Pick up some SRAM Red while you're in there.

 

Are they failing on the rim side or the rubber side?

I had a problem with the cheap-*** rim strips that came with my wheels. Popped two rear tubes that way. Replaced them with some big, stout strips from Nashbar, and no problems since.

On the tire side, I'm a huge fan of the Michelin Pilot City. They're grippy as hell, and whatever magic unicorn hide they line 'em with seems to work, as I've had zero puncture flats in two years.

 

I ordered these:

Reviews are pretty good. I got the Nashbar strips you mentioned in the ebike thread. The strips I have now barely exist.

The first was a bad puncture. The second was maybe the rim strips. The tube looked worn. The last was another puncture. The tires I have are like 5 years old and pretty badly worn. It was time for new ones.

 

Interesting...

A word about wire-beaded tires in general: they are an absolute ***** to mount and dismount. Imagine mounting a car tire with nothing but a couple of screwdrivers, and you've got some idea.

They're not impossible, they're just a total bitch, especially the first time. Patience and lube are your friends.

 

At the same time I ordered this:

A few buddies I know use it and say it's good. Some of the reviews are meh, but I figure it's probably people who aren't using it right.

 

I used a 1/4" socked driver to mount mine on the wheels without a socket on it. worked great... surprisingly one of my tires went on by hand. same wheel and tire size just one went on super easy compared to needing to put the bead on with a tool.

I would prefer a tool made of metal vs nylon personally. if I bought one it would likely be the topeak tool.

 

bike shop guy was right. tuned the calipers and sanded down the pads. brakes work great now.


Im going to disassemble the bottom bracket and re-pack the grease. it sounds like there is dirt in it. Besides that the bike works great. rode it about a mile tonight and that's all the time I have with some car work I have a customer in for and for the quote I gave tonight.

M

 

 

Had to use the MX-5 to move my bike today. It was a success:

 

... until today:



I'll know more after the autopsy, but it kind of looks like it rode along the surface of the thorn-protecting strip until it got to the edge, then penetrated the tube.

 

Jinx bro. Jinx.

 

No ****.


And this tire appears to be NLA in the 26" size.

So, repair the nearly 3 year old tire with an automotive-style tire patch kit from the inside and re-use it?

Or try to find a worthy successor?

 

Conti Gatorskins.

 

Yeah, I looked at those after FRT posted them. They only come in one size for the 26" fitment, which is a 1.125". Given that I have a heavy hardtail which I drive on a variety of terrain, I prefer a somewhat fatter tire. My existing rubber is 1.75", and it's on the narrower side of what I'd prefer.

 

Got my gators in just waiting on the nashbar rim strips. The tires look and feel amazing(not on bike yet..). That bead is going to be an adventure though.

 

Specialized Infinity Armadillo, then. Available in 26 x 1.75.

EDIT: Or, Hemisphere Armadillo in 26 x 1.95.

 

Mounted the gators. My old rim strips were LOL. Pretty much paper and they had deformed quite a bit.

Mounting wasn't bad. I mounted the rear one backwards... ******* directional... so I had to remove and reinstall. Got to do it an extra time yay.

Pretty simple though, just put one lip over all the way around, set it down flat and pushed the tube in all the way around. Then put the outside lip in and the last 6 inches wouldn't budge so I jammed a screw driver in there and pried it over. Quick and easy.

Heading to class in an hour so I'll get to try them out.

 

I used to have a pair of plastic coated steel tire spoons that made mounting wire bead tires a cakewalk. You just piled everything on the rim, pushed one side of the outside bead on, crammed one of the spoons in and ran the other one the other direction around the rim. It took 30 seconds to mount a tire.

Then they disappeared. Now I cuss a lot and use 30 flat head screw drivers, and it takes 90 seconds.

 

Initially, I had to use screwdrivers for the last little bit as well, being very careful about the tube.

Eventually, they stretched a bit to where I can use the plastic levers.



shlammed, you mentioned a topeak version of the tool that FRT posted about- I find nothing on their website about this.


Also, no love for my idea about patching the tire? I'm gonna give it a shot just to see if it works. Beats a week of downtime waiting for a new tire to be shipped. (I've found that the selection of good street tires in the 26" size is damn near zero around here. Too many actual mountains, I guess.)

 

Joe, its a tubed tire. Put some duct tape on the inside to prevent sand from getting inside to rub on the tube and put a new tube in it.