Can you change a rear flat?

[hirakukibou]

I am a bicycle riding instructor with a mission. I want to teach a many cyclists to change a rear flat as I can (especially women, although I will teach anyone :)). I have a theory that when folks learn to change the rear flat, that the fear of the bicycle decreases (as does confidence and the freedom to not worry so much going out alone) and allows for the possibility of learning more mechanics. Just a thought. So, I wondered how many of you feel competent at changing a rear flat tire? If so, how did you learn? If not, what's in the way?

[Geonz]

Hmmm.... I can change a rear flat... but I really don't like to, so I get really sturdy tyres. I learned to do it because I had to. It's not that different from the front.

[TsPoet]

How's it different from changing the front? I assume you mean, can you put the rear wheel back on?

[ny biker]

I can change a rear flat, because fate messes with me by causing my rear tire to flat way more often than my front tire.

I hate it because it's messier. I always get grease on my hands putting the chain back on the cog. Maybe it's possible to do this without touching the chain, but I never seem to be able to do it.

I learned how to remove/reinstall a rear tire from the LBS guy who sold me my road bike. I asked him how to do it because I needed to remove both tires in order to fit my bike in the trunk of my car. I think it's intimidating because it seems hard to put everything back together properly when you're done.

And now that I've answered this email, I have jinxed myself and will have to change a flat tire soon....

[lph]

To be perfectly honest, I can't remember not knowing how to. My parents were useless, and I can vaguely remember my dh teaching me some stuff, but I also remember pretty early on doing optimistic stuff like disassembling my brakes and rear derailleur and expecting to be able to assemble it all again "by eye". So I guess I've been messing with my bike too long to answer your question. I agree wholeheartedly with your mission, though! I'm giving easy wrenching lessons at work myself now, and I really enjoy teaching what I feel are important skills. Especially for women, many women I've talked to who I know are strong, skilled, confident riders and ride all through the winter, but who wait with changing summer/winter tires until their dhs can do it for them.

What tricks do you teach to make putting on the rear tire easier? Which way do you have the bike?

[callmej]

Once on a group ride, a guy flatted the rear tire. When he pulled out his baggie with the spare tube, he had also stuffed in one of those thin latex medical gloves. He put the glove on his right hand and always used that hand when removing and replacing the chain in order to keep his hands clean -which I thought was a great idea.

To answer the question, I have and can change a flat rear tire, but I am not fast.

[Biciclista]

i have never successfully done it. I have so many issues including tight skewers, not remembering what gear to get the bike into, tires too hard to get off the rims...
fortunately for me, I am generally with my husband who can change a rear flat in 7 minutes when I am on long rides, and other times, I am in the city near mass transit.
Once I had to walk a mile...

[Owlie]

Ha, I just came back in from changing a front flat. (Hopefully I put it back on right and won't give myself a pinch flat...)

Yes, I can change a rear flat (though it takes me forever to do so). DBF showed me how to change a tire, but it still took me having to do it myself (while juggling the book and calling him for tips) to really figure out how to do it. It's not changing the tube that's the problem. It's not even the grime that's the problem. My problem is getting the wheel on and off the bike by myself. The tires are slightly too wide for the brakes (even deflated), and the wheel likes to hang up forward of the dropouts and requires a heck of a lot of wiggling, cajoling, and swearing to get back on. :mad:

However, I do feel more confident in changing one out on the road/trail, even if I have to flag someone down just to hold the bike still.

[Trek-chick]

I can change a rear flat. I learned by teaching myself. I have a good bicycle maintenance/repair book that I refer to frequently.

I decided to practice changing tires/tubes at home before starting to commute to work. I did not want to be stuck somewhere not knowing what to do.

[Velocivixen]

YES! I took a free bike clinic at my LBS last Autumn and he showed us how to do it with NO hands on. I got a handout also.
Four weeks ago I went to the same LBS for the same "How to change a flat" free class with a different instructor and he made each of us take the wheel out and after he changed the tube, made us all put the wheel back in (he demonstrated first of course). Actually doing it made all the difference in the world!

[Crankin]

I have the same issues as Mimi. I can do the skewer, get the tire off, put the new tube back in (have even done this for friends who couldn't). I have put the rear back on while practicing in the numerous workshops I have been to, but any time I have practiced at home, my bike ends up in pieces, with the chain lying on the ground. I don't like riding alone because of this. It's very hard for me to remember exactly what to do... I have a great memory for other things, but if it's steps in a mechanical process or math problem, forget it. Plus, it's very hard for me to visualize anything and I have no spatial ability.
But, my goal for this year is to feel confident with this after ten years of riding.

[Biciclista]

the best solution i can see is getting really good tires my husband has over 10,000 miles on his Schwalbe Marathon Plus tires with NO flats and he rides through glass and crumbling roads every single day in every kind of weather.

[lauraelmore1033]

I can change a rear tire. I took a beginning maintenance class. I think you're right about confidence growing from the ability to change one's own tires. When I'm riding with dh, and one or the other of us gets a flat, we divide the task of changing the tube between us; I remove and repace tube and tire and then hand off to hubby who pumps it up. We're back on the road in no time.

[Catrin]

I experimented with changing my rear tire on my LHT - tire change was EASY :) Getting the rear wheel back on was not :rolleyes: More practice is required. Last night I learned that wider tires also makes things interesting!

[chryss]

I changed/fixed many flats, front and rear, with hub gears or derailleurs, in my teens and twenties, but admittedly haven't in a while. (Tires seem to have become a lot better in the last years and I was blessed with a lack of flats lately.) Because I feel a lot less competent at dinking around with my bike, I'm taking a 6 week maintenance course that starts in two weeks :) .

