Brigid

My new bike is being delivered today (Trek 7200)! The lbs owner was talking to me yesterday about accessories and options I might want on the bike, and he was pushing flat tire protection in the form of either more reinforced tires (I think the ones he was saying to buy were kevlar, about $20 to switch with the tires I have) or strips that go inside the tire to provide extra protection, which were only a few dollars per tire. Do you more experienced people think one of these is worth it? One of the reasons I liked the 7200, rather than the Navigator series or some of the other bikes I looked at was the tires that come on it, which are narrrower and smoother -- more like road tires. The kevlar tires he showed me were knobby, like a mtn. tire. I suppose they come in different widths, so that part should be okay. thanks for any advice! I will have to decide before I pick up my bike this afternoon. (They didn't have my size, so it's being sent from their other store.)

Hunter

Well this is a heated topic here. I run injected tubes, with tire liners but I live in central Tx and ride off road about 99.9% of the time. I have no groomed trails for I only follow game paths. However I have ridden for over two years now with no flats.

MichaelW

Kevlar-banded tyres are available in slick road patterns, and in all sizes from 23mm upwards, for road and MTB sized wheels. I use a puncture-protected tyre for my commute and get about 2 punctures a year, riding at least 10 miles every day, more at weekends. They dont stop punctures, but do reduce the likelyhood.
A fast commuter/training-style tyre makes more sense than an ultra-light racing one, for everyday fitness riding, and is an upgrade I would recomend. Some are really expensive, but the mid-range ones work well.

Wingman115

Try the slime tubes I've done some 24 hr mountain biking races in tucson and they worked great lots of thorns in the tire but no flats.

catatonic

I have tires with a built-in anti puncture layer, and use a anti-puncture tire liner on top of it as well.

May be overkill to some, but to me having a lower chance to pop a flat is worth the added weight and slightly lower ride quality. I run 90PSI tires on my commuter bike, so it's not like the stiffness is going to matter that much anyways.


EDIT: BTW the tires I use are the Serfas Drifter. I paid about $20 per tire for them at my lbs. Pretty decent semi-slicks, great on the road, and capable of light off-roading if the need arises. Just don't try to use those for any kind of rough terrain use, since the treads are valleys in the tire, as opposed to the knobby treads that are found on an actual off-road tire.

forum*rider

I run kevlar beaded IRC Mythos XC tires with regular tubes and I don't get too many flats. My road bike is another story. The homeless people leave broken bottles all over the place and I get 1-2 flats per road ride. I felt the need for added flat protection on the road bike and I use slime liners, kevlar tires and thorn resistant tubes. It's worth it for me to armour my tires because if I didn't I spend 1-2 hours changing tubes/patching tubes.


If you really feel the need for flat protection then go ahead and armour your tires up.

MichaelW

NB Kevlar BEAD is different to kevlar BAND. The bead is the wire around each edge, annd kevlar is used to make the tyres lighter and more foldable. The band is a band of puncture resistant material layed into the covering of the tyre.
Kevlar beads are a luxury you can do without.

mrdoright0405

Kevlar as in bullet proof? Wow! What do they cost?

77Univega

Kevlar Belted Tires. I bought a set of Specialized Armadillo tires two years ago. (27" x 1.25") Last week I got my first flat. The injury site was where the smooth tread meets the sidewall. When I examined the tire surface I found about six additional serious punctures which did not penetrate through the tire. Some still had bits of glass in them. This is proof to me that these tires had successfully warded off road punctures over the last two years.

I want to replace them with another set of Kevlar belted tires but with thicker tread. Who makes such tires for my 27" road wheels?

DieselDan

I'm wary of tire strips. I've seen them slip and shred a tube beyond any hope of patching.

Cyclepath

I find that besides being weight-saving, kevlar beads can make it much easier to mount & dismount a tire, since different rims have small but sometimes significant diameter differences. I have been defeated a couple of times trying to mount steel-bead tires & had to take the wheel to the LBS.

