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I want to fix my puncture with super glue, can I use it ? I do not have any glue left in my puncture outfit so can I use ordinary super glue?

Argenti Apparatus
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debs
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    No. "Super glue" dries hard, and will not flex as needed when the tire flexes. It will flake off in short order. Plain old "rubber cement" (the stuff used to glue paper) is a far better choice. – Daniel R Hicks Feb 20 '17 at 12:44
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    @DanielRHicks - interestingly, you're the one who said don't use stationery store rubber cement in a comment, when I asked this question way back when: http://bicycles.stackexchange.com/questions/35317/is-rubber-cement-in-stationery-stores-the-same-as-in-tire-patch-kits – RoboKaren Feb 20 '17 at 19:08
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    @RoboKaren - I said in that comment that rubber cement for paper is not THE SAME as the cement in patch kits. And it is far from ideal for use with tire patches. But it is a reasonable option if you cannot get your hands on the real stuff. It is at least flexible (perhaps a little too much so), and it is chemically compatible with both the adhesive on the patches and the rubber of the innertube. – Daniel R Hicks Feb 20 '17 at 19:18
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    I think the general conclusion of the answers to the linked question was that it was a bad idea to use stationery store rubber cement. You can add a new answer that contradicts. – RoboKaren Feb 20 '17 at 19:23
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    The stuff we use on tubes is not a glue at all so no adhesive is an adequate substitute - strictly speaking its a solvent that melts the tube's butyl rubber, and when you stick a patch on the rubbers merge at the atomic level. Its like sub-microscopic Velcro. That's why you give it 10 minutes to "dry" when all its doing is boiling off and softening the tube's material. – Criggie Feb 20 '17 at 19:37

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It won't work very well at all. Superglue, unlike rubber glued with rubber cement, doesn't stretch. It will probably open up again as soon as you inflate the tyre. If it holds at first, it's likely to let you down soon.

If you're absolutely desperate it might be worth a try, especially if the tube doesn't have to expand much to fit the tyre, but only to get you home or to the bike shop. And it's risky - the tyre could go down quickly when you don't want it to. You'd probably have to replace the tube after that as a proper patch wouldn't stick to the dried superglue.

Among household glues, evostick or a similar contact adhesive (that's used in the same way as patch cement) would be a better bet, but would still probably write off the tube

Chris H
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I have used super glue to repair hundreds of simple punctures where the hole is small. I am a hard core roadie, cross country tourer, and raced mountain bikes, and won, for years as well. The trick to super glue is, for starters you can only use the the thin type, no gel. Locate the hole exactly. Put a tiny drop of glue right on over the hole. Then press up really hard with you fingers from under the tube so the rubber where the hole is stretches. That causes the hole to become larger and sucks glue into the hole. This really works. I have ridden thousands of miles in all conditions and have never had this kind of fix fail.

Jay Reeder
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  • I forgot to mention that one does not use a patch at all with this super glue fix. – Jay Reeder May 03 '19 at 01:41
  • I’m curious, do you use this technique on every puncture, or just some of the time? I’m not sure I would choose it in lieu of a normal patch, which is easy to have available with even basic forward planning. I’m sure you trust it, but what situation would anyone else choose it over a proper patch? – Swifty May 04 '19 at 13:38
  • Just came out of the office at 1am to a flat tube - only thing here is superglue so I'm I'm giving this method a shot! Also doubling up by gluing a piece of cut up rubber band over the top...figure that will give it a little bit extra margin once pressed up against the inside tire wall - just needs to get me home to bed and I can worry about it in the daylight - thanks, holding steady at ~40psi (the irony of having a bike pump and gauge but no patches has not been lost on me) – norlesh Feb 21 '23 at 14:26
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I used super glue and it's worked fine. I also spreaded it out before it dried though.

Zach Anderson
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    Please come back and expand your answer once you get a month's riding on that fix. I suspect it will fail again pretty quickly, assuming you've refitted and inflated the tube. – Criggie Jun 23 '18 at 05:03
  • LMAO!! Now are you sure the glue was applied deep in that crack or on the outside area only? – Fandango68 Jun 25 '18 at 04:11
  • So its a year later - how did it work for you ? – Criggie Aug 12 '19 at 10:50
  • Two years later now - what update is there? – Criggie Oct 22 '20 at 21:52
  • How about everyone stop punishing a new member of the community with unnecessary downvotes and provide constructive, respectful feedback instead? – devth May 26 '22 at 16:51