johnlink

Do any of you know a source for quality 700x25 tubes for a low price?

Cyclist0094

Quality or low price? You get to choose 1

johnlink

I presume there could be sellers offering quality tubes, perhaps in quantity, for a price lower than the $7 I pay at my LBS.

WizardOfBoz

How many tubes do you go through that makes a 1 or 2 dollar difference in price worth the effort? I mean, you might find something on the interweb and save a buck or two on the price, but then you have to pay shipping. Why is this a big deal? You poppin' a tube a week? If so, I'd suggest that looking for a cheap tube is the problem, not the solution. You need to buy better tubes, not cheaper!

Kevindale

Most people don't seem to see much difference in tube quality for basic butyl tubes. Sometimes big-name tubes fail quickly, and sometimes cheap no-name tubes last just fine. It appears that a lot of tubes are made at the same place and rebranded, so often you're paying extra for the name. Unless you're interested in lightweight tubes, or latex, the brand probably doesn't matter too much. I recently bought 10 tubes on Amazon for about $30, and the 3 I've used (or given away) have been just fine.

Run too low an inflation pressure and any tube will get pinch flats. Run over goat's head thorns and the like and even puncture resistant tubes will likely get flat. Also, a properly patched tube should be as good as an unpatched tube, so don't hesitate to keep using a patched tube as long as it holds air. I've used tubes that had 4 or 5 patches from when I road in areas with a lot of thorns.

One tip for your 25 mm tires -- get tubes with the largest size range with 25 mm at the top. In other words, use 18-25 mm tubes instead of 23-25 mm tubes. The wider range tubes will be smaller, and less likely to kink or bunch up in the tire when inflated. And a 25-28 mm tube will be really sloppy inside a 25 mm tire.

T Stew

Last time I bought tires, I think from Merlin, they came in a bundle of tires and tubes for a few bucks cheaper than other stores sell just the tires (GP4kIIs), so I basically got the tubes for free and then some. Bought a few more tubes that were on sale too for cheap, and probably have a lifetime supply now. This is probably one of the cheapest aspects of cycling, I wouldn't worry about a dollar or two here. Of course if you flat frequently maybe it's a bigger deal. In my couple years of cycling so far I have not had a single flat, knock on wood.

Cyclist0094

Yeah but those are NYC tubes! I usually buy mine during the end of season sales that the online retailers such as Nashbar and Performance have. Check Amazon, I saw a few days ago they had 5 packs of Conti tubes for $25 and free shipping

Hornplayer

Art's Cyclery online. Last time I bought tubes it was 5 for $20.

drlogik 

I tried the cheap tubes recently. Junk. Had one or two blow-outs a week. Bought some good quality Continentals and have not had any blow-outs or flats since.

Even in the short-term, you don't save any money buying cheap tubes.

Here's my math:
Cheap tube period...
two tubes per week for three weeks at $6 per tube = $36

After I bought two "expensive" tubes for $10 per tube = $20

I have been running on the $20 dollars worth of tubes for 8 weeks now without incident.

The cheap tubes blew out and were not repairable.

I will not be buying cheap tubes ever again. I learned my lesson.

RandomTroll

I buy Kendas for $2.5 @ Niagara Cycle. I never have a tube failure: an object sharp enough to penetrate a regular tube penetrates a thick one; the valve fails because I put too much stress on it; it blows out only because the tire (or my mounting) fails. I suppose they may leak more quickly.

Western Flyer 

If you are looking for the highest quality inner tubes from companies like Continental, Schwalbe, Michelin and Vittoria I can steer to in the direction of some real bargains, although I can’t guarantee the exact selection. Look in the dumpster behind your local bike shop or if you are on a first name basis with the owner just ask for some discarded tubes. There are often a dozen or two that have been tossed into the trash.

Another excellent source that has never failed me are the trash cans at big charity/event rides. I call these roadkill tubes and yes some riders throw them to the side of the road. It seems folks riding five digit CF road bikes at these events will not sully their $2000 wheels with patched tubes. A lot of these tubes retail for $10+. They have presta valves with replaceable valve cores (Reason enough just to scavenge a few spare cores).

Of course they are all going to come with at least one tiny puncture, so you’ll need to purchase a $3 patch kit. I’ve seen all of the above mentioned brands. I personally like the Conti Race Light tubes.

dksix

Ribble had Continental 25-32 tubes for $3.21 each if the 42mm valves are long enough. I just bought some with 80mm stems for $4.36 each.

fietsbob

Manufacturers gel lower prices than dealers since they get case lot truck loads of Boxes.

ltxi

I buy Conti tubes @ Amazon, getting a few at a time when I run low. Last were about $6 apiece. Good tubes and I'm happy with the price. I really don't go through many.

SquireBikesalot

seems like a dubious claim, but I've been told that cheaper (heavier) tubes are better because the rubber's thicker. I got a few flats last year that were all from glass or asploding carbon rims, but I've gotten zero flats related to penny pinching and running cheap tubes. I have a whole bag of tubes that I picked up for cheap that I haven't even touched.

Falchoon

Wiggle's own brand Lifeline are cheap and good quality.

dohc97 

You missed out on the pricepoint closing sale. I payed under $20 shipped for 10 tubes. I find that brand does not matter much when you ride streets like we have in texas. Road debris does not care for brands. Tires are a bit different.

rekmeyata

Walmart tubes are crap, they can vary in thickness from a section that is real thin to section that is real thick, and the presta values they use will last about 10 to 20 times of use and they'll break.

There are other tubes too that are cheap and are poor quality construction, stuff like split seams. I would stay with big name tire tube manufacturers like Michelin, Specialized, Vittoria, Hutchinson, Schwalbe, and Continental, get the tube with the best price of those brands and you'll get a decent tube.

jefnvk

I buy, almost exclusively, whatever cheap generic tubes Niagara has when I put in an order. Usually not much more over $2 each. Still waiting on a puncture, pinch, or blowout on trail for the better part of two riding seasons now.

:rushes to find some wood to knock on: