ATTN: Bike punks!! Help!!

[Alleycat Matt]

I have a Trek 920 Singletrack bicycle with tubeless tires but both tires have gone flat and I do not f*****g know how to fix them. One won't hold air, and the other tires stem is broken off. What do I do? I seriously don't want to have to buy a new tire. I don't even have the money to do so. They're skinny road bike tires. Any help? Please?!?!

 

[Steve MD]

If the stem is broken off I really don't see an alternative to replacing it, shitty news.

 

[Franny]

How did the stem break off and what does it look like now? I could *try* to think of a solution depending on how it's broken. But like Steve said, slim chance. Tubeless tires rely on the pressure within the tire to hold the valve in the proper position, so even if I can think of something that would help the tire retain air, you might be stuck holding it while glue dries. Even a crude MS paint rendition would be helpful.

 

[Dmac]

you could try putting a tube in the tire, if the stem is already broke off. they sell a sealing agent called "green slime" at places like wall-mart and shopco. it works well and could solve your problem. but it is a mess to deal with.

 

[Teko]

I have a Trek 920 Singletrack bicycle with tubeless tires but both tires have gone flat and I do not f*****g know how to fix them. One won't hold air, and the other tires stem is broken off. What do I do? I seriously don't want to have to buy a new tire. I don't even have the money to do so. They're skinny road bike tires. Any help? Please?!?!

simple go steal cheap tires. also try to steal some of that tire sealer in a can. it holds the hole together for a decent amount of time. enough to get you to the store to steal more.

 

[wartomods]

just get some rubber glue, and try to fix it, or just get tubes and try to run it as a tube tires

 

[bikegeek666]

i don't think you can do that. i don't have too much experience with tubular but i do have a pair of tubular rims hanging out in my parts pile and there is definitely no hook on the rim for the bead to sit in.

 

[Dmac]

?... my mountain bike has tube tires and there is definatly a hook for the tire bead to set in. it is probably a diferent make then what bikegeek has.

 

[bryanpaul]

I'm gonna throw my question up in this thread: i ran over a chunk of asphalt and bent my back rim...do any of you out there know of a good trick to straighten out a rim? (other than using two hands and a knee) thanx i made it green to get your attention

 

[Blacknose]

i don't think you can do that. i don't have too much experience with tubular but i do have a pair of tubular rims hanging out in my parts pile and there is definitely no hook on the rim for the bead to sit in.

I dont think you're talking about the same thing! As far as i got it "Alleycat Mat" has a bike with tubeless tires not tubs , you can always throw a tube in them if they dont hold air . So the rims have hooks ..

bryanpaul

if theres a radial runout you will have a hard time getting it close to unnoticeable , do you know how to true a wheel? I'd relieve the spoke tension on the whole wheel and then try to straighten the rim - bench, woodblocks, hammer ... i might get a lot easier if you actually unlace the rim (just tape the spokes together so you can just pop the rim back on
dont know any magic tricks to get it out
sry if i just told you stuff you already know..

 

[bikegeek666]

you know, i think maybe we aren't talking about the same thing, i just picked up a tubless front wheel for my mountain bike and it looks like i can definitely put a regular tire and tube on it. have yet to try though. it's at the co-op i volunteer at and am a core member at, so it makes it no loss if it doesn't work.

and yeah, the tubular rims i have are non-machined 700c rims, so either for track or disc brakes, but i'm going to guess they were made with the track in mind.

 

[flashinglights]

I'm gonna throw my question up in this thread: i ran over a chunk of asphalt and bent my back rim...do any of you out there know of a good trick to straighten out a rim? (other than using two hands and a knee) thanx i made it green to get your attention

It depends on how badly the rim is bent. Bike mechanics use a wheel truing stand to make sure everything is in line. But normally those adjustments to the rim are done by tensioning spokes to move the rim side to side.

If your rim is too bent to fix it back to acceptable shape by adjusting spoke tension, you might have to rebuild your wheel using a new rim and all the other parts from the old wheel. Or, just get another wheel. Rims alone aren't too expensive unless you have some supersnazz yuppie bike.

Pictures of the damage would help a lot. I once bent a rear rim on a shitty $100 mountain bike (never making the mistake of buying one of those new again) and it was definitely beyond fixing, but still rideable. You can release some slack from the rear brake cable to let the brakes ride wider to avoid rubbing on the bent section of the rim, at the expense of some stopping power.

 

[bryanpaul]

thanks for the replies...... yeah it i think if i went loosening spokes i'd end up with more of a mess than i have now.... i was hoping somebody would have a more neanderthal approach to straightening it out...like involving beating it with rocks and shit ....... yeah... i'll just deal with my wobbly wheel till i find a used one somewhere or somethin

 

[flashinglights]

It's usually tightening spokes to fix the out-of-true, not loosening: if they're looser than "stock" your rim becomes weaker. Over-tightening can have problems too but less so than loose spokes, which can cause your wheel to blow up spectacularly while riding (only happened to me once, but still...)

 

[Dmac]

just find a yuppies bike, like outside of a gym or public building, and swap tires. it is quick and easy to do. screw that and just trade bikes instead.

 

[geckogirl]

if anyone is Everett WA there is a bike shop called sharing wheels that might help cheap they have tools and area to fix your bikes and will donate a bike if qualify or trade volenteer hours lots of outside dwellers get bikes here:0)

 

[RSTY802510]

Once I saw a way to fix a flat by finding the hole. Cutting it in half right at the hole. And then tie it back together tight. I've done it once. But it's bumpy when you ride and the tire kept poppin off the rim.

 

[Kabukimono]

In Spain and Portugal there's places in the big cities that are hippy owned that help you fix you're bike, teach your how to take apart and rebuild it and even give you free pieces or even the whole thing if you haven't already got one.
There's meant to be all over Europe - i'm yet to find them though.
I know most of you guys are pond siders, but still - just leaving it here

 

[soapybum]

Most bike shops will help you out for free if you ask/explain your situation, sometimes you can even get nice bikes for like $30 cuz dumbasses leave them there to get repaired and they never pick them up, and the bike shop doesnt have enough storage space for them. I got one of my mtn bikes that way.

 

[notlateforsuppa]

I'm gonna throw my question up in this thread: i ran over a chunk of asphalt and bent my back rim...do any of you out there know of a good trick to straighten out a rim? (other than using two hands and a knee) thanx i made it green to get your attention

you gotta use an ibm check this video out guys crazy like a fox!