Light vs. Heavy road tubes

[Dr. Seuss]

n the one side of the scale you get the bontrager XXXlite coming in at about 50g per tube.  on the other end you have the no-name brand sitting at about 200g per tube.<?:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />

 

the in-betweeners range from about 75-150g.

 

do the lighter tubes puncture more easily than the heaver (thicker) ones?

 

my thinking is that once something has managed to pierce your tyre,  it will for sure pierce the tube no matter if it is the very thin 50g one or the thicker 150g one.

 

where i do see the advantage of the thicker tube is in the event of snake bites,  but this should really only happen when you ride the tyre too soft.

 

it seems to negate the purpose of buying a light wheelset & tires & then run them with 150 - 200g tubes. 

 

any comments?

[bikemonster]

Hi Dr Seuss

 

I agree with your thinking, but with one additional wrinkle...

 

Very light tubes are made of latex rubber, while the heavier and intermediate tubes are made of butyl.  Latex has bigger 'gaps' between the molecules, so will - I believe - need more regular inflation because air escacpes between the 'gaps' more easily.

 

That said, my tube of preference is the Conti race tube, which is a reasonably light butyl tube and has always served me well.

 

Your point is very well made though - the additional weight (or weight saving) of different tubes is almost as far from the hub as it can be, so has an out of proportion effect.  I doubt that any of us would feel the difference between a 50g tube and a 60g tube...but the difference between a 50g tube and a 150g tube would be huge.

[scotty]

I think Widget's doing some kind of tube research. scotty2006-10-16 08:05:00

[widget]

Its an interesting point - as I am technically useless I would be quite interested in the answer as well - but your reasoning sounds perfectly logical to me.

 

I would say its probably more expensive and technically difficult to manufacture a light tube, so only the top end manufacturers will have the interest in doing so, where of course they can charge an appropriate price to customers who want the expertise, however, the cheap and nasty (heavy) mass manufactured tubes from the east are probably simple and straight forward to manufacture and sell on price alone.

 

.............and in SA the saying that "nothing sells like price" has never been truer, however, I usually subscribe to the notion "you get what you pay for" and always look for the branded manufacturers who I assume have put some research into their product.   

[widget]

I think Widget's doing some kind of tube research.

 

Yes, this is true Scotty - I dont want to say too much as I have no doubt when the Pro tour season winds down, the tube manufacturers and trade teams will be lining up for this well researched info.

 

Actually, I have a further report in that my "cheap and nasty tube" parted company with the valve last week, it seems the rubber just perished right through, so strike that one out.

 

My conti tube is now in (again) and still going strong (after I think about 6 or 7 repairs).! - have to haul out my notes and check when I get home. 

 

Keep watching this space.!