Punctures on tandem wheels.

[Big H*]

i do this often on my MTB, but these are BRAND NEW tires! first ride, puncture... 2nd ride... puncture.... but i will try the higher pressure!

 

Accept the bad luck...... Do not blame yourself. Forget about liners, forget about slime, carry two tubes and tyre levers, some patches and solution, get a proper pump like the Topeak Turbo Morph. It can pump to 160 psi and is an amazing pump. Get a proper chain tool, some spare links, 2 or three pieces of chain, a proper multi tool. I also take a small bottle of water soap mixture to ease tyre removal and fitting. Oh and a few bank notes. They come in handy for coffee and can be used folded double as a gaiter when you have a cut tyre or sidewall to stop the tube from bulging out.

 

See that pump here

 

http://www.topeak.com/products/Pumps/TurboMorphG

[Neg]

Thanks,

that is some valuable info! i usually only carry those quick chain links.

[Big H*]

Thanks,

that is some valuable info! i usually only carry those quick chain links.

 

Some more on puncture repair. Always check the inside of the tyre by running your fingers along the inside of the casing if there are any objects that caused the puncture. Common culprits are steel wire coming from truck tyre casings, thorns and especially during the winter small chards of glass. We once had three successive punctures due to a piece of glass lodged in the Tyre. We also had on another occasion during a race in Bronkhorstspruit, 7 punctures for the day. I could not find a common cause for it. Also carry a small piece of course sandpaper to roughen the tube before applying the patch.

 

Also remember. A Tandem uses normal bicycle components but are subjected to the effort of two people.It needs more care, maintenance and preventative inspection than other half bikes. Get into that habit, learn to repair it yourself and cycle TWOgether happily !!!!!!!!

[Big H*]

Have you decided on your brake configuration yet?

[Neg]

Thanks!

i have decided to keep the Tektro V brakes for now, i have put new cables and housing on with new brake pads. the tektro has those added pulley's so they must be strong enough? anything else will just be cosmetic....? other than very high end stuff.

my problem is that i took it to a bike shop and they set the breaks up incorrectly, VERY loud squealing from the front and nothing at the back.... i took the tandem to Tour de Frans and its being sorted. hopefully.....

[Big H*]

Two things are important with brake pads, this applies to ALL bikes but more so on tandems due to the heavier load they carry.

 

- ensure their alignment with the rim is correct. They must not come near or tuch the rim braking surface when the brakes are applied. Misaligned brakepads cuts throuh the sidewall of your tyre with truly disastrous results

- ensure the pads are properly set up, see diagram below. Please note that the diagram is NOT TO SCALE and only an exaggerated sketch. I use an business card set up the clearance at the back.

- ensure everything is tightened properly

- get the correct pads. The pads that works for us is BBB Tristop - BBS - 14T. They are a triple compound brake pad and we have been using them successfully on our Tandems now for almost ten years. They are a cartridge type V-Brake pad which means that by just removing a small split pin on the body of the assembly you can slide out the old pads and put new pads in, see the picture below.

 

Go to the link below for a description on how to do it.......

 

http://en.wikibooks....ting_Rim_Brakes

Edited February 25, 2012 by eccentric1

[Neg]

that's very informative, thanks. i shall make sure that everything is aligned!! at the moment, my brakes squeal very bad!

[jmaccelari]

We also use the BBB tristop. An excellent brake pad. As eccentric says, tandems use normal components with twice the forces. You will chow through your brakepads so check them regularly and make sure they are correctly aligned...

[Neg]

ive just changed the cassette... it was toast!!! new cables and chains. i was getting chain slip when powering in a hard gear, checked the cassette and some of the teeth were half the size they should be... so put a new 11-32 on but now wondering if a 11-34 is not the way to go...? it has a LX rear derailure...

[Big H*]

ive just changed the cassette... it was toast!!! new cables and chains. i was getting chain slip when powering in a hard gear, checked the cassette and some of the teeth were half the size they should be... so put a new 11-32 on but now wondering if a 11-34 is not the way to go...? it has a LX rear derailure...

 

11-32 is OK but the ratios inbetween that you need for proper road bike cadence now go for a loop. We used a 10-25 and later swopped out some gears to use a 10-28 which we found ideal, you do amazing things on flat road with the 10. Not sure what the 10 speed Raleigh has but we have a 55 teeth large chainring up front.

