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Repeated Punctures

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  • January 19, 2015 at 4:52 pm #23051
    bamilton wackademical

    So yesterday, after doing 74 miles on pretty cruddy roads from London to Hastings, I got 2 punctures within 15 minutes of getting off the train at London Bridge. My 3rd and 4th in the space of five months. I did my standard check after the first puncture and found a tiny cut in the tyre, but nothing sticking in there (I checked thoroughly) yet a few minutes later I got my second one of the day. Thankfully the second repair held out for the 6 miles I still had to cycle home, as I only had the two tubes on me and no repair kit.

    I know that the roads are covered in crap at the moment, but four punctures in such a short space of time just seems totally unnatural. I do wonder how much is bad luck and whether I’m just doing something terribly wrong. I’m running Schwalbe Durano Wired 25s which I would expect to be fairly bombproof and with full length mudguards. I keep my bike well cleaned and maintained, and the PSI of the tyres at 110/100. The only recurring theme in each incident is that I’ve always used Specialized inner tubes.

    I have toyed with going tubeless, but I could actually do with avoiding spending cash on the bike for a while. Any thoughts on where I’m going wrong or suggestions on how to prevent it happening again for a while?

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  • January 23, 2015 at 6:03 pm #827899
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    peterben

    I have been running on the
    I have been running on the original Giant tyres supplied with my bike 2 years ago and have had one pinch flat in that time. I ride year round on crap covered Buckinghamshire roads, thorns from hedge flailing the lot. A guy out with me on my Wednesday ride had 3, 2 caused by the same pothole, front and back, Sometimes that’s how it goes. There, that has tempted fate.

    January 23, 2015 at 10:30 am #827897
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    bamilton wackademical

    I found out what the problem
    I found out what the problem was. I’m a bit embarrassed to admit this, but let it be a cautionary tale to anyone else reading this thread:

    I had my third puncture of the week this morning – on the front wheel again. I’d switched the wheel after last weekend (this one with Conti Gatorskin) so I knew there was a bigger problem than the tyre itself. I did all the usual checks – nothing embedded, rim tape was fine etc – then I noticed how black the left side of the brake was. On closer inspection the new pad I fitted last week had become misaligned and had been rubbing on the sidewall of the tyre.

    Extremely daft and I should have checked it sooner. You live and learn I guess.

    January 20, 2015 at 8:19 pm #827895
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    Giles Pargiter

    Feel round the inside of the
    Feel round the inside of the tyre with your finger tips. You will feel even the slightest thorn, wirebrush bristle or stone like that. Also I don’t regard inner tubes as throw away items. It is quicker to repair it on the road and you don’t have to remove a wheel to do it.
    You occasionally get a run of punctures from a particular bit of road.

    January 20, 2015 at 6:15 pm #827893
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    gazza_d

    Schwalbe Marathon Plus for 3
    Schwalbe Marathon Plus for 3 season commuting & Marathon winter for well, the winter would be my personal recommendation based on experience.

    I also swear by Velox rim tape. It doesn’t move,spilt or do any of the nasty stuff plastic & rubber tapes do. yes it’s not the lightest & can make the tyres slightly tougher to fit, but they don’t need to come off.

    Most of my commuting is on glass & gravel strewn NCN & shared paths. 33miles return daily so I need something reliable

    January 20, 2015 at 5:47 pm #827891
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    mike the bike

    Don’t get me wrong, I like
    Don’t get me wrong, I like Duranos and run them on one of my bikes, but they aren’t the best choice for daily commuting in winter. My hack bike is fitted with Durano Plus tyres, a different beast altogether. They are much, much more puncture resistant and seem to last forever.

    There is a trade-off of course, they are heavier and a little slower but if it’s peace of mind you seek ……..

    January 20, 2015 at 9:39 am #827889
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    NickK123

    Not sure if I missed it in
    Not sure if I missed it in the thread but are your punctures occurring in the same place – which would be a bit of a clue. Like a previous poster, I had a rim tape problem (on Mavic Elites). There was tape applied over a manufactured hole in the rim but it had very sharp edges and was eventually cutting the tube; didn’t pick it up ’til 4 punctures later, over several months. I changed the tape and all was fine.

