Tubeless – Repairs in the field

A mates tubeless tire got a small tear in it at the weekend. We managed to get it inflated again but the contaminated sealant wouldn’t close the hole. Unfortunately we ended up putting an inner tube in to finish the ride.

I think I’ll make sure I have some extra sealant in my camelback for future rides.

What do you take out on rides … just in case?

toothpaste tube

How does that work?

I keep a handful of tubeless patches in my camelback.

Tubeless patches… tell me more. Who make them?

Unfortunately we ended up putting an inner tube in to finish the ride.

That must have ruined things somewhat.

Bring back solid tyres.

Tested: Genuine Innovations Tubeless Tire Repair Kit

Had little success.. tore both my tyres on flint in the north downs – I wanted to use a tyre boot at the time for extra repair – but couldn’t because of all fluids in the wheel – So ended up putting an inner tube in both tyres anyway and ran the risk of tube pushing through the tyre wall.

Have now gone back to tubes and standard tyres – and I’m much happier – and can change/repair my tyres without getting covered in gloop….

S!

Unfortunately we ended up putting an inner tube in to finish the ride.

That must have ruined things somewhat.

Well it did feel like we had lost the tubeless game… but yes , point taken.

Bring back solid tyres.

Bring back Mountain Penny Farthings

Tubeless patches… tell me more. Who make them?

I can’t remember wher I got mine but try here

jam it against the cut on the inside and then the tube pushes against it and seals it.

Personally, I use these:

and these:

But if its a big cut you will need to run a tube

tubeless tyre repair kits available from just riding along, they feature stronger patches for the tyre rather than a tube

Bontrager do a kit as well. I used a Panaracer one…….

I tore a tyre 1/2 way round a loop of the Kona Cheddar Challenge last year, pee’d sealant EVERYWHERE. Pulled to side of the course, pulled tyre off one side of the rim, poured glue in the slit on the outside and stuck a patch on the inside. Still had some sealant in it, reseated the tyre and put a CO2 cannister thru it, it sealed, held and I did another 2 laps and at the end it was still up. Awesome kit!

super glue and a bit of old innertube

My mate uses some patches he cut from an old pond liner. I just carry a couple of tubes

I wouldn’t bother my arse fixing a tubeless puncture on the trail – just stick an inner tube in there, boot it with a fiver or a mars bar wrapper if necessary and get on with the ride. Patch it when you get home.

If you’re hellbent on preserving the tubeless experience throughout be aware that the real hassle in trying a trailside repair is inflating the tyre. If you break the bead seal on the repair you’ll be faced with a ball-aching inflation if all you’ve got is a mini pump. A CO2 cannister (or 3) as per BigBoyXC plus a kit that repairs with the tyre still on the rim will make this job doable.

I have used anchovy looking things to good effect on 2 occasions (flint cuts).

advantage is you don’t need to unseat the tyre bead to do it and as they go in from the outside and as long as you haven’t lost all your sealant beforehand they seal up ereally well and you can carry on your ride. don’t even need a CO2 to reinflate the tyre, either.

I did leave one in for about 3 months before bothering to fit a proper tyre patchwith no further leakage as well.

Anchovy tin

Recommended.

Stuff the tyre with grass?

if you fit a larger wheel/combo than the frame and fork were designed for the tyre constantly hitting the fork crown or frame may be enough to keep the hole plugged.

Sounds like the weight saved going tubeless is exceeded by the amount of stuff you have to carry in case of puncture….

Yeah, I’m an unbeliever 😀

Yeah, On the other hand I’ve been running tubeless on two bikes since 2005 and only carry a pump and an inner tube. I finally used it for the first the other week. That’s a lots of trailside time spared!

Tubeless convert here. I carry one spare tube, and I did that when I was running tubes anyway! On big away days I carry a puncture repair kit and a 60ml bottle of extra sealant too. I should really get an emergency tyre boot and some anchovies too. All this is about the same as carrying a second innertube really. Untill easter last year, I’d not had a puncture for approaching 5 years. That coupled with the reduced rolling resistance and increased grip mean I’ll be staying with the needs of tubeless thanks.

Prior to tubeless, I suffered 18 punctures one summer alone. The lack of hassle and repair time on the trail more than compensates for the occasional faff.

Another tubeless convert here though i do carry a couple of spare tubes and have had to use one once when i sliced the side wall. I fixed it with a glueless patch once i had got home and ran it for a further 9 months before replacing the tyre with a new one due to wear.

Patches are sometimes easier, since there are inevitably a good number of thorns in the tyre that have been successfully sealed. When I repaired my one and only puncture, there were at least 8 visible thorns, not including those flush with the inner surface of the tyre.

Incfact, now I’ve read that back. Its clear to me that I would be better off carrying a couple of tyre boots, proper repair patches and some anchovies instead of a spare tube, otherwise the odds are high I’ll just end up with a punctured tube after I’ve faffed about installing it anyway.

I’m tubless on all my bikes, if I get a big puncture or a rip I stick a tube in to finish the ride and then do the repair at home. Dead easy no fuss, tubless is the way forward for me.

dam! tubeless, tubeless, tubeless.