Great insightful advice on rim strips! Just had 3 flats in 5 days when bike packing. And found the rim tape was poorly fitted and a tape overlap edge where the puncture occurred next to the valve hole , which incidently prob encouraged movement as a schrader hole with prests tubes. You've shown me the way through ! Manythanks 👍🙂
Wow, this is the first video on this topic that I was able to watch through and that was able to get me to actually understand my situation with my flats. Thank you ❤
Ah, thanks so much for that screwdriver tip! I wish I had seen this before installing my one-piece rim strip. But I was still able to use a tire lever to lift part of the strip and get the screwdriver underneath. After easily working my way around the wheel as shown, the rim strip was properly aligned, and I was even able to ever-so-slightly readjust the hole for the valve for perfect alignment with the wheel. I think my main problem from the beginning was being too gentle with my rim strip. I realize now that it can easily withstand some extra force and stretching, and that screwdriver trick proved to be crucial. Thanks again!
Thanks. Good Video! I have a pair of "Matrix Titan T" 700C 17mm rims on an old steel lug framed Raleigh Super Record road bike. I'd guess is original rim tape. It worked it's way sideways up the inside of the rims, actually uncovering some of the spoke bases. Honeslly thinking about it I never paid much attention to rim tape. But after a tube blew overnight I now will pat attention.
Excellent video...Thanks for sharing. You covered a lot of the important issues with faulty rim tapes and how to correctly install rim tape. Thanks mucho...Much appreciated. Happy trails and may the bike god bless you with only very rare tire issues. Cheers!
That was amazing actually. I have had 4 flats on the same tire in 3 months and the tube always punctures near a spoke spot with a cotton rip strip. The bike shop installed the cotton rim strip and they have been completely unhelpful to me in troubleshooting this issue. The 2nd nylon rim strip was never suggested by them but it makes perfect sense. So frustrating!
That depends how loose of a fit your tire is on the rim. Some have room for a very thick strip or strips. Other rims only have enough room for a thin strip before the tire is too tight to fit on the rim.
If spoke ends are sticking out that means the spokes are too long which will definitely cause flats. You can gently file or sand rough spots on spoke nipples but that is a bandaid fix rather than properly fixing with correct length spokes and nipples without sharp edges.
Electrical tape can work in a pinch but is more flexible than rim strips so gets pushed in to the holes (stressing the tube) more than rim tape/strips. It's also thicker than rim strips which can make the tire a tighter fit and harder to get on and off.
Only in cases where the rim has an especially deep center "valley" section that the belly of the tube would otherwise have to stretch to reach. That's becoming more common on tubeless rims and some other modern rims where the additional bends created by that "valley" increase stiffness.
You are correct! I was so busy narrating that I forgot step 1 and 2 which is clean the rim with rubbing alcohol and a plain white paper towel* then spin it in my truing stand and blast it with compressed air to completely dry it and blow on fuzz or loose debris off the rim. *If you use paper towels with pretty flowers on them (or any colored towels) the alcohol will cause the ink to smear all over the rim making a bigger mess. Never use cloth shop rags because they will smear whatever chemicals are left on them all over the rim too.
Thank you. Very professional. So many UA-camrs spend 10 minutes not even getting to the point. I watched your whole video!
Great insightful advice on rim strips! Just had 3 flats in 5 days when bike packing. And found the rim tape was poorly fitted and a tape overlap edge where the puncture occurred next to the valve hole , which incidently prob encouraged movement as a schrader hole with prests tubes. You've shown me the way through ! Manythanks 👍🙂
Wow, this is the first video on this topic that I was able to watch through and that was able to get me to actually understand my situation with my flats. Thank you ❤
Impressive articulation and use of right words. Excellent English.
Insightful and Useful. Thanks for showing what the issues and solutions are when installing a bike rim strip. Great job!
