Cycle Repairing and Adjusting
With a Chapter on building a Bicycle from a Set of Parts

TYRE COVER REPAIRING 49 should be kept apart as much as possible until the solution is almost dry, when the parts should be pressed together, the tyre replaced on the rim, partly inflated, and bound with tape and left to set and dry. In this, as in all repairs to the cover, other than the smallest, the machine should not be used for at least a day after finishing, and if left another day so much the better. Gaiter Patches on Covers.—A weak place or burst may sometimes be very effectively repaired by the use of a gaiter patch, which consists of a piece of fabric wide enough to go right across the cover and lap round the beads to the centre of the cover underneath. They have a thin covering of rubber on the tread, and may be purchased with various pattern treads to match the cover being repaired. They require carefully putting on, or they will come away at the edges and gradually get loose. The surface of the cover must be very carefully cleaned, and it is a great help if the surface is roughened with a tyre rasp before giving the first coat of solution. Two or even three good coats should be given, allowing plenty of time for the previous coat to dry before applying the next. This job is also helped by taping after the tyre is on the rim and inflated. In purchasing the gaiter, select one that is fully long enough to well cover the weak place, as it is useless put- ting one on only just the length of the bad place, as it will soon start to bulge again each side of the gaiter. Re-lining Covers.—Where a cover has numerous weak places it may be advisable to re-line it rather than repair with numerous patches. Re-lining a cover will make a very serviceable job of an otherwise weak and almost E