try. It could serve as a fall-back measure for those times when it is inconvenient for me to carry the pump. I think I'll sew up a small bag that I can swap from under my saddle to my belt to my bag. Spooki, what size/brand canister have you found works to get 700x23 to 130 psi, or a 700x28 to 110?

Dutret, I unfortunately broke the frame mounting brackets that came with the pump about 6 years ago. Also, I do use tuffy tire liners (though not on my go-fast race wheelset) and while they have helped greatly, I still get nails and metal shards that go through the liner or sidewall.

Jethro

Enthusiast -- I have two frame mounting brackets that you can have if you want them. The stolen pump was taken from the bracket on my mountain bike. I do not know how to use this site well enough to trust providing contact information. Let me know if you want the brackets and suggest a way of getting them to you. Jethro