What is it for ??

[gyro_chris]

Ok, so while repairing a puncture this evening, I re-discovered a question I have had for a long time, but never got answered.  

 

Considering the combined cycling experience of the club must be at least 500 years, then someone must know the answer.

 

So the question is.  In a cycle repair kit, what is the crayon for?.  I did wonder if its for marking the hole on the tube, but I have never been able to get the crayon to draw on an innertube.  And even if you could, then when you roughen the surface, you would take the crayon marking off.  So it cannot be used for that.  My only other thought was its for drawing a picture while you wait for the glue to dry.

 

looking at the instructions on all my repair kits, even some classic CTC ones picked up at a show a few years ago, it makes no mention of the crayon.

 

I also recall from my childhood, my repair kits had a small length of thin rubber tube in.  I cannot even think what that was for.

 

 

[DaveM]

Crayon is certainly there to mark the tube.  But as you say on some tubes it just won't work. The small diameter rubber tube we used to get in the kit was a replaceable part of the old 'Woods' or 'Dunlop' valve assembly. They used to perish.  You cut off a small piece and replaced the old bit.

[Mrs DAVIES]

Well now I know!

[Tim Crumpton]

You used to get a small 1" patch of black canvas material too! I guess to support a sidewall split instead of hunting in the bushes for an old plastic bag etc..

[rovi]

If you want to talk old..

I used to have a penknife with a thing on it

for getting stones out of horses hooves.

Anybody got anything older (road related)

Santa and reindeers excepted.