Tesco's or Wilko's puncture repair kit, only a £1, I buy one quite often, mainly for the small tubes of rubber solution and buy patches off Ebay in bulk for just a few pound from Hong Kong etc. When riding, I always carry an unopened tube of glue as a back up to the tube in the kit, especcially if it has been opened as it goes off pretty quick sometimes as mentioned earlier, I once read, that you should never touch the inner tube with the tube as it starts off the curing process in the tube, since reading this, I have kept it in mind along with making sure no air is trapped in the tube and found it does increase the longevity of the solution.
what punture repair kit ?
- Thread starter stuee147
- Start date
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stuee147
Senior Member
- Location
- north ayrshire
iv had that with the glue i was told once to wrap a bit of cling film around the tube and once you open the tube just place the cling film over the top and screw on the lid its ment to keep if fresher TBH iv not tried it i never have cling film with me but we used to do something similar with a plastic bag on mastic tubes and it worked great for them.
AndyWilliams
Über Member
- Location
- Lincolnshire
I have these as well as spare tubes. Yet to use the patches as I just changed the tube. Hope they work if ever I am out and about.
What about 28mm tyres? What would be the best size for patches?
I have a big tube of glue and a sheet of the patches which is about A5 size. Cost me about £2.50 from the LBS. This should last me more years than I can think. I however have a box of a dozen new tubes so haven't repaired a puncture in ages or had one since putting on my gp4000s 4 months ago, that's going to bite me in the bum now I have written it....
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stuee147
Senior Member
- Location
- north ayrshire
Do patches not go off? I know rubber can over time perish but do patches
Good question. I'm also wondering if patches are permanent solution? I guess you can't change tube every time you puncture? But do you change the outer tyre as well?
Goobs
Veteran
- Location
- East Yorkshire
I'd imagine they would eventually but probably over a decade. Extreme temperatures or direct sunlight will speed up the process.
If you have a repair kit lasting you that long you are very lucky and ought to get a Euro Millions ticket at once
youngoldbloke
The older I get, the faster I used to be ...
Not noticed that patches go off, but probably haven't got any more than 30 years old! Rubber solution will evaporate after you open the tube, so it is worth buying fairly regularly, though I have a small tube that was opened maybe 3 years ago that is still ok (I do wrap it in a small piece of clingfilm as suggested above). I buy the £1 kits from Tesco, and the smallest Rema TipTop patches online - should be fine for 28mm tyres by the way. Usually there are a few larger patches in a puncture kit anyway, but I can't remember when I last had to use one. Patches are a permanent solution, but I almost always replace the tube on the ride, and repair at home. You can always carry a repaired tube as a spare. You don't need to replace the tyre unless you've done it some serious damage, but most punctures result in nothing much bigger than a pinhole in the tyre. The important thing is to find out what caused the puncture and get rid of it before you replace the tube, otherwise you will have another problem just down the road!
Apollonius
Guru
- Location
- South Staffordshire
Being a bit "belt and braces" but also really minimalist with my bike ("take it off, you don't need it"), I carry a tube, but also some self adhesive patches I got from Decathlon. Wife's friend (a newbie) arrives at pub start of a ride with a flat. Wife's spare tube has been damaged by a hairbrush (yes, I know - who needs hair!). I have already had a puncture doing a longer ride earlier in the day.
I will admit, I didn't have much faith in the self adhesive patch (are they selfies? no.) but it worked fine. The pack comes with a scraper and I gave it plenty. Three weeks later and it seems to be holding up fine. Interestingly, we didn't discover the damage to my wife's spare tube until all the CO2 cartridges in the group had been wasted on it. I was the only one with a real pump. (Well, a Topeak mini. It worked fine.)
I will admit, I didn't have much faith in the self adhesive patch (are they selfies? no.) but it worked fine. The pack comes with a scraper and I gave it plenty. Three weeks later and it seems to be holding up fine. Interestingly, we didn't discover the damage to my wife's spare tube until all the CO2 cartridges in the group had been wasted on it. I was the only one with a real pump. (Well, a Topeak mini. It worked fine.)
Smokin Joe
Legendary Member
- Location
- Bare headed cyclist, Smoker
Only if they're exposed to ultra violet light. I've recently put the original 15 year old spare Dunlop on my car after it spent it's life sitting safely in the well of the boot. Still in perfect condition.
Very helpful, thank you
Smurfy
Naturist Smurf
- Location
- Smurfette's Kitchen
Whatever size goes on easily. The problem with large patches on skinny tubes is that the patches can't even be pressed on properly if the patch is wider than the tube when the tube is totally flat.
hoopdriver
Guru
- Location
- East Sussex
Rema Tiptop. Simple. Cheap. Job done.
