Emergency tire boot ideas

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Got my first flat today in over 5 years (don't actually
remember the last flat I got on the road, might even be 10
years). That ends my streak of 10 or 15,000 miles without a
flat on the road.

I rode through some finely ground glass on a fast downhill.
After carefully inspecting the tire, changing the tube and
pumping up the new tube I noticed that the tire sidewall had
been slashed (it closed up when the tube was uninflated so I
didn't notice it on my inspection). I didn't have a tire
boot, so I used a Park glueless patch. It held enough to get
me the last 5 miles to work.

I'll definitely buy a real tire boot tonight when I get a
replacement tire, but I was wondering what else I could have
used as an emergency tire boot. Today was recycling day (I
was riding through a residential neighborhood) so I had
quite an array of products from which to choose.

I'm curious what creative solutions people have come up with
in the past. I might actually need to use one of these ideas
on my ride home tonight. This is a Continental Sport 1000
700x23c tire with about half its tread life left, though of
course it's trash as soon as I get home.

Thanks, Michael

"Michael Press" wrote ...
>
> I'll definitely buy a real tire boot tonight when I get a
> replacement tire, but I was wondering what else I could
> have used as an emergency tire boot. Today was recycling
> day (I was riding through a residential neighborhood) so I
> had quite an array of products from which to choose.
>
> I'm curious what creative solutions people have come up
> with in the past. I might actually need to use one of
> these ideas on my ride home tonight. This is a Continental
> Sport 1000 700x23c tire with about half its tread life
> left, though of course it's trash as soon as I get home.
>
> Thanks, Michael

I carried a roll of duct tape and a few Park tire boots on
my last tour. The Park boots took up less room, the duct
tape worked a lot better (and I could have used it for other
stuff had the need arisen).

I've also used dollar bills, which made for a good story
later on when I spent the dollar bills.
--
mark

Michael Press <michaelpressNOSPAM@yahoo.com> wrote in
news:fcdle0lamm4mqvjuq6754dln0uqjjp8944@4ax.com:
> I'm curious what creative solutions people have come up
> with in the past. I might actually need to use one of
> these ideas on my ride home tonight. This is a Continental
> Sport 1000 700x23c tire with about half its tread life
> left, though of course it's trash as soon as I get home.

Dollar bills work well, especially when crisp. Also, mylar
wrappers from energy bars work well (eat the bar first).

"Michael Press" <michaelpressNOSPAM@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:fcdle0lamm4mqvjuq6754dln0uqjjp8944@4ax.com...
>
> Got my first flat today in over 5 years (don't actually
> remember the last flat I got on the road, might even be 10
> years). That ends my streak of 10 or 15,000 miles without
> a flat on the road.
>
> I rode through some finely ground glass on a fast
> downhill. After carefully inspecting the tire, changing
> the tube and pumping up the new tube I noticed that the
> tire sidewall had been slashed (it closed up when the tube
> was uninflated so I didn't notice it on my inspection). I
> didn't have a tire boot, so I used a Park glueless patch.
> It held enough to get me the last 5 miles to work.
>
> I'll definitely buy a real tire boot tonight when I get a
> replacement tire, but I was wondering what else I could
> have used as an emergency tire boot. Today was recycling
> day (I was riding through a residential neighborhood) so I
> had quite an array of products from which to choose.
>
> I'm curious what creative solutions people have come up
> with in the past. I might actually need to use one of
> these ideas on my ride home tonight. This is a Continental
> Sport 1000 700x23c tire with about half its tread life
> left, though of course it's trash as soon as I get home.
>
> Thanks,

Tyvek. Cut the flap off a Tyvek envelope with the adhesive
still protected. Cut into several pieces. The adhesive helps
you position it. Put on a couple of layers and depending on
size of the cut and location it may be good for the balance
of tread life. A Fed Ex shipping envelope will get you one
no charge. Bill
> Michael

Originally posted by Michael Press
Got my first flat today in over 5 years (don't actually
remember the last flat I got on the road, might even be 10
years). That ends my streak of 10 or 15,000 miles without a
flat on the road.

I rode through some finely ground glass on a fast downhill.
After carefully inspecting the tire, changing the tube and
pumping up the new tube I noticed that the tire sidewall had
been slashed (it closed up when the tube was uninflated so I
didn't notice it on my inspection). I didn't have a tire
boot, so I used a Park glueless patch. It held enough to get
me the last 5 miles to work.

