Hi- Finally got my 1st flat, my Trek 820 mtb riding friends borrowed fatboy slicks 26 x 1.25 with 26 x 1.50 tubes (yes, too big but he said they'd work - and they did). So I had read up lots of posts, nowhere to be on a nice afternoon, no hurry.
All came apart fine - no tire irons needed on this combination - found glass shard embedded - used a Bell instant patch according to directions - then pumped tire moderate & topped with the new CO2 rig. Putting together & proud of myself - then "hisssssssssssssssssssssssssssss.............."
Got ride home.... Today took all apart & redid a new patch, more successful I thought, all together & firm, rode 2 min down street. Flat again!
So got new proper tubes, installed a 26 x 1.0 - 1.25 no sweat. But I would ask - are Bell repair kits [censored] - (from China-Mart) and Park same thing quality & will work fine ? (as according to LBS) I'm not so sure. Or are these kits inferior to using glue ?
All glueless patches might as well have ACME stamped on'em. They're only really to get you out of a 'sticky' situation and usually [censored]. The old fashioned glued patches have been used for donkeys years because they work and usually last as long as the tube. A quick fix will never lead anywhere except a headache.🙂
I've used self-stick patches a lot. Just like glue-ons, there is an important step you must do correctly, first: sand the area around the hole. The sanding is to remove a surface layer that prevents good sticking. You don't have to sand off mold lines, just make sure you have sanded enough to take the gloss off the rubber. I have had other problems that caused patches to fail. On the trail, not being careful enough, I twisted my tube when I put it in the casing. When I pumped up the tire, it tended to untwist and made the patch slip off position enough to uncover the hole I patched. Finding a shard of glass is a problem, because there might be a broken-off piece that is still in the tread.
I keep a spare tube with me so I don't have to patch on the trail. I keep the spare in a zip-lock bag in which I've dusted some talcum powder.
I have worn tired down so much that I was flatting more and more often, just because the tread was so thin. I've had tubes with 5 patches on them before I got tired of patching and bought new tires. I have also trashed tires that kept holing my tubes, even though I searched diligently for whatever it was that was stuck in the tire that was poking the hole.
I have gone over 1200 miles without flatting. Knock on wood.
