First road side repair

Kieran_Burns

Not sure how many years I've been cycle commuting now, but I finally had to repair a p*nct*re at the side of the road.

If I've had a flat previously I've found it at home, just near home or at work. I was 3 miles into the 12 miles home last night, the back went all wobbly and I realised I had a flat.

It's kind of odd but 'even' experienced commuters like me need forums like this to remind them of the consequences of not having the right kit and knowing what to do. So I had the spare tube, the levers, the pump and the process for properly swapping a tube:

Remove old tube
Look for reason for puncture and remove it (turns out it was a piece of glass deeply embedded in the tyre and it took some getting out)
Check again
and again
Fit new tube
Put a small amount of air in to form the shape
Replace tyre on rim
Get arm ache pumping a 28c tyre up with a mini-pump
Pop wheel back on
Stand bike up and release the QR skewer to make sure the wheel is sitting properly then tighten again

All that learned from being on this forum - so thanks all!

Oh and I found *another* broken spoke on the back wheel. It's almost like every ride now - I really can't understand why.

Incidentally GP4 Seasons only need one lever to get them off.

t4tomo

So no godess in hot pants to help you out then?

rjsterry

Re the spokes: I had this problem with a wheel a few years back, and was told that by the LBS that it's not an uncommon phenomenon, especially if you ride any distance on the broken wheel. The spokes either side of the break will have to take up the extra load, which may push them beyond their limit, and so on around the wheel. A full rebuild might be in order if you are past more than half a dozen breaks.

Ugo will no doubt be along in a mo to give a more authoritative answer

jonginge

Had my first unscheduled deflation in ages yesterday. It was a carpet tack or similar that went straight through the type. I was all sorts of smug thinking I had all the gear.

That was until I realised the new commuting wheels had a slighty deeper rim and valves on the tubes I had were too short.

Of all the cyclists on embankment only CJ offered any help and I'd waved him on before realising my mistake. Dang.

ddraver

Bad luck on the flat

Agree with rj - sounds like it's new wheel time I'm afraid. Unless you have boutique hubs it's probably not worth rebuilding the wheel, just get a new one off of Merlin or superstar (other brands are available)

bigmat

I punctured around half way into my commute yesterday. Thought it would be a 5 minute job then realised I'd left my repair kit with the other bike (Monday mornings eh?). Managed to ride another couple of miles keeping out of the saddle and weight over the front but eventually it went so flat I had to walk the last 3 miles. Harsh. Turned out the culprit was a tack, maybe 2cm long and straight through the tyre. Made a right mess of the tube. Also, you can remove a Specialized Nimbus tyre with one quick release lever (and put it back on with bare hands).

Kieran_Burns

ddraver wrote:

Bad luck on the flat

Agree with rj - sounds like it's new wheel time I'm afraid. Unless you have boutique hubs it's probably not worth rebuilding the wheel, just get a new one off of Merlin or superstar (other brands are available)

These are hand built wheels with Hope Pro 2 Evo hubs and are less than a year old (replacements for the wheels I killed in last year's floods) so I'm not sure replacing them is applicable. A rebuild may well be in order but I'm upset that I need to do so, so soon after having them. (JE James before the inevitable question)

ddraver

I think that's fair enough - keep the hub but it ll be new spokes and new rim. If you ve killed them that quickly (and you're sure that they werent built by a muppet) then it may be worth looking for something a little stronger..?

Kieran_Burns

ddraver wrote:

I think that's fair enough - keep the hub but it ll be new spokes and new rim. If you ve killed them that quickly (and you're sure that they werent built by a muppet) then it may be worth looking for something a little stronger..?

I also think the rims are mavis open pros... but I'll check tonight

Gallywomack

Thought I had a flat this morning, sudden noise that sounded like air rushing through a hole. Came to a stop, dismounted and realised that there was no puncture. One of the front brake pads was loose and at an odd angle, and the noise was it rubbing against the tyre. On closer inspection, the washer that sits between the caliper and the shoe was gorne - disintegrated? So had to remove one of the pads off the rear brake and nick its washer - I only use the front brake anyway so this wasn't a problem, although no doubt some well-meaning soul will notice I am missing a pad at the back and give me a safety lecture.

Anyhoo, to bring this vaguely on-topic, in the course of fumbling in my bag for multi-tool I realised I have somehow neglected to pack a spare tube and only have patches. Patches, when you're trying to repair a puncture, in the dark, by the side of a busy south London road, are about as close to useless as you can get. The Fear will be my constant companion on the ride home.

ddraver

You ve just reminded me that I ve not put any tyre levers in my bag neither...