I'll definitely buy a real tire boot tonight when I get a
replacement tire, but I was wondering what else I could have
used as an emergency tire boot. Today was recycling day (I
was riding through a residential neighborhood) so I had
quite an array of products from which to choose.

I'm curious what creative solutions people have come up with
in the past. I might actually need to use one of these ideas
on my ride home tonight. This is a Continental Sport 1000
700x23c tire with about half its tread life left, though of
course it's trash as soon as I get home.

Thanks, Michael

I have improvised boots out of scrap material I found on the side of the road. One was some sort of rubber coated fabric, about 1/16" thick (1.5 mm). Another was a scrap of denim. Anything that is tough to rip works well.

Tires with monir cuts can be repaired for training by using bits of old tire casing. Cut the beads off and buff the tread away, trimming a boot 2-3" long (5-8 cm). Prepare the tire by buffing an area a bit larger than the boot.Coat mating surfaces with contact cement and carefully glue the parts together. Dust with talc powder and train away. I have repaired 1/4-3/8" (6-9 mm)cuts with great success. This works best on sidewall cuts since the rolling squirm tends to open tread cuts.

"Michael Press" <michaelpressNOSPAM@yahoo.com> wrote in
message news:fcdle0lamm4mqvjuq6754dln0uqjjp8944@4ax.com...
Snippage..
> I'm curious what creative solutions people have come up
> with in the past. I might actually need to use one of
> these ideas on my ride home tonight. This is a Continental
> Sport 1000 700x23c tire with about half its tread life
> left, though of course it's trash as soon as I get home.
>
> Thanks, Michael

Michael-

A dollar bill was the old emergency standby, but with the
advent of Tyvek I find wiser ways to spend my dollars. I use
the stuff now for permanent boots because it's so tough -
better than the conventional boots in my estimation. For big
splits it's advisable to double or triple fold the boot.

Tyvek seems to come in many forms - USPS envelopes,
fishing/hunting licenses, the numbers you pin to your jersey
during a ride or race, and gen-u-wine Tyvek scraps pilfered
from a construction site.

Some use duct tape, but I think it's overkill for most slits
and splits. No adhesive is necessary as the pressure will
hold the boot in place.

Don't be too hasty to throw the tire away.....

Regards,

Tom

p.s. - don't try using a business card for a boot ;^)......

Michael Press <michaelpressNOSPAM@yahoo.com> wrote:
>I'll definitely buy a real tire boot tonight when I get a
>replacement tire, but I was wondering what else I could
>have used as an emergency tire boot. This is a Continental
>Sport 1000 700x23c tire with about half its tread life
>left, though of course it's trash as soon as I get home.

Save a short piece of it with the beads cut off; now you
have a free tire boot.
--
David Damerell <damerell@chiark.greenend.org.uk> Kill
the tomato!

"mark" wrote: (clip) Park boots took up less room, the duct
tape worked a lot better (clip) ^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Wrap a length
of duct tape around the handlebar or bike frame somewhere.

On Tue, 06 Jul 2004 10:32:03 -0400, Michael Press
<michaelpressNOSPAM@yahoo.com> wrote:

>I'll definitely buy a real tire boot tonight when I get a
>replacement tire, but I was wondering what else I could
>have used as an emergency tire boot. Today was recycling
>day (I was riding through a residential neighborhood) so I
>had quite an array of products from which to choose.

The classic is a banknote; the paper tends to be quite a
bit stronger than you might expect. I've seen leather, part
of an old tire sidewall, a piece of the netting from the
back of a summer-weight golf cap, a piece of stiff canvas,
and a piece of a plastic milk jug used, with varying
degrees of success.

I've also seen a sidewall gash that was sewn shut and taped
over with twill fabric tape similar to tubular base, and
the tape coated with silicone rubber, which was still
holding and functional some 8 months after the fact. It was
on a 26" smooth-tread cruiser tire, where there's more room
for such surgery.

--
Typoes are a feature, not a bug. Some gardening required to
reply via email. Surrealism is a pectinated ranzel.