[OakLeaf]

Ha, I'm just like lph. I don't remember ever not knowing how to fix a flat ... and I don't remember my parents owning so much as a screwdriver. They must have, I suppose, but it wasn't part of our home culture. When I was about 15 I disassembled a freewheel, down to the pawls that went flying everywhere, just because. :D And got it back together and working, with nothing but a kid's perseverance, cheap hardware store tools I bought for myself, and some paperback book that I don't even remember the title.


I let the LBS replace my freehub last summer, although when I found out that the guy used YouTube to learn how, I kind of wished I'd just gone ahead and done it myself. :rolleyes: And I'm a little intimidated by bleeding hydraulic lines - I don't have any on my bicis, but I always get DH to supervise when I change the brake fluid on my motos.

I haven't had a headset, bottom bracket or hub apart since I was in my 20's. I'd probably be a little shy about doing it now. :p

[Bluetree]

Everyone should know how to change both tires and do routine emergency maintenance on the road. Seriously.

For all the feminism promoted on this site, not being able to change your own tires smacks a bit like "poor little girl" syndrome. If you don't know how...learn. Call your friends. Call your LBS. Watch online videos. Practice at home. Stop making excuses.

Buck it up, TE'ers. I know you can.

[OakLeaf]

Help is always welcome - a tire change happens a lot quicker with two people. Once the wheel's off, one person pulls the tire off and the tube out, while the other gets the supplies out of the seat pack, prepares the new tube and CO2 inflater, etc. I've never had a guy act like he thought I couldn't change a tire.

Except, the last time a guy stepped in to help me change a tire he put it on backwards. :rolleyes: I didn't notice until I aired the tire the next time.

Fortunately it was the front tire, so all I had to do was reverse the wheel in the dropouts. Fortunately or unfortunately, I never got another flat on that tire, and I think I ran the wheel backwards for another 2,000 miles until the tire wore out (yeah, I know I could've taken it off and put it back on the right way). It's good for the hub to run the other direction sometimes, right? :p


ETA: thanks everyone for not pointing out to my idiot self that all I would've had to do was reverse the skewer...

[soprano]

I can fix most of my rear flats in about 10 minutes. I taught myself out of one of the Zinn maintenance books. Usually the part that takes the longest is finding the cause of the flat. My vision is not so hot, so I usually have to seek out really good light in order to find the gravel/glass/thorn/whatever, although sometimes I haul out my headlight for help.

Every so often I see someone walking a bike with a flat, with a devastated/lost look on his or her face. When I offer to help with the flat, they always act very surprised that it is a repair that can easily be done on the spot, with simple, cheap tools. I'm of the opinion that a big barrier here is ignorance - if you don't know that it can be done, you aren't going to learn.

I tend to get a little excited whenever something goes wrong with my bike, because then I get to learn how to fix it. Last week I got to adjust the headset :D

[redrhodie]

I can change rear flats, but the horizontal dropouts on my red Merckx are frustrating, and it can take me a long time to get that wheel back on, and there might be some hair-pulling and throwing of things :rolleyes:. Since I just got new wheels for that bike, the other night I practiced taking it off and on a couple of times with the best results ever, so I think I finally have a handle on it. I think it helped that I was in the right frame of mind to practice. It was not stressful, and it went right on.

[nscrbug]

I can and have done both a front and rear tire change, but I agree with Oakleaf...in that help is always welcomed. It goes much faster with a helping hand. And since the majority of my riding is always done with at least 1 other person, I'm pretty much covered. :cool:

[tulip]

Everyone should know how to change both tires and do routine emergency maintenance on the road. Seriously.

For all the feminism promoted on this site, not being able to change your own tires smacks a bit like "poor little girl" syndrome. If you don't know how...learn. Call your friends. Call your LBS. Watch online videos. Practice at home. Stop making excuses.

Buck it up, TE'ers. I know you can.

My sentiments, exactly. It's not rocket science. Practice until it hurts and then practice some more. There is no excuse for being stranded because of one doesn't know how to fix a flat. Same thing goes for cars, by the way.

[Crankin]

Bluetree, the fact is that some of us have a hard time learning or doing this. It's not that we "won't." I can do every part of the tube/tire thing, but I cannot get the rear wheel back on. I know what gear to put the derailleur in before taking it off, but by the time I do that and lay the bike down, I am lucky if the chain isn't totally disengaged from everything. If I manage to not do that, it is almost impossible for me to hold the rear end of the bike up, position the chain over the ring, pull the derailleur back, and get the bike into the drop outs at the same time. It's like I need 3 hands. I have actually pulled my back out, twice, from trying to do this. And my bike weighs less than 15 pounds. I am totally uncoordinated, have really bad fine motor and spatial skills, and while I want to be independent, if there's someone else there to do this, at this point, it's fine with me. Of course, I have only had 3 flats in 10 years. Two were at home, thankfully. My DH can change a flat in like 2 minutes, and I am not exaggerating. He can also do it without tools, if need be. So, believe me, it's extremely frustrating to not be able to do this. And when I've tried to practice at home, I just end up with my bike in pieces and me crying, pretty much. Frankly, I don't want to break my bike by bending something while "practicing." I am not kidding when I say that sometimes, I can barely zip a zipper. For me to be riding 3,000 miles a year is a miracle in itself.
I hope this gives you a perspective on why some of us have trouble.

[zoom-zoom]

Same thing goes for cars, by the way.

Ha, the one time I had a flat on my car while by myself I couldn't get the lugnuts to budge and decided that a stretch of divided highway with cars whizzing by at 75+mph was no place to dicker-around with a flat tire on the traffic side of the car (especially as I had my kid with me...seeing mom get pasted by a semi didn't seem like the best memory for him to have). I wasn't far from home and called my hubby...even his 250# self struggled to get them off. That's what cell phones are for, IMO. :D

I have been lucky to not have a single flat while on my bike in nearly 5k miles of riding. *knocks on wood* I know I could change the front tire on my own...and the back. Like others, I have simply struggled to get the back tire back on and wish I had 3 hands.

