Punctures: Instant patches or 'proper' patches?

Cheshley

As an MTB rider who has recently started road riding, I have a stack of instant patches for puncture repairs that have always been fine for MTB tyres at 45-50psi, but would these hold at 90-100psi? Would I be ok using these, should I invest in a 'proper' puncture repair kit or is it normal to just change the tube?

Thanks

aracer

If you're going to put a patch on then use a proper one as it will hold in the long term. For punctures out on the road though I only carry tubes for road rides, not patches. Meanwhile for MTB I run tubeless with sealant - saved me once again at the weekend where a tube might have cost us 5 minutes (and the race win).

mekonta

Have to confess I never repair tubes.

I've never had the best of results in repairing them. Sometimes they work, sometimes not and overall I'd rather just buy a new tube whenever I need one and have piece of mind it's not going to go flat on me.

clanton

I carry tubes (normally 2 for sportives) for on the road repairs and often carry the instant patches as well - for that REALLY bad day that hopefully will never come. In my experience these emergency patches only last 3-4 months tops so for home reapair of tubes I use proper patches.

always_tyred

I've tried the instant ones and eventually decided that they were over priced and a bit unreliable.

I take a spare tube and a patch kit for any ride. I've just had too many times where I've thought I've spotted what caused the puncture but, such as when its torrential rain and manual dexterity and patience is erroded, missed it end ended up flatting on the replacement tube.

I've also had a bad run of torn carcasses. I was out at the weekend about half way through a 50 miler (which is long for me) and found myself with a flat caused by a torn carcass. In about Feb, I ran over something that caused a clean cut right through one of my gatorskins. In both cases, had I not had patches available to make both the tyre and the tube more robust, I'm not sure I could have got home. (I figure that in that situation, there's no sense in risking the new tube).

dazzawazza

Carry a spare tube. Practice changing the tube at home, because in the long run getting the right technique will save you time when it matters. I also carry some Park Tools pre-glued patches in case I experience more than one puncture. Once on, I have never had a problem with them.
I will always re-use a punctured tube, which in most cases will be repaired at home. When repairing at home I always use the traditional method. The pre-glued Park Tools patches are only for an emergency.