Ah, thanks so much for that screwdriver tip! I wish I had seen this before installing my one-piece rim strip. But I was still able to use a tire lever to lift part of the strip and get the screwdriver underneath. After easily working my way around the wheel as shown, the rim strip was properly aligned, and I was even able to ever-so-slightly readjust the hole for the valve for perfect alignment with the wheel.
I think my main problem from the beginning was being too gentle with my rim strip. I realize now that it can easily withstand some extra force and stretching, and that screwdriver trick proved to be crucial. Thanks again!
Thanks. Good Video!
I have a pair of "Matrix Titan T" 700C 17mm rims on an old steel lug framed Raleigh Super Record road bike. I'd guess is original rim tape. It worked it's way sideways up the inside of the rims, actually uncovering some of the spoke bases. Honeslly thinking about it I never paid much attention to rim tape. But after a tube blew overnight I now will pat attention.
Impressive !! Been struggling with flats lately, and wondering if I was not factoring in the rim strip. GREAT video very helpful. THANKS !
Thanks a lot, Tailwind Cyclists. I had two tubes punctured and now I know the cause of the loud explosion. Always good to know the root cause.
Excellent video...Thanks for sharing. You covered a lot of the important issues with faulty rim tapes and how to correctly install rim tape. Thanks mucho...Much appreciated. Happy trails and may the bike god bless you with only very rare tire issues. Cheers!
That was amazing actually. I have had 4 flats on the same tire in 3 months and the tube always punctures near a spoke spot with a cotton rip strip. The bike shop installed the cotton rim strip and they have been completely unhelpful to me in troubleshooting this issue. The 2nd nylon rim strip was never suggested by them but it makes perfect sense. So frustrating!
Excellent video. I’ve been struggling with that exact too narrow rim strip problem and flats. My wider strip is on order.
Thanks,
Tremendously helpful video 👍 thank you
U were real helpful with this i was wondering if it was ok to use both
That depends how loose of a fit your tire is on the rim. Some have room for a very thick strip or strips. Other rims only have enough room for a thin strip before the tire is too tight to fit on the rim.
PRECIOUS Video! LoVE all the tips and the reusable rim tape!! THank you, Sir!
We're having this problem on the tandem, back tire. Very frustrating. Question: Why not use 2x wider tape instead of one narrow, one wide? Thanks!
Thank you!
Can extremely sharp spoke ends be filed smooth before applying strip???
If spoke ends are sticking out that means the spokes are too long which will definitely cause flats. You can gently file or sand rough spots on spoke nipples but that is a bandaid fix rather than properly fixing with correct length spokes and nipples without sharp edges.
great video
🙋🏼♀ Thx.
is electric tape an inferior alternative? i multilayered it on.
Electrical tape can work in a pinch but is more flexible than rim strips so gets pushed in to the holes (stressing the tube) more than rim tape/strips. It's also thicker than rim strips which can make the tire a tighter fit and harder to get on and off.
Where can get 10mm rim tape?
Velox 10mm rim tape is available at pretty much every bicycle shop and online store.
VELOX Rim Tape 10mm Narrow a.co/d/aeWXmxZ
Tks a lot
Do you need both rim tape and a rim strip?
Only in cases where the rim has an especially deep center "valley" section that the belly of the tube would otherwise have to stretch to reach. That's becoming more common on tubeless rims and some other modern rims where the additional bends created by that "valley" increase stiffness.
Good tips, thanks!
cut an old inner tube with a scissor and use it as a rim strip .
fast is good but you gotta do it right
23mm wide...
Hey you shouldve cleaned the rim with rubbing alcohol to start with!!
You are correct! I was so busy narrating that I forgot step 1 and 2 which is clean the rim with rubbing alcohol and a plain white paper towel* then spin it in my truing stand and blast it with compressed air to completely dry it and blow on fuzz or loose debris off the rim.
*If you use paper towels with pretty flowers on them (or any colored towels) the alcohol will cause the ink to smear all over the rim making a bigger mess. Never use cloth shop rags because they will smear whatever chemicals are left on them all over the rim too.