Koncordski

ddraver wrote:

You ve just reminded me that I ve not put any tyre levers in my bag neither...

*Goes off to check the kit in my bag before leaving for home.

walkingbootweather

ddraver wrote:

You ve just reminded me that I ve not put any tyre levers in my bag neither...

I carry spoons instead. Just as good as levers for changing a tyre, much more useful for eating delicious deserts, and if all else fails I can play them to earn the bus fare home.

Note, this will filmed some time ago - I don't look as young and fit as this anymore....

slowbike

*smugmode*

I have spare tubes, puncture repair, levers & multitool in a small wedge saddlebag - one set for each bike.
Pump is on the frame.

I get on and ride, not having to remember to swap the kit over.

But over winter I'm on some slick flackjackets, CX tyres or (this morning) studded tyres - any of which reduce my p*nct*r* risk.... which probably means I'll get one on the way home now ...

ddraver

I had a saddle bag until I realised that it totally obscured my light...I need a new alternative that can go in the bag

Kieran_Burns

Koncordski wrote:

ddraver wrote:

You ve just reminded me that I ve not put any tyre levers in my bag neither...

*Goes off to check the kit in my bag before leaving for home.

There have been innumerable occasions I have thought "Oh, I'll be fine. I never puncture..."

Just goes to show.

gbsahne001

Was going to repair a tube that punctured last week only to find the hole just on the edge of an existing patch; bin it or try and repair it?

Well it might hold......

UndercoverElephant

Kieran_Burns wrote:

ddraver wrote:

I think that's fair enough - keep the hub but it ll be new spokes and new rim. If you ve killed them that quickly (and you're sure that they werent built by a muppet) then it may be worth looking for something a little stronger..?

I also think the rims are mavis open pros... but I'll check tonight

I seem to remember that you're a disc brake user, right? If so then it's likely that you can just replace the spokes.

No well-built wheel should fail that soon. Spokes only start breaking if they're either really cheap, really thin or the wheel is built with either incorrect lacing or uneven spoke tension.

ddraver

Sounds a bit like it might be worth going back to the shop and saying "Oi!"

The point a bout the rim is that it's no longer hoop shaped so the spokes are having to be tightened super hard to pull it back into shape. Given that the spokes on the opposite side then need to be loose, the tight spokes break easily...

Kieran_Burns

UndercoverElephant wrote:

Kieran_Burns wrote:

ddraver wrote:

I think that's fair enough - keep the hub but it ll be new spokes and new rim. If you ve killed them that quickly (and you're sure that they werent built by a muppet) then it may be worth looking for something a little stronger..?

I also think the rims are mavis open pros... but I'll check tonight

I seem to remember that you're a disc brake user, right? If so then it's likely that you can just replace the spokes.

No well-built wheel should fail that soon. Spokes only start breaking if they're either really cheap, really thin or the wheel is built with either incorrect lacing or uneven spoke tension.

Yup, disc brakes and I'm beginning to think I was supplied poor spokes. None of the ones I have replaced them with have broken. I'm tempted to buy a set of good ones and replace them all (one at a time to make sure I don't get the lacing screwed)

Although saying that... does anyone have a map of how 36 spoke wheels are meant to be laced?

rjsterry

ddraver wrote:

Sounds a bit like it might be worth going back to the shop and saying "Oi!"

The point a bout the rim is that it's no longer hoop shaped so the spokes are having to be tightened super hard to pull it back into shape. Given that the spokes on the opposite side then need to be loose, the tight spokes break easily...

That was the bit I forgot to mention in my earlier post. Riding on a broken spoke is likely to pull the rim out of shape (egg-shaped as well as lateral wobble), and rectifying this by adjusting the spokes is likely to result in uneven tension => more breaks.

UndercoverElephant

Kieran_Burns wrote:

Yup, disc brakes and I'm beginning to think I was supplied poor spokes. None of the ones I have replaced them with have broken. I'm tempted to buy a set of good ones and replace them all (one at a time to make sure I don't get the lacing screwed)

Although saying that... does anyone have a map of how 36 spoke wheels are meant to be laced?

Yeah, just do the lot with something good. I use Sapim Race and they are pretty bombproof. You're usually best off just re-lacing the wheel completely so that you don't have to bend the spokes as much when weaving them in and out of the spokes that are already there. If you haven't already got it, the Roger Musson e-book is excellent.

redvee

JonGinge wrote:

That was until I realised the new commuting wheels had a slighty deeper rim and valves on the tubes I had were too short.

