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So I currently have a Marin Hybrid which I purchased when I lived in FL. I put 700x25C tires on it and had the occasional flat in Florida. I learned fairly quickly that it was not the best on sidewalks or anywhere where the roads weren't mostly smooth.
Now that I've moved to CT, I fear using these tires just won't do. Pot holes, cracks, bumps are much much worse here... On my first ride out I came back with a flat.
I'm wondering if just buying a mountain bike as a casual rider would be best? When I was a kid growing up... I had a cheap Huffy mountain bike from the department store that I beat the crap out of... I think I got maybe 10 flats in 10 years!
Any advice on what I should do? Try to go bigger on the tires or should I just save up for a decent mountain bike?
I use the thicker slime tubes in all of our bikes. My husband and daughter have hybrids with 700c tires and we ride streets with bumps and holes and cracks with no problem. Neither of them has had a flat in the couple of years they've owned the bikes...my husband doesn't ride much but my daughter rides every day. She has to put air in the tires maybe once every three months.
Besides the thicker tubes, you can get a liner to put between the tube and tire. Amazon.com: Mr. Tuffy Bicycle Tire Liner If you're getting flats a lot, you should pop the tires off and look at the rim tape to make sure that it's covering the spoke holes like it's supposed to be.
I’m a cyclist. I’ve been riding for years and logged many thousands of miles. I’m in Boston. I have 6 bikes and ride on all sorts of tires, including 700x25 and 700x23. The roads where I ride can be pretty banged up. I don’t get flats often at all. I don’t use any protective tube or gunk. This is typical for me and all those who I know and ride with.
What you are experiencing is unusual. It’s possible that it’s a bad batch of tubes that you bought, assuming they were bought at the same time and are from the same batch – but I have two much better guesses:
1) When you got your very first flat you did not remove whatever gave you that flat from the inner wall of the tire. So it may be that you an over a staple, nail, rock, glass, or other sharp object. That object pierced the tire and then the tube and is now embedded into the rubber of the tire. So when a new tube is installed, it gets a puncture again from the same object and slowly leaks and causes another flat. If you didn’t run your fingers through the inner wall of the tire before installing a new tube, I would encourage you to do that. It’s standard procedure when changing a tube. Better yet, remove the flat tube and find where the hole is on that tube (by either eying it, pumping it up and seeing where the air is escaping, or if it’s really small, immerse it in water and see where it bubbles). Then, match that spot up to where it sat on the tire and see if there is an object in the tire.
2) You are installing your tubes incorrectly. If this is the case, the likely culprit is that part of the tube is being pinched between the sidewall of the rim and tire.
For only occasional rides then yes, a MT bike would be better. We have the poorest roads of anywhere I've ever been in the US and I average about a puncture every other ride. The kevlar belts help some as do the slime tubes but nothing can stop snake bites/pinch flats.
I've had flats on this bike a number of times. I've had the rim inspected and tires replaced by pros more than a few times and at different locations. My experience is a flat about once every 7-10 rides or sometimes worse. I like the speeds that I can get on this bike, but flats really suck and I can't trust the bike for any reliable transportation. I carry a camelbak and extra tubes, but it still sucks to have to change the tube on the side of the road.
That's really strange OP. I don't ride as much as I used to but I still get in a couple thousand miles a year at the very least. I used to easily ride over 5k/year on my race road bike alone. That's my A bike and has the most delicate tires of all my other bikes. Tires are hand made in Germany with soft rubber to increase traction and the tubes are nothing special. Just regular old tubes. I replaced the tires about once a season. I had to change my tube maybe 2 or 3 times a season. The roads weren’t crazy bad but not optimal by any means. Especially on some stretches of some of my training rides. I found this tube change interval to be pretty normal according to the many others I’ve ridden with.
Just really strange. I’d go to a cycling specific forum and post this. Try the roadbikereview forum, great people on there. We road bike guys can be a little snarky depending on the day but the people on that site are very knowledgeable.
If it's not something lodged in the tire itself that is puncturing the tube and if the installation of the tube is OK, the other thing I can think of is the tire pressure. Are you putting in enough air? Perhaps the pressure is too low and thereby causing pinch flats?
That's really strange OP. I don't ride as much as I used to but I still get in a couple thousand miles a year at the very least. I used to easily ride over 5k/year on my race road bike alone. That's my A bike and has the most delicate tires of all my other bikes. Tires are hand made in Germany with soft rubber to increase traction and the tubes are nothing special. Just regular old tubes. I replaced the tires about once a season. I had to change my tube maybe 2 or 3 times a season. The roads weren’t crazy bad but not optimal by any means. Especially on some stretches of some of my training rides. I found this tube change interval to be pretty normal according to the many others I’ve ridden with.
Just really strange. I’d go to a cycling specific forum and post this. Try the roadbikereview forum, great people on there. We road bike guys can be a little snarky depending on the day but the people on that site are very knowledgeable.
If it's not something lodged in the tire itself that is puncturing the tube and if the installation of the tube is OK, the other thing I can think of is the tire pressure. Are you putting in enough air? Perhaps the pressure is too low and thereby causing pinch flats?
I fill mine to 105psi which is pretty rock solid and what was recommend to me...
Wolf and G, speaking of poor conditions...do you guys ride the bike outside all year around. I am New Englander too...I am new to the bike so I am trying to figure out my options this winter. I have a mountain bike so I am good there, but I am thinking about the weather and road conditions.
Wolf and G, speaking of poor conditions...do you guys ride the bike outside all year around. I am New Englander too...I am new to the bike so I am trying to figure out my options this winter. I have a mountain bike so I am good there, but I am thinking about the weather and road conditions.
I probably would not ride in under 40 degrees on a dry day, ice sucks lol. I've ridden in the snow and rain in the past, but it's not ideal.
Ride slower in rain, don't ride in snow in my opinion.
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