Keep an extra loop or two of electrical tape at the end of
your handlebars to keep the cork from unwrapping. When you
have tire problems, or any other problems, just unroll some
of your extra electrical tape and fix whatever needs fixing.
I've patched several tire sidewalls this year using my extra
electrical tape. And fixed a hole in the rim tape too.

Michael Press <michaelpressNOSPAM@yahoo.com> wrote in
message news:<fcdle0lamm4mqvjuq6754dln0uqjjp8944@4ax.com>...
> Got my first flat today in over 5 years (don't actually
> remember the last flat I got on the road, might even be 10
> years). That ends my streak of 10 or 15,000 miles without
> a flat on the road.
>
> I rode through some finely ground glass on a fast
> downhill. After carefully inspecting the tire, changing
> the tube and pumping up the new tube I noticed that the
> tire sidewall had been slashed (it closed up when the tube
> was uninflated so I didn't notice it on my inspection). I
> didn't have a tire boot, so I used a Park glueless patch.
> It held enough to get me the last 5 miles to work.
>
> I'll definitely buy a real tire boot tonight when I get a
> replacement tire, but I was wondering what else I could
> have used as an emergency tire boot. Today was recycling
> day (I was riding through a residential neighborhood) so I
> had quite an array of products from which to choose.
>
> I'm curious what creative solutions people have come up
> with in the past. I might actually need to use one of
> these ideas on my ride home tonight. This is a Continental
> Sport 1000 700x23c tire with about half its tread life
> left, though of course it's trash as soon as I get home.
>
> Thanks, Michael

In article <fcdle0lamm4mqvjuq6754dln0uqjjp8944@4ax.com>,
michaelpressNOSPAM@yahoo.com says...
>
>
>
>Got my first flat today in over 5 years (don't actually
>remember the last flat I got on the road, might even be 10
>years). That ends my streak of 10 or 15,000 miles without a
>flat on the road.
>
>I rode through some finely ground glass on a fast downhill.
>After carefully inspecting the tire, changing the tube and
>pumping up the new tube I noticed that the tire sidewall
>had been slashed (it closed up when the tube was uninflated
>so I didn't notice it on my inspection). I didn't have a
>tire boot, so I used a Park glueless patch. It held enough
>to get me the last 5 miles to work.
>
>I'll definitely buy a real tire boot tonight when I get a
>replacement tire, but I was wondering what else I could
>have used as an emergency tire boot. Today was recycling
>day (I was riding through a residential neighborhood) so I
>had quite an array of products from which to choose.
>
>I'm curious what creative solutions people have come up
>with in the past. I might actually need to use one of these
>ideas on my ride home tonight. This is a Continental Sport
>1000 700x23c tire with about half its tread life left,
>though of course it's trash as soon as I get home.

dollar bill. Tyvek envelope, like fedex and other carriers
use. Duct tape. You can usually get one of these items to
get you back on the road.
------------
Alex

Michael Press <michaelpressNOSPAM@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:<fcdle0lamm4mqvjuq6754dln0uqjjp8944@4ax.com>...
SNIP> >> > I'll definitely buy a real tire boot tonight when
SNIP> >> > I get a
replacement tire, but I was wondering what else I could have
used as an emergency tire boot.>>>

I use the USPS Priority Mail envelopes that are made of
Tyvek material. They are free, very durable, and one
envelope makes more than enough boots for you and your
fellow riders to all have one in their bike bag in case of
emergency.

Plus, having a USPS article on your bike may help you ride
like Lance ;-)

Frank

Leo Lichtman wrote:

> "mark" wrote: (clip) Park boots took up less room, the
> duct tape worked a lot better (clip) ^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Wrap a
> length of duct tape around the handlebar or bike frame
> somewhere.
>
>

Hi, I stick a piece of duct tape and a piece of masking
tape, on the underside of my seat bag. Just recently, I used
the duct tape to boot a tire and a small piece of the
masking tape to mark the spot, on the wheel. It was just for
ease, to inspect a small gouge that was made to braking
surface, when tire was destroyed. I don't know what I hit,
but it opened up my sidewall on a Conti Force tire, with 400
miles on it.

Life is Good! Jeff

"frank121" wrote: (clip) Plus, having a USPS article on your
bike may help you ride like Lance ;-) ^^^^^^^^^^^^ Only if
it's a Trek.

