Singlespeed & Fixed Gear - Duct tape the inside of my tires?

First, I have a never ending quest to find more uses for duct tape (which clearly represents the apex of human thought). Second, I am cheap. Third, I am frustrated at having gotten two flats in as many rides.

My query:
Would it be folly to apply thin strips of duct tape to the inside of the tire? One or two strips would not be too thick to mess anything up I would think. The benefit, of course, would be that those little stones, and pieces of glass and metal would have more trouble poking into my tube.

Has anyone ever tried this? Has no one ever tried because they are smart enough to realize it is one of the more bone headed, useless acts one can do? After all, Amradillos are awesome, but they cost $30 bones a tire. That ain't cheap.

For the uninitiated, Armadillos are tires have extra thick tread and are about as close as one can get to puncture proof.

Any thoughts are appreciated, as always.

Thanks!

Duct tape isn't really puncture resistant so I would say that this isn't going to do a thing for you.

Edit: there are liners that you can purchase for this. I don't know anything about them but I know FixedFiend uses them.

Well. If you used enough duct tape, you could replace the tube altogether. I wouldn't try it though.

Ask yourself this: do you really think duct tape is tougher than the tread and skin wall of your tire? I don't.

Personally I love Armadillos. If you're cool with the fact that they're a heavy slow tire, they're awesome. Yeah $60 to get you rolling ain't cheap, but then not having to fix a flat at 7pm and 11 degrees is pretty excellent too.

Duct tape isn't really puncture resistant so I would say that this isn't going to do a thing for you.

Edit: there are liners that you can purchase for this. I don't know anything about them but I know FixedFiend uses them.

Yeah. Get the liners. Also, make sure you have plenty of pressure in your tubes. I used to get flats all the time until I figured out that 80% of them were so-called pinch flats or "snake bites" which are due to a less than adequately inflated tube getting pinched when you hit a rock/pot hole/curb.

I use an retired inner tube as a liner. Slit it lengthwise (around the inside) and place your working tube inside, like a dog in a bun.

Don't have any hard and fast scientific evidence to validate its usage. But my streak of annoyance flats ended after I deployed it on two different rides.

Duct tape is easy to pierce and it's heavy. And the glue goes to crap when it gets hotwet. Save it for holding the Universe together, and get liners or some decent tyres.

I agree that liners are the way to go - they're not that spendy - but I think the duct tape could work. A single strip wouldn't do much, but maybe two or three strips, or a regular-width strip folded over on itself. I'm just figuring you could pretty much make a Mr. Tuffy out of duct tape. It is true that it wouldn't work as well as a Mr. Tuffy and certainly not as well as Armadilloes, but, you know, it would be wicked cheap.

I used Spin Skinz for a little while which worked pretty well, but they were a pain to install and they're expensive enough that it's not really worth using them instead of springing for Armadillos. Are you getting flats up front? You could probably get away with a cheaper tire for the front and pay the extra money for a nice one in the back.

The palce where the you get the most gain from saving weight is the outer edge of rim. So if you spend a little money to use light weight liners, I think it is worth it. The extra miles per hour you get over the long run vs. money spent is a no brainer.

If you use three layers of duct tape you will add a lot of weight right where you do not want it. You will be noticably busting a$$ more and getting to where you want to get in the same amount of time.

[QUOTE=little5guy]First, Would it be folly to apply thin strips of duct tape to the inside of the tire? One or two strips would not be too thick to mess anything up I would think. The benefit, of course, would be that those little stones, and pieces of glass and metal would have more trouble poking into my tube.[QUOTE]

Bad idea on many levels.
Your tube is coated with talc powder to allow it to slide around inside the tire. DT will stop that.
The inside of the tire should be smooth, dry and easy to inspect for debris. DT will prevent that.
When you get another flat you will have a fun time removing the tube from the tire and an even greater time trying to patch a tube that is covered with DT glue.
Enjoy

OK, so much to address. I say agreed on the fact that stickiness inside the tire is bad. If you're having frequent flat problems, do two things (both cost $, sorry):

If you don't already, get a good floor pump with a pressure dial. I fill my slicks to 115 to 120 psi, and check the pressure (top off really) every day, or every other day.

If the problem is glass and whatnot, look for a pair of tire scrapers. I got them from Via Bikes in Philly http://www.bikeville.com/ for about $5. They are essentially wire curves, attached at the drilled brake hole (if you have) that follow the cross section profile of your tire without touching. If a piece of glass is embedded in your tire, it gets kicked out before one full rotation. The glass flats aren't one shot deals, the glass gradually works its way in with successive rotations. I'll get some pics going when the camera comes back from the infirmary. I'm not the only one who's heard of these, am I?

OK, so much to address. I say agreed on the fact that stickiness inside the tire is bad. If you're having frequent flat problems, do two things (both cost $, sorry):

If you don't already, get a good floor pump with a pressure dial. I fill my slicks to 115 to 120 psi, and check the pressure (top off really) every day, or every other day.

If the problem is glass and whatnot, look for a pair of tire scrapers. I got them from Via Bikes in Philly http://www.bikeville.com/ for about $5. They are essentially wire curves, attached at the drilled brake hole (if you have) that follow the cross section profile of your tire without touching. If a piece of glass is embedded in your tire, it gets kicked out before one full rotation. The glass flats aren't one shot deals, the glass gradually works its way in with successive rotations. I'll get some pics going when the camera comes back from the infirmary. I'm not the only one who's heard of these, am I?

no, your just the only one who uses them.

A gloved hand or the bottom of your shoe can be used to remove glass from the tires.
The KEY is to avoid riding in road crud by staying in the tire-path part of the road whenever possible/practical.
Enjoy

Yah if you're getting too many flats take a look at what you are doing on the road. If it's pinch flats be a bit more considerate of the rough bits if it's glass and wire don't go though the ugly stuff if you can avoid it.
Always remember that flats are part of the game too, no need to take too much effort with gear or line to avoid them they'll come anyway. I only get about one a month but occasionally lady luck takes me out behind the shed and I get 3 in a day. Nuttin to be done for it if you're city riding and can't pick your destinations.

no, your just the only one who uses them.

Yes, I may be. But "your" the one with poor grammatical skills. And a sh*tty attitude, if I may say so.

Yes it would be folly.

Spinskins or Armadillos or both, or any good quality Kevlar belted tire (and there are many), are the best answers. If you really don't care about speed or effort and money is a big issue. And if you have old tires like the ones on the bike or smaller. You can cut the beads off the old tires and put them inside the good tires. You will lose about 1 mph on flat ground, but you can ride over most glass, small animals, and medium size dogs.... :)

Yes it would be folly.

Spinskins or Armadillos or both, or any good quality Kevlar belted tire (and there are many), are the best answers. If you really don't care about speed or effort and money is a big issue. And if you have old tires like the ones on the bike or smaller. You can cut the beads off the old tires and put them inside the good tires. You will lose about 1 mph on flat ground, but you can ride over most glass, small animals, and medium size dogs.... :)

How about raccoons? Fawns? Cubs?

How about raccoons? Fawns? Cubs?

I guess it depends your wheel build, type of fork, and skill level.

You have heard of a "Bunny Hop" haven't you? :)