Making a tyre boot

[Jaded]

OK - so I've got an old tyre and cut a couple of lengths from it.

Now, it seems like I should remove the beading from the cut bits to finish the boots off? Or the wire could catch and the boot will be too big?

[Andrij]

I've been told dollar bills make good emergency boots.  Though the way things are going here in the UK a £5 note may soon be cheaper!

Edit: this works only for smaller gashes in tyres, so Jaded's method is a better idea - carry a good length and cut to size as needed.

[Charlotte]

I don't carry bits of tyre for this purpose.  That's an emergency thang.

A piece of this in your toolkit is lighter and way more effective:

[Ariadne]

Yep, the Park boots are fantastic - really strong

[Jaded]

Yebbut mine is free and I have it here now. Which is good for  tomorrow!

[Hot Flatus]

Like you've ridden your bike enough to even wear off the moulding line 



 

[Greenbank]

The law of increasing crap in the saddlebag means that not only do I carry a Park tyre boot I've ended up carrying a spare folding tyre on pretty much every ride (it's only another 230g).

[robgul]

OK - so I've got an old tyre and cut a couple of lengths from it.

Now, it seems like I should remove the beading from the cut bits to finish the boots off? Or the wire could catch and the boot will be too big?

Yep, cut the wire off ... and (from one usage experience) you need a fairly well-worn (i.e. thin) bit of tyre otherwise it's a bugger to get into the cover you are patching and then refitting.

... nobody's been along yet with the old chestnut about stuffing the tyre with grass??

Rob

[Ariadne]

The law of increasing crap in the saddlebag means that not only do I carry a Park tyre boot I've ended up carrying a spare folding tyre on pretty much every ride (it's only another 230g).

So did we, on our big trip, and thank god - no boot could have covered the giant hole my tyre developed.

[clarion]

The law of increasing crap in the saddlebag means that not only do I carry a Park tyre boot I've ended up carrying a spare folding tyre on pretty much every ride (it's only another 230g).

Do you think one spare tyre is enough?

[Greenbank]

Do you think one spare tyre is enough?

No, but someone else usually will have one. If they don't then it's a proper excuse to go home or get a cab/train.

[MattH]

... nobody's been along yet with the old chestnut about stuffing the tyre with grass??

Have you tried stuffing the tyre with grass?

Another one that people recommend is the tough plastic envelopes (of the type courier companies use for small parcels). I've got a piece in my kit, it weighs nothing and takes almost zero space so nothing lost in carrying it (along with a Park tyre boot, and some duct tape wrapped around a spanner so I can reinforce any split).

[hatler]

OK - so I've got an old tyre and cut a couple of lengths from it.

Now, it seems like I should remove the beading from the cut bits to finish the boots off? Or the wire could catch and the boot will be too big?

Spot on. That's exactly what I've done. And ever since I did that I have never needed one.

[Mr Larrington]

Be advised that a Park Tyre Boot is not a permanent fix.  After a month or two, it will go all hard and wrinkly and cause your tyre to explode in an unseemly manner.

Do not ask me how I know this.

[Biggsy]

OK - so I've got an old tyre and cut a couple of lengths from it.

Now, it seems like I should remove the beading from the cut bits to finish the boots off?

Yes.  Also remove the rubber tread if you can peel it from the casing.  You only need the casing.

Vittoria Open Corsa tyres are very good for making boots from, though I carry a Park Tyre Boot for emergencies.  The new TB-2 version should be more durable than the TB-1 thanks to its woven fibre layer.

[andrew_s]

Having the rubber still on the bit of old tyre can be handy if the boot will be against the road - a cut right across the middle of the tread, or a tyre that's worn through to the casing.

Kevlar reinforcement strips in the boot can also be abrasive enough to give a puncture if you leave the boot in permanently.

[geraldc]

On the 2007 dun run, I fashioned a tyre boot out of a muesli bar wrapper.

[LEE]

I've been told dollar bills make good emergency boots.  Though the way things are going here in the UK a £5 note may soon be cheaper!

Assos recommend using a £50 note

[clarion]

Rapha will be producing one in pink merino & tweed.  You just slip your credit card in, and voila!

[Andrij]

I've been told dollar bills make good emergency boots.  Though the way things are going here in the UK a £5 note may soon be cheaper!

Assos recommend using a £50 note

Whereas Rapha say just leave it to your support crew to sort out? 

Edit: beat by clarion to the Rapha swipe. 

[dehomag]

Just use decent tyres that are not worn out and you'll not need tyre boots at all. (I have carried a Park one and a piece of tyre of thousands on likometres and used it only once).

[clarion]

tbh, I've carried a little bit of rubber in my p*nct*re repair kit for thousands of miles, and never needed it.

Perhaps I'm a bit over cautious about tyre wear, and change them before I need to.

[rae]

Just find something by the roadside.  After a catastrophic puncture on the A4 (going over the M25) it took  me all of 30 seconds to find something suitable in the debris by the side of the road.

[Nuncio]

Not sure about a tyre boot, but I can make a Swiss roll.

[clarion]

tbh, I've carried a little bit of rubber in my p*nct*re repair kit for thousands of miles, and never needed it.

That's because you've never bumped into you know who

*puts therapist on speed dial*