Hey, I changed a flat tire! I got a flat about six weeks ago and I ended up taking the bike into the shop and they got it all fixed up the same day and I grabbed an extra tube in case it happened again… well, it happened again. I figured I should (re)learn how to change a bike tire, so that’s what I did.
It’s been, oh, probably 30 years since I changed a bike tire, and that was on my Dumpster Bike, so I did a quick search, ignored the AI results, and found this Removing Rear Wheels Is Easy! post from a bike shop in London. Cheers!
My main concern was that I know how to change a tire (as in, remove the tires, replace inner tube, put tire back on) but the “removing rear wheel from bike” part was where I was a little rusty.
Anyway I got the wheel off, got the tire off, put some air in the old tube, confirmed a leak, then inspected the tire to see if there was any visible damage, any bits of metal, etc. The last time I got a flat I could definitely see a large metal staple. This time, upon close inspection… I found nothing. Some tiny rocks embedded in the tire, but nothing that poked through. Also, the hole in the tube was pretty tiny, so maybe it was just a failed tube?
(Note: The photo of the stangely distorted tube may be the result of messing with trying to fill it on the previous day and having it pop out between the rim and tire. Don’t ask.)
I got it all back together, filled the tube, and did a test ride in the alley. Oh, notice anything? In my haste to test it I forgot to reconnect my rear brake! Argh! Anyway, I got that back in place and all was well. It took about 20 minutes total including the test ride and fixing the rear brakes. Not bad for my first attempt.
The one pain in the ass was doing it all without a bike stand. So I thought to myself “Hey, could I build one from PCV pipe?” mainly because I have a shit-ton of PVC pipe connectors from a past project. Well, it looks like people have made PVC bike stands, so I’ve added making one to my list of things to do.