Do tubes make a difference?
 

Should I replace cheap $1 stock tubes with $8 Schwall road tubes? Or keep them until they blow, then find an off-brand $1 tube and buy that?

If the current tubes hold air I wouldn't change them. As for future replacement, I've not seen $1 tubes anywhere. I buy the store brand from Performance Bike Store which usually run around $4 and they've served me well.

If you ride in the desert over goat thorns and land mines, buy those $300 woven steel and Kevlar tubes. Otherwise whatever works. I mean, all a tube does is hold in the air. Don't worry too much about size, either. (Valves are a consideration - usually only type and length - so tubes aren't completely interchangeable.)

Performance puts their tubes on sale at about half price a couple times a year: stock up.



And carry at least one spare.

what change do you wish for? consider that for your spare tubes, next puncture
you put those in, ... and patch what will be your next spare..

Depends on who you are, what you drive and what you want. To some people a tube is a tube is a tube. To some people a tire is a tire is a tire and to some people a bike is a bike is a bike.

Tubes are available in different quLities and yeah since you brought up Schwalbes - they lose air pressure less rapidly than other brands.

There are also differences in valves and some presta valves on some tubes have replacable valve stems.

Tubes are available with an anti-flat liquid already installed, in heavy duty models with heavier gage construction and in lightweight latex versions instead of the standard butyl rubber versions.

They all trade one feature for another so they all have advantages and disadvantages. And unless you feel there`s something special about your bike, then ordinary tubes like what came with it would be just fine.

PricePoint carrys tubes at very reasonable prices.
I've gotten tubes for all 5 of my bikes thru em (the house brand) and had decent usage .
The valve stem length is an issue with house brand tires if you have deep V aero wheels.
I tend to like the threaded stem tube over the smooth stem.