No bicyclist likes a flat tire.\u00a0 Fixing them on the side of the road is at the bottom of most rider’s list of fun things to do.\u00a0 Mounting tires for the ST600 was difficult enough that I don’t want to try it on the road.\u00a0 Of course the first long ride will probably result in a flat, and at the point I’m farthest from home.\u00a0 Karma, you know.\u00a0 Well, a cell phone rescue call isn’t my first choice as I’d rather be more self-sufficient while out riding.\u00a0 So, I need to try to make tire removal\/installation easier.<\/p>\n
Mounting tires on my Boyd wheels on the Merckx took less time than powdering the tube, so maybe I’m just spoiled.\u00a0 Box section rims can be more difficult due to a shallow (or nonexistent) channel for the bead to rest in while mounting.<\/p>\n
Pro tip: Always mount tires with the label over the valve stem hole.\u00a0 Since you know how the tire was oriented, and you know where the patch was applied, you’ll be able to check the inside of the casing before remounting the tire to be sure there’s nothing in there waiting to cause another flat.\u00a0 The little wires from steel belted auto tires (a common cause of flats) are hard to see but it helps to be checking in the right spot.<\/p>\n
I used Velox tape, as I have always used in the past, but for this rim, the combination is simply too tight.\u00a0 I’ve just ordered some Kapton tape 16mm wide and I’m going to go through the work of removing the tire and tape, and then try the Kapton tape.\u00a0 It’s significantly thinner than the Velox tape and hopefully will make mounting the tire an easier job.<\/p>\n
I’m not looking forward to removing the tire, but better to do that at home than at the side of the road in pouring rain.\u00a0 Hey, if i’m going to get a flat it will probably be the trifecta – a hole in the tube, a REALLY hard to remove tire, and pouring rain all at the same time.\u00a0 Not that I haven’t beaten the odds before, but why make it so easy for Murphy to assert himself?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
No bicyclist likes a flat tire.\u00a0 Fixing them on the side of the road is at the bottom of most rider’s list of fun things to do.\u00a0 Mounting tires for the ST600 was difficult enough that I don’t want to try it on the road.\u00a0 Of course the first long ride will probably result in … <\/p>\n