Air coming through spokes

Jdubb94 · 05-05-2021, 11:29 AM

So I went on a rough little trail ride yesterday and parked the bike to admire the water but while doing so I noticed that air started randomly leaking through a couple of my spokes. I tapped on the tire itself and it quit leaking. The tire hasn’t done it since yesterday and is not flat. Should I be concerned?

TxTaoRider · 05-05-2021, 12:51 PM

I'd be concerned.
Find a deep puddle or kiddie pool (remove the kids first and fill with water) and set the offending tire in it and turn the rim a couple turns and watch for stream of bubbles.

Skyd · 05-05-2021, 01:11 PM

Ya I agree with TxTaoRider - I'd be concerned. Are they tubeless tires? I'm assuming not, so air must have escaped the tube somehow and then leaked out the spoke holes.....weird. Odd that it just stopped as well but I wouldn't take any chances, getting a flat at an inopportune time would be less than pleasant.

Megadan · 05-05-2021, 02:59 PM

Tube has a puncture or tear in a place that is allowing a slow leak. The tube and rim strip are still applying some pressure to the spokes so the air is escaping more slowly. As the pressure drops the amount of air escaping will increase.

Replace the tube.

TxTaoRider · 05-05-2021, 03:10 PM

I'd replace the rim tape too.

kb21guru · 05-29-2021, 12:00 AM

back in my BMX days when doing table tops and such we put loads of weight on our tires when landing, this would push spokes up-into the inner tube and put tiny slices that would slowly leak.
At any rate it was a leak.
To solve it (leaking from spoke holes) we used a good old inner tube and sliced it open and laid it flat around the rim like rim tape but we had the flat tube extend outside of the rims bead line lip.
When the tire and tube was installed we had some of the inner tube that we used as rim tape extending past the tire.
Fill up tire and that flat inner tube seals the rim and tire so if the inner tube does get a leak, the air wont escape the rim/tire.
Then we started doing this without a air filled inner tube and we called it tubeless. We basically used a flat inner tube to seal the rims bead lip.
hard to explain.

I did it to a apollo 125cc and it worked great.

We also used what's called Mr. Tuffy" tire liners. (I used old bald tires) I cut the side walls off of the tire and used the thick center section, same thing, just another layer incase of a puncture to the tire. The tire liner moves away from tire during a puncture, and pushes back to the tire and seals it after a puncture (In a perfect world) most of the time it worked sometimes it didn't.

Videos of BMXers doing it titled "tubeless bmx tire" etc should be easy to find.

05-05-2021, 11:29 AM	#1
Jdubb94 Join Date: May 2021 Posts: 14	Air coming through spokes So I went on a rough little trail ride yesterday and parked the bike to admire the water but while doing so I noticed that air started randomly leaking through a couple of my spokes. I tapped on the tire itself and it quit leaking. The tire hasn’t done it since yesterday and is not flat. Should I be concerned?
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05-05-2021, 12:51 PM	#2
TxTaoRider Join Date: Oct 2020 Location: Flower Mound Texas Posts: 904	I'd be concerned. Find a deep puddle or kiddie pool (remove the kids first and fill with water) and set the offending tire in it and turn the rim a couple turns and watch for stream of bubbles. __________________ 2021 Tao Tbr7 - "Lucille" Mods so far- Brozz swingarm, 21" front rim (Bridgestone Tw302 rear/Dunlop D606 front tires), Digital gauge cluster, pz30b pumper carb, after market hand guards, aftermarket brake and clutch levers, round fold away mirrors, Fly handlebars shortened slightly, 13t front sprocket 2009 Q-link Legacy 250 1982 Suzuki GS1100ES - "Jolene"
	1

05-05-2021, 01:11 PM	#3
Skyd Join Date: Mar 2021 Location: New Hampshire Posts: 242	Ya I agree with TxTaoRider - I'd be concerned. Are they tubeless tires? I'm assuming not, so air must have escaped the tube somehow and then leaked out the spoke holes.....weird. Odd that it just stopped as well but I wouldn't take any chances, getting a flat at an inopportune time would be less than pleasant. __________________ 2020 RPS Hawk 250 - Build thread can be found here: http://www.chinariders.net/showthread.php?t=28374 "Do Wheelies and Forget your Feelies" "If vegetarians eat vegetables, what do humanitarians eat?" -unknown
	1

05-05-2021, 02:59 PM	#4
Megadan Join Date: Apr 2017 Location: Omaha, NE Posts: 8,100	Tube has a puncture or tear in a place that is allowing a slow leak. The tube and rim strip are still applying some pressure to the spokes so the air is escaping more slowly. As the pressure drops the amount of air escaping will increase. Replace the tube. __________________ Hawk Information and Resource guide: http://www.chinariders.net/showthread.php?t=20331 2018 Hawk 250 - Full Mod list here. http://www.chinariders.net/showpost....62&postcount=1 2024 Royal Enfield Shotgun 650 https://chinariders.net/showthread.php?t=34124
	2

05-05-2021, 03:10 PM	#5
TxTaoRider Join Date: Oct 2020 Location: Flower Mound Texas Posts: 904	I'd replace the rim tape too. __________________ 2021 Tao Tbr7 - "Lucille" Mods so far- Brozz swingarm, 21" front rim (Bridgestone Tw302 rear/Dunlop D606 front tires), Digital gauge cluster, pz30b pumper carb, after market hand guards, aftermarket brake and clutch levers, round fold away mirrors, Fly handlebars shortened slightly, 13t front sprocket 2009 Q-link Legacy 250 1982 Suzuki GS1100ES - "Jolene"
	2

05-29-2021, 12:00 AM	#6
kb21guru Join Date: May 2021 Posts: 10	tube trick back in my BMX days when doing table tops and such we put loads of weight on our tires when landing, this would push spokes up-into the inner tube and put tiny slices that would slowly leak. At any rate it was a leak. To solve it (leaking from spoke holes) we used a good old inner tube and sliced it open and laid it flat around the rim like rim tape but we had the flat tube extend outside of the rims bead line lip. When the tire and tube was installed we had some of the inner tube that we used as rim tape extending past the tire. Fill up tire and that flat inner tube seals the rim and tire so if the inner tube does get a leak, the air wont escape the rim/tire. Then we started doing this without a air filled inner tube and we called it tubeless. We basically used a flat inner tube to seal the rims bead lip. hard to explain. I did it to a apollo 125cc and it worked great. We also used what's called Mr. Tuffy" tire liners. (I used old bald tires) I cut the side walls off of the tire and used the thick center section, same thing, just another layer incase of a puncture to the tire. The tire liner moves away from tire during a puncture, and pushes back to the tire and seals it after a puncture (In a perfect world) most of the time it worked sometimes it didn't. Videos of BMXers doing it titled "tubeless bmx tire" etc should be easy to find.
	0