23
votes
Why is my inner tube not distributing air evenly in it?
If you are just inflating a tube alone, it will be uneven above a certain pressure. It is not supposed to hold significant pressure on its own. It is used inside a tyre. If you did not overstretch it, ...
- 16.1k
17
votes
Are 26'' wheels and tubes a thing of the past?
The sheer number of bikes in the world with 26" wheels means finding a tire is unlikely to be a big problem for a long time, if ever. Plenty of BSO's being sold are still 26" and there are ...
- 49k
16
votes
Why did my road bike tire patch fail?
Bike shops don't patch tyres because at $60-100 per hour its not worth their time compared to a new tube.
Road tubes can absolutely be patched, however its harder with thicker patches - try and get ...
- 121k
14
votes
Accepted
Why is my inner tube not distributing air evenly in it?
Tubes aren't designed to be stretched; they are simply there to hold the air while the rim and tire contain the pressure.
Consider what happens when you blow up a long thin balloon.
First, the loose ...
- 637
13
votes
Repeated punctures at the base of the valve stem
The rim hole in the second photo has a clear curve of silver metal. That looks like a sharp burr left over from the drilling process, and it will slowly erode its way into your tube.
The solutions ...
- 121k
10
votes
Accepted
I can't fix my tire
It looks like you have the bead outside the rim.
Here's a schematic from Wikimedia, of an installed tire. It looks like you have left the part labeled 4 on the outside.
How you can fix this is, put a ...
- 1,060
10
votes
How to put a tube in a used tubeless tire
The kind of puncture you describe seems to be limited to one kind of plant, that is not present everywhere (although small glass shards, and other plants might exhibit similar behaviours), and seems ...
- 17.6k
10
votes
Are 26'' wheels and tubes a thing of the past?
Global touring is a niche, with very specific needs. Even if the general trend is the increase of the size of the wheels, there might specific reasons for a heavy duty touring bike to prefer smaller ...
- 17.6k
8
votes
Accepted
Why do the ISO/ETRTO numbers not match the English measure on my Tires?
The 44-507 and 47-507 are "ISO/ETRTO" tire sizes. The 44 and 47 are widths in millimeters, and the 507 just relates to the 24 inch diameter.
So the 44 "should" be a little ...
- 6,089
8
votes
What caused this puncture in my tube?
Your tube has punctured because of a lack of support in that spot.
I bet if you examine the inside of your rim, the one spoke access hole at that spot will either have a sharp edge, or the rim tape ...
- 121k
8
votes
Why did my road bike tire patch fail?
My road tubes are definitely harder to patch than my MTB tubes. I also blame the width, but specifically the curvature. Some of my patches are simply too stiff to stay nicely on the tube, while being ...
- 57.2k
8
votes
How to put a tube in a used tubeless tire
Yes, people say that it is possible to put in a tube to get you home, but that is in principle. In normal conditions where there is none or just a few sharp objects that needs to be cleared to be able ...
- 16.1k
8
votes
Accepted
Repeated punctures at the base of the valve stem
It seems the tube has tried to move (probably dragged by tire while braking), and the valve was trying to prevent it from doing that. The result of that is shear stress not only on the part of the ...
- 216
8
votes
Accepted
I put a 700 x 35c inner tube in my 700 x 38c tyre. Is my tyre in risk for a flat?
Any increase in puncture risk from a fitting a 38mm tyre with a tube rated for 35mm (max) is tiny. Don't worry about it.
The softness you're feeling is probably simply that you haven't pumped it up ...
- 57.2k
7
votes
Is this inner tube too big for the Rim?
Some tubes are just like this. It is unlikely to be a problem in use.
Put a bare minimum of air into it - just enough to handle it, but not even the amount that fills out its base shape. From there, ...
- 81.7k
7
votes
Repeated punctures at the base of the valve stem
I've had rim that caused punctures like that quite regularly. Covering the sharp edges of the valve hole with tape helped to some degree. Making them less sharp with a file or sandpaper might help as ...
- 16.1k
7
votes
Are 26'' wheels and tubes a thing of the past?
Largely, I think you can say that the answer to this question is "yes".
There are some exceptions where new, enthusiast-to-professional grade bikes are specified with 26" wheels. The ...
- 3,449
7
votes
Are 26'' wheels and tubes a thing of the past?
I think the title of the question should be edited to state that the question is related to touring bikes. Right now the title and questions body are really asking two related but separate questions ...
- 4,099
6
votes
How tight does the top part of a presta need to be torqued?
I've never seen anyone publish a torque spec for a Presta valve core, and measuring it would be difficult anyway.
While generic in terms of form factor, there can be quite a bit of difference in terms ...
- 81.7k
6
votes
Valve stem too thick for hole in rim?
I've had this in the past. I ended up chamfering the square lip of the rubber reinforcement, then forcing it through the Schrader hole in the rim. I was roadside and I vaguely remember using spit as ...
- 121k
6
votes
Valve stem too thick for hole in rim?
I agree with @Andrew Henle that it is of questionable wisdom to bore a wider hole to fit a Schrader valve stem into a rim designed to use the much thinner Presta valve stem. The fact you can start ...
- 9,737
6
votes
Accepted
Quality of tubes for road bikes?
To begin with, all tubes - regardless of the manufacturer or quality level - leak to a certain extent. Latex ones are notorious for losing pressure so fast that you'd want to top it up every day. ...
- 731
6
votes
How can I treat small glass cuts on my bike tyre?
Against glass on roads, there are three measures (pick one or two ;)), and mostly preventive:
Puncture Resistant Tires: there are product ranges meant provide additional protection (typically kevlar ...
- 17.6k
6
votes
Accepted
27.5x.215 tubes in a 27.5x210 tire. How big of a problem
Assuming you mean a 27.5x2.15 tube in a 27.5x2.10 tire, that's a difference of 5 one-hundredths of an inch, or about 1 1/4 mm.
That's - not going to matter.
At all.
There'd be zero benefit in getting ...
- 10.6k
6
votes
Keep getting small punctures on spoke side of tube
You got the next step nailed already. Use an "offset" from the valve to figure out exactly where on the rim is the cause.
Then feel around that area for a sharp point or a sharp corner of ...
- 121k
6
votes
Repeated punctures at the base of the valve stem
As others have pointed out, make sure to have the valve perpendicular to the rim at all times.
Secondly you could try make some improvised padding around the rim hole, especially if the edge in any ...
- 744
5
votes
Accepted
Valve stem too thick for hole in rim?
First a general answer: Yes, drilling a valve hole to make it larger is fine. It's done all the time in bicycle shops.1
I've seen lots of rims crack at the nipple holes, but I've rarely (if ever) seen ...
5
votes
Omafiets bike tyre / 42-635 vs 40-635
The 635 in the size is the rim diameter. So, both tires fit the same rim, and 40 may or may not be slightly narrower because the width measurement is never exact.
- 21.8k
5
votes
Roadside Repair of torn sidewall
I have had to deal with this (Strava - you need to either be logged out or be following me). There's a photo of the damage but not the repair. I was 40km from home, and luckily with someone who ...
- 57.2k
5
votes
skinny inner tube for 650b (38-584) tire?
27.5 x 1.5 is not a particularly uncommon tire size. Every manufacturer I would buy a tube from makes a suitable tube with a Presta valve.
The trick is using the correct search terms - "27.5x1.5 ...
- 49k
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