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How many patches do YOU put on a tube?

1670 Views 32 Replies 28 Participants Last post by  Rev Bubba
I had a good wipeout in a shale pile yesterday due to flats. Had three pinch flats (6 holes) on the front and a puncture on the rear. Used all my patches on 1 wreck!

How many patches have you put on one tube before replacing?
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Jared said:
I had a good wipeout in a shale pile yesterday due to flats. Had three pinch flats (6 holes) on the front and a puncture on the rear. Used all my patches on 1 wreck!

How many patches have you put on one tube before replacing?
Being that you can get a tube for the price of a patch kit, it might not be worth it to go too many. I would have no problem patching a tube 3 or 4 times, as long as the tube was still relatively new. If its a year old though, I'd just replace the tube. I've had 3 on one before after a ride on a thorn filled trail, and it worked just fine.
yeah for me it dosen't seem to matter how many patches a tube gets; but after a while it gets old or just frail and you end up ripping the valve stem off...

no patchin is gonna help that.

oh and by "patches" i only mean the glue on kind, the instant stick on ones go bad after a while and should only be used as a temporary solution.

speaking of patches, anyone seen any cheap places to buy JUST the patches... i have enough glue sandpaper and plastic boxes for 6 lifetimes, but no more patches...

why does a patch kit cost more than a couple tubes; I SMELL CONSPIRACY ;)
None

I've got a whole box full of tubes that will get patched, some day...
max-a-mill said:
yeah for me it dosen't seem to matter how many patches a tube gets; but after a while it gets old or just frail and you end up ripping the valve stem off...

no patchin is gonna help that.

oh and by "patches" i only mean the glue on kind, the instant stick on ones go bad after a while and should only be used as a temporary solution.

speaking of patches, anyone seen any cheap places to buy JUST the patches... i have enough glue sandpaper and plastic boxes for 6 lifetimes, but no more patches...

why does a patch kit cost more than a couple tubes; I SMELL CONSPIRACY ;)
Just cut up an old tube into small pieces, and use those as patches.
none.

Jared said:
I had a good wipeout in a shale pile yesterday due to flats. Had three pinch flats (6 holes) on the front and a puncture on the rear. Used all my patches on 1 wreck!

How many patches have you put on one tube before replacing?
tubes are cheap and a new tube, in theory, should last longer than a patched one.

rt
A: four
Jared said:
I had a good wipeout in a shale pile yesterday due to flats. Had three pinch flats (6 holes) on the front and a puncture on the rear. Used all my patches on 1 wreck!

How many patches have you put on one tube before replacing?
I just keep patching until the tube falls apart or is otherwise unfixable (unsually less than a year). With 6 holes at once, the cost of the patches is approaching that of a new tube so I'd probably just replace it.
I got Slimed

Jared said:
I had a good wipeout in a shale pile yesterday due to flats. Had three pinch flats (6 holes) on the front and a puncture on the rear. Used all my patches on 1 wreck!

How many patches have you put on one tube before replacing?
I've had as many as six, but I got Slime tube for my back tire and it hasn't flatted in months.
Jared said:
How many patches have you put on one tube before replacing?
Two.

Then I replace it.

Then I take the old one and rig it up to my porch and use it to launch beer bottles at my neighbor's house.
Jared said:
I had a good wipeout in a shale pile yesterday due to flats. Had three pinch flats (6 holes) on the front and a puncture on the rear. Used all my patches on 1 wreck!

How many patches have you put on one tube before replacing?
As many as it takes to fix the leaks. If I can not fix the tube then it is thrown out.

I have around 80 tubes in the shop and wait until I have 10 or so tubes to patch then fix them all at once. Usually patch kits have more glue than needed for the number of patches included so I buy extra patches @ about 10¢ each. 6 holes would cost less than $1 to fix.
Follow the link below for a good place to get bulk patches. I never get the larger oval ones because they seem to be overkill. They do stock them as well.

http://www.biketoolsetc.com/index.c...r Kits and Supplies&tc=Patches&item_id=RE-F1P

Also, one poster mentioned that a new tube is stronger than a patched tube. I've always heard that a patch is actually stronger than the original tube, so the affected area should actually be stronger than ever.

Happy patching!

Chris
None get patched on the trail (that's not saying I haven't, just not usually), they get patched at home. I've had them look like the have the 'Pox. Patch kits are cheap, WAY less than a tube and capable of patching multiple tubes.
None

Debaser said:
I've got a whole box full of tubes that will get patched, some day...
I only go through about 3 tubes a year and it's usually doeto valve stem problems. I always carry a spare tube or 2 and only carry patches for emergencies.
Debaser said:
I've got a whole box full of tubes that will get patched, some day...
Yeah, me too...
ctxcrossx said:
Follow the link below for a good place to get bulk patches. I never get the larger oval ones because they seem to be overkill. They do stock them as well.

http://www.biketoolsetc.com/index.c...r Kits and Supplies&tc=Patches&item_id=RE-F1P

Also, one poster mentioned that a new tube is stronger than a patched tube. I've always heard that a patch is actually stronger than the original tube, so the affected area should actually be stronger than ever.

Happy patching!

Chris
Those are the patches I buy and I get a better price at my LBS without needing to buy 100 at a time.
max-a-mill said:
speaking of patches, anyone seen any cheap places to buy JUST the patches... i have enough glue sandpaper and plastic boxes for 6 lifetimes, but no more patches...
I go to my local auto parts store and buy a patch kit for around $3 and it has a ton of patches, metal buffer and a 1 oz tube of glue.
I think 14 once...

but I was forced to retire that tube because it was getting too old, it started to separate at the seam :rolleyes:
Tubes and patches

I noticed that some of ya'll said that you patch it then ditch it after so long. Where do you ditch it to? If you don't know, for ever 50 tubes that you send to Pedros, they send you a saddle bag. However, there are limitations to what kind of tubes. It's best to check out their site @ Pedros.com. Don't think you're ever going to collect 50 tubes? How about your bike shop? I'm sure they do. Or gather your buddies. Either way, the garbage is not the place for them I don't think. Lemme know what ya think!

-Rob
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