Bicycle Tire Liners
Slime Tire Liners or Flat-Away Kevlar
Tape
Bicycle Tire Liners are one approach to puncture resistance.
They are designed to keep you on the road instead of in the ditch
trying to do trailside repairs. They are typically a strip of
plastic or other material that is fitted along the inside rim
of your tire, between the tire and the tube.
It has a tough outer liner that stops punctures and a soft inner
liner that won't damage the inner tube. Like anything else that
you buy, it comes in a variety of qualities, weights and ease
of installation.
Note that I suggest that bike tire liners are only one answer.
Bicycle tubes can be purchased
with chemicals that are added to the inside of the tube that will
instantly seal small holes. These chemicals can also sometimes
be added to certain types of tubes after the fact. It is mostly
dependent on the type of tube stem.
Bicycle tires themselves, can also be designed with sophisticated
kevlar strips and thicker rubber built into the tread that can
serve the same purpose, or offer another layer of protection.
The use of one or all of these options in combination, will be
dependent on the trails that you choose and your style of riding.
But back to the bicycle tire liners... here's a run down of some
of the your options. Remember that for every person that swears
by a product there are 3 other people that say it is useless so
its up to you to do your own experimentation to determine which
is the perfect bicycle puncture proof tyre liner. Here are two
of the most common products on the market:
1. Slime Tire liners are probably the most well known
and are made of an extruded polyurethane plastic. It comes in
a roll with enough material for two tires. It does not have a
peel and stick application, so a little more difficult to get
proper alignment. It does add weight, but quite cost effective.
2. Panaracer's Flat-Away Puncture Resistant Kevlar Tape is
an upgrade both in price and protection. It does come peel and
stick and of course with a kevlar composition offers protection
for the most extreme rider. It typically only adds 20 gm per
tire, but twice the price of Slime Tire Liners.
Installation:
It is important to pay attention to installation. If the bike
tire liner is not installed into the correct position at the crown
of the tire then it will do little good, when you ride over road
debris,
This may be some of the reason that products get damaging reviews.
Its not the product that is at fault but rather, installation
errors that don't let it be effective. That is one reason why
tire liners that have a self adhesive strip are a little easier
to align correctly and tend to be more effective in the long run.
It is also important to make sure that the ends of the liner
strip do not overlap or the bugle that this creates can cause
a puncture itself. The splice must be taped flat, butted end to
end before insertion or the bicycle tire liners will not be effective
in doing its job.
Related Information:
Bicycle Wheels: Hubs, Tires, Spokes,
& Tubes
Bicycle Parts from Chainsets
to Wheels, Shimano to FSA
