why so many punctures

[esrite]

i have a specialized hard rock pro MTB that I’ve put slicks on and i use the bike every day to commute work.
On the front ive got specialized armadillos tyres (had these for about 2 yrs, no punctures that i can remember). on the back i've got gatorskins, which i fitted towards the end of last summer from armadillos (which wore out).

i am frequently getting punctures on the back Gatorskins, recently its almost 1 a week. my commute is in London, so i understand that the roads are filthy and full of crap waiting to spoil my ride.
last week i had a puncture going home, it was dark so i just replaced it with a spare inner tube that i carry only to find that 30 seconds later it punctured again, had to walk the rest home. later found a bit of glass wedged in the tyre.
this morning i got a puncture on the way in, it was a slow puncture so decided to stop every 5 minutes and re-pump it up and fix it at lunch time.

now I dont know whats going wrong, should I ditch the gatorskins (the back tyre is pumped to 100psi and as its gatorskin should be failrly puncture resistant) even through they are still in good condition or should I look into fixing the problem smoother way- I.e Slime or something?



Any advise would be appreciated

 

[PpPete]

Avoid slime on high pressure tyres....it creates a horrible mess and doesnt work except on the tiniest pinholes.

Never used them myself, but Gatorskins get very mixed reviews.

 

[BSRU]

Marathon Plus's will help although the trade off is they are heavier.

 

[GrasB]

Gatorskin's puncture protection doesn't seem to work that well in the larger sizes as at 23C I had virtually no problems but at 28C I had repeated punctures. I'd replace the tyre for something different. I'd be looking at Sports contacts, Armadillos, Durano tyres.

 

[palinurus]

Stick an armadillo on the back and see how you go.

For me they've been very lucky tyres.

 

[palinurus]

Or a Marathon plus of course

 

[ianrauk]

Armadillo's seem to be pretty bomb proof. Can't remember last time I had a puncture on my (30 miles) London commute. But I have got in to the habit of checking both tyres after each ride in and ride home. Have pulled out bits of crap from the tyres which no doubt would have worked there way in to puncture.

 

[esrite]

have just replaced the gators. Found the armadillos for £17.50 online and Cycle surgery priced matched it
putting the armadillios on you instantly notice how heavey they are compared to the gators.
am a little gutted to be honest as i expected better from the gators and hoped it would improve my speed.

 

[ColinJ]

You should never fix a flat tyre without knowing what caused it! As you found out, something could be lurking in the tyre waiting to cause another one.

I would bet that you either had several bits of glass embedded in your tyre or you are damaging the tubes when you replace them.

One trick is to make a note of where the hole in the tube is relative to the tyre. That's a quick way to track down the glass, thorn (whatever) stuck in the tyre. For example, if the puncture is clockwise 25% round the tube from the valve, look clockwise 25% round the tyre from where the valve is. Obviously that won't work if you separate the tube from the tyre without marking where the valve was on the tyre first!

Be very careful not to trap the new tube between the tyre and the rim when you put the tyre back on. Putting a small amount of air in the tube first helps with that. Not too much though, or you wont get the tyre on. It's also better if you learn how to put the tyre on with bare hands rather than using tyre levers, because they can easily nip the tube leading to punctures later on. There is a knack to getting tyres back on without levers, so practice at home. Globalti always recommends putting talcum powder round the bead of the tyre to reduce friction, but I can manage without.

 

[GrasB]

One trick is to make a note of where the hole in the tube is relative to the tyre. That's a quick way to track down the glass, thorn (whatever) stuck in the tyre. For example, if the puncture is clockwise 25% round the tube from the valve, look clockwise 25% round the tyre from where the valve is. Obviously that won't work if you separate the tube from the tyre without marking where the valve was on the tyre first!

This is one reason to get some known point of the tyre aligned with the valve stem. Right now I have the Schwalbe logo over the valve stem which gives a great reference point to start the search from.

 

[ianrauk]

This is one reason to get some known point of the tyre aligned with the valve stem. Right now I have the Schwalbe logo over the valve stem which gives a great reference point to start the search from.

Yup.. 'tis what I does...

 

[User6179]

Its because gatorskins are rubbish!

6000 miles on armadilos -no puntures!
3000 miles on marathons -no puntures!
Every 100 miles at most on gatorskins and a punture !

I can only go by me and my friends experiences with gatorskins and as a tyre they run quite good and last quite long but on punture protection they offer very little if any more protection than a normal tyre against thorns and glass etc.

A Punture proof tyres= armadillos,marathonplus,etc are heavy and dont roll as good as normal tyres.

B normal tyres=any light racing slick are really light and roll great but get lots of puntures.

C What we all want is a light punture proof tyre that rolls well.

The gatorskin is marketed as such a tyre but think about it if it worked then why bother with A or B.

eddy

Up here for thinking Down there for dancing.

 

[Norm]

This time of year is all about punctures, wet tyres hold onto the grit rather than throwing it off each rotation and the water lubricates the passage or the offending item through the rubber.

 

[ianrauk]

This time of year is all about punctures, wet tyres hold onto the grit rather than throwing it off each rotation and the water lubricates the passage or the offending item through the rubber.

Exactly, so all the more reason for people to check their tyres after every trip. Yes it is a pain, but make it part of your commuting ritual. You won't be sorry.

 

[Moodyman]

C What we all want is a light punture proof tyre that rolls well.

Bontrager Racelite Hardcase. Ridden a few tyres and they offer the best compromise in my experience