# My road patches dont stick! Help!



## TomH (Oct 6, 2008)

I cant patch a road tube to save my life. 

I can, however, patch mountain tubes. My mtb probably has 4 patches on it right now, for over a year and they've never failed. I wipe the tube, smear some glue on it, blow until it skins and slap a patch on. Perfect every time, zero failures.

On a road tube.. they always fail, right at about 60-80psi. I never even get the wheel back on the bike. Ive tried a thin layer of glue, a thick layer of glue, glue on just the tube, glue on both, letting it fully/half/not dry. More scuffing, less scuffing.. nothing works, 100% failure rate. 

Is there some kind of trick? Im baffled why they absolutely always fail on the road bike, and never on the mountain bike.


----------



## AndrwSwitch (May 28, 2009)

I've never had good luck patching in the field.

I patch road tubes at home sometimes. Then they sit around in storage for a while before I use them and the glue has had a chance to cure before it gets stretched.

At least, that's what I think the difference is. That, and I can make the tube cleaner and I use better sand paper. But both of those could be done in the field too.


----------



## TomH (Oct 6, 2008)

I attempt to patch at home, because I know its going to fail :lol: I let this last one that just fail cure for about 1.5 hours before tossing it in, popped too. I dont get whats not working.


----------



## AndrwSwitch (May 28, 2009)

I thought of another thing I do - after I glue on the patch, I put the whole thing under a phone book for a while. I also do the thing with squeezing the patch and working outward from the center with my fingers.


----------



## 53Phil (May 20, 2012)

What size patches are you using for your road tubes? I use some small (15mm from memory) round patches and they always work on my road tubes. If you're using bigger ones that you use on your mtb tubes then they'll have to bend a lot more and are much hard to make stick.

I generally put the glue on, wait 5 minutes, put the patch on, hold it for about 1 minute then put it in the tyre and pump up to 100psi straight away. Works for me all the time.


----------



## morgan1819 (Nov 22, 2005)

I think your procedure is fine, I just think there is an issue with the patch/glue itself.

I have had 100% success with about 8-10 patch jobs with the patch kit that Bike Tires Direct sends out for free with some of their tube/tire orders.


----------



## tlg (May 11, 2011)

Have you tried glueless patches?


----------



## brucew (Jun 3, 2006)

53Phil said:


> What size patches are you using for your road tubes? I use some small (15mm from memory) round patches and they always work on my road tubes. If you're using bigger ones that you use on your mtb tubes then they'll have to bend a lot more and are much hard to make stick.


^^^^^ This.

Patches come in sizes. Use smaller ones for smaller tubes. I've trimmed them with scissors and that has worked too.

IME, the Park Tool patch kits all have patches that are too big. I have much better luck with the Rema Tip Top kits, usually buying the 01-Tour model.


----------



## bigbill (Feb 15, 2005)

I used to patch tires with tip top patches. On my training wheelset, there would be 4-5 patches on each wheel. I'd patch, let it set for a few minutes, and then re-install the tube and inflate. 90% of the time it worked. The times it failed was when the hole was close to a seam. 

Glueless patches are ok for MTB with lower pressure or to get home on a road bike. IME, they're not much use for permanent repairs on high pressures (>100 psi). I carry a couple of glueless patches in my bag to boot cut tire treads.


----------



## TomH (Oct 6, 2008)

Just tried the rema tip top patches. First one failed, second stuck! Im using the smallest patches in the kit, probably ~17mm. 

I installed it last night and let it sit overnight. Pumped up today and it looks like its holding! I think I wasnt waiting long enough for it to cure... seems to be no wait necessary for low pressure tubes.


----------



## jpaschal01 (Jul 20, 2011)

AndrwSwitch said:


> I put the whole thing under a phone book for a while.


Who still has phone books sitting around!


----------



## AndrwSwitch (May 28, 2009)

I've been too lazy to opt out of them. But they're handy. It's also about right for a trainer block, and because it's a book, I can open it, fold it over, etc. to customize the size.

