An apology to tube tires...

[wirespokes]

I haven't noticed any difference getting flats with tubes or tubeless. I've repaired flats beside the road with traffic whizzing by and the truck's wind blast rocking the bike. One comes to mind - a flat front on the R100 RS beside a busy Los Angeles Freeway at rush hour. Thankfully, a nice day in the sunshine. It helps knowing the drill by installing your own tires. I'll be converting the wires to tubeless when I get a chance - but it hasn't been a high priority - I haven't had a flat in years. Hope I didn't just jinx myself. LOL  With the early Tontis removing the front is probably the logical way to remove the rear wheel. I've done that with the airheads, or hang the rear off the curb, then it'll drop out. I've thought about carrying flat repair tools on my local rides but never have. Still think it's a good idea and should probably consider it more seriously.

[faffi]

Strangest puncture I have seen was on the rear wheel of my friend's GSX400F. A gouge inside the cast rim left from either removing or fitting the tire had chafed through the inner tube. Because of this, the foam repair we carried did not help seal the punture, so we had to remove the rear wheel (center stands are nice) and I held the wheel while my friend rode my bike to a gas station for repair. This was back when gas stations also provided service.

Best lucky escape? My CB350F had a puncture that we sealed with foam from a bottle. For whatever reason, I never fixed this properly, and rode like that for a couple of months. One day, as I rolled the bike out from the garage, I heard a hissing noise. It was the foam giving up, and the tire went rapidly flat.

[TN Mark]

No reason whatsoever to apologize to tube type wheels. They shouldn’t even be on my wheelbarrow.

[MikeP996]

We get to pick what we worry about.  Tubes vs tubeless is so far down my personal "worry list" that I can't even see it from here!  ;)  OTOH, the "look" of a motorcycle is at the top of my list!

[mhershon]

I'm baffled by this thread. If you ride a motorcycle with wire-spoked wheels and inner tubes, and you have a puncture, you have to remove the affected wheel to repair the puncture. Maybe it's a rear puncture. Let's say you have a center stand. If you have a late-style V7, as I do, and you are not towing a trailer full of tools, a lift and an air source, you will have quite a chore on your hands simply removing/replacing the wheel in the swingarm. You will have a spare tube in the trailer, and tire irons. You will be skilled enough not to pinch the new tube as you reinstall the tire on the rim. You will not be able to put the wheel back in the bike with air in the tire, no room, so you will not know if you've pinched it until it's too late - you'll have to remove/reinstall it all over again. Damn.
You will however have a motorcycle that "looks" good, there beside the road. Until you finish the job, when you look at it and realize you don't ever want to see it again.

[faffi]

IIRC, an enduro rider managed to remove a rear wheel, rip out the tube, fit a new one, air the tire (with a cartridge) and refit on the bike in about 90 seconds. But for most, it takes a LOT more time. At that is with enduro bikes. Street bikes have stiffer tires that take more effort to remove and fit.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4hQMKSLgkzI

[MikeP996]

Worrying about flat tires is like worrying about running out of gas.  I don't carry a container of gas in case I run out.  The result is the same either way - sitting on the side of the road for a while.  Why worry about one and not the other? 

FWIW, my wife's Ducati Diavel DID run out of gas on a TX rural road.  Turned out the fuel sensor had failed - showed 1/2 tank!  I could have repaired a flat on a tube tire much quicker than I was able ride 20 miles to the nearest gas station, BUY a 1 gal gas can for 20 bucks(!) and return to her/her bike. 

[n3303j]

I don't worry about either. I just do my best to prevent both and prepare to handle either if it occurs.
I did carry spare cans of fuel in Labrador (and a tubeless plug kit).

[TN Mark]

I won’t run tube tires on a road going motorcycle. My 2013 Victory Hard-Ball came with spoked wheels and tubes. One of the first mods it got was powder coated and pin-stripped mag wheels. IMHO, a plug kit and a mini compressor are no brainer saddlebag items. The last resort is always AAA RV Plus for up to a 200 mile tow.
Running out of gas: operator error.

[MikeP996]

"Running out of gas: operator error."

Yeah, good point! 

Interestingly, we had the Diavel into the Ducati dealer twice to have the fuel sensor replaced and it failed again both times.  The third time the tech said it was a "known problem" and suggested we bypass the sensor and refuel based on mileage...like in the old days but with no manual reserve available...:(  So it's been that way for several years now.

[wirespokes]

"Running out of gas: operator error."

Yeah, good point! 

Interestingly, we had the Diavel into the Ducati dealer twice to have the fuel sensor replaced and it failed again both times.  The third time the tech said it was a "known problem" and suggested we bypass the sensor and refuel based on mileage...like in the old days but with no manual reserve available...:(  So it's been that way for several years now.

Hahahaha    Another reason why I prefer my old bikes.

[Clifton]

Worrying about flat tires is like worrying about running out of gas.  I don't carry a container of gas in case I run out.  The result is the same either way - sitting on the side of the road for a while.  Why worry about one and not the other? 

It's not the same at all. There's a trip odometer as well as a gauge or petcock with reserve so you can monitor your gas as it's depleted. Simply fill it back up when appropriate. I've only run out of gas once and that was my fault for passing a gas station and sign that said next gas 110 miles and I thought I could make it.

Nails, screws, staples, etc can be anywhere and you generally can't see them so you have no control over flat tires.

I recall changing the tires on my V7II Stone at home on my lift with a jack under it, removing the shock, brake, jacking it up and down a bit and fiddling trying to get the axle out, cush drive rubbers falling out, etc. I was thinking thank goodness these aren't spoke wheels because I'd never be able to do this on the side of the road.


Almost all my bikes have been tubeless in recent years but I recall 2 front flats on inner tube bikes. One was on a KLR 80 miles from home near Dolly Sods. I left the bike, rode home on the back with my friend, then drove my truck back to pick it up. The other was kind of strange on a 2016 Africa Twin with the original tires and tubes. I was riding along around 40 mph when the front started weaving side to side and I knew what happened so I pulled off the road. It couldn't have happened at a better place, I pushed it 300-400' down the road to the dealer I bought it from 20 minutes before they closed. When I asked what kind of object punctured it the mechanic said "nothing, the tube was just abraded thin from roughness on the inside of the tire and wore through." He said they're using thin tubes in some of the big adventure bikes since they're capable of such high speeds.

Anyway after that I decided (other than a small dirt bike) I'm not buying any motorcycle with inner tube tires. There's a reason cars quit using inner tubes years ago.