As for broken bottles, a refund would help with that. When i lived in Conn. most of the bottle breaking was done by kids & young men driving pickup trucks with Bush/Cheny stickers, not homeless people, many of whom who were living under the extravagant new town bridge. Having a town full of dives & biker bars doesn't help either.

catatonic

If your so worried, use some light adhesive on teh "out" side of the strip before application will go a long ways. Just enough that you can remove the strip though.

mswantak

Seems like keeping your tires properly inflated would also make that sort of slippage unlikely.

Delta

I got 3 flats on my last 3 rides. So over the long weekend I purchased a tire liner (tuffY) and this seems to have solved the problem. It was getting so frustrated already. At the LBS they recommended I buy a $30 tire but I insisted on the liner and I went home installed in no time, and when I went riding I didn't get a flat. Hopefully I won't have to do any more flat protection investments.

racingpain

dude, here is what I have to say on the matter, I have protection in the form of the Kevlar tires on both my bikes and I am yet to have a flat on either. If you want to ride in peace and not hear the air running out of your tubes, this is a easy way to play it safe.

slowandsteady

I always use kevlar tires. Never had a flat since. I like to ride my bike, not fix it, especially on the side of the road. I have even run over glass(oops!) with my bike and didn't get a flat. I live in a rural area and broken beer bottles are just a part of the "chips" in tar and chip roadways.

Delta

Well I now have Kevlar tires but before I got those I got some cheap Hutchinson tires and I haven't had any flats since. And they only cost me less than 5 dollars each. I wish I would have ordered more than 2.

nedgoudy

I swear by mr. tuffy!

No flats on my Ez-1 since
I got mr. tuffy and Maxiss
Hookworm 110 psi tires about
4 year ago. Both the tires and
the tubes and liners are doing
fine. That being said, I am gonna
pump up my tires tomorrow and
pray I don't get a flat on my 50 miler.

froze

I think the question to you should be: "what do you want, a racing bike or a commuting bike"? In other words are you more interested in having a lighter faster bike or is dependablity while riding more of a concern? If you want less problems while riding then look into the Specialize Armadillos, they are virtually flat proof but they are heavy and stiff; or you could go with the lighter Conti Gatorbacks but their sidewalls are way more flimsy thus subject to damage then the Armadillos are.

I rode in the high desert of California where goatheads and thistles run wild and free for over 10 years and 7 of those years on Armadillos and NEVER...well almost never had a flat, and I ran 65grm racing tubes. The only flats I had was due to riding on a balding Armadillo and a faulty tube. I had goatheads penetrate Mr Tuffys in lighter tires but they couldn't penetrate and Armadillo. Also team Action Sports out of Bakersfield CA 2 years ago won the 4 man RAAM division riding on Armadillos, so the weight of those tires didn't seem to affect their ability to win the race!

If you take a look at an average tire that weighs 190grms, add a 120grm Mr Tuffy plus a 65grm tube your looking at 375grms, whereas a Armadillo weighs 370grms plus a 65 grm tube only makes your tire 60grms heavier plus have far superior flat protection in the tread as well as the sidewall.

Cyclist0383

I use reinforced tires for my commuter (Schawlbe Marathon Plus) the the spring, summer, and autumn. In the winter I use Mr Tuffy strips with Nokian 106 studded tires. I would highly recomend either the Marathon Plus tires or the Mr Tuffy liners. |In fact I won't ride without one or the other as our streets are so bad.

If you choose to go with the liners, heat the ends with a lighter and flaten out any sharp points that may be there. If you look at a liner you will see what I mean. Good luck.

bbattle

Once I started carrying a patch kit, tire levers and a spare tube I stopped getting flats.

Always check your tire pressure before a ride. Many flats are caused by not having enough air in the tire.

As you gain experience on your bike, you'll also learn to spot trouble on the road and dodge it.

The Bontrager Invert Hardcase tires are pretty good commuter tires but if you are really worried about it, get some Kevlar ones. But don't think you will be invincible.

froze

HAHAAHA, so you can dodge ALL troubles on the road with your vast experience?