 

By the way if your cassette was as toast as you say better check the chainring up front. They can also destroy a new chain.

[Neg]

ok, so we wont go bigger that 32. the tandem we were using was a 11-28 - and huge up front, cant remember the both rings but the big ring is a 58. is a two up front 8 at the rear. our is a 9 speed with triple up front. but our big ring is a 55.

 

when we did the 94.7, my fiance (and i) battled up the longer hills... that was with the 2x8 11-28. we now have a 3x9 11-32 so im sure we will be fine!

[Neg]

Right... so did the Argus on said Tandem.... 45km in- Flat in the rear wheel...... put new tube in.... at 90km, at the very top of suikerbossie... another flat in the rear wheel... new tube... finish the Argus... the following morning... rear wheel FLAT!!!! FFS!!!!!!!!!!!

 

that is now 5 flats in 3 rides... 4 in the rear, 1 in the front....can this STILL be BAD luck???

 

of the three tubes, one had a hole on the INSIDE of the rim there no thorn/glass can get to it right next to where the valve comes out of the rim, the second tube had the hole about 3/4 away round from the valve... Also against the rim....... so it seems the tubes are being poked from "inside".... ??? none of them have been on the tire side.... all on the rim side but in various placed along the rim??

 

this after taking the bike to a very well know dealer and asking them to check the wheels and make sure they are true etc.... and it gets worse... while riding... the screw holding the cable on the rear derailure comes loose and i have no gears... so had to set gear on the side of the road.... then, just before chappies... i hear this grinding/clunk noise.... but not only when we pedaled... when free wheeling down the other side... stop and TWO spokes have come loose on the rear wheel....

so hobbled into the Complete cyclists mechanic station, ( thanks Guys) and they tightened the two spokes but the noise persisted....

we finished the race lucky.....

 

but im very disappointed in the bike shop and myself for the mechanical failures...

[Rorymac]

Right... so did the Argus on said Tandem.... 45km in- Flat in the rear wheel...... put new tube in.... at 90km, at the very top of suikerbossie... another flat in the rear wheel... new tube... finish the Argus... the following morning... rear wheel FLAT!!!! FFS!!!!!!!!!!!

 

that is now 5 flats in 3 rides... 4 in the rear, 1 in the front....can this STILL be BAD luck???

 

of the three tubes, one had a hole on the INSIDE of the rim there no thorn/glass can get to it right next to where the valve comes out of the rim, the second tube had the hole about 3/4 away round from the valve... Also against the rim....... so it seems the tubes are being poked from "inside".... ??? none of them have been on the tire side.... all on the rim side but in various placed along the rim??

 

this after taking the bike to a very well know dealer and asking them to check the wheels and make sure they are true etc.... and it gets worse... while riding... the screw holding the cable on the rear derailure comes loose and i have no gears... so had to set gear on the side of the road.... then, just before chappies... i hear this grinding/clunk noise.... but not only when we pedaled... when free wheeling down the other side... stop and TWO spokes have come loose on the rear wheel....

so hobbled into the Complete cyclists mechanic station, ( thanks Guys) and they tightened the two spokes but the noise persisted....

we finished the race lucky.....

 

but im very disappointed in the bike shop and myself for the mechanical failures...

 

My friend had 3 punctures on his first argus last year we were both new to road bikes, still are but we rode the week after the argus and he had 8 punctures in 10 km, eventually found that it was the tape on the inside of the rim that was shot, what was happening was because the tape was perished the tube was pushing into the spoke holes and puncturing.

[Neg]

RoryMac i'm suspecting something like this.... while i did do a check on the rim and tape and it does seem old.... there are no signs of breaking through....

 

Why would a tubeless conversion not be great for a road bike/tandem? Besides the pressure, surely it would reduce punctures?

[Big H*]

RoryMac i'm suspecting something like this.... while i did do a check on the rim and tape and it does seem old.... there are no signs of breaking through....

 

Why would a tubeless conversion not be great for a road bike/tandem? Besides the pressure, surely it would reduce punctures?

 

It would only compound the problem...... Make work what you have, others do, successfully

[Neg]

By compound the problem, what do you mean? would the tire come off the rim too easily??

i did not that had i had "slime" in the tubes the punctures would have sealed..... the holes are very small but enough to let the wheel down.... why is slime a no-no...??