tyre valve.

modsandmockers

brat wrote: »

Bikes tyres don't puncture very often really. I've had half a dozen punctures in the last 2 years or 15,000 miles of cycling, so it's not that big a deal, especially as they can be sorted in 5 minutes.

Weight is the primary issue, especially for performance road bikes, given that they are entirely self propelled. My bike tyres weigh 210 grams each, but despite that, have added puncture protection and low rolling resistance. The desire to keep the rolling mass as low as possible will always result in a compromise between performance and reliability.

I could buy tyres and tubes that doubtless would puncture less often, but I don't want to, because I like the performance, grip and look of the tyres I have.

Six punctures in two years/15000 miles is probably the sort of frequency that motorists took for granted 50 years ago. And the idea that a bike puncture will only ever delay you by five minutes is fanciful - most of the cyclists that I know would spend at least 5 minutes ringing around their motorist friends trying to scrounge a lift to work.

The motor industry has an even greater interest in fuel economy than cyclists, but they have also practically eliminated tyre punctures.

Cycling can be fun, but it isn't going to save the world, and it isn't going to generate a whole lot of wealth - that is the reason why tyre manufacturers have no reason to produce suitable tyres, and it is also why local authorities fail to prioritise cyclists in their transport schemes..

esuhl

sniggings wrote: »

...I have to screw the tube on as it seems not to be able to be pushed on, which is good as it stays put, but the problem comes when trying to remove it,as it unscrews the inner tube valve too (presta),so all the air comes out, is it me or the pump?

I've had that problem a couple of times. I just screwed the valve back in tightly and it's been fine ever since.

modsandmockers wrote: »

Cycling can be fun, but it isn't going to save the world...

Unlike driving, eh?

modsandmockers wrote: »

... and it isn't going to generate a whole lot of wealth - that is the reason why tyre manufacturers have no reason to produce suitable tyres...

Or maybe it's something to do with the fact that cyclists prefer thinner tyres. Having some 180g tyres makes for a much more pleasant experience than cycling with 10,000g tyres!

veryintrigued

modsandmockers wrote: »

And the idea that a bike puncture will only ever delay you by five minutes is fanciful - most of the cyclists that I know would spend at least 5 minutes ringing around their motorist friends trying to scrounge a lift to work.

Five mins to replace an inner tube is easily do-able. 30 mins for a car (if you can undo the nuts and have the right gear etc). Plus the fact you'll be changing it whilst probably within inches of other traffic rather than being able to wheel it away somewhere safer.

Having said that most that I know would probably scrounge a lift or use breakdown cover.

modsandmockers wrote: »

The motor industry has an even greater interest in fuel economy than cyclists, but they have also practically eliminated tyre punctures.

As has been touched on above - you know that tyre treads, compounds and pressures in car and bike tyres are completely different?

You also need to consider the power to weight ratio

modsandmockers wrote: »

and it isn't going to generate a whole lot of wealth -

Only £3 billion to the Uk economy alone and those figures are from 2011 - i.e. before the TdF and before the London Olympics

modsandmockers wrote: »

that is the reason why tyre manufacturers have no reason to produce suitable tyres,

As again has been pointed out there is a huge range of tyres on the market - some of which are very, very difficult to puncture. A trade off between cost and efficiency mainly.

modsandmockers wrote: »

it is also why local authorities fail to prioritise cyclists in their transport schemes..

This is just bonkers

brat

modsandmockers wrote: »

Six punctures in two years/15000 miles is probably the sort of frequency that motorists took for granted 50 years ago. And the idea that a bike puncture will only ever delay you by five minutes is fanciful - most of the cyclists that I know would spend at least 5 minutes ringing around their motorist friends trying to scrounge a lift to work.

A bike puncture delays me by 5 minutes. Fact, not fantasy.

