Jayzao Posted June 3 Share Posted June 3 During a 13-mile trip in the Colorado Rockies, I noticed my tire running soft and knew I had a slow leak. When I got back to the car, I had a can of fix-a-flat handy, which, after a couple of applications, held. We also carry a portable hand inflator. My question is this: as a former mountain biker, I carried CO2 cartridges and tools for these events. I looked in the forum but was unable to determine the best practices around fixing flats on the fly. What do you folks do in preparation for events like this and what are the best methods to repair flats when changing the tube out is not an option? 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cerbera Posted June 3 Share Posted June 3 I am going to be the 'useful idiot' in this conversation, by being the one person who doesn't really do anything to prepare for situations like this, above what I can only describe as the bare minimum ! Maybe (perhaps even inevitably) this will come back to bite me in the arse one day, but so far I have survived 7 years+ of riding 3 different wheels, and the punctures have only got me twice. Once was a fast puncture that necessitated me trolleying it (powered) to a taxi stand about 500 ft away (lucky), and the second one was a med-slow puncture on my Master, which was saved by simply carrying the shock pump with me, and re-inflating it every 3 miles or so and riding quite gently 'til I got home. And, as the only trail work I usually do is in the hillside Country Park with the walk down to the car park never being more than half an hour from any point along it, I don't feel I am in imminent danger of finding myself stranded anywhere massively inconvenient. Of course what I REALLY fear is getting stuck out on any sort of trail with a wheel that has crashed and won't move / roll. Needless to say I would rethink this strategy if I did trails much further afield. @Marty Backe is a big fan of slime in all his wheels, which makes perfect sense when you do the sort of big extended trail rides he does. And if you are happy with that, I reckon that's probably enough ! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jayzao Posted June 3 Author Share Posted June 3 15 minutes ago, Cerbera said: I am going to be the 'useful idiot' in this conversation, by being the one person who doesn't really do anything to prepare for situations like this, above what I can only describe as the bare minimum ! Maybe (perhaps even inevitably) this will come back to bite me in the arse one day, but so far I have survived 7 years+ of riding 3 different wheels, and the punctures have only got me twice. Once was a fast puncture that necessitated me trolleying it (powered) to a taxi stand about 500 ft away (lucky), and the second one was a med-slow puncture on my Master, which was saved by simply carrying the shock pump with me, and re-inflating it every 3 miles or so and riding quite gently 'til I got home. And, as the only trail work I usually do is in the hillside Country Park with the walk down to the car park never being more than half an hour from any point along it, I don't feel I am in imminent danger of finding myself stranded anywhere massively inconvenient. Of course what I REALLY fear is getting stuck out on any sort of trail with a wheel that has crashed and won't move / roll. Needless to say I would rethink this strategy if I did trails much further afield. @Marty Backe is a big fan of slime in all his wheels, which makes perfect sense when you do the sort of big extended trail rides he does. And if you are happy with that, I reckon that's probably enough ! Perhaps Marty or another YouTuber said it was the first thing they do when they get a wheel. Slime the tube. Thank you. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robse Posted June 3 Share Posted June 3 Always 100% phone battery at start. Minimum 1 kid (with drivers license) and/or wife at home ready to start the car and resque me. Here in little Denmark, there is plenty of beautiful nature, but it is rare that you are more than 1.5 km from the nearest road passable by cars, and it is also rare to ride in places that are completely deserted ... unless it's 03 in the morning. No slime for me. (hate that stuff) 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jayzao Posted June 3 Author Share Posted June 3 21 minutes ago, Robse said: Always 100% phone battery at start. Minimum 1 kid (with drivers license) and/or wife at home ready to start the car and resque me. Here in little Denmark, there is plenty of beautiful nature, but it is rare that you are more than 1.5 km from the nearest road passable by cars, and it is also rare to ride in places that are completely deserted ... unless it's 03 in the morning. No slime for me. (hate that stuff) I agree that Slime is messy stuff when you do need to tire change. Although it's the same situation with Stan's Tubeless gunk. I figure it may be a good stop-gap to carry a small tube of goop and Co2 cartridges. Thanks for the response. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jayzao Posted June 4 Author Share Posted June 4 Quick update: Yesterday, after a few days of tire pressure convincing me that the fix-a-flat had done the trick, I was surprised as my tire lost pressure to the degree that I was forced to walk it home. I went on an Amazon spree and purchased heavier tire spoon levers, tubes with angled valve stems, and tire liners. I had already purchased the Green Armor-Dilloz Protection. There are a handful of YouTubers with tire change videos, and overall, it doesn't seem all that bad. Has anyone found "the" video for this tire change? Has anyone here completed this task? I'll watch a few before undertaking the task. I figure I may add to the wheel's rotational weight with sealant and liners, but preventing flats has now become a high priority. Crazy situation: I am new to EUC-ing and have two wheels; one is being repaired by the reseller, and the other is flat. Two wheels are not enough. Is this the push I need to get Lynx? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Punxatawneyjoe Posted June 4 Share Posted June 4 (edited) 6 minutes ago, Jayzao said: tubes with angled valve stems Make sure the angle of the vale is (with) the shape of the tube and not perpendicular to it. Not all angled vales work on EUC's. Edited June 4 by Punxatawneyjoe Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jayzao Posted June 4 Author Share Posted June 4 Hmmm, good tip. I went with these as they look similar to what is installed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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