# When tubes SNAP!



## Diocletian (Dec 7, 2018)

I've avoided pseudo tapers until now because they seem to snap at the loop end/close to the forks. Scary stuff.
Is it always possible to tell when tubes are in Snap City due to wear? Did you ever get hit in the face?


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## STO (Mar 2, 2018)

Usually you'll see them start to fray before they snap. That means it is replacement time. I haven't gotten hit in the face by tubes since I was a kid, but always wear eyepro anyway.


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## mattwalt (Jan 5, 2017)

What STO said - Keep an eye regardless of the setup - Tubes tend to look gnawed near one of the bindings when they wear - as soon as its really noticeable - its time to swop them out.


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## Bob E (Mar 23, 2015)

It starts out looking rough and chafed. That turns into a little hole which grows until it's hanging by a thread. Usually happens closer to the pouch than the pseudo loop.

I've only been snapped in the face by rubber bands. Those tend to let go with little warning after only a handful of shots.


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## Northerner (Nov 9, 2010)

As was said, watch your tubes for signs of wear and damage. I sometimes get a small tear in the tube close to the taper loop. This sometime happens when I'm shooting them close to max stretch. Sometimes the tear happens at the pouch end. Toss the tubes when you see a tear or split.

I have never been smacked by a broken tube. They often break after the shot rather than during the draw.


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## ForkLess (Aug 15, 2018)

Northerner said:


> As was said, watch your tubes for signs of wear and damage. I sometimes get a small tear in the tube close to the taper loop. This sometime happens when I'm shooting them close to max stretch. Sometimes the tear happens at the pouch end. Toss the tubes when you see a tear or split.
> 
> I have never been smacked by a broken tube. They often break after the shot rather than during the draw.


 that is so strange isn't it?


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## SLINGDUDE (Aug 15, 2018)

Northerner said:


> They often break after the shot rather than during the draw.


Kinda freaked me out the first few times this happened. The shot goes off just fine, but when I look down to reload only one side of the bandset is attached. Well, guess it's time for a new set. I'd love to see a slow motion of this type of failure to see just how this phenomenon occurs.


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## flipgun (Nov 14, 2012)

In my experience, When tubes break they tend to stack against their own structure and rear up. Basically reverting to their natural shape. When bands break, there is a whip like action where the tip accelerates past the anchor point on the same plane as they fold over themselves.


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