Cuts are common and their size is different starting from 1 cm to 10cm long on the right and left sides and on the common contact point surface of the tire, small cuts do not bulge outside from the tire as far as you are using the tire in a limited amount. more than 1cm cut on a tire does not tolerate long mileages on rocky and hard terrains.1 cm to 1.5 cm cuts are recovered by many glue and rubber-like materials, but if the cut is more than 1.5cm, especially for mountain biking and aggressive trails, you have to replace it with a new tire.
If you will ride with a 1cm cut on single trails, then it will start spreading and makes a big hole which results in the bulging of the tire and you will hear a big bursting sound of the tire and it remains no more to carry on a further ride on the same tire. but if your trails are not aggressive and rough then it is possible you can carry the same 1cm cut tire at a lower commuting speed due to which the cut will not spread more.
If the cut is on the outer surface of the tire rubber and the inner casing is safe then its also safe and sound because you can use the tire for any kind of trail and the casing is safe but if the cut is deeply penetrated within the tire casing then after repairing by using glue and any kind of safety rubber the tire will not perform on the aggressive ridings and you have to replace the tire with a new one, we can say as the decision for the ratio of the new tire and the current tire would be (50:50).
If the small-sized cut causes the front tire to burst then there are fewer chances of distracting and losing control over the trail but if the rear tire has burst on the trails then 100 chances of distracting and losing control over the bike are common.
Repairing A Cut In A Bike Tire:
If you have got a small cut in the center line of the tire then here is an easy method of fixing it and making it smooth for maintaining the riding circle on the trails.
Take an old rag rubber from an old tire or old tube, cut a small piece so that its length would match exactly with the length of the cut on the tire, clean the inner side of the cut thoroughly with soapy water, and leave it for a few minutes to dry, with the help of Shoe Goo and Super Glue stick that piece of rubber on the inner side of the cut, make sure use enough amount of glue so that the rubber piece become firm, hard and tight with the tire on the inner side and remains for the long-lasting period.
Leave the tire for 1 hour so that the rubber and glue would completely sit on the inner walls of the cut thoroughly, now pump the tire with a hand pump or floor pump to less psi pressure(40 to 50psi), after that never check the tire by sitting on the saddle, leave the bike in the same condition for 12 hours without riding, after that increase the air pressure of the same tire(100psi to 110psi), now the cut is invisible from the outer side of the tire and the tire is ready for riding.
A bike tire is adjusted and manufactured with cords that are tough and hard and the tire is totally dependent on these cords when the tire is cut from any place the number of these cords is also cut if the cut is bigger more cords have been damaged when you add a piece of old tire rubber if its cords are nice and good in condition then it will keep the cut line zipped and the tire will be blown after going on the single trails, choose a good tire rubber so that its cords are hard and still to keep the internal psi pressure and avoid air leakage, bulging and popping of tire.
If you have any old tires stocked in your garage or home place, then the casing of this tire would also work better for cut repairing, you can cut a small piece of casing from the old tire by completely removing the treads and sticking with the glue on the cut place, it will work fine.
Never use soft and flexible rubber for repairing the tire cut, it will not survive jumps and drops of the single trails, as a result, it will bulge from the tire outward and the tire will pop.
How To Ride Home Safely With A Tire Cut?
Tire cuts are common on the trails and the tool kit is also necessary for the trails, their rubber glue tubes work fine for the cuts, and almost every rider, you and I have to carry these glue tubes within the tool kit to avoid bad irritating moments, Superglue and Shoe Goo are most common rubber glue tubes for tire cuts to survive and increase the cut life more than 50 to 100 miles, you can safely reach home if you are carrying such kind of helping materials in your kit.
After Applying this glue to the tire cut area wait for almost 30 to 40 minutes so that it becomes completely dry within the cut line if it’s still wet and you started further riding it will pour and come out from the cut area which will further cause bursting of the tire. it also depends on the weight of the bike and the rider and the type of trails where the bike tire is going to run, all these things would play a major role in the working performance of the rubber glue for the tire.
Another noticeable thing is that these glues are specifically made for the specific kinds of tire rubber, and these will not perform positive by applying to their opposite type of tire rubber, that’s the reason some glue will not work for your tire and some perform 100% better depending on the rubber material of the tire. but these would not work with a lifetime guarantee, after a few rides you have to replace the tire.
Best Tire Cut Glue:
- Super Glue
- Crazy Glue
- Shoe Goo
- Loctite 380 Black Max
- Park Tool Tire Boot TB-2
Cuts In The Tread Section Of The Tire:
Tread designing of the tire is usually made to provide double safety to the tire, if there is any small cut on the tread then it’s normal it’s basically not the cut through which air leakage would occur, treads are usually designed on the tire, you can easily run your tire with more than a single cut on the tread of the tire.
While riding on the single trails, these are the treads that constantly rub with the naily rocks, stem roots, and the other thorny things of the trails, sometimes thorn even enter within the treads, it is also normal, it is not a cut but if the tread section has got a deep cut down into the tire then it will not allow to further ride with the same tire.
Do Cut Repairing Affect Bike Balance on the trails?
A small piece of rubber mounting within the tire does not create balancing issues while riding on the trails, the bike will run smoothly without any kind of siding left and right and the tire does not wobble with cut repairing on any kind of trails.
Internal Psi Pressure After Cut Repairing of Bike Tire?
When the cut is repaired, keep the tire pressure lower for 1 to 2 rides, so that the cut/patch would become tight and bump absorber. after 2 to 3 days when it becomes normal, you can pump the psi pressure of your own desire(higher or lower) the rubber patch will work fine and keeps inflating the tire for a long time.
But if the tire has got any cut on the trails and the internal psi pressure is 100psi to 120psi and you are too far from the city, your home, or any mechanic shop then decrease their psi pressure abruptly so that the tire pressure would not cause any pressure for the cut and keep the tire inflating for the remaining distance till you will reach your home.
Booting Of Cut Tire:
Booting is used for repairing the cut tire, but using a piece of old tire rubber is far better for the booting process because it contains a mixture of fiber and plastic which does not have enough power to keep the tire inflated on the trails and also it does not tolerate bumps and jumps of aggressive trails, although it is good even better for commuting trails, it is not a recommended material for the hard terrains.
Park Tool Tire Boot TB-2 is used for booting cut tires for normal and smooth trails and it works fine under the normal psi air pressure from 60 to 70 psi, it also depends on the weight of the rider.