[Susan Otcenas]

but I cannot get the rear wheel back on. I know what gear to put the derailleur in before taking it off, but by the time I do that and lay the bike down, I am lucky if the chain isn't totally disengaged from everything. If I manage to not do that, it is almost impossible for me to hold the rear end of the bike up, position the chain over the ring, pull the derailleur back, and get the bike into the drop outs at the same time.

Turn your bike upside down and rest it on the handlebars and saddle. (You make need to take your computer off. I do.) This is my strategy for not having to balance anything. Plus, gravity is your friend - it helps the rear wheel slip into the drop outs correctly.

With the miles I ride, flats are inevitable. I had one just this weekend in the middle of nowhere. I carry TWO tubes, a spare TIRE and a patch kit (which I check regularly for glue consistency.)

I ride alone a lot, especially at night on long brevets, so knowing how to change a flat is critical. And knowing how to do it well enough when I'm tired, hungry, it's cold or dark (or all 4 of those things at once! :eek: ) is really important.

I've trained myself to change my tires without the aid of tire levers. You can to. It does NOT require great strength (I'm a wimp.). It requires technique. We have a very good " how to" on the TE website. I've had gals print it off and then practice in their living rooms until they get it down. Doing it at home when you don't NEED to is way less stressful than when you are out on the road and HAVE to.

http://www.teamestrogen.com/content/asa_levers

Try it! :)

[Crankin]

Thanks for trying to help, Susan, but I won't turn my bike over for 2 reasons. One, I don't want to damage the bike, especially the handlebars, but two, that would be death for someone like me, because then everything is in a different place. I would have to visually learn and memorize where all of the parts are again and I would be very confused. I can't even put air in my tires when the valve is not on the bottom of the tire, because then the action of the lever on the pump/latch thing is backwards and I can't figure out what to do....

[ultraviolet]

...that would be death for someone like me, because then everything is in a different place. I would have to visually learn and memorize where all of the parts are again and I would be very confused.

I have this same problem. Luckily, I've never struggled too much with getting the rear wheel back on, but when someone was first trying to teach me how to do it, they suggested turning the bike over. I tried, but I spent so long staring at it trying to reassemble the order of the parts in my head that I just ended up frustrated and annoyed. It just didn't work with the way my brain works.

Brains are weird.

[azfiddle]

Yes, I can change a rear flat by myself :)

Actually, what worried me most the one time I had to do it alone was remembering exactly how to use the CO2 inflater. I can't take off a tire w/o levers, but I can put it back on without levers.

Usually I am with someone else when I get a flat, and it is easier with two people. I prefer to set the bike upside down as well.

[alice]

I tend to get a little excited whenever something goes wrong with my bike, because then I get to learn how to fix it.


Me too!

I learned how to fix a rear flat (okay, admittedly how to fix a flat altogether) when I got my first one; I took it to the Bike Garage, and a bike-handy girl with a very bad attitude taught me how, without getting my hands too dirty, and without using tire levers. It was a good first lesson (minus the attitude).

Getting a rear wheel out/in isn't an issue for me at all, but getting the tires off/on my 16" wheels is killer; I don't have the brute strength to do it without help, though I can do it on 700 cc wheels no problem.

I'm all for people learning how to do repairs on their own, but I don't feel right judging people who simply choose not to do those repairs on the road. If you have a phone and a friend with a car, and that's the way you want to take care of it, it doesn't bother me at all.

[Bluetree]

I won't turn my bike over for 2 reasons. One, I don't want to damage the bike, especially the handlebars

Poppycock. I guarantee you my handlebars cost way more than yours and I'm not afraid of hurting my bike(s). Sounds like you're grasping for an excuse.


two, that would be death for someone like me, because then everything is in a different place. I would have to visually learn and memorize where all of the parts are again and I would be very confused.

So what's wrong with learning where everything is again? Obviously what you've been doing before doesn't work.


Crankin, I don't want to sound unsympathetic, but you seem to have a lot of "can'ts" and "won'ts" in your vocabulary and quite frankly, nothing will change if you keep that attitude. You CAN do it, especially if you decide to stop acting like a sulky child and be the person you want to be, and the person we know you can be.

[Bike Writer]

Yes I can change a rear flat. (I am so proud to be able to say that). And it has made me interested in other repairs so much so, that I took bike repair 101 and 102 this winter at the LBS.

I ride alone about 80% of the time and want to be self-sufficient. Knowning how to do fix-its on the road gives me enormous confidence.

I change it with the bike upside down and could not imagine doing it rightside up. I also lube my chain that way and would not be able to lube it any other way. The first time I dropped a chain I struggled with it and needed help. By the third time I learned how easy it was to flip the bike over instead of fighting it while I was upside down.

[PamNY]

Yes, I can fix a rear flat. I like cycling alone, so I have no choice.

I may look a little klutzy, but it gets done. And I do turn the bike upside down. I thought everyone did?

[Triskeliongirl]

Wow, I didn't know this was a problem for anyone. It is easier if you shift into small/small rings, and flip your bike over, but come on gals..........it's just not that hard. JUST look at it! I mean that. That's how I do all my bike maintenance. Just look at it and you can figure out what you are supposed to do.

If you are careful flipping your bike upside will not damage anything. But its not that hard to do it upright either. I just don't understand what the problem is.

