Puncture Repair is a Myth

ive never used the chalk in all honesty. does anyone use the chalk?? maybe would just be better if they took the chalk out and replaced it with some smarties or a milk chew... emmmmmmmmmmm milk chew. I should be in the pub. why am i not in the pub?

The usual mistake is to put the patch on when the glue's still wet. You have to wait until it's almost dry, just a bit tacky to the touch.

Using a lighter - set fire to the glue for a few seconds, then blow it out, this makes it tacky very quickly and it sets much faster.

I gave up on puncture repair kits over a decade ago, I use the little Park Tool glueless patches, I have one patch on an old mountain bike tube that has lasted 11 years (!!) and still going strong.

i. Carry a spare tube and swap it straight in rather than doing roadside puncture repair.

1. At home with punctured tube, find the puncture and note its shape for clues as to cause.
   
2. Mark the puncture with a big cross (using the chalk - I use a pen or texta)
   
3. Assuming standard bit of glass, run your finger around the inside of the TYRE to find any sharp bits and remove them. If the puncture is on the inside of the tube, check for spokes sticking through rim tape, sharp rim tape edges, etc.
   
4. Get patch and note its size
   
5. Scuff area of puncture with sandpaper/scraper. Just rough it a little. I then wipe away any loose bits of rubber with my t-shirt.
   
6. Apply a circle of glue the same size or a bit larger than the patch you are using, centred on the hole. Apply it to the TYRE! You don't need heaps just make sure when you look at your glue circle there's no empty bits of just tyre poking through.
   
7. IMPORTANT! Let the glue dry a bit. The glue has to go off a bit. It should be quite tacky to touch and not still runny.
   
8. When you've left it long enough 2-10min depending on temp/conditions/how much you blow at it peel the backing off the patch and apply it.
   
9. Grip the fucker tight for a minute
   
10. Fit back onto wheel or wrap it up for later use.
    
    
    

• don't forget to cover the thing in talc, this helps in two ways, firstly it stops the rubber of the tube binding to the inside of the tyre (take out an un-talced tube from tyre it has been in for several years and you will usually find it has bonded to the tyre in places).
  
  

Talc on the tube (and if you are clever the inside of the tyre) also acts as a dry lubricant and can make seating the tyre/tube on the rim easier.

Fuck the chalk right off.

I'm with hippy's 3 patch threshold lbs bloke.

Those Park glueless ones work okay longer term with lower pressure applications (eg. 40psi mtbing), but are otherwise a get-you-home measure. They aren't as stretchy as conventional patches, so don't survive further inflations/deflations of the tube very well.

Rema Tip Top patches even have the peel-off bit perforated down the middle, to avoid messing up the edge of patches while you remove it.

hippy - what's your philosophy with software? Patch it, or throw out and replace?

• don't forget to cover the thing in talc, this helps in two ways, firstly it stops the rubber of the tube binding to the inside of the tyre (take out an un-talced tube from tyre it has been in for several years and you will usually find it has bonded to the tyre in places).
  Talc on the tube (and if you are clever the inside of the tyre) also acts as a dry lubricant and can make seating the tyre/tube on the rim easier.
  
  

I've NEVER used talc.. other than in my underwear for that all day dry feeling. MMmm mmmm

donate your chalk to your local primary school. doing your bit doesn't have to be that hard. Im still not in the pub. Fuck.

Fuck the chalk right off.

I'm with hippy's 3 patch threshold lbs bloke.

Those Park glueless ones work okay longer term with lower pressure applications (eg. 40psi mtbing), but are otherwise a get-you-home measure. They aren't as stretchy as conventional patches, so don't survive further inflations/deflations of the tube very well.

Rema Tip Top patches even have the peel-off bit perforated down the middle, to avoid messing up the edge of patches while you remove it.

hippy - what's your philosophy with software? Patch it, or throw out and replace?

The only things in my patch kit are: patches, a little metal scruffer thing, glue.

Mick (3 patch guy) rang me from Oz the other day. Eejit had the wrong number. He's fucking funny though so I saved his message. I'm sure you wanted to know that.

Cool, further evidence to ignore those instant patches. :)

Rema Top Tip sounds like some kind of feminine hygiene thing - where do you get them?

With software, it depends. If it's something I've played a part in, best bet is to delete the fucker ASAP! If it's something more reputable then I'd give it a second chance.

Im still not in the pub. Fuck.

Fuck off then. I've decide to stop drinking again and all this talk of pubs is getting me moist ya bastard!

I've NEVER used talc.. other than in my underwear for that all day dry feeling. MMmm mmmm

• it stops your cock bonding to your balls if you don't change you underwear for several years.
  

I'm not sure that Rema Tip Top have wings or a dry-weave topsheet to lock in moisture :S

Those Park glueless ones work okay longer term with lower pressure applications (eg. 40psi mtbing), but are otherwise a get-you-home measure. They aren't as stretchy as conventional patches, so don't survive further inflations/deflations of the tube very well.

Yeah, they can wrinkle up if you deflate/inflate your tyre more than a few times, but if you avoid this they can last for years.

• it stops your cock bonding to your balls if you don't change you underwear for several years.
  

But talc isn't going to stop pube-weave in the same context, is it.

sorry. im just fucked off myself as im working at 4:30 AM so im in for the night and getting a lot of abuse from friends who are all out enjoying the bank holiday.

But talc isn't going to stop pube-weave in the same context, is it.

I shave the real stuff off and use a sports merkin.

carbon?

I tend to go for the "fuck! sling a new tube in" thing, although I have to say I have all my old punctured inner tubes hanging up in the fuse cupboard waiting for the evening when I am so bored that patching 12 tubes seems like fun.
That said I do find that if a little talcum powder is used when fitting tyres/tubes they seem to be happier together. They certainly stick together less- when I first got my road bike (160 PSI minimum Zaffiro's) the tube stuck like shit to a blanket when I had to strip it out.

why are we all not down the pub?

I shave the real stuff off and use a sports merkin.

carbon?

You should only use a carbon sports merkin when you want stiffness in that area.

Some of us have had our fair share of booze..

Someone say merkin?

No-one's said 'curly Hetchins' yet...

i'm off out when my taxi arrives.....

Crayon is to mark the hole in the tube (cocktail stick works too)..

i prefer staples - those pesky cocktail sticks have a habit of dropping out

i'm off out when my Merkin dries........

Fixed

I've done 12 patches on a single tube, they do work, but it does get a little silly. For some reason I haven't had a single puncture in London, but used to get heaps in Australia running the same type of tyres at a decent pressure.
Seems to be far less broken glass on the roads here, good street sweepers I suppose.

Depends where you ride. Australia has far more thorns and far more stubbies and the drunken fuckers to throw them on the road.