I'm not one to turn down free stuff when it's useful.  And phone books are useful for everything one might use a book for, but that seems disrespectful to a real book.


----------



## scott967 (Apr 26, 2012)

TomH said:


> Just tried the rema tip top patches. First one failed, second stuck! Im using the smallest patches in the kit, probably ~17mm.
> 
> I installed it last night and let it sit overnight. Pumped up today and it looks like its holding! I think I wasnt waiting long enough for it to cure... seems to be no wait necessary for low pressure tubes.


I've only used the Tip Tops for 30 years. Only time I've had failure was not letting the glue set up enough before putting on the patch. The only other thing is make sure enough glue to the edge of the patch. At home I glue then go away for a while and do other things for a bit. On the road I guess you can get antsy and rush it. I never take the cello off the top of the patch -- not sure why, just the way I've always done it.

scott s.
.


----------



## looigi (Nov 24, 2010)

??? Never had an issue using the following procedure on car tire tubes (I'm old), motorcycle tubes (not necessarily as old) and bicycle tire tubes: Clean the tube, spread thin layer of glue, let it dry thoroughly (3-10 minutes, IMPORTANT), stick patch on, install and inflate.


----------



## pmt (Aug 4, 2009)

It's simple; just clean the area with acetone or similar, and then the patches will stick just fine, whether glue or glueless.

The molds that they use to make tubes have mold-release sprayed into them so the rubber doesn't stick to the mold. You have to clean that off the tube to get the patch to stick; that's what the abrasive paper is for in the patch kit. Acetone works far better though.


----------



## SteveV0983 (Dec 9, 2008)

I've been using Park Glueless patches (http://www.parktool.com/product/super-patch-kit-gp-2) for years and they work flawlessly. Takes less than a minute to patch a road tube and they never seem to fail. I have one tube that is probably 2 years old and has 3 patches on it and still holds air perfectly.


----------



## TomH (Oct 6, 2008)

pmt said:


> It's simple; just clean the area with acetone or similar, and then the patches will stick just fine, whether glue or glueless.
> 
> The molds that they use to make tubes have mold-release sprayed into them so the rubber doesn't stick to the mold. You have to clean that off the tube to get the patch to stick; that's what the abrasive paper is for in the patch kit. Acetone works far better though.


I was using rubbing alcohol. 

I think they just werent curing long enough, the last patch is holding just fine. I didnt do anything different, just let it dry overnight.


----------



## pmt (Aug 4, 2009)

TomH said:


> I was using rubbing alcohol.
> 
> I think they just werent curing long enough, the last patch is holding just fine. I didnt do anything different, just let it dry overnight.


Alcohol isn't going to work; you might as well use Kool-Aid. Unless it's drinkable alcohol, and then you won't care if the tube stays flat.

Acetone or similar. And don't get those acetone-packets for nail polish as they have other ingredients like glycerin. Pure acetone.


----------



## Dersnap (Mar 28, 2012)

I have the Lezyne glueless patches and they always will loose their holding. However the actual glue ones I rarely had problems with. Biggest thing though is to make sure no oil is inbetween the patch and the glue. Fingers after a sweaty ride can be bad for this.

Tubeless has somewhat simplified this problem for me though.


----------



## stickney (Jul 28, 2005)

I used to have problems too, but a few things that seem to work. 

After cleaning and sanding, I apply glue, making sure I cover an area bigger than the patch -- I am generous with glue. 

Let this glue dry for a few minutes (10 or more) before applying the patch. 

I then really work the patch into the glue and hold tight for a minute or so. Using a phone book isn't a bad idea either.


----------



## pmt (Aug 4, 2009)

Guys, really, there's no need for voodoo, phone books, lots of glue, or avoiding seams. There's nothing wrong with glueless patches.

If the area to be patched has been cleaned with acetone, you can put on a *thin* layer of glue, let it dry (as others have written), then stick the patch on and squeeze it good between thumb and forefinger. Job done, never to leak. It's simple.


----------

