Patching Inner Tubes

KGBnut

KGBnut

Well-known member
I got a flat on my motorcycle the other day. I picked up a roofing nail. I put in a new tube, but I am confident that the puncture is so tiny that tube is salvageable. I haven't patched an inner tube since I was a kid and the tube was in a bicycle.

I searched YouTube for the best misinformation I could find, but then I thought I would check with the experts, the Model A drivers.

Which are the better kits? I know that patch should have rounded corners, and tapered edges are preferred. Some things I read talked about "stitching," but I couldn't get a clear answer on how that is done.

What advice do you guys have? Any videos that are good and complete?

Thanks in advance.

Ken
 
I could only find a patching kit at my local bicycle shop. But methods haven’t changed much, except you don’t have to heat patch now because the glues are better.
 
I patched my inner tube on my Model A yesterday. First I looked on Amazon where patches are now called “skabs” derived from the biking world terminology. They’re round and small, probably for bike tires. I ended up buying a small kit at Walmart for $1.96. With 6 preglued patches and a scraper to ruff up the inner tube . Worked great.


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If you're going to glue on a patch (the only way these days), there are two often overlooked and important things to bear in mind. Firstly, rough up the tube well where the glue will go and second, make sue the glue is new. It has a shelf life of only about 6 months. When you apply the patch, use a roller to make sure it is pressed had against the tube and leave no air underneath it.
Once applied properly, these patches are as good as the original tube, IMO.
 
I've done a little research a few years ago. I found that you can use a tube to patch a tube. I have patched a tube for a trailer that has wide 5 rims that was pretty bad. It had a bunch of cracks in probably a quarter of the tube. I used a tube to patch that tube and it's been holding for over 5 years now. I just used the trailer this weekend, and didn't add any air-and I haven't used it in over 5 years. Now, I cleaned both pieces of rubber with Acetone and used rubber cement from the auto parts store and roughened up the surface with a tube rasp. When I cut the patch out of the tube, I rounded the corners and used a "vulcanizer" clamp to clamp the patch to the tube.

Red
 
anyone know if hot patches are avalable? I still got a few but would love to find a few more TNX
 
I pinched a tube on my 19" tube while replacing my tire. Went to Wallmart bought a bicycle repair kit and repaired it. That was 3,000 miles ago.
 
I don't think today's glue patches hold a candle to the old hot patches......the ones with metal shells you clamped tightly over the hole in the tire and then lit a match to ignite the sulfur type material in the shell which would vulcanize the patch to the tire. It produced quite a bit of acrid smoke as it burned.

To my understanding, they were outlawed years ago because of pollution.....Our fine government at work protecting us again.

Glen
 
I always roughed up the patch area on the tube with the cheese grater cap of the patch kit and then poured on some rubber cement glue to the area to be patched. Then I would then light the glue up and burn off all of the glue before applying the patch. A clean and hot area always made a good patch!!!!
 
Glues have come a long way. Buildings are held together with it. Car bodies are glued together.
I know a guy that travels to remote areas and sometimes needs to rebuild tyres from bits by glueing them together.
 
Those "hot patches" have gone out of favour because they don't work on a synthetic tube, which they all are these days. They world very very well on rubber tubes but not appropriate for synthetic. As Updraught says, glues have come a long way.
 
I pinched one of my new tubes this weekend while trying to install it. I was told that one of the old tire shops close by still used hot patches, so I took the tube to them. Turns out, they do not use hot patches, and told me hot patches are no longer available.

But I let them patch the tube for me. They cleaned it well with a solvent, applied glue liberally when the solvent dried, and used a roller to press the patch well onto the tube. They did not rough up the tube, but I think the solvent took the place of that.

Anyway, it looked like a better job than I would have done with the patch kit I had purchased at Advance Auto. I installed it, and it is holding air, at least for now. I'll know more in a few weeks when I check it again.

W. Michael
 
KGBnut said:
I got a flat on my motorcycle the other day. I picked up a roofing nail. I put in a new tube, but I am confident that the puncture is so tiny that tube is salvageable. I haven't patched an inner tube since I was a kid and the tube was in a bicycle.

I searched YouTube for the best misinformation I could find, but then I thought I would check with the experts, the Model A drivers.

Which are the better kits? I know that patch should have rounded corners, and tapered edges are preferred. Some things I read talked about "stitching," but I couldn't get a clear answer on how that is done.

What advice do you guys have? Any videos that are good and complete?

Thanks in advance!

Ken
Click to expand...


"stitching" is using a narrow serrated roller to press down the patch for better adhesion. No needle and thread involved!
 
w.michael said:
I pinched one of my new tubes this weekend while trying to install it. I was told that one of the old tire shops close by still used hot patches, so I took the tube to them. Turns out, they do not use hot patches, and told me hot patches are no longer available.

But I let them patch the tube for me. They cleaned it well with a solvent, applied glue liberally when the solvent dried, and used a roller to press the patch well onto the tube. They did not rough up the tube, but I think the solvent took the place of that.

Anyway, it looked like a better job than I would have done with the patch kit I had purchased at Advance Auto. I installed it, and it is holding air, at least for now. I'll know more in a few weeks when I check it again.



Make it your spare!
Click to expand...
 
Make it your spare! [/QUOTE]

Just a reminder to store spare tubes inflated, not folded flat on a shelf.

Don't be asking how I know!
 
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