Talk:Bicycles/Maintenance and Repair/Wheels and Tires/Fixing a flat

Revision history

Legend: (cur) = difference with current version, (last) = difference with preceding version, M = minor edit

* (cur) (last). . 23:14, 4 Jan 2004. . Egil (Moved to Wikibooks) * (cur) (last). . 12:11, 4 Jan 2004. . Egil (Move to Wikibooks?) * (cur) (last). . 23:52, 12 Dec 2003. . Mrzach (added sandpaper) * (cur) (last). . 23:46, 12 Dec 2003. . Mrzach (added step 1 (the easy way)) * (cur) (last). . M 05:38, 27 Nov 2003. . Dori (dont -> do not) * (cur) (last). . 01:38, 28 Mar 2003. . Marj Tiefert (spelling, grammar, commas) * (cur) (last). . 21:03, 2 Mar 2003. . G-Man

I believe the word tire has been inadvertantly substituted for tube in many places in the following paragraph which is found at the end of the notes section under Flat Repair. I placed (TUBE) where there appears to be an error.

"Because tire(TUBE) prices have come down dramatically, it is generally suggested to replace the tire(TUBE) after one patch job, especially for high-pressure tires. You should still have a patch kit or spare tube with you on long rides. You can cut the old tire(TUBE) into strips of rubber and use it for a variety of things, including bungee-type straps."

Unfortunately, I disagree with this comment. While it may be less expensive to an individual to replace a tube after one patch, the cost to the environment is heavy in materials and energy for every tube produced. My experience is that a tube can be patched many times before it's ready to become a bungee cord.

Ontario fuel stations seem to go above 35 psi
Pumps at fuel station only inflate to 35 psi? In Ontario, the pumps at fuel stations seem to inflate quite well and, often better than the mini-pump that I carry with me. WbZurp 14:31, 25 July 2005 (UTC)

It is better to carry a small pump than to look around for a service station pump, unless you don't have a flat. The 35 lb. statement isn't correct. It's easy to (b o o m !) blow out a tyre with a high pressure pump. There is no standard: there may be no air at the service station. If it's there, it may cost or be free and its pressure can indeed be too low. So what's said is essentially correct: it might not be a good idea to count on the gas station.

Suggested amendment which may alter sentence sense
I was wondering whether the sentence "the material to repair a tube is tiny compared to the entire tube itself" should be changed to "the cost of the material to repair a tube is tiny compared to the cost of the entire tube itself"...? Or is this is the sense that the author intended. Forgive me for being pedantic but as a writer I know how annoying minor edits can be if they change the sense of your sentence!

Your instincts are correct. Don't feel shy about making such corrections yourself. Dmforcier (talk) 21:30, 3 February 2008 (UTC)

Best structure for this topic?
There are several scenarios in which one might need to fix a flat: in the shop, on the road, with a road bike, with a MTB, using a patches or a whole tube, etc. The article was originally written for the type of bike with which the author was most familiar, and in a first-person style. So a couple of questions: Dmforcier (talk) 21:30, 3 February 2008 (UTC)
 * 1) Do we want to keep the first-person style?
 * 2) Covering all options in one set of instructions can be confusing. Should there be different sets of instructions for each scenario?

Working on it
Started working on this page. If there are comments of interest, now is the time. Does anybody know about an outer tire rubber filler that will bond to the cladding for fixing tears? It seems like something that would sell! You can boot the inside but most would be happier fixing the outsides too. (Reduced water ingress.). Thanks all, Armchair (talk) 16:56, 13 September 2009 (UTC)