SimonLee

Do tire liners really work?? Which one do you have?

Timothy

I put Mr. tuffys on a cheap set of tires I have on my foul weather commuter. Was getting flats every 150 miles before. I haven't had a flat in 1000 miles with them. They are heavy though.

Closed Office

I've never used tire liners but did have one thick bottom puncture resistant tube. It went about 10 times as far as my average tire and never had a flat. I had to move and leave the bikes behind, but whoever has them is probably still enjoying it. It was a bit heavy though.

ben4345

I can only imagine that they work when install properly. Been meaning to get some RhinoDillos so I can use my Diamente pro tires.

catonec 

I had mr tuffy's on my mtb in the 90's. they worked pretty well I guess.

wahoonc

They work, can be a PITA to install, they are heavy. I use a good quality Kevlar belted tire, watch where I am riding and have greatly reduced the number of flats I have had. They are better than slime tubes...

Aaron

fietsbob

Till the end of the strip wears a hole in the inner-tube.

none of the above...
Schwalbe marathon Plus tires , stuff like those strips is under the tread.

Retro Grouch 

I'm a believer that if you choose a tire to match your riding conditions you shouldn't have to buy an accessory to make it work. Over the years I've used Armadillo and Gator Skin tires with good results but I don't live in goat head thorn country. Once, when I got something that I never could find stuck in the tire of my commuter, I cut the valve stem out of an old inner tube and used that as a tire liner with good results.

I've installed tire liners for many shop customers. My method is to lay the bare tire on the floor, inflate the inner tube enough to give it shape, and stuff the tire liner between the tire and tube. I haven't experienced this personally but I've had several riders who I believe and trust comment on Mr. Tuffy's causing flats by abraiding the inner tube at the edge of the Mr. Tuffy.

Elbowgrease

I don't remember what brand mine are, but I went from getting no less than one flat tire per day (say every three or four miles) to none since I put them in. Cheaper than nice tires if you don't need brand new tires. watch them when they start to age though. The edges tend to get stiff and brittle and break off leaving sharp little chunks inside your tire. I've also gone through and cut/broken all of the britteld edges off of one to use it before. worked just fine.

ben4345

You guys seem to be set to Mr. Tuffy tire liners. What about other brands? Like Panaracer's flataway, it don't look like it even has an edge to cut into the tube.

Shimagnolo

Just ask, and we'll send you some.

Whiteknight

When I first started using Tuffy liners I was warned that the overlap section could cause a tube puncture by shifting around. This is where the liner overlaps. I cover the edge of the overlap with a piece of duct tape or Gorilla tape.

SimonLee

i recently brought conti sport contact tire for my hybrid front tire 26x1.5 and got a flat on the 1st day i went out riding with it after like 25 miles i notice my tire lost some air then day by day it was losing more and by the 3rd day when i woke up my tire was finally all flat. i had the snake bite puncture maybe due to under-inflation of my bike tire. also saw a small cut on my tire which might have been an object that got into my tire to caused the flat only then to pop right back out of the tire. the cut didnt even make a hole that completely go through the tire. i believe conti has kevlar protection. i use an nimbus sports armadillo for the rear tire and no flat for 1 year but they are heavy and slick tire.

i might add a tire liner to the front wheel if i get another flat in less than 3-4 months since the kevlar layer looks not as good as my armadillo tire on the inside looks a lot thicker and stronger and even on the outside.

Cyclebum

In Texas, it's wire bits from delaminated semi tires that cause 95% of my flats. Kevlar tires nor Mr Tuffy will stop them. Must be as bad as goat heads.

I am now testing a DIY liner made from cutting mats. These are thin, light, tough, and flexible. I've installed a double layer, enclosed in an old inner tube, in my rear tire. The inner tube enclosure protects the air tube from the liner edges. It will also let me ride the tire to the cord with little fear of a blowout. The 8 oz of extra weight is of no concern.

We'll see.

Elbowgrease

I have no idea how he did it, but a friend of mine used to cut up aluminum blinds and use them for tire liners. Absolutely swore by it. Guys been living off of his bike for about 25 years now.

Cyclebum

I briefly considered blind strips. But aluminum flashing was available and is about the same thickness. I tried that first. Don't understand how it worked for your friend. Mine quickly broke into short pieces. So did galvanized flashing. Metal fatigue. There is an awful lot of action inside a rolling tire.

The cutting mats are cheap, easy to work, and readily available. Be a lot of miles before I can declare success.

Elbowgrease

I don't know how that guy did half of what he did, or how many tube he blew out before he got his aluminum blinds to work, but he did. Good luck to you.

Retro Grouch 

eight ounces?

Cyclebum

227 grams. Umm...that's almost half the weight of the tire. Was just a guess. I'd better go put it on a scale. Maybe just 100 grams? Insignificant to me either way.

AlmostGreenGuy

I love Mr. Tuffy liners on my high volume/low pressure tires. I just cover the overlap with gorilla tape. I've never tried liners on high pressure tires.

lan61t

I use Rhinodillos Tire Line, it's quite heavy, but i think it's better to be safe than to have tyre puncture during your ride.