southpawboston

As many of you already know, Rootboy's handmade tire savers were reviewed in the latest issue of Bicycle Quarterly.

Well, Jan Heine just posted on his blog that Rootboy's tire savers are available for sale through Compass Bicycles. Of course, you can contact Rootboy directly to purchase a set (I have a set on my Mercian and will probably be adding sets to other bikes).

So, congratulations to Rootboy! To have an item that passes Jan Heine's personal set of criteria (which set a high, if controversial, bar) to be sold by his company is quite an accomplishment.

noglider 

Good for you, rootboy. I guess this means that Jan believes these things work. I've always been skeptical.

He says you can attach one model to the trailing edge of the fender, but the back of the fender is really the leading edge when you look at the flow of water (or work) of fenders.

auchencrow

Rootboy is offering a high-quality, and exclusive product at a very reasonable cost. It does not surprise me that Jan H has recognized it.

rootboy 

Well, thanks SouthPaw, and Noglider and Auchencrow as well. You know, this has turned out to be better than I thought it might.
Jan order 25 sets a month ago and just wrote last night to order twenty more sets! So it sounds like they are selling well. Thanks very much guys.

Noglider. This fender mount thing is quite a departure, to me. When Jan reviewed them and then 2/3 of his order was for fender-mount version, I thought he was a little nuts to tell the truth. But I have a somewhat limited experience, having only one bike with fenders and I told Jan I hadn't really considered making that type as I certainly didn't want to drill holes in my original Frejus fenders to test them.

At first I didn't quite grasp how he did it but turns out he does indeed mount both to the trailing edge. Rear is mounted under the BB I think. But the front, and this kind of threw me, is mounted up on top of the front fender, like a hood ornament. Personally I'm not sure I'd like that but, if it works, what the heck.
He seems to be selling them very well indeed.

Thanks again fellas.

southpawboston

If Jan continues to place orders like that on a regular basis, that's wonderful! Do the higher numbers translate into any increased economics of scale for your production? In that, are you finding it easier/faster to make these in larger batches?

Peugeotlover

They last forever, if adjusted properly.
The pair on my '72 Peugeot are 38 years old (3000 miles).
I was always getting flats riding around the seaside town of Old Monterey,
that is until Les Jocelyn, bike shop owner, sold me a set for $3.

They are great for knocking out silica/ broken glass and thorns, and tiny cinders.
They save time and money, and pay for themselves with the first flat you didn't get.

If you only ride on clean highways and never flat, you don't need them.

ColonelJLloyd 

Good on ya, Scott! I saw them on the Compass site last week. I'll be mounting a set to my Jack Taylor tandem soon.

noglider 

Can anyone think of a test to ascertain their effectiveness? I can't.

rootboy 

Actually, SouthPaw, no. I wish it did but it's still one bend at a time with my set of four little specialty pliers. Having more to build doesn't translate into any time savings, and the only thing that slows me down is a touch of elbow tendonitis. Otherwise, I'd be a tire saver makin' machine.

Thanks again, A.

Scott

rootboy 

Heck no Tom. It's the placebo effect. And that's BIG !

Henry III

Just read the review this morning in the email. Congrats!

Italuminium

And old-fashionable doodads make the world go round, especially here in C&V.

nlerner

1) Sprinkle broken glass along a route.
2) Ride that route say 10 times (or a hundred times) on a bike without tire savers.
3) Count up the number of flats.
4) Ride same route the same number of times on the same bike with tire savers.
5) Count up the number of flats.
6) Compare results.

ColonelJLloyd 

I'll bring the broken glass!

noglider 

Anyone willing to RUN this test?

Italuminium

I'll bring full bottles, empty them, and throw them in front off the wheels of the unfortunate lemming at the helm of the test bike.

-holiday76

why would you want to foul up their perceived effectiveness with hard numbers? You're going to throw the marketing guys all off.

KonAaron Snake 

RB - congrats! Very excited for you and think your work is exceptional.

qcpmsame 

Great news Scott, you have come up with a great product that is very well made. That is rare in this day and time. I wondered why someone didn't make and sell tyre savers anymore, I ran them on every bike Monica and I owned in the 70s and 80s. Glad you are getting recognition for your work.

Bill

rootboy 

Thanks Bill, Aaron, and all. I thought it was amusing that Jan was sort of non-commital in the review, stating he very rarely gets flat tires anyway. Makes me wonder why he tested them, but I'm sure grateful he did.

Again, anybody who needs some stainless steel "legs" , just let me know. Thanks.

noglider 

Is there a reason he coined a new word for them?

rootboy 

Yes. He mentions in the review he did that he prefers the more descriptive term "tire wipers". I tend to agree as these things don't really "save" anything, aside from a few flat tires perhaps. I labeled mine the somewhat goofy "Flat Stoppers", for lack of anything better.

rootboy 

Thank you Colonel! And Henry. et al.

Fred Smedley

Living in goathead country and riding tubulars I am a believer in tire savers as I bought my first pair from the original inventor who had a shop "the bicycle shop" in Concord Ca in the 70's.

Peugeotlover

https://loosescrews.com/Products/bicy...vers-pair.html

Rootboy has actually improved this age-old product with the circle loop near the mounting point.

Nobody has pointed this out, yet, but these tire devices are most important when running TUBULAR tires, which are thin skinned- thus more susceptible to punctures than most bike tires.