Mending an Open Corsa Evo CX
A couple of weeks back I got a cut in my crappy stock rear tire courtesy of some road construction debris. Thanks, random piece of metal. I changed the flat and 10 seconds later had a pinch flat at the orginal 2-3mm cut in the tire that ultimately necessitated a pick-up from the wife since I only had one spare tube with me. When I got home I put in another tube and BAM, the tube blew before I could even get the wheel mounted on the bike. Again, blowout was at the point of the cut in the tire. So, last week I replaced the offending tire with a snazzy Vittoria Open Corsa Evo CX to match the one that came with my used Zipp 404. Then, last Saturday I was out on my first RR on the new Open Corsa and, you guessed it, got a cut in the tire that caused a blowout. Again, it's about a 2-3mm cut but mercifully this time I avoided a second flat on the road by applying a tube patch to both sides of the tire itself. Now I'm perplexed about what to do as I approach IMC on Aug 28th. I was thinking about simply trying to superglue the cut and use the tire since, at $90 a pop, they're not really what I would consider a single-ride disposable item. On the other hand, I would hate to go into the race worrying about a pinch flat every time I turn the crank.
I know the ideal approach is probably to replace both tires ($180) before the race but am wondering if my propsed MacGyver fix will do the trick. Has anyone successfully superglued tires in the past and used them in a race? And looking at some non-EN forums today, it sounds like these are pretty fragile tires - is that generally true?
Thanks,
Tyler
Comments
Here's what I would do, 'cause I'm cheap and would assume that the Vittoria tire is basically a quality product with a lot of life left in it. Put a "boot" around the tube at the spot of the small cut in the tire. By that I mean, LOOSELY wrap a dollar bill or part of a power bar wrapper (i.e., tough linen paper or equally tough flexible "metallic" wrapper, both somewhat flexible). The wrapping needs to go all around the tube or it will slide off center; and it needs to be loose, so the tube can inflate. The boot prevents the tube from worming it's way into the underside of the little cut, thus preventing another hole in the tube.
I'm not so cheap that I don't use a new tube - oops double negative, meaning I DO make sure to put a new tube in, not the patched old one.
If it were an older tire with multiple nicks in it, I would chuck it.
However, an opposite argument would be: you've spent $1,000's to get ready for, travel to and stay at the IM, to say nothing of your own performance expectations for that day, so buy another tire for the race, then you've got a spare for when yo get back to training.
That said, I have used superglue before on training tires with alot of success for small nicks.
Cost of Bidness...COB