    January 20, 2015 at 9:16 am #827887
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    bamilton wackademical

    bashthebox wrote:It depends

    bashthebox wrote:
    It depends how much riding you’re doing, I suppose, but 4 punctures in 5 months isn’t very many, especially in winter. The two in 15 minutes – did the tube blow in the same point both times? Could be some muck inside the tire, could be the hole in the tire is now big enough to let nasties in.
    Higher pressures should give you more puncture resistance, but will give you less grip on slippery winter roads. How much do you weigh, if it’s not too personal a question?

    I was about 14.5 stone before Christmas, so probably about 18 stone* now.

    To be honest, I haven’t had a proper chance to take the wheel off again and give it a full inspection, as well as the second tube which I took home. It was dark when it happened, so I got it under a street light and gave the tyre as good an inspection as I could. I could do with checking the wheel though – especially the rim tape.

    *Still about 14.5 stone, amazingly given the cheese consumption

    January 20, 2015 at 9:00 am #827885
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    bashthebox

    It depends how much riding
    It depends how much riding you’re doing, I suppose, but 4 punctures in 5 months isn’t very many, especially in winter. The two in 15 minutes – did the tube blow in the same point both times? Could be some muck inside the tire, could be the hole in the tire is now big enough to let nasties in.
    Higher pressures should give you more puncture resistance, but will give you less grip on slippery winter roads. How much do you weigh, if it’s not too personal a question?

    January 20, 2015 at 7:55 am #827883
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    wellcoordinated

    Use Stan’s Notubes system.
    Use Stan’s Notubes system. I’m using it this winter. You’d think I have not had a puncture at all when riding with no apparent loss of pressure. However when cleaning the bike and inspecting the tyres I can see small amounts of sealant fluid seeping out in several places. I can’t recommend Stan’s Notubes enough.

    January 20, 2015 at 5:38 am #827881
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    Judge dreadful

    I’ve been using Schwalbe
    I’ve been using Schwalbe Durano plus Etape’s on my road bikes, and Marathon plus on the Cross trails. Despite putting the miles in on the roads this winter, I’ve had only one puncture in 5 months, that was a destroyed tyre and rim as well, due to hitting a flooded pothole. The shielded tyres don’t roll quite as sweetly as the full summer slicks, but I’ll take the compromise.

    January 19, 2015 at 11:43 pm #827879
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    BBB

    Go for the widest Duranos or
    Go for the widest Duranos or Gatorskins (28 – 32mm) your frame can take and drop the pressure by 20-40 PSI. You’ll just as fast or faster with more comfort and fewer punctures. There’s no point of running any tyres at 100PSI or more on typical roads, unless you’re too heavy for the given tyre width and suffer pinch flats.

    January 19, 2015 at 9:18 pm #827877
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    ianrobo

    I used to use Specialised
    I used to use Specialised tubes and hated them on dry roads would just get a puncture. Switched to Schwalbe and had one puncture in the 6 months since switching. Thats just my personal experience.

    January 19, 2015 at 9:12 pm #827875
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    crikey

    You’ve either got worn out
    You’ve either got worn out tyres or have something stuck in the tyre which is causing the puncture. Fixes out on the road are difficult on occasion because you don’t take enough time to check the tyre.

    Take the tyre off, stick it in the bath and clean it, then check it over, inch by inch.

    I had 5 punctures in four days, the cause; a piece of wire stuck in the tyre that only caused an issue after about 4 miles each time.

    January 19, 2015 at 9:03 pm #827873
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    Jimbonic

    Have you checked your rim
    Have you checked your rim tape is covering the tops of all your spokes. I suffered from a rash of punctures one spring and berated the state of the roads, until I noticed that there were a couple of places where the tape had moved and the screw heads on the nipples (this post just gets more and more like a Finbar Saunders cartoon!) were exposed (fnarr! fnarr! kyak!). Anyway, a bit of jiggery pokery got the tape back in place and no more puncturs – yay!

    January 19, 2015 at 7:45 pm #827871
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    DanTe

    The state of some of the
    The state of some of the stuff they’re spreading on the roads as ‘grit’, I’m surprised it dos’n’t go through car tyres. It’s like riding over diamonds..
    I picked a bit of ‘grit’ out my tyre the other day that looked like a mini ice age spearhead..

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