Got a flat, walked 3 miles - Aventon Sinch 2.5

[Unit59]

New bike, Aventon Sinch 2.5 and less than 100 miles on it, bought it a month ago. I was riding today on a smooth groomed bike path and right at the 3 mile marker the rear tube failed. I say failed because it split right at the seam on the inside against the rim strip, nothing sharp there to cause it. I have a pump, repair kit and tools but nothing to fix this. I bought Flat-out a week ago but have not installed it yet, and I doubt it would have helped with this. First slit is 1/2" long and right behind it is another slit 1/4" long and the tube looks very weak in this area.

Anyway had to push the 70 lb Sinch 3 miles back to the trail head where I parked the car. Maybe if I had carried a spare tube I could have fixed it there, but removing the rear wheel on an e-bike on the trail would not have been fun, and I didn't have an 18mm socket for the rear bolts. Anyway got it home and got the wheel off and ordered 2 new tires, 2 new tubes, and 2 new rim strips, and the flat-out I have sitting on my work bench. I learned my lesson the hard way today, be more prepared and I hope this never happens again to me or anyone else.

The tires I ordered ( Ultraverse ) are of a more beefier thicker design, not the thin factory Innova tires it came with. I know thicker equals heavier but I'll take the trade off for safety.

 

[Unit59]

It all worked out well, because...I got new Booties on my Hopper!

 

[BiggKidd]

Please let us know how they work out for you, pros and cons. I'm leaning toward getting the same tires for the same reason weight be danged!

 

[Unit59]

Yeah they weigh a bit more as I held one in each hand to compare new to old, but it's not too bad at all. They went on easy but getting the beads seated was a bear as the tires came zip tied and bent up a bit. I just mounted them and filled them to 20 lbs of air and I'm letting them sit overnight to stretch. Tomorrow I'll deflate them and install flat-out before I ever ride them and try to get the bead a bit better fitting.

 

[Annieolnie]

One more thought, if you have AAA for your car, they will also come get you if your bike breaks down. It is at the same level of protection that you have for your car. So, if you have coverage to be taken home within 50 mi. They will drive you and your bike home within 50 mi. If it's your rear tire on a hub motor bike, it's not a bad idea.

 

[BiggKidd]

One more thought, if you have AAA for your car, they will also come get you, if your bike breaks down. It is at the same level of protection that you have for your car. So, if you have coverage to be taken home within 50 mi. They will drive you and your bike home within 50 mi. If it's your rear tire on a hub motor bike, it's not a bad idea.

Good to know for a lot of folks, even if I am not one of them.

 

[Unit59]

Please let us know how they work out for you, pros and cons. I'm leaning toward getting the same tires for the same reason weight be danged!

Today I let the air out and installed Flat-out and reinflated to 20 lbs and rode it 3 miles to to test, the tires feel about 15-20% heavier especially with the Flat-out liquid in them. You can definitely feel the difference when pedaling and coasting, plus the more aggressive tread pattern over the stock tires. I can live with all that but my problem is the bead, I can't get it uniform all the way around the rim so the tires feel slightly lopsided. I need to deflate them and try to straighten them out, I need to get the bike totally off the ground to get this correct and it's not easy. It's been chilly and rainy here for a week and it's not helping at all.

 

[BiggKidd]

Today I let the air out and installed Flat-out and reinflated to 20 lbs and rode it 3 miles to to test, the tires feel about 15-20% heavier especially with the Flat-out liquid in them. You can definitely feel the difference when pedaling and coasting, plus the more aggressive tread pattern over the stock tires. I can live with all that but my problem is the bead, I can't get it uniform all the way around the rim so the tires feel slightly lopsided. I need to deflate them and try to straighten them out, I need to get the bike totally off the ground to get this correct and it's not easy. It's been chilly and rainy here for a week and it's not helping at all.

Huh that's interesting. Those tires are supposed to have a much tighter and better self centering bead like a car tire. They shouldn't be loose like cheap bike tires.

I didn't notice any difference in my tires when I put 16oz of flat out in each of my tires. Then again that may just be because my bike has 2) 1000 watt motors and is heavy to start with.

 

[Hakaman99]

Huh that's interesting. Those tires are supposed to have a much tighter and better self centering bead like a car tire. They shouldn't be loose like cheap bike tires.

I didn't notice any difference in my tires when I put 16oz of flat out in each of my tires. Then again that may just be because my bike has 2) 1000 watt motors and is heavy to start with.

Nice job, they look great ! I like the yellow lettering, that looks sporty.

 

[Smaug]

One more thought, if you have AAA for your car, they will also come get you if your bike breaks down. It is at the same level of protection that you have for your car. So, if you have coverage to be taken home within 50 mi. They will drive you and your bike home within 50 mi. If it's your rear tire on a hub motor bike, it's not a bad idea.