[Crankin]

Bluetree, I am not a cranky child. The op of this thread is my riding buddy and I will be getting a "private lesson" soon. She certainly isn't judgmental. I hesitated to respond to this, because I knew I would get this type of remark. It's OK, though, because I know how hard I have tried... 3-4 workshops (the last one by a woman mechanic), classes, innumerable lessons from my DH, who is very patient. Generally, I am am a pretty strident, independent person, but I will give you a comparison that maybe will help you understand. Do you know anyone with dyslexia or some other kind of learning disability? Would you tell them "just to try" when they kept misreading words, losing their place, or unable to decode a word? Non-verbal learning disabilities are pretty much hidden, and poor spatial relations and fine motor problems are learning disabilities, or at the least "learning styles." I have overcome a lot of what I faced as a kid, but there's a lot of stuff I just don't do. My good verbal skills have pretty much helped me out in life.
It's not that I "won't" learn things in a new way. I have difficulty learning spatial things any way; I have to over learn and memorize, because it doesn't stay in my brain and become intuitive, ever.
It's not like I have stopped trying, but frankly, I deal with it by riding with people most of the time. I mean, my learning issues affect every part of my life and the advent of technology has only made it worse, because unless something is verbally mediated, it is very, very difficult for me.

[Crankin]

It's clear that what I am trying to explain is not understandable to a lot of people. I can't "just look at it" because I don't remember anything about it after a second. I don't see how parts work or are situated in relation to other parts. I don't see how things work together.
Mechanical aptitude is a skill like anything else. Most people can learn some of it, and others are very good at it.
You might not believe the list of things that are extremely difficult for me, or down right impossible. I have overcompensated all of my life with my speaking, writing, organizational, and social skills.

[ridenread]

Cognitively I know how to change a flat but physically I just can not do it on my own. Heck, I can't even adjust the strap on my heart rate monitor or helmet. I am extremely bright and competent in other areas of life. However, I too have significant visual spatial difficulties which leave me mechanically challenged and frustrated. I am not whining, just stating a fact. It is not a matter of just practicing or deciding that I can do it. My brain just does not allow me to do this type of thing. Crankin, I understand completely, you are not the only one.

[Cataboo]

Bluetree should fly out and see Crankin & Ridenread and teach them how to do a rear flat.

Crankin - do you carry a camera or a cell phone when you ride? If you do and have to do a rear flat, maybe take a picture of the rear chainline before removing the wheel, so that you have something to guide you when you're ready to put the wheel back on. I do that with trail maps when hiking or mountain biking - take a picture, and zoom in on the camera image when I think I might be lost. I have carbon handlebars, but pretty much they are covered in handlebar tape across the flat area - so as long as I put the bike down gently upside down, the bars, saddle & handlebar tape don't get hurt. I do think it's easier to do it upside down than with the bike lying on its side. If you put the tire back on when it's upside down and the bike is in the smallest gear, gravity and the chain just guides the wheel back in virtually by itself without you really having to know what it's supposed to look like.

I ride by myself mostly, so yes, I can do a rear tire.

Zoom-zoom - the tire irons that come with modern cars are way too short to get leverage on especially when your tires have been put on by an air wrench. I replace 'em with an old long tire iron when I first get a car. I also carry a short section of pipe that I can slide over the tire iron to increase how long a lever iron I have. The pipe is actually part of the shaft for a collapsable shovel I keep in my car. Basically I stand on the end of the lever arm while holding on to the roof rack of my car and jump up and down till I can get the lug nut free.

[hulagirl]

My training group always does a rear-tire clinic and then flats all our rear tires and times us all! It's great fun. (ladies only training group)

We learn that if we turn our rears towards traffic, we might get someone to pull over and help us.

Or not. :D

Yes, getting the bugger back on is public enemy #1 for me. But my LBS showed me a way to do it in about 1 second. Just popped it right on, didn't even touch the chain. Held up bike with one hand, popped in wheel, hooked the chain and DONE.

I still can't figure it out! LOL!

But yes, learn. EVERYONE. Flat your rear tire every day if you have to. It can be learned with time, effort and patience. Make yourself a cheat sheet and laminate it and stick it in your bike bag.

And yes, I too subscribe to the rubber glove in the bike bag theory.

Denise

[PamNY]

Really, people have different aptitudes. Plumbing flummoxes me; I will not so much as put a washer on a faucet.

Fixing a flat is a good skill to have, but if you aren't in a situation where your safety is compromised, I don't see it as a big issue. I would be very surprised if people like Crankin are putting themselves at unreasonable risk.

[zoom-zoom]

Crankin - do you carry a camera or a cell phone when you ride? If you do and have to do a rear flat, maybe take a picture of the rear chainline before removing the wheel, so that you have something to guide you when you're ready to put the wheel back on.

Zoom-zoom - the tire irons that come with modern cars are way too short to get leverage on especially when your tires have been put on by an air wrench. I replace 'em with an old long tire iron when I first get a car. I also carry a short section of pipe that I can slide over the tire iron to increase how long a lever iron I have. The pipe is actually part of the shaft for a collapsable shovel I keep in my car. Basically I stand on the end of the lever arm while holding on to the roof rack of my car and jump up and down till I can get the lug nut free.

Oh, I love all of these suggestions! The photo one is brilliant, since I always ride with my phone and never would have been resourceful enough to think of using the camera on it to help me get my wheel back on--sweet! :D

[OakLeaf]

Oh! Here's the book I had: http://cgi.ebay.com/CLEAR-CREEK-BIKE-BOOK-several-authors-1972-/150240887529 It was driving me nuts, I couldn't remember it until I was almost asleep. :)

Now back to your regularly scheduled flame war. :cool:

[lauraelmore1033]

Now back to your regularly scheduled flame war. :cool:
you'd think somebody'd brought up the subject of ear buds. Yeesh!:eek:

[Bike Writer]

the tire irons that come with modern cars are way too short to get leverage on especially when your tires have been put on by an air wrench. I replace 'em with an old long tire iron when I first get a car. I also carry a short section of pipe that I can slide over the tire iron to increase how long a lever iron I have. The pipe is actually part of the shaft for a collapsable shovel I keep in my car. Basically I stand on the end of the lever arm while holding on to the roof rack of my car and jump up and down till I can get the lug nut free.

