Finding imperfection on tyre/wheel/rim strip that is causing punctures.

osarusan

Hi all,


After having 3 tube punctures, one after the other, it looks like there is some imperfection on the tyre itself, or the rim strip, or the wheel itself.


Last night I went over both the inside of the tyre and the rim strip carefully (I thought) and couldn't find anything, any bit of grit, or thorn, or anything. Wiped the whole lot down too. Then put in an new tube.



But after my cycling commute this morning, the new tube is going flat already.


Does anybody have any tips on how to spot whatever is causing the problem?

Kop Idol

First thing to check, did the 3 punctures occur in the same position on the tube, i.e. is something still stuck in your tyre, some specific spoke sticking through the rim tape ? If they didn't occur in the same spot in the 3 tubes then confirm that the tyre isn't worn and in need of replacement.

If the tyre is good and the punctures are occurring in different positions around the wheel then check your tyre pressure, you could be getting pinch punctures from under inflation. This sounds the most likely issue given you seem to have checked the tyre already.

cdaly_

First question is tyre pressure. If it's too low you'll get snake-bite punctures. Two holes close together in the tube. Fix is to increase tyre pressure.

Next, swap your tyres between front and rear wheels. If the punctures follow the tyre, it's at fault. Otherwise the wheel is at fault.

Sometimes a bit of glass is embedded in the tyre with only a sharp tip barely peeking through. Running a finger along the inside of the tyre will usually locate this.

If you always mount your tyres with the label at the valve, you can check to see if the puncture always happens at the same place on the tube. That gives you a focus point. I presume you've been inspecting the tube and checking where the puncture is each time?

osarusan

Tube was inflated to 95-100psi last night which is the tyre limit, and seemed fine all night, but was softening by the time I arrived at work (only a 6km cycle).

3 different holes at three different points, so it's looking like simple tyre wear.

Tyres are only 6 weeks old though, so that is disappointing.

ED E

What tyres? Dublin/Ireland requires decent rubber.

fat bloke

Ditch the tyre and fit a new one. That'll at least answer one of your questions.

After that, think about changing the wheel for a new one. -Tubes aren't cheap either, so it's worth spending the money to solve it.

magicbastarder

are you sure it's not the tubes? is the valve screwing back in nice and tight?

i.e. can you find the actual punctures?

osarusan

Found a hole the first time, patched it, next day it was flat again. Assumed the patch had failed, but when I got home and checked it underwater, the patch had held but there were 2 new holes (not close together like pinch punctures). Binned that tube and put in a new one. Inflated it last night, it seemed fine this morning, but not after the 6km commute, which is over a cycle path with its fair share of twigs and such, especially after the recent wind.

Will check what happened to the new tube when I get home tonight.

Tyres came with the bike, they are Hutchinson Nitro 2 which seem to be pretty crap from looking at online reviews, but after just 6 weeks, and no more than 100km a week, that's very crap.

So I'm wondering if there is something stuck in the tyre or rimstrap, or some sharp edge on the rim, as it's punctured on the very next ride 2 days in a row.

Where was the hole, roadside or rimside? You could also mark the tyre where the valve is when you put it back on so you know where to look for problems if it goes again.

railer201

Two odd punctures I've had are as follows:

Inside of the tube next the rim, caused by a sharp burr on a spoke nut which obviously occurred during wheel assembly.

Outside of the tube caused by a really tiny shard of glass. Usually I feel around the inside of the tyre when fixing a puncture, but there was nothing detectable until I closely inspected the tread outside and eventually located the shard.

osarusan

osarusan wrote: »

Tyres came with the bike, they are Hutchinson Nitro 2 which seem to be pretty crap from looking at online reviews, but after just 6 weeks, and no more than 100km a week, that's very crap.

Had these tyres on a bike I got from decathlon last summer. Same problem as you, a spate of punctures both front and rear in different places on the tubes. After a week of misery changed the tyres and problem solved.

Wishbone Ash

osarusan wrote: »

...Tyres came with the bike, they are Hutchinson Nitro 2...

Therein lies your problem. They are shíte tyres. I got them with a new bike a few years ago and had to change them after a week of punctures.

osarusan

After really careful examination of the tyre, I found the culprit for the latest puncture at least, a tiny shard of stone/porcelain embedded in the tyre. I couldn't see any trace of it on the inside, but when it's pumped up and has my fat arse pushing it onto the road, it's a different story.

It corresponds to one of the two holes from yesterday's puncture too.

I'll patch it up and hope for the best, but be ready to replace. I see I'm not alone with having trouble with those tyres.

velo.2010

Mantel are doing 2x GP 4 Season plus 2x inner tubes for e85 delivered.

07Lapierre

Do your wheels have a rim tape? Has the rim tape moved and exposed the sharp edge that surrounds the spoke hole?

Ah I see you found the cause. Problem solved!

magicbastarder

i bought these recently, happy with them so far (albeit not used for commuting, they're on the winter bike)

https://www.bikeman.ie/product/hutchinson-fusion-5