I sold my bike 2 years ago and I will buy a new one ( a second hand one), but the headache with the road bikes is all about the punctures…
I am not very experienced in cycling and materials…but I hate to change the wheel everytime I have a flat tyre. May you give me economical recommendations to ride avoiding the damn punctures (at least to avoid changing the wheel in the middle of nowhere): special tyres, tubeless, gels…???
Thanks so much
A lot of it depends on what is causing your punctures but punctures shouldn’t be a major problem.
If you are getting pinch flats, typically caused on poor roads with lots of pot holes, running bigger tires will help a lot. Most road bikes can handle at least a 28mm tires and its pretty hard to pinch a 28 on the road. Running a bit higher tire pressure will also help.
If the problem is big thorns or stuff on the road physically puncturing the tire it will be helpful to run a tire with more puncture protection. Going tubeless will also help but that will limit what you can buy used. Personally I don’t see much of an advantage of running tubeless until tires are >30mm and that rules out a lot of road bikes.
There are other solutions out there but they come with significant disadvantage. Where I live thorns are real problem in the fall so for a while I running thorn proof tubes for training similar to this:
In terms of puncture protection they were bomb proof. However they are incredible heavy, roll like s***, and will fail at the valve due to the rubber used in the tube. A less extreme solution is using a tire liner. They are cheaper and lighter but wont stop a sharp thorn.
I would also just select a wheel and tire combo that isn’t a pain in ass to change. The ease of fixing a flat is massively tire/wheel dependent. I had some Hed Ardennes + wheels that were great but mounting most tires was a massive effort and made flats a headache. My current race wheels also don’t play nice with certain tires but with GP 4000s I have no issues so I just run those all the time. If you are having real problems with changing flats it may be that you have been using a combo that fights back which doesn’t have to be the case.
Gatorskins. You will be as slow as shit and people will laugh at you and steal your lunch money, but you won’t get flats.
You only need a spare tube and some tyre levers and mini pump and are good to go. Its should take 5 mins max and you will be on your way. That will take the stress out of getting a puncture.
Stay away from race tyres.
Don’t use Latex tubes.
Done under inflate your tyres. probably 90psi unless you are on the heavy side then 100. (23c-25c)
You could go with Tubeless, but that does come with its own issues and if you are struggling with changing a tube then tubeless is not for you.
Gatorskins. You will be as slow as shit and people will laugh at you and steal your lunch money, but you won’t get flats.
Compared to running thorn proof tube Gatorskins are both super fast and highly vulnerable. The puncture resistant tubes are 3-5mm thick so they weight a ton, are nearly inflexible but are impervious to punctures including pinch flats. (https://www.serfas.com/shop/products/tires/thorn-resistant-tubes/). I don’t recommend Gatorskins unless you get them for 50+% off but they aren’t bad training tires and I have seen people make far more drastic choices due to a fear of punctures.
Using Gatorskin tubs is another issue. In that case you have all the hassles of tubs without any of the advantages.
I put these in between tire and tube and they work great!!!
If the puncture is from a thorn, you don’t need to remove the wheel or the tire to fix it. Just make sure you’ve removed the thorn, then pry part of the tire off the rim where the puncture is with tire levers, enough to be able to pull a section of tube out. Apply a patch to the tube and put it all back together. Much faster and easier than completely removing the wheel, tire and tube.
If the puncture is from a thorn, you don’t need to remove the wheel or the tire to fix it. Just make sure you’ve removed the thorn, then pry part of the tire off the rim where the puncture is with tire levers, enough to be able to pull a section of tube out. Apply a patch to the tube and put it all back together. Much faster and easier than completely removing the wheel, tire and tube.
Patch doesn’t work well for me. It’s not strong enough to hold the air unfortunately.
It works so I can finish the ride, but I end up replacing the tube.
Get Tannus solid tires. Never deal with a pump again.
Gatorskins. You will be as slow as shit and people will laugh at you and steal your lunch money, but you won’t get flats.
Forreal
If the puncture is from a thorn, you don’t need to remove the wheel or the tire to fix it. Just make sure you’ve removed the thorn, then pry part of the tire off the rim where the puncture is with tire levers, enough to be able to pull a section of tube out. Apply a patch to the tube and put it all back together. Much faster and easier than completely removing the wheel, tire and tube.
Patch doesn’t work well for me. It’s not strong enough to hold the air unfortunately.
It works so I can finish the ride, but I end up replacing the tube.
Try a different patch. I use the glueless patches made by Park Tool, and have never had a problem with one of those failing. I’ve put thousands of miles on tubes patched like that.
You don’t need to change wheels when you get a flat tire.
IME way more often than not, a thorn (or staple, wire, etc) won’t even puncture a latex tube if you remove it fairly quickly. It will easily puncture a butyl tube though.
May you give me economical recommendations to ride avoiding the damn punctures (at least to avoid changing the wheel in the middle of nowhere): special tyres, tubeless, gels…???
How exactly are they being punctured? Impossible to offer a sensible solution unless that is known.
IME way more often than not, a thorn (or staple, wire, etc) won’t even puncture a latex tube if you remove it fairly quickly. It will easily puncture a butyl tube though.
Bull.
Beware of internal flats caused by a faulty rim strip. Had a popular set of wheels. Was frequently getting flats on the rear wheel. Thought it was pinch flats or glass in the bike lane. After looking at several tubes that I kept, the holes were in the same place on the tube. The flaw in the rim strip was very small and wouldn’t cause an immediate puncture; yet, it would wear a hole within a month.
Do not go with “thornproof” tubes. You’ll have to put so much effort into your pedaling that you’ll soon hate riding your bike.
Gatorskins with Mr. Tuffy (or equivalent) tire liners will eliminate almost any puncture due to thorns and broken glass. You won’t win any races with this setup, but you won’t think you’re pedaling uphill and into a headwind on every ride. You can buy Gatorskins at Excel Sports for $28 right now, so they don’t have to be expensive. And you can get at least 3000 miles out of them before they need to be replaced.
However, flats are a fact of life if you’re going to ride a bike. It’s not difficult to fix one on the side of the road by replacing the tube. (It’s one of the few things I take care of myself when it comes to bike maintenance.) If you have questions, ask around and you can find a bike shop or an experienced rider who can show you how to do this. Have them show you what to stuff into a seat pack (spare tube, tire levers, CO2 inflator and cartridges). When you get a flat, you’ll be able to fix it in a few minutes. Save the cell phone call to your spouse/riding buddies for the dreaded “second flat on the same ride” scenario.
Good luck!
I caved today and got a pair of 4000IIs. 700x25c.
I have an old GP5000 on the front and Gatorskin on the back, but I really haven’t been jiving well with it - I seem to be in a different ballpark in speed and it has been slightly frustrating.
I’m preparing for a high mileage week next week and can’t imagine dragging a Gatorskin through it.
The 4000iis is more puncture resistant than the GP5000, so I feel I compromised… I’m only going to be doing track work and some local rides. I’d almost be more inclined to put on the Gatorskins on rides out in the Boondocks where you can’t break down. Or my steel frame bike. So I should have some use for the ‘skins.
The 4000iis is more puncture resistant than the GP5000, so I feel I compromised…
Not according to Continental. You would think they would know!.
Btw all those recommending gatorskins, with sacrificing some speed. They still can get flats. The Tannus solid 25c tires same performance as gatorskins