The image of this cracked me up! But it is a very good idea and I've picked up several from this thread. I particularly like the one about the glove especially because I have so much experience with chains falling off. Neat idea. And using the phone for photos besides sceanery.

Plus I feel the need to say this in general on this thread

Please play nice! Pretty please.

We are here to encourage one another not tear ourself apart. This isn't life or death.

[KathiCville]

I vaguely remember how to fix a flat, but now that I've read this thread I'm inspired to re-learn the skill! I love the idea of using the phone camera to capture how the back tire should slip into place. Great tip! Thanks!

[marni]

like most people, the only flats I have ever had (three in 7 years of riding) were in the rear. I know how to flip the bike, take the wheel off, change the tube, check the inside of the tire, do a slight inflation to check for leaks in the new tube and get it tucked back into the tire and then get the tire back into position to put the tire back onto the wheel. Then it gets really reall difficult because I have weak arthritic hands. The changing part usually takes me about 10 minutes , getting the tire back on the wheel can take any where up to an hour or more. I just lack the strenth and flexibility to pry the tire back onto the wheel. By the time I have finished I swear I will never ever ride again and of course it always happens on some way out country farm road with little or no traffic, much less a helpful biker or passerby. I usually get honked at, shown the finger and blasted with the truck exhaust.

Eternal vigilence on the tires before after and during the ride are the price I pay, that and the kevlar lining on my tires.

I learned at a LBS clinic and then have did a couple at home to practice.

I am glad to know how and can if it necessary but what I cherish is the independence of being self sufficient.

marni

[Jones]

I know how. I did just what Susan said, it never dawned on me that changing a rear flat was more difficult than a front flat.

[Velocivixen]

I forgot to mention that during my class with the hands on the bike was upside down and that made it very easy because the bike supported itself. I stood behind the bike and used my left hand to pull the derailleur back toward me and used my right hand to grab the wheel and pull it up out of the dropouts.

[Susan]

I can change a rear tire and fix a flat. I think I learned a lot this stuff, like finding the hole in a flat tire and putting it on or oiling or cleaning things, from my grandpa when I was 3 or 4. My family still laughs about how I always wanted to "operate" my scooter and my first bike when I was small.

Still, I always have to find out how to put the chain in the right spot again if I have to change it or the tire or the jockey wheels, it's a bit confusing.

[OakLeaf]

Glove or no glove, how do you do it without getting your handlebar tape dirty? Once the new tube is in, you still need to pick the bike up to put the wheel back in, and touch the chain afterward. Having a clean rag between hand and handlebar is probably the way to go, but it just seems like an extra level of hassle. Anyone?

[Crankin]

Good morning everyone.
I was surprised to see this thread continuing.
I don't think it's a flame war. I feel like I've done some education, on something that is mostly invisible. Maybe I spoke a little more loudly than Bicciclista, but she also said the same thing!
I do carry a cell phone, Cataboo, but I think I have a better chance of just practicing more with my hands than the picture. Looking at pictures and diagrams is notoriously worthless for me, or I would have done it long ago. Funny, I am good with directions and finding my way around; my issues are pretty specific. And I had a great female role model for being mechanical: my mom. She could do everything. She once fixed my garbage disposal after she had mistakenly put artichoke leaves down there and green ooze was escaping from under the sink. I get this from my dad, who I have seen hit his hand with a hammer while putting in a nail, shut his hand in the car door, as well as perpetually winning the last place prize at a golf tournament every year. My older son inherited some of it and had occupational therapy for a year, to help him, when he was little. He is much better than me at this kind of stuff, but then, he also inherited DH's super mechanical genes.

[tulip]

Oakleaf: black handlebar tape.

[OakLeaf]

Oakleaf: black handlebar tape.

<----- But ... but ... but ... it has to match my blue tires ... :D



ETA - there's one thing I really suck at, and will go crying to someone else (male or female, that doesn't matter) to do it for me, given half a chance. Wrapping fat handlebar tape. I was fine with the cloth tape we had back in the day ... even the thinner cork I eventually graduated to ... this synthetic stuff is comfortable, durable and pretty, but I just canNOT get it started without leaving a big lump at the bar end, plus I always wind up having to unwrap it and do it over five or six times to get the winding even around the bends.

[zoom-zoom]

But ... but ... but ... it has to match my blue tires ... :D

My next tires will be blue to match my handlebar tape... :D

[OakLeaf]

My next tires will be blue to match my handlebar tape... :D

Well then you will want to know that the Conti GP4000 blue is a perfect match for the Spec' S-Wrap (looks like they've changed the tape styles a bit from what I have, but the colors look the same on the website, anyway).

[zoom-zoom]

Well then you will want to know that the Conti GP4000 blue is a perfect match for the Spec' S-Wrap (looks like they've changed the tape styles a bit from what I have, but the colors look the same on the website, anyway).

I have the metallic blue Sidi tape, but my cables are that same blue as the Conti tires. I can't wait to have enough miles on my bike to replace my tires! I probably need to log another 1500-2k miles before I'll be due. Gotta get pedaling! :D

[OakLeaf]

Look at about 1:30. This is the video I used when I did the 1.5 rolls of tape on my Miyata. It was easy:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fs7BY4wKHTM

Well ... if you look at 7:20 or so, he does wind up with a bit of a lump, although admittedly not nearly as much as I usually get. When I let the LBS do it, there's NONE. There must be some trick he does at 1:30 to keep from having the fattest part of the tape at the edge of the bar where it gets folded over - but he doesn't say anything about it. Either that or the tape just isn't as fat as the kind I use. :confused:

Also with an ergo bar there's a lot more finessing around the bends, but that's just a matter of practice. Avoiding the lump at the end, there's got to be something I'm not doing (or something I'm doing that I shouldn't :p).