Got caught like that last week on my first visit of 2014, the short valve tubes usually get put in at home where the track pump can get a grip on the valve and leave the 60mm tubes for in the saddlebag in the pannier, except the first tube I pulled out was a short one and I thought I'd be OK with my mini pump. I wasn't so swapped it out again :x

FoldingJoe

walkingbootweather wrote:

ddraver wrote:

You ve just reminded me that I ve not put any tyre levers in my bag neither...

I carry spoons instead. Just as good as levers for changing a tyre, much more useful for eating delicious deserts, and if all else fails I can play them to earn the bus fare home.

Note, this will filmed some time ago - I don't look as young and fit as this anymore....

Used my Mum's best spoons to change a tyre when I was a nipper. As I was applying pressure to one of them it snapped and ripped my little finger to shreds (still got the scars to show for it).

Mother was more upset about her spoon than my finger. :-)

FoldingJoe

walkingbootweather wrote:

ddraver wrote:

You ve just reminded me that I ve not put any tyre levers in my bag neither...

I carry spoons instead. Just as good as levers for changing a tyre, much more useful for eating delicious deserts, and if all else fails I can play them to earn the bus fare home.

Note, this will filmed some time ago - I don't look as young and fit as this anymore....

Used my Mum's best spoons to change a tyre when I was a nipper. As I was applying pressure to one of them it snapped and ripped my little finger to shreds (still got the scars to show for it).

Mother was more upset about her spoon than my finger. :-)

bigmonka

I always carry a spare inner tube and tyre levers (amongst other things) in the saddle bag permanently on my bike (not got the n+1 thing yet, lol).
I was doing a big ride last year so thought I should check the spare tube I'd been carrying for months only to find a big split in it where I'd obviously stuffed something sharp into the saddle bag. Very glad I spotted it before needing it!

walkingbootweather

FoldingJoe wrote:

walkingbootweather wrote:

Mother was more upset about her spoon than my finger. :-)

You should have explained that in the grand scheme of things spoons are unimportant.

It's the fork that counts.

:roll:

trekker12

Had a complete disaster last week.

I punctured just as I arrived at work, checked for the cause, found nothing. Put new tube in rode home and it held, the next day exactly the same happened. This time I found the culprit, a tiny piece of glass embedded in the tyr which only appeared through the inside when I applied considerable pressure.

On way home my wife rang to tell me she had a flat and was attempting to repair it (her first one out on the road). She unfortunately didn't find the culprit and put a new tube in. By the time I caught up with her, the second tube she fitted had punctured so we took that one out and found a similar piece of glass in the tyre I had found in the morning.

I was carrying an insurance spare tube in the pannier (in addition to the now holed one in my saddle bag) so to save time suggested we fit that, which we did and it refused to take any air. I still haven't found a hole in it so it must have had a faulty valve. We then had to resort to patching one of the tubes.

Having taken in excess of an hour since her first puncture we abandoned our plan to go for an extended ride and went home for takeaway!!

Four repairs in two days is a bit much. I hope the gremlin has done his bit for the year!!

il_principe

JonGinge wrote:

Had my first unscheduled deflation in ages yesterday. It was a carpet tack or similar that went straight through the type. I was all sorts of smug thinking I had all the gear.

That was until I realised the new commuting wheels had a slighty deeper rim and valves on the tubes I had were too short.

Of all the cyclists on embankment only CJ offered any help and I'd waved him on before realising my mistake. Dang.

Poor.

itboffin

gbsahne wrote:

Was going to repair a tube that punctured last week only to find the hole just on the edge of an existing patch; bin it or try and repair it?

Well it might hold......

heh funny enough I did that yesterday on the turbo wheel, its been losing air ever so slowly for months so i thought i'd see why, same issue - it seems to be holding fine atm

LiveGiantly

trekker12 wrote:

Had a complete disaster last week.

I punctured just as I arrived at work, checked for the cause, found nothing. Put new tube in rode home and it held, the next day exactly the same happened. This time I found the culprit, a tiny piece of glass embedded in the tyr which only appeared through the inside when I applied considerable pressure.

On way home my wife rang to tell me she had a flat and was attempting to repair it (her first one out on the road). She unfortunately didn't find the culprit and put a new tube in. By the time I caught up with her, the second tube she fitted had punctured so we took that one out and found a similar piece of glass in the tyre I had found in the morning.

I was carrying an insurance spare tube in the pannier (in addition to the now holed one in my saddle bag) so to save time suggested we fit that, which we did and it refused to take any air. I still haven't found a hole in it so it must have had a faulty valve. We then had to resort to patching one of the tubes.

Having taken in excess of an hour since her first puncture we abandoned our plan to go for an extended ride and went home for takeaway!!

Four repairs in two days is a bit much. I hope the gremlin has done his bit for the year!!

After all that I hope the takeaway tasted good!?!