But you need to understand some stuff. The likelihood of puncture is a compromise chosen by cyclists. They either have heavy, cumbersome tyres that are more puncture resistant, or lighter, skinny, sleek, faster tyres that are more generally more prone to puncture. In 30 years of commuting by bike, I can't recall having any punctures on my hybrid bike, because they were sturdy and heavy with good puncture protection. My road bike is a different proposition. Weight and performance become much more important factors in tyre and component choice. I could ride on lighter racier road tyres on my light road bike, but I don't because the roads I use are sometimes full of detritus, hedge trimings and potholes, so I use Conti 4000s II tyres. They are still light, but they have some added protection against punctures. They are excellent.

The motor industry has an even greater interest in fuel economy than cyclists, but they have also practically eliminated tyre punctures.

Many of the tyre companies manufacture for the motor and the cycle industry, (Continental, Michelin etc) and the R&D will cross over from one to the other. Indeed, bicycle tyres will have provided significant research challenges to the major tyre manufacturers which the car tyre has benefited from. So they cannot and shouldn't be looked at in isolation.

Cycling can be fun, but it isn't going to save the world, and it isn't going to generate a whole lot of wealth - that is the reason why tyre manufacturers have no reason to produce suitable tyres, and it is also why local authorities fail to prioritise cyclists in their transport schemes..

This paragraph is just too stupid to reply to.

sdavies13

5 minutes to fix a puncture? Wished I were that quick, seem to be around 10 minutes myself (though do have to mess about removing the rear wheel being a hub gear with no derailleur).

So far I have suffered three punctures. All whilst using Continental Gatorskin Ultra tyres (puncture resistant).

Don't have any inners with removable valves but can't say I have had any problems using my Topeak Road Morph (with gauge) pump. Normally have it strapped to the bike's downtube.

Johnmcl7

modsandmockers wrote: »

Punctures in modern motor vehicle tyres are practically unheard of, and there is never any problem with different types of valve and/or different types of pump.

I don't agree with that, they're not a common occurrence but not unheard of either as I've had punctures on most of my cars at some point and know plenty other people with a similar rate.

I don't do many miles, but most of them are on cycle paths and tow paths. I had three punctures in the first couple of years, and because the bike has hub brakes and hub gears, a roadside repair is an extremely unattractive proposition.

Cyclists frequently complain about their lowly place in the road users' pecking order, but the thing which most deters me from more adventurous bike rides is the risk of getting a puncture.

You need to look at why you're getting punctures be it better tyres or adjusting your pressure better. Many tyres specify they are 'puncture resistant' Admittedly there's only so much you can do, there's not much you can do about an unlucky nail through the tyre but it's no different to a car tyre.

No doubt there is some kind of trade-off between rolling resistance and puncture resistance, but the motor industry (including motor bikes) seems to have found an acceptable compromise - why are bicycle tyre punctures still such a problem?

One of the main differences between car tyres and most bikes is that the cars run without an inner tube, the side of the tyre seals against the wheel rim which makes the tyre less vulnerable to problems with an inner tube. A similar system is available for MTB tyres (I don't know about smaller tyres) known as tubeless where there is no inner tube and the tyre seals against the rim - the tyre is filled with a liquid sealant which can seal small punctures to the tyre.

Punctures certainly shouldn't be a frequent occurrence, I cycle daily on the roads for commuting and to get to places while also doing a lot of off roading for leisure. In the last four years I've only had five punctures, one due to a nail through the tyre and the other four due to poor quality inner tubes - two failed on a normal ride and the other two failed after a very low temperature ride. I've switched to a different brand of inner tubes and they've been fine since, my day to day hybrid which gets the most use has never had a puncture. It has decent armoured tyes and I run it at fairly high pressures as it has a belt drive with hub gears so getting the rear wheel off is a total in the neck I want to avoid.