Use a piece of a Tyvek envelope. Any Post Office. Many
office dumpsters, If yer not proud. Sometimes you'll see a
piece of "non-woven" or "engineered" filter fabric Trade
name "typar"sticking out of a fresh embankment or around new
construction, where it's called Dupont Housewrap. Both
materials almost as strong as the native tire carcass, very
thin and light. I have used the first, and have known others
to use the second

"Michael Press" <michaelpressNOSPAM@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:fcdle0lamm4mqvjuq6754dln0uqjjp8944@4ax.com...
>
> Got my first flat today in over 5 years (don't actually
> remember the last flat I got on the road, might even be 10
> years). That ends my streak of 10 or 15,000 miles without
> a flat on the road.

Five years without a flat tire??? You must lead a charmed
life! Butfor an emergency boot, carry a section from a worn
out lightweight tire, preferably a tubular, rather than a
clincher tire. An emergency boot can be a folded dollar
bill, or almost any non-stretchable material.

Clarke-- Clarke and Leslie Stanley San Luis Obispo,
California

In article <10emrbs3r4jfg25@corp.supernews.com>,
stanley5@charter.net says...
> "Michael Press" <michaelpressNOSPAM@yahoo.com> wrote in
> message news:fcdle0lamm4mqvjuq6754dln0uqjjp8944@4ax.com...
> >
> > Got my first flat today in over 5 years (don't actually
> > remember the last flat I got on the road, might even be
> > 10 years). That ends my streak of 10 or 15,000 miles
> > without a flat on the road.
>
> Five years without a flat tire??? You must lead a charmed
> life! Butfor an emergency boot, carry a section from a
> worn out lightweight tire, preferably a tubular, rather
> than a clincher tire. An emergency boot can be a folded
> dollar bill, or almost any non-stretchable material.
>
currency makes an even better emergency boot when it is
plastic like in Australia.

For tire boot material-

If you're not carrying anything with you (no powerbar
wrappers, no dollar bills, etc), then

#1: Handlebar tape. Just remove a section (this assumes
# you're on a road
bike) from your bars.

#2: The box the tube came in. This came in handy for me
# once; I had to
ride out a flat at high speed on a twisty descent, and by
the time I was able to stop, the sidewall was shredded in
quite a few places. I probably tore the box up into 20
pieces in order to plug the holes enough to get home.

To prepare ahead of time-

Slap a piece of duct tape underneath your saddle. It will
stay there nicely for a long time.

Keep your tube in its cardboard box, in case you run into a
problem where you need a *lot* of boot material! Just keep
in mind that you can't boot a large area with something as
insubstantial as cardboard.

--Mike-- Chain Reaction Bicycles
www.ChainReactionBicycles.com

On Tue, 06 Jul 2004 10:32:03 -0400, Michael Press
<michaelpressNOSPAM@yahoo.com> wrote:
>I was wondering what else I could have used as an emergency
>tire boot.

Nearly any roofing company, or roofing supplier, will have
scraps of EPDM and/or other rubber/plastic sheet roofing
materials, or "ice and water shield" which is an adhesive-
backed rubber/asphalt sheet product that should work well
(mostly available with sand on the non-adhesive side, which
is no good, but the smooth ones are fine). I gave my .060
EPDM boot material to a rider last night who rode 35 miles
on it without any problem.

I must remember to replace that in my patch kit.
--
Rick Onanian

On Tue, 06 Jul 2004 10:32:03 -0400, Michael Press wrote:

> I'll definitely buy a real tire boot tonight when I get a
> replacement tire, but I was wondering what else I could
> have used as an emergency tire boot.

Dollar bill works fairly well.

> I'm curious what creative solutions people have come up
> with in the past. I might actually need to use one of
> these ideas on my ride home tonight.

I carry a piece of an old tire casing. I happen to have a
couple of old tubular racing tires, which have very strong
silk casing, but any thin enough tire casing will be OK.
Just get enough to cover any possible hole. My piece is
about 5cm square.

> This is a Continental Sport 1000 700x23c tire with about
> half its tread life left, though of course it's trash as
> soon as I get home.

Of course it's a Continental.

--

David L. Johnson

__o | Deserves death! I daresay he does. Many that live
deserve _`\(,_ | death. And some that die deserve life.
Can you give it to (_)/ (_) | them? Then do not be too
eager to deal out death in judgement. -- J. R. R. Tolkein