I keep getting the same kind of flat... (weird)
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The bus, Gus
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I keep getting the same kind of flat... (weird)
Okay so tonight I flatted both front and rear to the same type of flat. Here's a picture of what is happening:
The red circles are where the punctures keep happening. Sometimes it's one side, sometimes it's both, but both points seem to get weak at the same rate. I'm pretty sure it doesn't have anything to do with my rim...it's well taped, no burrs, and when I install the tube/tire I'm always VERY careful around that area. Surprisingly enough, it generally flats at very random times. Tonight I was just sitting in my room when I heard my tire lose air (usually I'm not on the bike when it happens). Does this happen to anyone else? Can anyone explain what's happening and how I can prevent it?
For the record I'm running Eighthinch Tessa wheels, similar to DP18 and Deep-V's, with various tires and tubes. This has happened when I've had Michelin 23's and with my current Ribmo 32's. I use QTube brand tubes because that's what my LBS sells.
The red circles are where the punctures keep happening. Sometimes it's one side, sometimes it's both, but both points seem to get weak at the same rate. I'm pretty sure it doesn't have anything to do with my rim...it's well taped, no burrs, and when I install the tube/tire I'm always VERY careful around that area. Surprisingly enough, it generally flats at very random times. Tonight I was just sitting in my room when I heard my tire lose air (usually I'm not on the bike when it happens). Does this happen to anyone else? Can anyone explain what's happening and how I can prevent it?
For the record I'm running Eighthinch Tessa wheels, similar to DP18 and Deep-V's, with various tires and tubes. This has happened when I've had Michelin 23's and with my current Ribmo 32's. I use QTube brand tubes because that's what my LBS sells.
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Faluty tubes maybe??? I have in 30 years never seen this. What tubes are they????
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We sell Q Tubes at my shop. They are Quality Bicycle Products house brand. I have never seen this before. I would guess maybe your LBS has some old tubes on their shelf. I would go ask them about how long they have had their tubes? We go through about 50-75 tubes a month in almost all sizes so ours stay pretty fresh. Well, as fresh as they are from QBP.
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Check your rim tape. Even a tiny rough spot will pop a tube. You put a lot of stress on a tube when riding and the rubbing back and forth on the rim tape burr will pop the tube. Even if you can't feel it, I'd go ahead and change the tape.
Or try buffing the tape with emory cloth.
Or try buffing the tape with emory cloth.
#10
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Check your rim tape. Even a tiny rough spot will pop a tube. You put a lot of stress on a tube when riding and the rubbing back and forth on the rim tape burr will pop the tube. Even if you can't feel it, I'd go ahead and change the tape.
Or try buffing the tape with emory cloth.
Or try buffing the tape with emory cloth.
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The particular location of the flats is suspicious. It is at the joint between the valve base and the tube, which often indicates faulty manufacture of the tube or aging damage. I've had a lot of failures of the valve base joint on Bontrager tubes, and don't use them anymore. I'd try a different brand.
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The particular location of the flats is suspicious. It is at the joint between the valve base and the tube, which often indicates faulty manufacture of the tube or aging damage. I've had a lot of failures of the valve base joint on Bontrager tubes, and don't use them anymore. I'd try a different brand.
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I had this kind of flat a couple times. It was user error, I think. While seating the tire, I was pushing the valve stem up into the tire to help the beads seat near the stem. Then when I pumped the tire up, a little nipple-dimple-bubble of the tube would inflate under the hard rubber disc around the stem (between the tube's rubber reinformcement disc, and the rim). I figured out what it was because the hole was on the end of these little nipplish things that hadn't been there before I installed the tube.
Doh!
I changed my habits, and it never happened again.
That's what happened to me, anyway.
Doh!
I changed my habits, and it never happened again.
That's what happened to me, anyway.
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When you're stuffing tubes into tire do you go down one side and work it all the way around, or do you do both sides away from the stem and meet them at the bottom? I feel like doing the 1st method could introduce a bit of pull near the stem in some situations, so I do the 2nd method, like so.
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#19
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I actually stopped using the nut on the valve, because I've used the smooth valve ones that hairnet is talking about which worked fine...initially I assumed the nut had something to do with the punctures and stopped using them altogether. At this point I'm still not exactly sure what they are for other than preventing the tube from pushing down slightly when I attach the pump hose, which doesn't seem to be adding that much stress.
Is this what is resulting in epic fail?
Is this what is resulting in epic fail?
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That might be the case...the tubes I use now are all threaded, and the few smooth valves I've used in the past never had this problem.
#21
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I had this kind of flat a couple times. It was user error, I think. While seating the tire, I was pushing the valve stem up into the tire to help the beads seat near the stem. Then when I pumped the tire up, a little nipple-dimple-bubble of the tube would inflate under the hard rubber disc around the stem (between the tube's rubber reinformcement disc, and the rim). I figured out what it was because the hole was on the end of these little nipplish things that hadn't been there before I installed the tube.
Doh!
I changed my habits, and it never happened again.
That's what happened to me, anyway.
Doh!
I changed my habits, and it never happened again.
That's what happened to me, anyway.
Can you explain how exactly you've changed your habits? Thanks.
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When you're stuffing tubes into tire do you go down one side and work it all the way around, or do you do both sides away from the stem and meet them at the bottom? I feel like doing the 1st method could introduce a bit of pull near the stem in some situations, so I do the 2nd method, like so.
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your inner wheel band hole is stretching out and showing some edge of the hole and letting a pinch spot happen, this use to happen to one of my rims before I used some electrical tape over the hole, then poked a small hole so it goes in the stem hole to protect the edge
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However when I'm seating the tire bead around the rim, I generally start with the side opposing the valve, go one way towards the valve, seat the bead by the valve using the apparently faulty technique that mcgreivey mentioned, then come back down towards the opposing side so when I really need to use force, I'm far away from the valve.
#25
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your inner wheel band hole is stretching out and showing some edge of the hole and letting a pinch spot happen, this use to happen to one of my rims before I used some electrical tape over the hole, then poked a small hole so it goes in the stem hole to protect the edge