John

modsandmockers

Johnmcl7 wrote: »

In the last four years I've only had five punctures, one due to a nail through the tyre and the other four due to poor quality inner tubes - two failed on a normal ride and the other two failed after a very low temperature ride. I've switched to a different brand of inner tubes and they've been fine since, my day to day hybrid which gets the most use has never had a puncture. It has decent armoured tyes and I run it at fairly high pressures as it has a belt drive with hub gears so getting the rear wheel off is a total in the neck I want to avoid.

The motor industry and its customers would regard five punctures in four years as completely unacceptable.

The cycle industry does not offer a serious alternative to other forms of mechanised transport - compared to cars, cycling is slow, uncomfortable, hard work.

Weekend family bike rides can be a whole lot of fun, and so-called 'road' bikes offer all sorts of opportunities to the competitive urge.

But there is no good reason for local authorities to be required to provide special facilities, free of charge, to commuter cyclists. Arguably, it would make more sense to ban bikes altogether and offer free bus travel to all.

Johnmcl7

modsandmockers wrote: »

The motor industry and its customers would regard five punctures in four years as completely unacceptable.

Actually I've had far less punctures on my bikes than I have my cars, neither my hybrid nor road bike have had any punctures in the time my car has had two and the car does far less miles than the bikes so it's the motor industry that has the unacceptable issue, not the bikes. Aside from the punctures on the MTB's being due to faulty inner tubes (you get faulty components in the motoring industry), two occurred when racing the bike off road and two when again off road at -10 which suffice to say my car couldn't even do, never mind without punctures.


As for the rest of your bizarre and misplaced ranting, my bike is quicker than the car in most cases (no traffic, no need to park and no need to de-ice or scrape the bike) and after a bit of time getting in the hang of it, it's not hard work and generally quite enjoyable - healthier for me and healthier for the car and far cheaper.


As for councils, I don't know what world you live in that councils can afford the huge cost of free public travel for everyone but it's certainly not in the UK. Cycling infrastructure is nowhere near as expensive yet it brings many advantages with lower pollution, lower wear on the roads, much less space used and healthier people so there's clearly a lot of reasons for councils to encourage it.


John

esuhl

modsandmockers wrote: »

The motor industry and its customers would regard five punctures in four years as completely unacceptable.

But the motor industry is not the cycle industry.

Both are driven by the free-market, and there is one hell of a lot of competition in both. And cycle products are often more profitable because most motorists don't really care about anything other than cost.

So the products that are available to cyclists are high-performance and have been designed to fulfil cyclists' needs and desires.

The only reason you can't appreciate that is because you're inexperienced and don't know anything much about cycling or cycling products.

modsandmockers wrote: »

The cycle industry does not offer a serious alternative to other forms of mechanised transport - compared to cars, cycling is slow, uncomfortable, hard work.

Oh, don't make me laugh! Cars might be fun, but compared to aeroplanes they're slow, uncomfortable and hard work. Last time I tried crossing the Atlantic I nearly drowned. And all because I didn't have a life-jacket under my seat -- something the airline industry would consider completely unacceptable.

modsandmockers wrote: »

But there is no good reason for local authorities to be required to provide special facilities, free of charge, to commuter cyclists. Arguably, it would make more sense to ban bikes altogether and offer free bus travel to all.

Of course there is good reason to cater for cyclists (of all varieties). They don't cause pollution, they ease road congestion, they reduce healthcare costs, they are usually faster door-to-door than buses or trains, cheaper than motor vehicles, cheaper and easier to maintain, don't need vast car parks, don't block traffic when parked on narrow roads... And it doesn't take much to make towns cycle-friendly. What's not to like?

fred246

I use Schwalbe Marathon Plus and haven't had a puncture in a few years. They are heavy but I don't want to get caught out on the way to work. I used to put slime in too but went off it because you can't tell when you have a puncture and it will eventually let you down. It also only lasts a couple of years so a new innertube and slime would cost £10 every 2 years. An emergency bottle of slime in your bag might be useful. Hub gears are a real pain but that was the subject of a thread a while ago.