Patching a tire

Sure, a regular tube patch *usually* works fine in this case. Getting the
tire clean enough for it to stick can be tough.

Another method I've used, with mixed success, is super-gluing the tear shut;
no patch necessary if it works.

-pete

<[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

This morning I had a nail go through a brand new Specialized Armadillo
tire. It went through the tread, not the sidewall and the tire has no
other damage. Is it possible to patch the hole? If so, what would you
use?

Quoted message said:

This morning I had a nail go through a brand new Specialized Armadillo
tire. It went through the tread, not the sidewall and the tire has no
other damage. Is it possible to patch the hole? If so, what would you
use?

Just patch the tube, nail holes in tires are of no consequence...tires
don't need to be airtight.

As long as the tire isn't misshapen or bulgy, and the tube doesn't
bubble out of the hole, it's OK.

Sheldon "Nails Don't Hurt Tires" Brown
+--------------------------------------------------------------+
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| conscript troops and, in the long run, no state ever has. |
| --Robert A. Heinlein |
+--------------------------------------------------------------+
Harris Cyclery, West Newton, Massachusetts
Phone 617-244-9772 FAX 617-244-1041
http://harriscyclery.com
Hard-to-find parts shipped Worldwide
http://captainbike.com http://sheldonbrown.com

Quoted message said:

This morning I had a nail go through a brand new Specialized Armadillo
tire. It went through the tread, not the sidewall and the tire has no
other damage. Is it possible to patch the hole? If so, what would you
use?

Is it's just a nail hole, I wouldn't bother patching.

Hmm.. it always seem like when I have a small hole in my tire I start
getting flats more often. I would think more garbage could get in and
damage the tube, especially when it is wet.

Quoted message said:

This morning I had a nail go through a brand new Specialized Armadillo
tire. It went through the tread, not the sidewall and the tire has no
other damage. Is it possible to patch the hole? If so, what would you
use?

If it's a big hole, a Park tyre boot will stop the tube bulging out.
However, if it's that bad then the tyre needs replacing - this is really
a get-you-home fix.

Park makes tire boots which are basically just thin plastic sheets with
adhesive on them. They (cut down to size) work well for this kind of
thing, although there are cheaper ways of doing a homemade boot. As
others have said, if hole is not big enough to worry about exposing the
tube, don't worry about it at all.

Lou D'Amelio

email hidden said:

This morning I had a nail go through a brand new Specialized Armadillo
tire. It went through the tread, not the sidewall and the tire has no
other damage. Is it possible to patch the hole? If so, what would you

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Quoted message said:

use?

^^^^^

Dear Dwelzel,

Well, since you ask . . .

http://www.msu.edu/~nixonjos/armadillo/pics/c_vellerosus-unger-sm.jpg

Helpfully,

Carl Fogel

Zog The Undeniable said:

Quoted message said:

This morning I had a nail go through a brand new Specialized
Armadillo tire. It went through the tread, not the sidewall and the
tire has no other damage. Is it possible to patch the hole? If so,
what would you use?

If it's a big hole, a Park tyre boot will stop the tube bulging out.
However, if it's that bad then the tyre needs replacing - this is
really a get-you-home fix.

Park boots suck. With extended use with larger holes, they crack right down
the middle. I cut out sections of plastic water bottles and use duct tape
for this purpose. I can then ride the tire even with a big gash, up to
around 1cm, depending on the cut.

--
Phil, Squid-in-Training

email hidden said:

Hmm.. it always seem like when I have a small hole in my tire I start
getting flats more often. I would think more garbage could get in and
damage the tube, especially when it is wet.

Dear Dwelzel,

Yes, even small cuts in a tire will pick up tiny rock chips
and glass fragments if you ride where such debris is common.

But where such debris is common, the tire soon sports lots
of annoying little cuts, more than are worth the time and
trouble to patch.

I spin my tires, use a fingernail to remove any chips that I
see stuck in the tiny holes, and leave it at that.

Eventually, one will enlarge to the point where the tire
either needs repair or replacement.

I usually opt for replacement, since the tire is worn by
then and has plenty of other small cuts eager to start
bulging.

That you're using Armadillo tires suggests that you're
riding where there's plenty of such debris on the roads, but
you might try just riding for a while and seeing if you get
a flat aligned with the nail hole. You're only risking the
time and fuss to fix a single flat, as opposed to the time
and fuss to try to pre-patch a possibly insignificant hole.

