I went over like a sack of the proverbial this morning, tearing a pretty big hole in the RH knee of my Bibs (Roubaix lined), they’re not very old and I’d like to save them if I can as the pad is pretty good and even with the hole they were still quite warm for the remainder of the ride…

Has anyone managed to repair a substantial hole in lycra before?

Gathering up the edges of the rip and stitching is an option but it’s a pretty big hole and would probably cause an odd bit of bunching right on the kneee, it there any sort of adhesive and/or Sew on type patching type product available for lycra? (Iron on patches might not be wise but I can see how it might work), I do have some old Shorts I could Chop up for material if need be…

Anyone?

Did the same with my endura bib.
I just gather stiched the edges to prevent further damage of the fabric and then gathered the edges together to remove the hole.
It means i have a tight spot where i’ve sewn it but worked fine for the past 2ish years.

I’ve used iron on patches to repair the kids school trousers. These may hold but won’t provide the stretch you might want. Stitching seems the most obvious. Or triom both above the knee and hem.

Here’s the obligatory car park shot of the damage:

I think it’s about 3″ across with a smaller ~1/2″ tear just below… I’m just wondering if the fit might be a bit wonky if I just gather the edges up and stitch it, hence the ide aof a patch…

I’ve found various other Forums with tales of of people using adhesive backed Gore repair patches and “Iron mend” (wetsuit repair patches) to repair Lycra cycling kit…

My initial thought was that I could chop an oversized section of lycra out of an old pair of shorts and either stitch it over the area or if I’m super careful I could use an Iron to basically melt/fuse the two bits of fabric together, but this might be a bit on the risky side TBH…

I’m not too bothered if it looks scruffy, but I need a long term working repair, I think I’ll be breaking out the

Bit more digging about:

bobski’s Images of “Iron Mend” repairs part way down this thread are actually quite encouraging:

http://forums.roadbikereview.com/general-cycling-discussion/patching-lycra-270838.html

I’ve found the stuff online for ~£10 and the bumph does state it is suitable for repairing “Lycra bodysuits” I might give it ago, could come in handy for repairing my wetsuit too…