Currently I am using basic off road tyres at about 60psi (tyre max is 65) to try to cur down one punctures. I'm still getting them though.
I've seen the tube sealant in my local bike shop, is it any good and can I use it on inners with the car tyre style valves?
I have also seen some form of tough/armoured strips that can go inside your tyre between it and you inner. How effective are these to stopping punctures?
The reason I ask is that I missed my ride yesterday due to having to replace an inner due to puncture :(
i've been using latex tubes for a while now, havent had one single puncture, and i ride in some pretty brambly, rocky stuff. used to get punctures all the time
sorry, i left out what i was gonna say about tires sealent.
i used it for a while, personally, i found it quite rubbish. the only slime tubes i found to actually work, were the specialized ones. bloody heavy though
I was going to say run higher pressures, but 60psi is pretty high anyway.
What are your tyres like? Cheap ones have thinner, less tightly woven carcasses. More expensive tyres tend have better ones which can be more puncture resistant.
The misses and I both use armour strips but I've also used a slime tube for 8 months before it needed replacing - it looked like Edward Scissor Hands had been at it.
The wheel doesn't spin as freely with the slime tube.
As Dan says, I hoping to get better tyres soon and may even be able to do away with the puncture strips. I just can't wear out my tyres though.
Do you mainly get pinch punctures (also called snakebites)? The puncture is caused when you hit something like a kerb/rock/root/etc fairly hard. The tube is then pinched between said object and the wheel rim, often causing two opposing holes or longitudinal slits in the tube.
Putting sludge in your tyres doesn't seem to work very well on the larger holes that pinch punctures cause (It can get messy).
Using bigger tyres helps. I find I can run 2.3 and 2.4" tyres as low as 30psi and not get punctures. With 2.1" tyres I have to run over 40psi, and with 1.9" tyres I ran 50psi, and still got pinch punctures.
stick talc between the tyre and the tube, this lets them rotate a bit relative to each other and cuts down traction on the tube and at the valve. i swear by it.
I use the inner liners that go between tube and tyre on my slicks. They seem quite good, but are a b*gger to put in properly. I found it easier to inflate the tube slightly while doing this.
I haven't yet had a flat using them, and my tyres go through plenty of little bits of glass on my commute.
Ive used Slime liners and this has cut down the number of punctures from 4-6 per week to 2 this year. Even then I got a new slime filled tube under their waranty.
The other weekend I pulled x4 long thorns out of the tyre and the liner had prevented a puncture.
Its not 100% but its a vast improvement and I would recommend them to anyone with a guarantee to fall back on has saved loads of time and hassel all for £10.00
just put Slime in my inner tubes (buy the bottle - it comes with a tool to remove the core of the car type valves - you the just squirt it into the tube) I am trying this as I have had lots of punctures recently.
for off road, i have switched to tubeless downhill tires with stans no tubes. knock on wood, no punctures yet, but they are heavy, totalling about 1000g per tire. i ride over thorns, sharp granite rock and have destroyed lesser tire, tubeless or not. for commuting i use specialized armadillos with thorn resistant almost solid tubes. take your pick, light weight or puncture resistant.
nothing is however puncture proof.....unless you have solid tires.
A good old DH tube will do the job unless your a weight weenie!!! I run continental DH tubes and didnt puncture for about 8 months. They are about as thick as a wet suit and really not that much heavier.
I have gone 6 months with no puntures with 2.3 Continental Verticals, they are great for resisting puntures, wide tyres seem to be very good as was my previous ones Tioga DH 2.3's.
Hate to go against the flow, but I was always told to run my tyres at a low pressure when off road. I generally run my tyres at below 45psi and have had 2 punctures this year (and one of those was because the tyres sidewall split).
You will also find that running lower pressures will give you a better ride without having to use wider tyres.