[tulip]

<----- But ... but ... but ... it has to match my blue tires ... :D


My bike is red with a black fork and black seat stays. My tires are black with red stripes. My handlebar tape is black. There are very practical reasons that handlebar tape and cycling shorts should always be black.

[hebe]

This is a very useful thread, thank you everone for all the links and advice. I haven't changed a flat yet. No excuse, but my errand rides are still so short that I could walk the bike home in less time than it would take to fix the flat, and my off-road rides are a 5mile loop from my front door. That won't always be the case though and I should really fix this gap in my knowledge.

Crankin and others, I get the whole spatial awareness thing. I turned my bike upside down to unjam the chain, and it looked like a completely different thing to me. Swapping pedals between bikes was a real moment of enlightenment as I tried to work out which way to turn the wrench for each pedal.

[Norse]

Once upon a time I was out for a solo ride and had a rear flat. I did not know how to remedy this, DP was unavailable and I had to sit and wait for a cab to take me and the bike back home. :o I was determined that this would never happen again. I looked at several "DYI" websites and then had the guys at the LBS show me, several times, how to do it. I went home and practiced. The first time, I think it took over 1/2 an hour. I have since had to change several rear flats and it takes me about 15 - 20 minutes usually, 10 if I get lucky. I have even helped one of the guys I sometimes ride with and he said he was glad I was there because it would have taken him forever! :)

[Susan Otcenas]

Glove or no glove, how do you do it without getting your handlebar tape dirty? Once the new tube is in, you still need to pick the bike up to put the wheel back in, and touch the chain afterward. Having a clean rag between hand and handlebar is probably the way to go, but it just seems like an extra level of hassle. Anyone?

That's why black bike shorts were invented. :D

[GLC1968]

That's why black bike shorts were invented. :D

Or socks. :o I've been known to remove my shoes and socks, wipe my hands with my socks and then redress my feet before continuing. And I have white bar tape and it is still bee-you-ti-ful! :p

I haven't clicked on all the links included here because I can change flats on bikes or cars faster than most people, but if you are flipping your bike over and putting the rear wheel back on, please make sure to put it right side up and THEN tighten (or release and then retighten) the skewer lever. It is possible (and easy) to put a tire on slightly uneven when it's upside down that that makes riding really difficult (speaking from experience here!). If the bike is right-side-up, the weight of it will straigten it out with little effort.

[spokewench]

Of course, I can change a rear flat or any flat for that matter. My husband taught me years ago when I first started riding. I've raced for 15 years so many times and have been a "bicycle instructor" so I've probably changed more men's flats than anyone elses. They are notorious for never having the stuff to change their flats!

[MomOnBike]

Back when I was a sulky pre-teen and dinosaurs walked the earth my long suffering father insisted that I learn how to fix a flat before I was allowed to ride. This was back in the days when you needed two crescent wrenches to remove a wheel - and God help you if you used pliers.

So, yes, I do indeed know how to change a rear flat. What I don't understand is how I can get chain grease on my nose by simply thinking about the deed.

As for wrapping handlebars, I gave up on the tape thing and sewed leather covers onto my project bike's bars. No lumps, and they are lovely. Black too, so flipping him upside down is no problem. :D

[PamNY]

Does anybody remember how we lived without the internet?

I did take a short class, but my bike repair skills would not have developed without TE, Sheldon Brown, and a couple of people on Youtube.

[OakLeaf]

What I don't understand is how I can get chain grease on my nose by simply thinking about the deed.

Now you know why I don't work on anything with more than two wheels. There's something just wrong about 10W30 in your hair.


Okay, I will change the oil in the lawn tractor. If I have to. If batting my eyes at DH doesn't work. :p

[GLC1968]

Does anybody remember how we lived without the internet?

I did take a short class, but my bike repair skills would not have developed without TE, Sheldon Brown, and a couple of people on Youtube.

No kidding.

Without the internet, I never would have met my husband, found our last three homes or successfully helped our goat through a delivery gone wrong in 2009. Oh, and I'd probably have long since given up on biking because I wouldn't have known that I didn't have to HATE my saddle without TE!

[sfa]

I'm one of those cursed by fate to only get flats in my rear tire. Usually while riding fully loaded on tour in the middle of nowhere (seriously, it's been years since I've gotten a flat--last one I had to change was while touring). Changing the rear tire is messier than the front, and slower, but not really any more difficult.

I keep a few baby wipes in a ziplock baggie on my bike at all times for when I end up covered in grease.

Cars are a different matter entirely. I know how to change flats on them in theory, but never in practice. The only time I was alone with a flat was on the side of the Pennsylvania Turnpike in the middle of the night while five months pregnant. I got out and started the process and could not get the lug nuts to loosen. At all. I had just had new tires put on the day before and they tightened those lug nuts down with such force that even the service I called for help couldn't loosen them. Ended up getting towed back to their shop, they got the tire off there and discovered that the spare in the car was for a Ford. I was driving a Toyota. So they had to break into the tire store attached to their shop (actually they called the owner who came over to open up) to get me a new tire that fit. Turns out that when we last drove with the spare, we took the car in to get a new tire and the mechanic ended up putting someone else's spare in our trunk (so somewhere was a Ford with a Toyota spare).

That was a rear tire and it was MUCH harder to change than any front flats I've gotten.

