UKC

I'm a fairly recent convert to road biking and seem to be suffering a lot of burst tubes, particularly on the front wheel. The roads around here (Forest of Dean) are pretty pot-holed and are certainly not helping but I was wondering if anyone had any tips for prevention?

I was also thinking of running with two tubes (by adding a hole for the second valve on the rim), allowing me to pump up the spare in case of puncture, rather than the hassle of changing tubes at the side of the road. Has anybody tried this before or is it a daft idea?

Any comments appreciated.

Regards

Sven

In reply to Sven:

What tyres and pressure are you running at the moment at.

In reply to Sven:





How you going to do this???

E

In reply to Enty:

agreed I cant work that one out, one tube would be twisted around the other no no.

My suggestion would be to change your tyres to ones with better puncture protection. Im yet to have one with continental gatorskins, ok they do weight a bit more than my pro3 summer tyres but its quicker than getting a flat.

As previously asked, what pressure are you running them? Its worth getting a pump with a pressure gauge on it as its hard to guess the pressure by feel alone. Most road tyres will need to be around 100psi to work correctly and avoid pinch flats.

In reply to Enty:

If someone could design a 'back-up tube' it would be an interesting option (but adding extra weight to wheel).

In reply to Andrew W:

I'm running at 110 PSI, the lower limit stamped on the side of the tyre.

Regards,

Sven

In reply to Sven:

When I get several punctures, that is usually the signal to me that it is time to get new tyres. What is causing the punctures? Do you find the culprits? (glass, thorns, pinches?)

In reply to Enty:

Just an idea at the moment, but I was thinking that a second hole/valve a few spokes away from the primary, with the two tubes running parallel to each other: pump the first to half pressure and then the second up to the 110PSI (the lower end of the tyre's recommended pressure) using a pump and pressure gauge. Unrealistic?

In reply to Sven: That has to rank alongside one of the most stupid things I have ever heard.....

In reply to tlm:

Tyres and rims are both pretty new and I've inspected them both thoroughly but can't find anything obvious. I was wondering if it was the increase in pressure when hitting a pot hole? Do I have too much weight over the front wheel (and before the jokes start I'm only 81kg!)?

In reply to Sven:


Having a valve pressing against the pumped up tube would puncture it immediately.

In reply to Sven:

1. Avoid potholes
2. Get quality tyres.

110 psi is high, 90-100 should be fine. What tyres do you have at the moment?

In reply to Sven:

Could be a spoke poking through the rim tape, have you checked that or is it a tubeless ready wheelset ?

In reply to r0b:

Thank Rob, but its not the tyres, its the tubes bursting. I'm not the bike at the moment (at home) and I don't know the make; it definitely says on the side though a pressure range, the lower of which is 110psi.

In reply to Dark-Cloud:
Thanks for the tip, I'll take a look. I have run my finger over all of the inside rim, but I guess that wouldn't highlight such a problem without some loading on the rib such as you would have when cycling.

In reply to Dark-Cloud:

Apologies, didn't reply to the second half of your enquiry - in short, I don't know.

In reply to Sven:


You say 'bursting' rather than being punctured?

(for me, punctures are always about the tyres!)

In reply to Sven:

If you hit a pothole remotely hard with tyres at 110psi the force will more often than not burst the innertube. It won't affect the tyre.

In reply to yesbutnobutyesbut & Tim,

It seems that a) I need to check the rims and tyres better and b) avoid the pot holes where possible.

Thanks to all for the tips, I'll take a look this evening.

Regards,

Sven.

In reply to Sven:

are you running 23 mm tyres? if so consider going up to 25 or even 28 mm while the roads are this bad

In reply to Sven:

Are you sure the tubes are fully contained within the tyre and not herniating out between rim and bead? A good dusting with talc will make removing and fitting tyres easier and help to settle the tubes in the tyres, also a little air in the tube to give it shape before you replace the tyre.

In reply to Sven:

Are you sure there isn't still a bit of glass or thorn stuck in the tyre?

My sister's bike kept getting punctures and turned out it had a thorn still in the tyre that you couldn't feel immediately, but under pressure was causing another puncture.

In reply to LastBoyScout:



Yeah - I turn the tyres inside out and squish them a bit to help find glass that is buried in the wall of the tyre. However, the OP keeps on talking about tyres bursting, rather than being punctured?

In reply to Sven:

You really need to define "bursting". When you take the inner tube out does the puncture site typically have one hole or two?

In reply to Sven:

a bit like your idea for a tyre-shell, you can get kevlar based puncture resistant tape to line your tyres - http://www.wiggle.co.uk/panaracer-flataway-tyre-liner
I reckon that combined with hardy tyres (Continental Gatorskins or Schwalbe Marathons) would be as good as it gets.

In reply to Sven:

What does the hole in the inner tube look like? Small and round? Split? Two holes near each other?

110psi minimum? Are you sure? I have not come across a tyre that needs that much pressure as a minimum. I typically run at 95-100psi dry or 90-95psi in the wet. 23mm Pro3's.