A Moment of pure Stupidity

BlakeysFC

I had my first puncture yesterday, on my rear tyre. I managed to walk home, take the rear wheel off successfully and fit a new inner tube in my tyre (lost patience with repairing the puncture), pumped it up overnight to make sure there was no other slow-punctures in the tyre.

Then earlier today I decided to pump both tyres up 'properly' so I proceeded to plug the pump into the valve and it showed the front tyre (which wasn't punctured and that I hadn't pumped up/deflated since I bought the bike 4 weeks ago) was only at 40 PSI, and that in all proberbility both tyres had only been pumped up to 40 PSI for the 4 weeks I've been riding

:shock: :shock: :shock: :oops: :oops: :oops:

What I wanted to know really, is would this have caused any damage to the bike? Maybe the Wheels themselves might've got slightly damaged after taking more of the weight?

ShutUpLegs

Longest distance i've ridden on a puncture is 5 miles. Lance rode 15 miles and won a race after puncturing. No damage sustained to rims but tyre wall was a little ruffled

rozzer32

ShutUpLegs wrote:

Longest distance i've ridden on a puncture is 5 miles. Lance rode 15 miles and won a race after puncturing. No damage sustained to rims but tyre wall was a little ruffled

That was the EPO.

Ringo 68

ShutUpLegs wrote:

Longest distance i've ridden on a puncture is 5 miles. Lance rode 15 miles and won a race after puncturing. No damage sustained to rims but tyre wall was a little ruffled

Not according to the record books he has.

mattshrops

op- No it shouldn't have damaged your wheels. Low pressure could cause a pinch flat when you hit a bump. Mainly it will make your ride bloody hard work. road bike tyres, because they run at fairly high pressures are prone to losing pressure over just a couple of days. Many people dont realise you should check them pretty much every time out.No harm done

BlakeysFC

mattshrops wrote:

op- No it shouldn't have damaged your wheels. Low pressure could cause a pinch flat when you hit a bump. Mainly it will make your ride bloody hard work. road bike tyres, because they run at fairly high pressures are prone to losing pressure over just a couple of days. Many people dont realise you should check them pretty much every time out.No harm done

Really didn't know they'd go down that fast to be honest, should have read up on it more before I got my bike.

Now got the PSI at 105 for both tyres which should be fine I hope, I'm guessing my puncture was caused by a pinch flat when I hit a bump like you say.

Annoying that all that hassle could've been avoidable if I'd of just checked the tyre pressures before I set off on my route...

skyblueamateur

I'm forever forgetting to pump my tyres up. I'll remember after about 3 months and 30psi, pump them up and add 2-3MPH to my average speed before vowing to pump them up regularly.

simon_masterson

Lance won his race using a tubular tyre. Do not try this with a clincher!

But your wheel will be fine. What do you think is going to have happened to it, exactly?

fludey

Just a note if using track pump every time you attach to the tire reading will be lower as a volume of air is generally lost in the pipe to the pump.

Bobbinogs

I check my tyre pressure, basic brake functionality and give the bike a general once over before EVERY ride, even a 20 mile recovery ride. I figure it is a good habit to get into and only takes a few minutes. I also change tyre pressure to fit the conditions (80f/90r for normal but a little more in both for cattle grids or more in the front for large/brutal climbs...but I am 65kg so don't need too much in my 23s).

Did I read the OP right? How comes you walked home? Unless I was within 15 mins of walking distance I would have swapped the tube at the side of the road (a 20 min job at most). I always carry 2 spare tubes (in case of double punctures which I have seen but been fortunate to avoid) and also have some of the 'scabby' patches in case the worst happens.

BlakeysFC

Bobbinogs wrote:

I check my tyre pressure, basic brake functionality and give the bike a general once over before EVERY ride, even a 20 mile recovery ride. I figure it is a good habit to get into and only takes a few minutes. I also change tyre pressure to fit the conditions (80f/90r for normal but a little more in both for cattle grids or more in the front for large/brutal climbs...but I am 65kg so don't need too much in my 23s).

Did I read the OP right? How comes you walked home? Unless I was within 15 mins of walking distance I would have swapped the tube at the side of the road (a 20 min job at most). I always carry 2 spare tubes (in case of double punctures which I have seen but been fortunate to avoid) and also have some of the 'scabby' patches in case the worst happens.

I didn't have a pump on me, so I had everything to fit a new inner tube or repair the puncture but no pump to blow it up again :oops:

I was only within 2 miles of my house, so it wasn't a big deal luckily.

Simon Masterson wrote:

Lance won his race using a tubular tyre. Do not try this with a clincher!

But your wheel will be fine. What do you think is going to have happened to it, exactly?

I don't know really, thought it might've damaged it somehow when it blew out, I've looked it over numerous times though and it looks fine

Pross

I'm guessing that after the walk home you now carry a spare tube or two, levers and a pump on every ride?

EDIT Sorry, didn't see the explanation.

Headhuunter

Surely you CAN damage the rim by riding on low pressure tyres and you definitely can damage the rim riding on punctured tyres... The edge of the rim bouncing up and down on the tarmac basically dents and pits it. Certainly not a good idea... Having said that, putting too much pressure into the tyre puts increased pressure through the spokes and hubs so can also damage the rim/wheel...