scratch marks on mten3 tube

[Brokenmten3]

Hi everyone. I am having trouble keeping my tubed mten3 inflated. I got a flat tire on my new mten3 after only a few miles outdoors. I added slime which fixed it for a mile or two but it deflated again. I took the tube out and saw these marks throughout the tube as well as multiple punctures (probably from the struggle of getting the tube out).

I replaced the tube with a new one (10"x2.125"), added 4oz of slime and rode around the block without issue. The following day I tried to ride again and after a block the tire began to lose pressure slowly. I pumped it up again and tried to ride around the block but the tire lost pressure again. I took the second tube out and saw similar marks to the first one with barely any mileage on it. Are these marks normal? Any ideas on how to stop the constant deflating tires? Thanks!

[Tawpie]

That looks more like a manufacturing defect to me. Tubes are supposed to be smooth all over. Or at least all the ones I’ve seen are totally smooth (molded-in marks aside).

[Brokenmten3]

56 minutes ago, Tawpie said:

That looks more like a manufacturing defect to me. Tubes are supposed to be smooth all over. Or at least all the ones I’ve seen are totally smooth (molded-in marks aside).

Hey. Thanks for your input. The second tube I placed inside the mten3 was smooth all over but after taking it out had similar marks so I think something is causing it. The only culprit I have found from my research so far is low tire pressure, but I was at > 20 psi and would also not expect that much wear after simply going around my block outside.

[Tawpie]

I’d go with stretch marks then. Maybe the tube is too small to fill the tire and inflating to 20+ does the job but requires the tube to overstretch? Total wild a** guess. The tire is supposed to limit the max volume of the tube, at which point the pressure can be raised without bursting. I have no idea what size tube belongs in the MTen but it’s a place to start. The inside of the tire isn’t super rough or sharp is it? It’s normal for the tire cords to be rough, but I certainly think it’s not normal to leave marks in the tube. 

[.....]

Looks like the inside of the tire itself, has rough cording. Is it leaking in the tube, where you see the markings? Inside edge on valve side, indicates a rim may be rough. This looks more like tire cording and along the tire side edge. Its not likely you have two defective tubes. Think about it. What have you NOT changed? You havent changed the rim and the tire. So... could it be abrasions from either of those? Did you put a little soap water in the valve to make sure it aint leaking? Unlikely both would show this issue, but possible. I'd quit using slime until you figure this out, as slime doesnt help with slices or abrasion. You also failed to mention where the leak is. If you don't know, air the tube up and put it in a bucket of water and look for bubbles. Or, spray with dish soap and water, look for bubbles. I run my mten at 15-20psi. I weigh about 130lbs. Severely underinflated tubes can rub on tires in bad ways, but its usually obvious as itll feel/look way too low. Its also not common that a mildly underinflated tube, would go bad in just a block or two.  My mten is tubeless, but tubes and tires and rims are a pretty standard issue item as far as problems are concerned. I dont think i would cite 'stretch marks' as a culprit. You can air a tube up to MANY times its original diameter and not see marks when deflated. The inside of the tire DOES limit this expansion as @Tawpie mentioned.

Edited November 29, 2020 by ShanesPlanet

[Kurtosis]

@Brokenmten3Where did you get your Mten3?

Also, have you checked the inside of the tire for any problems there?

[Brokenmten3]

13 hours ago, Kurtosis said:

@Brokenmten3Where did you get your Mten3?

Also, have you checked the inside of the tire for any problems there?

I purchased from euco. They are treating it as a case of defective tube. I didn't physically check the inside of the tire with my fingers but did spray compressed air to clear any possible debris like pieces of tube that were abraded. I already installed a third tube and added slime but didn't test it out yet.

 

14 hours ago, ShanesPlanet said:

Looks like the inside of the tire itself, has rough cording. Is it leaking in the tube, where you see the markings? Inside edge on valve side, indicates a rim may be rough. This looks more like tire cording and along the tire side edge. Its not likely you have two defective tubes. Think about it. What have you NOT changed? You havent changed the rim and the tire. So... could it be abrasions from either of those? Did you put a little soap water in the valve to make sure it aint leaking? Unlikely both would show this issue, but possible. I'd quit using slime until you figure this out, as slime doesnt help with slices or abrasion. You also failed to mention where the leak is. If you don't know, air the tube up and put it in a bucket of water and look for bubbles. Or, spray with dish soap and water, look for bubbles. I run my mten at 15-20psi. I weigh about 130lbs. Severely underinflated tubes can rub on tires in bad ways, but its usually obvious as itll feel/look way too low. Its also not common that a mildly underinflated tube, would go bad in just a block or two.  My mten is tubeless, but tubes and tires and rims are a pretty standard issue item as far as problems are concerned. I dont think i would cite 'stretch marks' as a culprit. You can air a tube up to MANY times its original diameter and not see marks when deflated. The inside of the tire DOES limit this expansion as @Tawpie mentioned.

It's possible that the valve was slow leaking on the second tube because it wasn't 100% sealed. I didn't clean the slime well during the 2nd install so it might have clogged the valve. The newly installed tube I did clean and made sure none was stuck near the entry. I didn't do the air/bucket thing because I was rough in taking the tubes out so there are multiple holes. It's good to know 15-20 psi works for you though. It was a comfortable ride at that pressure...while it was working haha.

Below: pictures of the second tube. The marks are on both sides of the tube. I did notice the tire getting warm during the 2nd tube install after riding which I've read can be due to low tire pressure.

Spoiler

Another note: the initial tube performed without a flat indoors and in my backyard (smooth ground) while I was learning how to operate the mten3. Around the block there is some cobblestone from a nearby park but I've seen people take the mten3 off-roading and in worse conditions.

This is the stock tire the mten3 came with:

INNOVA TIRE (innovatires.com)

Circled with approximate location of the abrasions throughout in relation to the tube below. Only thing I can think of is spinning of the tire + tube inside while it was deflating slowly caused the abrasions.

Spoiler

 

Edited November 29, 2020 by Brokenmten3

[Brokenmten3]

Update: Rode 2 mile in a mix of grounds and speed on 3rd tube (smooth tennis court, parking lot, sidewalk, cobblestone) at ~ 30psi with no flat yet. I don't trust the device yet so I'm going to go around less than a mile radius for now.

My current hypothesis is 1st tube: defective or something on ground got it while it wasn't slimed which led to slow leak and scratch marks from using device while it was leaking. 2nd tube: slime in stem valve caused it to not seal completely which led to slow leak and scratch marks from low psi riding again.