Good luck,

Carl Fogel

On 15 Jun 2005 12:47:26 -0700, "[email hidden]" <[email hidden]>

Quoted message said:

This morning I had a nail go through a brand new Specialized Armadillo
tire. It went through the tread, not the sidewall and the tire has no
other damage. Is it possible to patch the hole? If so, what would you
use?

The 'dillo is tubeless? When did I miss that happening?

Last time I checked, a nail hole in a tube-type tire wasn't a cause
for concern about the *tire*, and as far as the tube is concerned, a
patch is all that's needed. If you're paranoid about the hole in the
tire's tread, use some of the adhesive recommended for tubless tire
repair to glue it closed.
--
Typoes are a feature, not a bug.
Some gardening required to reply via email.
Words processed in a facility that contains nuts.

Depending on the size of the hole (such as when I get glass in mine) I
just use one or two self-adhesive tube patches (on the inside of the
tire, of course), and it usually does the trick. Have over 1500 miles
on a tire with one of those right now. Then again, these were small
holes, and road tires, but an idea nonetheless...

Dave

Quoted message said:

email hidden said:

This morning I had a nail go through a brand new Specialized Armadillo
tire. It went through the tread, not the sidewall and the tire has no
other damage. Is it possible to patch the hole? If so, what would you

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Quoted message said:

use?

^^^^^

Dear Dwelzel,

Well, since you ask . . .

http://www.msu.edu/~nixonjos/armadillo/pics/c_vellerosus-unger-sm.jpg

Helpfully,

Carl Fogel

Quoted message said:

This morning I had a nail go through a brand new Specialized Armadillo
tire. It went through the tread, not the sidewall and the tire has no
other damage. Is it possible to patch the hole? If so, what would you
use?

I use Armadillos all the time. It's rare to puncture one but I have
found that when it is punctured hard, as yours was, that the frayed
edges of the puncture hole on the inside of the tube are sharp. Not
real sharp but sharp enought to eventually puncture another 120 psi
tube. I think it is due to the Armadillo tread material. Anyway, I
have covered the hole by taking a regular tire patch and patching the
inside of the tire, just as you suggest.

Speaking only from my own experience,
Tom

This is not based on experience, but my thinking is that you should put the
tube back so the patched hole is in line with the nail-hole in the tire, so
you have a double thickness of rubber there. Does that make sense?

Quoted message said:

This morning I had a nail go through a brand new Specialized Armadillo
tire. It went through the tread, not the sidewall and the tire has no
other damage. Is it possible to patch the hole? If so, what would you
use?

I make tire boots from defunct tubes. Cut a couple of rectangles
from the tube and throw them in your repair bag. Small hole - use
one. Bigger hole, or tear - use both. Hey, it's recycling!
It's all good ;-)

Lou D'Amelio said:

Park makes tire boots which are basically just thin plastic sheets
with adhesive on them. They (cut down to size) work well for this
kind of thing, although there are cheaper ways of doing a homemade
boot. As others have said, if hole is not big enough to worry about
exposing the tube, don't worry about it at all.

The reason these boots can't work for long is that they are rigid in
areal shape while the tire casing is changing shape. Any rectangular
part of the tire casing facing the road changes its diagonal dimension
on the 45 degree bias ply of the casing has. That is why a standard
business card placed between tube and tire turns into mm sized
confetti in less than 100 miles.

My choice for boot material is a section of a Clement Criterium or
equivalent tubular tire, with tread. Such a piece about 2.5 inches
long and the width of the tubular with the selvedge trimmed off works
excellently and does not need to be glued in place. The edges of the
boot must be carefully to feathered on all four sides though so the
tube will not be nibbled to leak by these edges.

Such boots have served for more than 1000 miles to the end of the tire
life for me.

[email hidden]

Leo Lichtman said:

This is not based on experience, but my thinking is that you should
put the tube back so the patched hole is in line with the nail-hole
in the tire, so you have a double thickness of rubber there. Does
that make sense?

No, because the patch is more plastic than butyl rubber and will
extrude through the hole it its got any broken cords.

[email hidden]

Phil said:

Park boots suck. With extended use with larger holes, they crack right down
the middle. I cut out sections of plastic water bottles and use duct tape
for this purpose. I can then ride the tire even with a big gash, up to
around 1cm, depending on the cut.

To be fair to Park, they're not designed for extended use. A tyre that
needs booting is a tyre that should be binned when you get home.

spin156 said:

I make tire boots from defunct tubes. Cut a couple of rectangles
from the tube and throw them in your repair bag. Small hole - use
one. Bigger hole, or tear - use both. Hey, it's recycling!
It's all good ;-)

You should be using pieces of tyre, not tube.