[Biciclista]

well, actually, I can change the tires of my car (if i can move those #$%#$% over tightened lug nuts) and have done it myself.

and with bikes, what I excel in is finding holes in tubes. I'm going to be 60 this year and if i don't feel like dealing with tight dirty tires/wheels I don't have to. Further, if my DH is not available, I am less than 5 miles from 3 bike shops, an easy bus ride to two of them. I can afford to pay someone else to fix my flat tire.

I am pleased to see all the women here that CAN do this, but honestly, I proved my womanhood and independence in a thousand other ways. My hands don't need the abuse.

[zoom-zoom]

Does anybody remember how we lived without the internet?

I never would have had the support to lose weight, start running and subsequently biking. I imagine that I would be one of those slow-moving, obese, miserable 38 year old women who I see...the ones who look 38 (or older) and have seemingly "given up." I am thankful every day for my wise friends who live inside my computer. :)

[Kerry1976]

I never would have had the support to lose weight, start running and subsequently biking. I imagine that I would be one of those slow-moving, obese, miserable 38 year old women who I see...the ones who look 38 (or older) and have seemingly "given up." I am thankful every day for my wise friends who live inside my computer. :)

Couldn't have said it better.

[Catrin]

I never would have had the support to lose weight, start running and subsequently biking. I imagine that I would be one of those slow-moving, obese, miserable 38 year old women who I see...the ones who look 38 (or older) and have seemingly "given up." I am thankful every day for my wise friends who live inside my computer. :)

I WAS one of those women who had given up - until I turned 50 :) I am slowly meeting new people who are road and mountain bikers who are supporting my efforts but for most of last year the only support I had in my efforts to find health and lose weight via cycling and strength training were the good women of TE. I am so thankful for this forum! Even now most of my family and friends think that I've gone off the deep end with my love for riding and other activities.

[Triskeliongirl]

It's clear that what I am trying to explain is not understandable to a lot of people. I can't "just look at it" because I don't remember anything about it after a second. I don't see how parts work or are situated in relation to other parts. I don't see how things work together.
Mechanical aptitude is a skill like anything else. Most people can learn some of it, and others are very good at it.
You might not believe the list of things that are extremely difficult for me, or down right impossible. I have overcompensated all of my life with my speaking, writing, organizational, and social skills.

Please don't get offended but I want help. What i am hearing sounds to me a lot like math anxiety, women are often conditioned that they can't do mechanical things or mathematical things so they don't really apply themselves. When I said look at, the goal isn't to memorize it, it's to reason in your mind how it works. I never memorize anything scientific, I learn concepts that let me reason what I need when I need it.

[Crankin]

Elaine, I do believe you want to help. You are right in that it is like math anxiety, because I can't do math, either. But, this is not just a case of social conditioning. I believe that occurs quite frequently, too, but my issue is a learning disability, perhaps compounded by the anxiety that is made worse by the fact that I have always been surrounded by people who are good in *everything.* Women have been conditioned to think that they can't do certain things, but in my case, as in most learning issues, it's inherited, and it is my dad who has the same exact learning issues as me. Non-verbal learning disabilities are invisible in most cases, as you can survive in this world without being able to do algebra. It becomes more visible when the poor social skills part are involved, which, I hope we can agree, does not apply to me! I've generally been happy with my writing and my books :).
It's funny, my new field is comprised almost entirely of people like me. And in the two internships I've done, it's always been the men who can barely use a computer and refuse to do their notes that way. I actually am a whiz with some of this stuff compared to them, which is really quite laughable.
I am all for encouraging girls to go into math and science, and I did a lot of that when I was teaching middle school.
Eventually, I will perfect the tire thing, but I am still not sure that someone who does all of this stuff intuitively can understand how my brain works. I don't mean this directed at you, personally, I just think it's hard to envision. The same way I can't understand how someone doesn't like to read.

[TrekTheKaty]

I can change my rear tire, but it does cause anxiety. For some reason, it is hard to picture how the wheel goes back on. Once I reach for the chain, it all becomes clearer.

I became more comfortable by putting new tires on in the comfort of the living room, with the Team Estrogen handout. (I also carry it in my handlebar bag). Do it over and over with no pressure. It helps.

Of course, simply carrying the right equipment with you goes a long way. I've frequently stopped to help people who didn't have a spare tube (and a different size from mine).

[Crankin]

I do find it interesting that you all "reach for the chain," use a glove, etc. I was taught (by many different people) that you should never need to touch the chain; if you position it correctly and pull the derailleur back the right way, it pops right on.

[hirakukibou]

I think it is important to remember that there are many different "learning styles" (or intelligences if you are into Gardner's work). Although I teach flat changing with the bicycle right side up, I can see that it might help some folks to turn it over.

Some of it for me is "how I learned" as well as for me it is easier to see where the wheel goes into the drop outs when the bike is upright.

I also think it is important to teach using as many learning modes as possible -- I demonstrate, narrate, guide my students to change their own tire, and I have a handout. Some folks find it easy, others find it challenging, but they all learn with instruction and encouragement (the encouragement part of the show is as important as the instruction!).

Anyway, just another perspective.

[buffybike]

I've ONLY had rear flats. Once I had rear flats twice on the same ride (turns out there was a piece of metal in my tire). I learned by asking a girl at my LBS to show me how to change it when I first bought my bike. Then I flatted on a group ride and I made one of the leaders walk me through changing it. The next time I flatted, I was alone on the side of the highway and it was sprinkling. It took me about 15 minutes, but I changed it myself. I felt like such a bad*ss afterward. ;)

[OakLeaf]

I am still not sure that someone who does all of this stuff intuitively can understand how my brain works. I don't mean this directed at you, personally, I just think it's hard to envision. The same way I can't understand how someone doesn't like to read.

