Puncture
Author
Discussion

Phil Dicky

Original Poster:

7,194 posts

292 months

Wednesday 12th July 2017
quotequote all
I seem to get punctured every time I go out..usually from pot holes I can't avoid. Any suggestions for better tubes or tyres that can with stand the odd pot holes. Biked a Cube Peleton standard.

okgo

42,078 posts

227 months

Wednesday 12th July 2017
quotequote all
Potholes you can't avoid?

Errr...

S100HP

13,771 posts

196 months

Wednesday 12th July 2017
quotequote all
What pressure are you running?

Phil Dicky

Original Poster:

7,194 posts

292 months

Wednesday 12th July 2017
quotequote all
okgo said:
Potholes you can't avoid?

Errr...
Yeah had a bloody mass HGV at the side of me on a downhill stretch.

okgo

42,078 posts

227 months

Wednesday 12th July 2017
quotequote all
Bunny hop is probably a better use of time than searching for something that doesn't exist smile

The only thing that will probably avoid pinch flats is tubular/tubless - even then they'll still split at sidewalls if impact is enough.

Phil Dicky

Original Poster:

7,194 posts

292 months

Wednesday 12th July 2017
quotequote all
S100HP said:
What pressure are you running?
As a relative newbee to road bikes I don't know..im guessing a bit of advice in this department might help smile

S100HP

13,771 posts

196 months

Wednesday 12th July 2017
quotequote all
Phil Dicky said:
As a relative newbee to road bikes I don't know..im guessing a bit of advice in this department might help smile
you want to be running upwards of 100psi

Phil Dicky

Original Poster:

7,194 posts

292 months

Wednesday 12th July 2017
quotequote all
S100HP said:
Phil Dicky said:
As a relative newbee to road bikes I don't know..im guessing a bit of advice in this department might help smile
you want to be running upwards of 100psi
Will check pressures before I'm back out Friday

ambuletz

11,734 posts

210 months

Wednesday 12th July 2017
quotequote all
if you're getting punctures all the time then your tyre tread must have worn down and time for new tyres.over autumn/winter i seemed to get punctures almost every single time i went out, the tyres were afew years old from riding almost daily 2-3miles. eventually bought a new pair in feb and haven't had a single puncture since.

okgo

42,078 posts

227 months

Wednesday 12th July 2017
quotequote all
Pinch flats are nothing like normal punctures. And they're almost totally avoidable.

yellowjack

18,408 posts

195 months

Wednesday 12th July 2017
quotequote all
I'm with okgo on this one.

Get your tyre pressures right, and then check them regularly. Learn to make full advantage of your four-point fully independent multi link suspension (arms and legs wink ) and unweight the bike over bumps, small potholes and rougher surfaces. Learn to 'hop' the bike over bigger obstacles.

FWIW I run 700 x 25c Continental GP4000 S II on my Trek Emonda. I inflate them to 90psi front, and 100 psi rear, and they stand up OK to a right beating over some local MOD training area gravel roads, and even the odd Strava segment that'd be better ridden on a MTB.

The right pressure for you will be different to someone else, as bike + rider weight, tyre width, and terrain will all have a bearing on the perfect psi. So look for advice online (there are charts I've used from magazine tests, especially German technical reviews that you can search for) and set a ballpark baseline figure, then increase/reduce pressure until you find the sweet spot. Then just mark it on a pump with a pressure gauge and check it regularly.

TheInternet

5,225 posts

192 months

Wednesday 12th July 2017
quotequote all
S100HP said:
you want to be running upwards or downwards of 100psi
EFA
(see Yellowjack's post for details)

vernz

179 posts

159 months

Wednesday 12th July 2017
quotequote all
Tyre pressures I would suggest.

Rookie mistake I'm afraid. Get a track pump so that you can be sure of getting the pressures correct, I did this about 5 years ago after getting numerous flats and realised that I was only putting about 85 psi in my Conti's that are recommended for 110-120. Stopped the problem straight away,

Also consider a Kevlar based tape product from Panaracer (Wiggle sell this), that goes inside the tyre between the inside face of the tyre and the innertube. This will stop a lot of incomming stuff and although I'm probably damming myself in the process, I've done around 30 Sportives since without getting a puncture!!

g7jhp

7,033 posts

267 months

Wednesday 12th July 2017
quotequote all
yellowjack said:
FWIW I run 700 x 25c Continental GP4000 S II on my Trek Emonda. I inflate them to 90psi front, and 100 psi rear, and they stand up OK to a right beating over some local MOD training area gravel roads, and even the odd Strava segment that'd be better ridden on a MTB.

I run 120 psi on both with my Conti GP4000S ii.....as stated on the sidewalls. No problems with punctures.

okgo

42,078 posts

227 months

Wednesday 12th July 2017
quotequote all
g7jhp said:
I run 120 psi on both with my Conti GP4000S ii.....as stated on the sidewalls. No problems with punctures.
23/25c will play a huge difference there in pressure. Also what is stated on the sidewall is likely max, not what you SHOULD or HAVE to do.

120psi is generally too much for 23c and far too much for a 25c

TheInternet

5,225 posts

192 months

Wednesday 12th July 2017
quotequote all
g7jhp said:
I run 120 psi on both with my Conti GP4000S ii.....as stated on the sidewalls. No problems with punctures.
That's the maximum, 95psi recommended.

Zigster

1,993 posts

173 months

Wednesday 12th July 2017
quotequote all
As others have said - make sure there is enough pressure (but not too much) in your tyres. Rookie mistake is to have them underinflated which can lead to punctures (basically, an under-inflated tyre envelops the sharp object whereas a well-inflated tyre will ping it away). Plenty of charts on the internet explaining the right pressures for your weight, tyre size, riding, etc.

Also, if you are regularly getting punctures, make sure you have fixed the previous one properly. The sharp object might still be in the tyre waiting to give you another puncture.

Unless you have done a lot of riding (a few thousand miles), I wouldn't expect it to be worn out tyres that is causing the problem.

Phil Dicky

Original Poster:

7,194 posts

292 months

Wednesday 12th July 2017
quotequote all
Seems clear to me I've fallen foul of a rookie mistake re tyre pressures....thanks for the advice.

mcelliott

10,468 posts

210 months

Wednesday 12th July 2017
quotequote all
TheInternet said:
g7jhp said:
I run 120 psi on both with my Conti GP4000S ii.....as stated on the sidewalls. No problems with punctures.
That's the maximum, 95psi recommended.
Recommended by who?

S100HP

13,771 posts

196 months

Wednesday 12th July 2017
quotequote all
mcelliott said:
TheInternet said:
g7jhp said:
I run 120 psi on both with my Conti GP4000S ii.....as stated on the sidewalls. No problems with punctures.
That's the maximum, 95psi recommended.
Recommended by who?
The internet