Tubes - Deflating

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Glasgow44

Veteran
I found two tubes in my saddle bag thingy; the boxes of which look a bit weatherbeaten. However, I have pumped them up using my track pump and left them for a few hours. They seem fine, no issues with punctures, valve, etc. Anyway, what I wanted to ask was: What is the best way to deflate and fold these, avoiding too much pressure so as not to damage or weaken the valve?

Thanks in advance for your help.
 

Pat "5mph"

A kilogrammicaly challenged woman
Moderator
Location
Glasgow
I deflate them with a flat head screwdriver, roll them into a freezer bag, add a pinch of talcum powder.
 

ColinJ

Puzzle game procrastinator!
When rolling tubes up you will probably find that they start to inflate as air trapped in them gets concentrated in the bit yet to be rolled up. Start halfway round the tube from the valve and do a couple of folds then depress the end of the valve to let the air out. Keep repeating that until you get to the valve. Put the valve cap back on to stop the end of the valve damaging that tube or anything else that it comes into contact with and tuck the valve in so it isn't sticking out. You should be able to put the valve out of harm's way without damaging it. Put an elastic band round the tube to keep it rolled up.

Using that approach you can roll tubes up much tighter than if you leave air trapped in them.

Which reminds me ... I have to roll up one of my spare tubes which I had unrolled to test!
 

wonderloaf

Veteran
I undo the valve to release the air, then stretch the tube out flat onto a flat surface. Then from the opposite end to the valve start to roll the tube up, pushing the air out as you go. Once you reach the valve end tighten the valve to stop air getting in and you have a completely deflated tube ready to be rolled up as desired.
 

froze

Über Member
Just cut through the tube, the valve will be undamaged and they will be easy to fold.





Or do what Pat said.

yes, then after you cut the tube in two and later have to use the tube simply tie the ends into a knot and use! Just ignore the bump as your ride, after awhile you'll forget it's there.

I know the above sounds funny, and it was intended to be just that, however that method does work in an emergency. If you destroy a tube on a ride and can't patch it and have no tubes with you, you can cut the tube in half at the bad section and rejoin by tying the two ends back together reinstall and inflate, yes there will be the bumping but it will get you home.
 

Levo-Lon

Guru
I tend to replace tubes often as they seem to fail quite quickly valve wise.

And after punctures , £3-4 quid for piece of mind.

As for rolling,lay flat and roll it while letting out air...
 

youngoldbloke

The older I get, the faster I used to be ...
I tend to replace tubes often as they seem to fail quite quickly valve wise.

And after punctures , £3-4 quid for piece of mind.

As for rolling,lay flat and roll it while letting out air...
Are you using Continental tubes? They have a reputation for valve problems. I'd rather spend £3-4 on something else so I repair tubes (and still have peace of mind) and buy branded tubes when they are discounted - my limit not more than around £2 a tube.
'As for rolling,lay flat and roll it while letting out air...' ? What - too difficult? Too time consuming?
 

froze

Über Member
I haven't had any valve failures once I switched to Specialized tubes, but nor did I have any fails with Vittoria. I had some fails with Conti and Hutchinson, and a lot with Slime, but if you stick with major brands you shouldn't have any issues as a rule even though Conti and Hutch are major brands, but I guess their tubes reflect the quality of their tires...ouch! Yeah I can hear a lot of screaming about the tire comment but I've tried Conti tires many times over the years because of recommendations and promises and everytime I use them I get nothing but flats and tire destruction before the tire wears out, and Hutchinson tires after about 2 years, the top rubber tread is glued onto the top of the tire and will separate not unlike a retread on a truck tire!
 

bpsmith

Veteran
I wonder which actual model of tyre you have tried from Conti?

Zero punctures during 4,500 miles on GP4000S for me. 2 punctures in a day when using the cheap UltraSports that came with the bike.

I would suggest that down to getting what you pay for rather than the brand.
 
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