One may wish to look into that coverage before one counts on it :

(from chatGPT) Link: https://chatgpt.com/share/6838a538-8fd4-8008-a75c-5b716a96861b

Key Service Limitations​

• No On-Site Repairs: AAA does not perform repairs on disabled bicycles.
• Service Area Restrictions: Assistance is only provided on roads accessible by standard service vehicles; off-road locations are excluded .
• Bicycle Eligibility: Only non-motorized bicycles that can be transported on standard bike racks are covered. This excludes motorized bicycles, scooters, mopeds, and bicycles used for commercial purposes .
• Trailer Transport: Trailers (e.g., child or cargo trailers) are only transported if they can fit in the service vehicle; otherwise, alternative transportation must be arranged at the member's expense .
• Member Presence Required: The member must be present with the disabled bicycle at the time of service.
• Service Call Limits: Bicycle service calls count toward the total number of roadside assistance calls allowed per membership year.

 

[Smaug]

Was the split located where the tube touched the wheel and rim tape or tire?

I had this exact problem when I used too-small tubes to fix a flat. (those tubes were the only ones available when I needed to replace them) The tires were 35 mm, my tubes were for max. 32 mm. Should've known better. I wonder if Aventon assembled it with the wrong tubes...

 

[Annieolnie]

I guess we've got dueling bots.

 

[Smaug]

I guess we've got dueling bots.
<snip>

...or the coverage varies by state.

 

[Annieolnie]

...or the coverage varies by state.

Well, that would be sad, since I'm in the tiniest state.

 

[Unit59]

Was the split located where the tube touched the wheel and rim tape or tire?

I had this exact problem when I used too-small tubes to fix a flat. (those tubes were the only ones available when I needed to replace them) The tires were 35 mm, my tubes were for max. 32 mm. Should've known better. I wonder if Aventon assembled it with the wrong tubes...

The split was right at the rim tape, very close to the Velcro rime tape seam. And I do have AAA but I was on a Bike path that has vehicle barriers blocking the entrance and exit's only accessible by emergency vehicles. But honestly I didn't even think AAA as I just wanted to get home. This whole E-bike thing is a learning experience for me, I'm slowly learning but I think it's the hard way.

 

[Unit59]

Huh that's interesting. Those tires are supposed to have a much tighter and better self centering bead like a car tire. They shouldn't be loose like cheap bike tires.

I didn't notice any difference in my tires when I put 16oz of flat out in each of my tires. Then again that may just be because my bike has 2) 1000 watt motors and is heavy to start with.

I believe the reason I'm having problems with them is the way they bound and shipped them, tightly zip tied and the temps here have been very cool and wet causing the rubber to be pretty unpliable at best. The tires are very bent up even after letting them sit for 24 hours. We've had rain day after day for weeks and it sucks, today was the first dry but cloudy day in the mid 60's. I'll try again tomorrow and see how it goes, it's suppose to be warmer.

 

[Annieolnie]

Maybe you can fill them up to maximum pressure and see if that allows them to settle in.

 

[BiggKidd]

I believe the reason I'm having problems with them is the way they bound and shipped them, tightly zip tied and the temps here have been very cool and wet causing the rubber to be pretty unpliable at best. The tires are very bent up even after letting them sit for 24 hours. We've had rain day after day for weeks and it sucks, today was the first dry but cloudy day in the mid 60's. I'll try again tomorrow and see how it goes, it's suppose to be warmer.

Sounds like from what you're saying some idiot folded non folding wire bead tires. If that's the case I'd raise cain with the seller. Wire beaded tires should NEVER be folded! It could cause premature bead failure if they did.

 

[Smaug]

...or the coverage varies by state.

I poked around a bit with search engines and AAA's site. When I search AAA for coverages and such, the first thing it does is require me to input a zip code. Can't go any further without that.

Google search results come up with results for different states, as if someone had already input the zip, but the results don't give that context.

Interesting!

I guess the one useful take-away is that a two track motor vehicle would have to be able to get to you, and on public property, so being on a bike path with bollards blocking vehicle except for authority vehicles would preclude towing service.

I think the original poster was right to just do the Walk of Shame. Walking 3 miles pushing an eBike is bogus, but so is sitting around waiting for probably longer than it would take to get home. (around an hour, I guess)

 

[Hakaman99]

My Velotric D2 has a walking mode that allows the rider to walk about 3 mph along with the bike. I think you just push the throttle in Walking mode and it will walk with you at 3 miles per hour powered by the motor. I hope I never have to use it, but it is a nice feature just the same.