I need some advice. I’ve now had three latex tubes fail in the exact same spot in the past 2 months on my disc wheel. I tossed one of them, but hopefully you can see that it happens right at the seam on the two tubes in the pic below:
Per the manufacturer’s recommendation, I don’t use rim tape on my disc. I’ve checked and rechecked the area around the valve hole on the rim, but it seems to be perfectly smooth to me. Should I start using some rim tape? Did I just get a bad batch of tubes? Should I still trust these tubes if I patch them?
Try putting some electrical tape or some other smooth tape over that spot and see if it fixes it.
The electrical tape won’t hurt but it looks to me like you got a bad batch of tubes and they’re failing where they were joined. That does not look like abrasion or a puncture but just a bad tube joint.
I’d buy a couple of new tubes, probably a different brand. In general there’s nothing wrong with the Michelin’s you have but I’m guessing you got unlucky with the batch you purchased. I had a few that did the same thing a few years back, have used them without issues more recently but for a while when to Vredstein and Challenge when that batch of Michelin’s gave me trouble.
Thanks, I’ll put the electrical tape on. These tubes actually are Bontrager, but I took your suggestion and have some Challenge tubes on order right now.
I would recommend two things. The first is to make sure you coat the tube with plenty of talc before installing and the second is to be very careful to not wiggle or bend the stem when pumping up the tire. This may not be your issue but i was getting ripped tubes in that area until my mechanic told me this and I have not had a problem since.
It does look like a manufacturing problem. If you really can’t see anything suspicious on the rim, assume that’s the case and try a different brand.
Meanwhile, sacrifice one of the flatted tubes to cut up for patches and start by patching the other. I avoided latex tubes for a long time thinking that they’re too expensive, but in the long run they’re not: I’m lazy enough to throw away a flatted $4 butyl tube, but not $20 of latex!
Put it in a bag with powder. Put enough air in it so it takes shape, and then put the valve in. Fit the tube in under the tire while one bead is unseated. Seat the second bead starting at valve and working around to the opposite side. Check the entire wheel to make sure no tube is sticking out from under the tire. Inflate fully.
It’s tough not to move the stem a little bit because it’s a disc–typically I have to pull the valve out a little bit in order to fit the pump head on it. I’ll try to be more gentle with that in the future though.
try r’air tubes by panaracer, difficult to get in US, excel sells them. they are nice, not sure what they use for material but have worked great for me w/o latex hassles.
I don’t really buy the gentle stem thing – latex is more elastic than butyl, not less, which means it’s less likely to tear for any reason. Also, though many swear by talc I’ve never seen the point. Careful installation makes it unnecessary, it turns to a mess once wet, and as Jobst Brandt argued (http://sheldonbrown.com/brandt/talcum.html) bike wheels don’t generate enough heat to vulcanize tubes.
Did your tubes above fail right away? Or did it take some riding around? If the failure was basically immediate – and made a loud noise – that might indicate a tiny whole in the rim that the (very elastic) latex is expanding through. Otherwise it sure looks like a failure in the seam.
One more step might help… once you get it all in, press down on the tire where the valve is to seat it and keep pressing as you inflate (first few strokes anyway). If you don’t the tube can fold under on itself at that spot.
I’ve had better luck with Bontrager tubes than Challenge.
OK, I’ll try that from now on. I don’t think that was the problem because I’ve been installing/using latex now for 4-5 years, and this is the first time I’ve seen anything like this, but it definitely can’t hurt to make sure the valve is seated.
Ha, I guess I should have ordered Vredestein’s then!
Are those Vredestein by any chance? I had 3 Vredestein latex tubes recently fail right at the seem of the black stem seal and the latex. Switched back to Vittoria.
Edit: Ahh…Bontrager, never mind. They might have the same manufacturer, though.
I’ve been using the same tubes for 2 seasons, I change tires and tubes for each race 3-4 weeks apart, no problems. All the above suggestions are right on. Let us know how it works out.
I had the exact same thing happen to a Bontrager latex tube a couple a weeks ago a couple of hours before a race shortly after inflating it. Sure looks like a manufacturing defect to me.
It was on a Jet Disc (with both Veloplugs and Stans Rim Tape) and since the valve cut-out was covered with gaffa it made the entire disc bulge out (since the sides are merely thin carbon covers) untill the air found a hole somewhere to escape after a second or two. I’m not sure how many failures like that the Jet Disc can handle. One thing is you have to install a new tube, but if their manufacturing defect is damaging my disc wheel I will not be too pleased.