You know, I really can't envision it, but as someone at the opposite end of the bell curve, I find it very easy to accept. If I can take one look at a wheel and frame and swingarm and instantly understand exactly through which opening and at what angle the new shock has to go in, why shouldn't there be people on the opposite end of that aptitude scale, too?

[owlice]

I can change a tire on a bike or a car. I don't patch my flatted tubes; I just replace them.

I probably knew how to do this as a kid on my no-speed cheap bicycle ($20 used), and I clearly recall soaking the chain in gasoline (or maybe kerosene) to clean it (and being just a little worried that something would ignite the fuel), but other than that, I didn't mess with a bike again until a couple of years ago.

I went to an REI bike maintenance talk -- no hands-on, just talk -- two years ago which was helpful, but what was at least as helpful was having a guy talk/walk me through changing my tire on one of my long C&O rides (prepping for doing the whole towpath). I enjoyed talking to the guy; he, his three kids, his wife, and his parents were spending the weekend on a 50-mile ride on the C&O, camping over the long weekend along the way. And he was a good teacher, too.

I've have more flats in the past four months than in the previous 8 years of riding. Should have paid attention to the size of the new tires and not been using tubes that were just a little big for them! :eek:

I carry gloves and wipes with me.

[tzvia]

Thankfully, on the MTBs I run tubeless so my flats have been ZERO in the last year off-road. Which is really good, as my Safire is a bit of a pain to reinstall the rear tire. The rear pivot point on the chainstay is kinda thick and right next to the cogs and it makes it rather difficult to get the wheel back on. Chain is not an issue.

On the road bike it's a no brainer; I've been fixing flats since I was a kid. I use USE Spin Stix so I just unscrew the skewer and the wheel pops right off. I only use those patch kits with the vulcanizing rubber and sandpaper- none of that crap peel and stick stuff, so the patched tube is good as new and I won't be dealing with dried glue and leaking patches down the road.

[pll]

Practice makes perfection (or, at least, it lowers the discomfort).

I attended a demo in my LBS years ago and I had been lucky never to have a flat on my own bike. First chance to practice, with some help, was on a friends hybrid.

Then in 2008, I had 3 flats in the rear tire in the middle of nowhere in Scotland. Not only did I learn to patch and change tubes, but I also learned about bad rim tape! Before those flats, I did not even know that existed. After the third one, I had to 'patch' parts of the rim tape with sport tape a friend was carrying, riding very gingerly for hours until we arrived to our destination and found a bike shop.

Last summer I had another chance to practice when I saw a family stranded in a trail -- dad's rear tire had a gaping hole! I recalled having read (in TE) something about using a folded dollar bill to cover the hole. It works!

[Geonz]

You know, I really can't envision it, but as someone at the opposite end of the bell curve, I find it very easy to accept. If I can take one look at a wheel and frame and swingarm and instantly understand exactly through which opening and at what angle the new shock has to go in, why shouldn't there be people on the opposite end of that aptitude scale, too?

Thank you :)

I also struggle with remembering how things are arranged, tho' perhaps not as far along the spectrum as Crankin. I *still* get the sequence out of whack changing tires -- and since I ride 8-10,000 miles a year, I do it fairly often -- if I don't read the box the tube comes in. (I only know that because it happened yesterday.) With this particular tire, I had first tried to put the new, nice 35mm tyre on and ... when it just wouldn't cooperate and seemed to &*( big, I put it away and grabbed an old tire ... but it was really, really old and so went flat the next day. Happily, it happened *not* out on the 20 mile club ride, but just got soft on the errand to the farmer's market a mile from home... which inspired me to load up that big new tire and the other hopefully not quite as old tire onto the back of the bike and then pump up that tire and figure it would get me the mile to the bike coop where I volunteer just so I can keep seeing how things work and know a ***little*** more... and I'll do triage and answer questions, so the people who like wrenching can spend more time doing that.
Oops, it *didn't* get me there... so I hopped off to walk it... but the ancient spineless tire even came free from the rim and the tube wrapped itself around things... so I had to toss it upside down in the road and jam it back in and then take all the parts to my bike blender out, since it was the weight that caused the problem, and limp it the rest of the way in.
Once in, with a little coaching, the "big fat" tyre wasn't too big. But I still put the tube in the tire before getting the tire halfway on the rim, which mattered.
http://bicycleuc.files.wordpress.com/2011/05/flatwithtube.jpg

... and this one **is** a lot easier to change upside down, because then all its skirts flop down so I can see things. If your bike doesn't have skirts, though, it doesn't matter as much.

[abejita]

Ha, the one time I had a flat on my car while by myself I couldn't get the lugnuts to budge and decided that a stretch of divided highway with cars whizzing by at 75+mph was no place to dicker-around with a flat tire on the traffic side of the car (especially as I had my kid with me...seeing mom get pasted by a semi didn't seem like the best memory for him to have). I wasn't far from home and called my hubby...even his 250# self struggled to get them off. That's what cell phones are for, IMO. :D
.

When I got my first car, my dad gave me a cheater bar (I pipe really, you slip it over the end of the wrench that comes with the car) With the extra foot and a half of leverage, I can always get the lug nuts off. I've had one in every car since (and hubby's car too)

[nscrbug]

So...guess what all this talk about changing a rear flat got me??? A rear flat on my ride this morning. :( But since I was with my riding partner, I only "assisted" in the tire change...he did most of it. Mainly because we were trying to be at a certain destination point by a certain time. It still took the two of us, at least 15 minutes. I always worry about flatting again at some point in the ride...and this time, I had good reason to since we were about 35 miles from home. But I always carry 2 tubes, and 2 C02 cartridges...plus he had an extra tube and 2 cartridges so I think we were in pretty good shape. Despite my flat, we continued on to complete our first 100-miler of the season...which is always a major accomplishment for me. I'm sore and achey, but I'm proud of myself. :)

Linda