| Re: Tubes
On Sun, 27 Feb 2005 22:53:07 -0700, "Snowboard3r"
<Snowboard3r@Hotmail.com> may have said:
>I am looking for the best tubes available. I rode my bike for the first
>time, and came home with a flat, we have alot of puncture weeds. I put some
>slime in the tire, was great until I rode again the next day, tires went
>flat again, I filled them up and they held air, I noticed the slime on the
>outside of the tire. Went for another ride, came back and the tires were
>flat again.
>
>Anyone have any ideas on what to use?
You didn't say if this was a road bike or an mtb; tactics vary
accordingly. On mountain bikes, in places where goatheads are
common, some people report nearly tolerable (IMO) results with a
combination of a puncture-resistant tire, a puncture-resistant tire
liner, and either a thick tube or Slime, or both. In my limited
experience with this hazard, however, the only real defense is to ride
where they aren't. If that's not an option, resign yourself to
becoming adept with patches.
Bear in mind that if you adopt Slime as part of the approach, you'll
have more work to do when patching the tubes...and you'll still have
to patch or replace them eventually.
Someone will doubtless mention the foam-filled "airless" tire and tube
conversions that are available. For a variety of reasons (centering
around their inherent inability to distribute point loads in the same
way as a pneumatic tire can), these are generally disparaged by
experienced riders. Yes, an "airless" tire setup is immune to going
flat. It's also immune to providing the same level of ride comfort
and operational efficiency as an average pneumatic. Whether its
shortcomings are counterbalanced when comparing to a
puncture-resistant setup is a matter of opinion, needs, conditions and
priorities.
--
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