[nonsleepingjon]

There should be a "best used before" date stamped on inner tube patch kits. I found two kits that the vulcanizing fluid was dried up even though it had never been opened (glad I also carry a spare tube on rides). Plus, the patches seem to get hard after awhile, though I'm not sure if that matters or not. Putting a date on them would help because then I could periodically check and throw them away when they "expire".

//edited to change "rubber cement" to "vulcanizing fluid" as they are apparently not the same thing

 

[BostonG]

Related question: anybody know a source to buy tubes of glue? I never use up all the patches in a kit before the glue is either all used up, or gone dry after being opened.

Can’t you just get contact/rubber cement at any hardware store (Home Depot or something)? I’ve never done that but would think they must have something that works.

 

[JCavilia]

Related question: anybody know a source to buy tubes of glue? I never use up all the patches in a kit before the glue is either all used up, or gone dry after being opened.

 

[nonsleepingjon]

Can’t you just get contact/rubber cement at any hardware store (Home Depot or something)? I’ve never done that but would think they must have something that works.

I'm not sure if it's the same thing. Some of the containers of "glue" in the patch kit usually say "vulcanizing fluid", which is apparently different than rubber cement.

 

[saf-t]

Can’t you just get contact/rubber cement at any hardware store (Home Depot or something)? I’ve never done that but would think they must have something that works.

Yeah, but they tend to be pretty big botttles (relatively speaking)

 

[JCavilia]

I'm not sure if it's the same thing. Some of the containers of "glue" in the patch kit usually say "vulcanizing fluid", which is apparently different than rubber cement.

Indeed it is different. There might be something at the hardware store that would work, but it's not rubber cement or contact cement. I might check auto parts stores.

A little googling reveals places that sell Rema Cold Vulcanizing Fluid, but the small tubes cost about the same as a whole patch kit.

I should just break down and buy the 8-ounce can for $20, like they use in the bike shops. Get a couple of fresh tubes for the road in case of emergency, and use the big can for patching at home (which is where that usually takes place).

 

[jarbiker]

I've never used a patch kit. Whenever I flat I just put in a new tube. For you guys that use kits, do you use them on the road when you flat or just repair tubes at home. I've just never thought the cost of a new tube was high enough to warranty messing with patching a tube. Educate me.

 

[wai2fast]

Have you guys tried Park Tool's glueless patches? No messy glue or vulcanizing fluid to mess with. I've been using them for years without any problems.

 

[nonsleepingjon]

I've never used a patch kit. Whenever I flat I just put in a new tube. For you guys that use kits, do you use them on the road when you flat or just repair tubes at home. I've just never thought the cost of a new tube was high enough to warranty messing with patching a tube. Educate me.

Tubes at the LBS are $5 and up. Patch kits are $3 and can repair multiple tubes. I have tubes with multiple patches on them, so it generally saves me a bit in the long run (at least when the vulcanizing stuff hasn't dried out). Plus, I'm not throwing all those tubes in the landfill.

 

[JCavilia]

I've never used a patch kit. Whenever I flat I just put in a new tube. For you guys that use kits, do you use them on the road when you flat or just repair tubes at home. I've just never thought the cost of a new tube was high enough to warranty messing with patching a tube. Educate me.

It's cheap. It's easy. It's perfectly permanent and reliable if you do it right. It takes little time. It seems dumb to me to throw away an otherwise useable tube because of one repairable hole.

Like many riders, I carry a spare tube, and a patch kit. If I flat, I swap tubes, then repair the old one at home at while watching TV. If I get two flats on a ride, I patch the second one on the road. This does requre finding the hole, but you should do that even when you put in a new tube, so something stuck in the tire doesn't cause another puncture.

 

[zyzbot]

Have you guys tried Park Tool's glueless patches? No messy glue or vulcanizing fluid to mess with. I've been using them for years without any problems.

Yes, I have tried them and found them lacking.

 

[JCavilia]

Have you guys tried Park Tool's glueless patches? No messy glue or vulcanizing fluid to mess with. I've been using them for years without any problems.

If you've had that experience using them on road bike tires, your experience is unique as far as I can tell. Neither I nor anyone I've ever talked to has found them satisfactory. Do you have some secret technique, or a magic incantation?

 

[saf-t]

Have you guys tried Park Tool's glueless patches? No messy glue or vulcanizing fluid to mess with. I've been using them for years without any problems.

I find them perfectly acceptable to ride home on- but that's it- they don't hold air for $**t.

 

[looigi]

In my experience Parks and other stick-on patches are great quick fixes but will start leaking after a while...a month or two. I carry a spare tube and Parks patches. If I flat, I stick in the spare tube and carry on. If I flat again on that ride, I fix it with a stick-on. When I get home I fix the tube with glue-on patches fold it up and carry it for the next flat. After two or three patches, I put go to a new tube.

Totally against the odd, but the only two rides on flatted on this year I had multiple flats.

 

[den bakker]

Related question: anybody know a source to buy tubes of glue? I never use up all the patches in a kit before the glue is either all used up, or gone dry after being opened.

moderately useless since it's a german vendor and shipping would kill you, just to show it does exist:
http://www.roseversand.com/article/tip-top-vulcanisation-solution/aid:49471

 

[samh]

cement

Related question: anybody know a source to buy tubes of glue? I never use up all the patches in a kit before the glue is either all used up, or gone dry after being opened.

http://www.loosescrews.com/

 

[Kerry Irons]

Wouldn't work

There should be a "best used before" date stamped on inner tube patch kits. I found two kits that the vulcanizing fluid was dried up even though it had never been opened (glad I also carry a spare tube on rides). Plus, the patches seem to get hard after awhile, though I'm not sure if that matters or not. Putting a date on them would help because then I could periodically check and throw them away when they "expire".

//edited to change "rubber cement" to "vulcanizing fluid" as they are apparently not the same thing

The patches last many years, so there is no need for an expiration date on them. The glue could last for a few years too, but what happens is that the soft metal of the tubes gets a tiny hole in it and then the solvent evaporates quickly. There is no reasonable way to predict when that will happen, so an expiration date is completely and utterly pointless.

 

[nonsleepingjon]

The patches last many years, so there is no need for an expiration date on them. The glue could last for a few years too, but what happens is that the soft metal of the tubes gets a tiny hole in it and then the solvent evaporates quickly. There is no reasonable way to predict when that will happen, so an expiration date is completely and utterly pointless.

Fair enough. Then why not use a different container for the vulcanizer? A non-reactive plastic, or .... some other material that would make sense in this scenario. I know I've found at least one tube of vulcanizer with a hole in it even though it's been in that little protective plastic case, yet I have a tube of toothpaste made out of plastic that I use twice a day for months and it holds up just fine.

//always practice good brushing habits.

 

[Kerry Irons]

Why not?

Fair enough. Then why not use a different container for the vulcanizer? A non-reactive plastic, or .... some other material that would make sense in this scenario.

Of course it would make sense to change the packaging, but apparently we consumers have not complained enough. Think about how many decades it took for evaporated milk producers to stop sealing the cans with lead. Hazarding a guess, a large fraction of bicycle patch kits never get used. The market forces needed for manufacturers to retool their production lines do not appear to be present.

 

[Mr. Versatile]

I patch my tubes unless they're damaged in a way that I can't. My limit is 3 patches on a tube. If I get a flat after that I throw it away. BTW, I've never had any success with glue-less patches. Ever.