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three (3!!) flats on one ride!! THREE!!! grrrrrrrrrr

695 views 0 replies 1 participant last post by  sorebut 
#1 ·
I went on a 50 mile ride today with my buddies.. about 20 miles into the ride I hear the dreaded PssffffPsssfff...... and my rear tire goes flat..
I carry 2 tubes. so 10 minutes later (and some elbow grease) the wheel is installed and ready to go.. One (1!) mile later, and you guessed it, PssffffPsssfff.... Now I'm pissed!
Now I really check to see what's going on, and I find that the rim tape has been pushed into the nipple holes and in some cases the edge of the hole is exposed an the tube gets sucked into the hole and breaks.

I use a couple of patches to try to cover the holes and put in a new tube.. Pump up, installed and ready to go..
35 files later, while climbing up the hills, again! . PssffffPsssfff!! ok, now between the 3 of us this is the last tube, and this time it is a heavy duty thick tube.. I put it on, now it is routine (and I'm getting good at it), pump, install and ride.. Got us home..

so what is going on?
The wheels are some kind of cheap Mavic rim that came with my 105 hubs on my Giant OCR1 ('01) .. and the rim tape on it is probably a piece of electric tape or something equally cheap.. the crappy tape worked ok until I got my Conti Grand Prix Supersonics. Those puppies are inflated to 145psi and roll like a dream.. I ride those tires for over 1000 miles and had only one flat, and even that flat was related to the bad tape and not a real puncture..
but now you look at the tape and every hole in the rim the tape in dimpled and pushed into the hole 1/4" deep.. So tomorrow the wheels get a new take (something cloth/Kevlar) and and try again..

So, if you plan to use high pressure clinchers, make sure you have good rim tape! :)
 
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