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I have a bike that’s 25 years old. First flat! Current tire is 26x2.0… can only find a 26x2.1 … will the slightly wider tire be ok? Also what size tube do I use? (26x2.1? … sized same as tires are?) Thanks for any info or help!

Dan
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    Look at your frame and fork. How much clearance do you have between them and the tire? Is an additional 0.05" (nominal, might be more, might be less) on each side going to significantly change that? – Paul H Aug 23 '22 at 17:19

1 Answers1

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I think you need to check on your flat repair practices.

If you have a flat, the first action would be to:

  1. Install a spare tube using the existing tire (with obviously the object that caused the flat removed), if you don't have a spare tube buy one
  2. Patch the old tube with a glue-type patch, it becomes your new spare tube

The reason it's done this way is that glue-type patches, although they are permanent repair, they require about a day of non-use until the glue finally dries. Using a recently patched tube and riding the bike is a sure way to cause a slow leak. Properly done, patching the tube and storing it unused for at least a day, makes a permanent repair.

If for some reason the tube is damaged beyond repair (such as a flat so close to the valve that you can't reasonably repair it, or a flat so close to an existing patch that repair would be problematic, or a tube that has suffered a major explosion), only then you discard it without repairing it.

Tires shouldn't be thrown away after a flat. You just remove the object that caused the flat, running your fingers inside the tire to detect that object, and then examine it for damage; in over 95% of cases the damage is so minor you can reuse it, but if you experienced a major sidewall blowout (necessitating you to temporarily use a tire boot on the road), only then you have to discard the tire. Most flats don't belong to the category that require a new tire.

I can't promise that 26x2.1 is a good replacement for a 26x2.0 tire. It's possible 26x2.0 is already so large that a larger tire doesn't have enough clearance at the fork or at the rear chainstay. In most cases it can replace 26x2.0 but in some cases it can't. However, most likely you just need a new tube, and can patch the old one (so that you get a useful spare tube), and can reuse the old tire.

However, 25 year old tire could have reduced traction, so if the tire is as old as the rest of the bike is, replacement due to tire age alone could be warranted. If you have poor traction on both front and rear tires, you probably need not one but two new tires.

RLH
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juhist
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  • 25 year old rubber will simply break instead of flexing. As such, any amount of riding will quickly destroy the side walls of the tire. It then depends on the carcass whether it can retain the tube alone, or whether the tire will simply blow out. I would directly replace both tires without any second thought. After that replacement, everything you said is good, but that initial replacement is definitely something that should be done. – cmaster - reinstate monica Aug 23 '22 at 17:28
  • The bike is 25 years old, he did not say if the tire is the original, only he never had a flat before. – mattnz Aug 23 '22 at 19:23
  • I have used 22 year old studded winter tires on a car, and I can definitely say it flexes instead of breaking. – juhist Aug 24 '22 at 10:08