Side wall repairable?

Paulj700

Hi.

On my last ride I noticed what I though was a stone stuck to the side of my tyre. On closer inspection it was a tiny bubble of inner tube protruding through the side wall, no bigger than 5mm. I let out some pressure and managed to ride home another 5 miles or so.

Now I've had a closer look there's a split about 5-6mm long, vertically through the wall. Is this repairable or am I asking for trouble going out on a tyre with a weakness in it. Its a Michelin pro4 SC and only has about 600 miles done on it.

cheers

P

trailflow

Def asking for trouble. The hole will inevitably get bigger. I dont think its worth the risk. You wouldn't want to have a blow out whilst cornering at 20+ mph (or any speed for that matter) with cars behind you. If you've never had a blow out before they really arn't fun. They are one of the most terrifying things to experience on a bike.

I wrecked a Veloflex tyre before with only 200 miles on it by hitting a sharp stone. Just put it down to bad luck and accept sh*t happens. At least with a new tyre you can ride in confidence.

If you cut a tyre again whilst out, its a good idea to carry something to line the inside of the tyre with over the hole. Like an old tyre cut into sections or 3 patches/layers of cut up old inner tube.

CYCLESPORT1

NO !

londoncommuter

Really not worth it. Have you got a turbo you could save the tyre for if you want to get a bit more life out of it (or pass it on to someone who has)?

The best defence against it ever happening again is to buy something like this:

http://www.wiggle.co.uk/park-tools-emer ... oot-patch/

Of course the one time you forget to take one with you.....

redvision

I had this happen on some old Pro 3s which i binned as a result.

Its always worth carrying some cut up innertube pieces, tyre pieces, even a foil wrapper etc for problems like this, just so you can patch it & get home safe.

If you do decide to try to repair and get a few more miles out of it make sure you switch it for the back wheel - when it does go bang you don't want that happening to your front tyre.

Although personally i wouldn't risk it and would just replace it.

JackPozzi

I had something similar with a brand new vittoria corsa a couple of years ago in Mallorca, best patch material I had on me was a book of stamps which did actually get me home! A mate had some of the park tools patches so we fitted one of those in the hope of delaying throwing a brand new tyre away but that only lasted a couple of rides before it started wearing through.

Would always replace the tyre ASAP now....

Monty Dog

Tubeless tyre patches - they're reinforced to withstand the pressure.

desweller

I carry a couple of pieces of denim - does the job, I've got one in the rear tyre that's been in there since July last year.

trailflow

I know denim is tough if you pull it but would have thought anything sharp like a piece of glass or thorn would go straight through it or am i wrong ?

ugo.santalucia

3-4 layers of gaffer tape on the inside and happy days

desweller

trailflow wrote:

I know denim is tough if you pull it but would have thought anything sharp like a piece of glass or thorn would go straight through it or am i wrong ?

How is that any different to the normal tyre carcass?

trailflow

Tyre carcasses are made from nylon or polycotton at more higher densities than denim. And the tread uses a protective liner like kevlar.

desweller

I'm not advicating replacing the whole carcass. Just reinforcing it in one, very, very, teeny, tiny area. It is slightly more vulnerable but (IME) you don't get a shedload of punctures in the one area as a result of doing it this way.

andy_wrx

I had a Pro3 which had a tiny ca5mm slit in just the way described.

Nearly new tyre so loath to bin it, although was worried about consequences of failure.

I patched the inside with a piece of cornflake box, just to stop the tube protruding rather than to protect the tyre, then marked the extent of the hole with a pen - then before every ride I checked it hadn't got any bigger

Well, I say every ride - I had it for at least a year after that, maybe more, eventually I scrapped it as I'd worn out the tread : it never got any worse, never caused me any trouble, so I probably checked it rather less often than I should have as time went on...;)

However, it's your neck, so your decision !

dgunthor

bit of gaffer tape will support it, if you persist in getting punctures change the tyre

DeVlaeminck

You can get sticky tyre boots which are supposed to be a temporary fix but so long as they stay in place should be as good as new - that said think I'd bin it as the consequences of it not staying in one place could be a sudden blow out. Really though logically anything that is rigid enough to stop the tyre protruding and which will definitely not move or degrade will do wont it - gaffer tape probably not a bad shout or glue something over it.

keef66

trailflow wrote:

I know denim is tough if you pull it but would have thought anything sharp like a piece of glass or thorn would go straight through it or am i wrong ?

The idea is to stop the inner tube bulging out of the cut, not to puncture-proof the area. Most tyre sidewalls are easily punctured anyway. One time I punctured riding a GP4S when a thorn like a javelin went through the sidewall. Nothing ever made it through the tread with the Vectran layer.

Paulj700

Thanks for replies. Just a bit miffed that a 30 quid tyre was ruined by such a small split. I've got a spare set of wheels I use for turbo so I recon ill just patch it and slap it on them.

cheers