Nuts 'N Bolts

Changing a Flat Bicycle Tire -- Using Your Five Senses*
aaaaike riding has many hazards, and one of the tiniest yet most debilitating is that annoying little leak in your tire. It can be caused by a nail, a thorn, a pricker, a piece of glass or a machete. If it's all but the last option you can fix your flat on your own at home or on the road with a few simple tools. You'll need a patch kit (about $3.00), tire irons (which are usually plastic), and a pump which is compatible with your type of tire (Presta or Shrader). I strongly recommend that you have all these items on your bike for any ride -- always be prepared. If you don't want to patch the tire you'll need a spare tube the correct size for your tire and a pump -- but be sure to inspect your tire for whatever offending particle gave you the flat or you'll be walking your new bike home.			a	A bike with two flat tires
Using the quick release	a	Removing the Flat Tube aaaaStep one in this process is to remove your wheel from the bike. First unlatch or disengage the break. Next, I am going to assume that you have a quick release wheel -- so loosen the release, spin it a few times, and it's ready to come off.
aaaaProbably the hardest part of this process is getting the tube out of the tire. The tire fits very snugly inside your wheel rims and this makes it hard to take off. Enter the Tire Irons. First make sure your tube is fully deflated - for Presta or Shrader valves depress the nipple and push on the tire till you don't hear any more air escaping. Now take your first tire iron and scoop the curvy end between the wheel rim and tire until you are able to pull part of the tire outside the wheel rim. The tire iron should have a hook at the other end--attach this hook to one of the spokes. Take your second tire iron 4-5 inches from the first and do the same thing. Now take your third tire iron, placing it close to the second, and scoop the tire one more time, only this time instead of hooking drag the iron around the wheel, pulling the tire out all along the way till you get to the first iron. a				Removing the tube using tire irons
Removing the offending thorn		Check the Tire aaaaWith the tube now exposed, pull the tube from the end of the wheel opposite the nipple. Pull out the entire tube and when you get to the nipple push it out from the outside as you pull from the tire side. Put the tube aside and inspect the tire for the offending particle - these can be very small so look carefully. Also it is best to see and feel for the puncturer. I recommend taking the tire in front of you and putting both of your hands inside the tire to feel the opposite sides of the inside of the tire. Feed the tire slowly through your hands an inch or two at a time while dragging your fingers along the inside of the tire (don't move too fast as you might find something sharp with your fingers and cut yourself). As you are doing this visually inspect the outside of the tire for glass, burrs, nails, or small or irregular holes. If you find something external remove it - and be sure nothing is left in the tire on the inside. If you see an unusual hole, double check the insides to be sure something still isn't in it. After you have
inspected the whole tire one or two times and removed anything, turn to the tube. Note: If you find something, don't stop inspecting--there may be something else there as well.
Find the hole in the Tube aaaaNow turn your attention to the tube. Take your pump and pump up the tube so that it is double its flat size or till it's well-inflated. Remove the pump and inspect the tube. This time you are going to listen for a hissing sound of air. Put the tube close to your ear and slowly run it through your hands. When you hear a hissing sound, inspect the area and find the hole. If your tire is inflated enough you should be able to see a little hole. Take the sandpaper in your patch kit and rough up the area around the hole a little. This gives the glue something to hold and it will help you find the hole when the tire is deflated. Now continue your inspection around the tube to see if there are any other leaks that you can hear. Note: If you have a leak near the nipple stem...get a new tire.				Listening for the sound of a hole
aaaaIf you can't hear any leaks but you know your tire is flat - inflate it even more, get a shallow plastic basin filled with water and slowly run the tube through that. One of the leaks I patched had a very small leak that was only detectable by running the tube through water.
After applying the patch		Patch the Tube aaaaWith the hole identified, put your finger on it to mark it and deflate the tube. Take the tube of vulcanizing glue in the patch kit and apply an area a little bigger than the size of the patch you intend to use. Let the glue dry a little (about a minute) and then put one of your patches over it (remove the backing paper or foil first). Push hard on the patch and pay particular attention to the edges to be sure that they are mashed into the glue and tire and are not up. If you have a lumpy spot on the edge add a little more glue and after it dries a little press on the edge with your finger nail to flatten it. Check for other Leaks aaaaGive your tube about two minutes to dry then inflate again.
Check the tube thoroughly for any other leaks and linger on your patch a little to see if you hear any noise. If you hear another noise, find the hole and repeat the "Patch the Tube" steps. If you don't hear anything else you are ready to reinsert.
Reinserting the Tube aaaaFirst deflate the tube almost fully (a little bit of shape makes it easier to hold in place). Make sure that the tire is on with one side of the bead in the wheel rim. Push the tire to the side and insert the nipple in through the hole. With a Presta tube you should have removed a little nut to take the tube off - with the nipple reinserted replace the nut and screw it on as tight as you can. Now feed the tube into the tire all the way around. Try not to get it twisted but don't be too concerned-it should work itself into the right place.				Reinserting the nipple
Using tire irons to reinsert the tube		aaaaWith the tube in the tire you need to reinsert the other bead of the tire into wheel rim. This will be easy for about three quarters of the wheel. When it starts to get difficult use your tire irons to pry the tire back on the rim. Start on the outsides using one iron on each side and finish in the middle - that center iron will be the hardest and it would probably be beneficial to have a friend help with this part (3 tire irons and only two hands is tricky).
Inflate and Go! aaaaWith the tire in the wheel rim, inflate it to its proper pressure (noted on the wall of the tire). With the tire on and inflated inspect the rim to make sure there are no bulges or spots that look like they might come out. If that's okay put the wheel back on your bike, tighten your quick release, reconnect your brake mechanism and you are ready to go! *Okay no tasting or smelling will be necessary -- except the taste of victory and the smell of your dust for the competitors!