WHEN do you patch an inner tube?

Pep

For those like me who patch inner tubes, rather than throw them away and use a brand new one every time....

When do you patch them? On the side of the road, or change it and repaire the punctured one at night at home?

I expected we all repair it at home (I always use a bucket of water to find the puncture), but was surprised to notice some guys are comfortable to repair it on the road...

dav1

I patch at home when possible. Waiting 5 mins for the glue to dry then 5 more before putting the tube in is not an ideal roadside job for me.

If I have to ptach (on a bad day) I use park pre-glued to keep me running. Unfortunatly they don't seem to last so I usually rip them off and replace with a proper patch later.

I am a rider on a budget though so I happily patch a tube several times before recycling it for other workshop duties.

daviesee

Replace on the road & patch at home.
Put repaired tube back in tyre (*) & put replacement back in bag. That way I know I have a perfect replacement when required and not a patch that may or may not be sealed.

* Up to 3 patches. Then replace.

macleod113

to be honest i usually replace then at the roadside and chuck the old one when i get home. although with the cost i really should patch them. maybe i'm just lazy

Pep

daviesee wrote:

* Up to 3 patches. Then replace.

Why? I have tubes with 10patches, seem to be doing fine.

Pep

And what do you patch with?

I go for the cheapest option: glue (nearly a decade old), and patches cut from an old tube.

Do you use proper commercial pre-glued patches?
Do you add glue or the pre-glued patch will do the trick?

desweller

I carry a couple of spare tubes but when the farmers are trimming their hedges it's been known for me to puncture all spares over the course of a day.

So I have had to patch by the roadside from time to time. Not a massive faff in the dry, but truly awkward in the rain.

I use the Rema patches cos they're lovely to use, and a tube of Veloflex glue. It was actually quite cheap.

+1 for why replace tubes when you've got 3 patches on them? Are you worried about the weight?

daviesee

DesWeller wrote:

+1 for why replace tubes when you've got 3 patches on them? Are you worried about the weight?

Honest answer? - Dunno :oops:

It's just a number picked out of the air that feels right but no evidence or reason to back it up. It feels right to me though and that is good enough

beverick

+1 for patching at home. I have fixed them on the roadside but the emphasis is usually to get riding again as soon as possible.

Whether the tube is junked depends on where the hole is, how large it is as much as how many there are. For example, I threw away a brand new tube over Easter because the hole was about 3x2mm long and there was no way I'd trust that at 40mph and 120psi.

Bob

Pep

A friend told me he patches by the roadside, he can find the puncture without actually removing the wheel :shock: I'm impressed.

He says no difference between replacing the tube with a spare one (ether patched or brand new) or patching it on the road.

He also told me max 3 patches per tube. Asked him why, answered "dunno, just do it this way"

dav1

depends on the puncture really, I have done the non-removal feat a few times.

9 times out of 10 for me a roadside patch works fine, but gives up after a couple of days (air escaping from under the patch). I know this is because I don't leave the glue long enough to set.

When at home I glue, leave for a full 5 mins, then apply the patch and leave for 24h before using the tube again. Might be overkill but I know it will be OK when i need it.

As far as the pre glued ones go I remove the offending object, then slap the patch on and go. I find they just aren't strong enough to put up with 100 psi+ for any longer then getting home, but it is massively quicker and easier then doing it properly, especially mid winter!

Frank the tank

I swap the tube at the roadside and patch the punctured one later at home.

shouldbeinbed

As with the majority new tube in at the roadside and patched at my leisure. still carry a repair kit but am migrating to press on instant patches for speed just in case I hit a really unlucky streak and need a roadside fix.

topcattim

daviesee wrote:

Replace on the road & patch at home.
Put repaired tube back in tyre (*) & put replacement back in bag. That way I know I have a perfect replacement when required and not a patch that may or may not be sealed.
.

+1

balthazar

A benefit with patching at home, is that you can leave the repair overnight. Try peeling a patch off ten minutes after you fixed it, compared against ten hours after, to see the difference in adhesion.

All of my puncture repairs in recent memory have been at home, later, and I can't remember such a patch ever failing. To my mind the patch is permanent and secure, and I only replace a tube if I don't trust a patch (perhaps because it bridges a seam, or another patch) or because of valve failure.

There is a sly benefit to patching at the roadside, however: it forces you to pause, and maybe look around you, for a moment. Many ride glued to their computers, fixated on "performance" as if a race squad scout was waiting around the next corner, and forget to notice the countryside they're in.

SickAsAParrot

I carry a spare tube but usually patch roadside of it's a small puncture just in case something worse happens later on. I only let it dry for 30 seconds or so before I stuff the tube back in again and never seem to have any re-leaking problems, I'm on a fat-tyred hybrid though so the pressure is lower.

bearfraser

at home but i'm riding "Kevlar" tyres and touch wood they do seem to work (on both dirt and road hybrid bikes)

apreading

I use park tools pre-glued patches - never had a problem with the patch failing or losing air. Put them on, wait 30 seconds, reinflate and go. I tend to run high pressure even though I ride an MTB, due to my large size and I think this may actually help because it squeezes the patch between inner and tyre. Next time I take the tyres off you can hardly see that they have been patched.

Thus far I have always patched at roadside - have been able to hear/feel where the air is escaping and sort it fairly easily.

At the very least you should try and find the puncture as I usually find a shard of glass or thorn embedded in the tyre at that point which needs removal. If you fail to do that you will just puncture your new tube. Once you have found it you may as well fix it, unless conditions are too mucky to sensibly do so.

Having said that I always carry a spare tube in case one day it is not possible to repair.

sampras38

Replace with new tube on the road and repair later with proper patch and glue.

zippypablo

I put a new tube in at the roadride. However, I also repair the punctured one too. This leaves me with a spare tube should I get another puncture. I thought everybody did this. Don't/can't repair snake bite damage so just bin them. For some reason I do the 3 repairs and out too? How strange.

BigJimmyB

Replace at trail/roadside, then patch later.

I'll go up to 5 patches on an MTB tyre, 2 on a road one before I give it up as dead.

Even then I keep them in case I need to rubber for anything (including patches when I've run out!)

BJB

beverick

Pep wrote:

A friend told me he patches by the roadside, he can find the puncture without actually removing the wheel :shock: I'm impressed.

......

It's easy if the offending article is stuck in the tyre. You leaver off the tyre at the appropriate point, pull out the tube, patch it and then refit. It's when you've to start finding the hole that it gets difficult.

Bob

Pross

I'm useless at patching so tend to just replace and throw the other away at home :oops: I do carry a repair kit but touch wood I have never needed more than the two spare tubes I carry.