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Slime


chris_w_65

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My girlfriend and I are new to MTB. No cash to go tubeless (after spending way over budget on the bikes) so need the best tube solution. Should we be putting in some kind of slime? What is the best product to use?

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Go to Midas or Autozone...they also have a sludge (yellow bottle)that will not break the bank!

 

By the way - do a search for "Ghetto tubeless" ...this is a very inexpensive way to get tubeless tyres ~R100 would sort you out

I've been on Ghetto for years on end and no problems yet...

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All tyres puncture. Some just puncture easier than others. :P

 

If I think about punctures I've seen totals look like:

Tyre-liners - 2 (1 thorn and 1 cut sidewall)

Slime filled tubes - 2 (1 happened while the bike was parked :huh: )

Tubeless - 3 (2 were burps of which 1 ended in some bruising.)

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I am not looking forward to punctures. I got plenty on my first road bike (up to 2 a ride). When I upgraded my road bike and could justify buying decent tyres I never got another puncture and I probably did 15000 - 20000km.

 

Does the same apply to MTB tyres? Cheap = puncture?

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no cheap mtb tires are normally panzered and indistructable but not grippy expensive tires are softer and more prone to damage.

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A lot depends on where you ride. I started riding in Knysna when I was in High school there and we never used to use any sort of slime. We got a few punctures but the main problem was snake bites on tree roots so we used to just ride high pressures.

 

I now live in PE and the area I ride has a lot of thorns and sharp rocks. I ride tubeless but mates of mine have tubes and slime is essential otherwise they puncture on every ride.

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no cheap mtb tires are normally panzered and indistructable but not grippy expensive tires are softer and more prone to damage.

 

Are Kenda Small Block Eight reasonable tyres? That is what my bike has standard

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Are Kenda Small Block Eight reasonable tyres? That is what my bike has standard

Yeah they are very popular unless you get them wet or muddy. Mud sticks on them like .... but thats true for any tire that has closely spaced nobbies. trick is to find a 3 season tire and a winter tire.

 

But a couple of factors are

 

budget

UST / Non UST

riding conditions

terrain

mileage you want from a tire.

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My girlfriend and I are new to MTB. No cash to go tubeless (after spending way over budget on the bikes) so need the best tube solution. Should we be putting in some kind of slime? What is the best product to use?

 

Your bikes probably don't have UST type tyres on, and they do cost R500+ per tyre. Personally I would suggest the best budget option is to keep the tyres you got with the bikes and just put in tubes with slime in. They are sub R100 and way less than doing a complete tubeless conversion.

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I commute with my MTB every day and I got OKO in my tubes for over a year and not a single puncture. There are many different brands of slime, sludge, sealant out there and they all work if you apply the correct amount.

 

One thing to remember is you need to be able to get your valve cores off, if your running Schrader valve (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schrader_valve) then no problem. You can get a Schrader valve core remover tool for R15 bucks from your local hardware / motor spare store. They are very nice as they can actually "re-thread" the valve for when the slime/sludge/sealent clogs it up.

 

gallery_6237_23_1356.jpg

 

One very important thing to do though is to carry at least two spare valve cores with you as they can get stuck and cause slow leaks (talking from experience).

 

Oh, and this advice even applies to the ghetto conversion.

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I commute with my MTB every day and I got OKO in my tubes for over a year and not a single puncture. There are many different brands of slime, sludge, sealant out there and they all work if you apply the correct amount.

 

One thing to remember is you need to be able to get your valve cores off, if your running Schrader valve (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schrader_valve) then no problem. You can get a Schrader valve core remover tool for R15 bucks from your local hardware / motor spare store. They are very nice as they can actually "re-thread" the valve for when the slime/sludge/sealent clogs it up.

 

gallery_6237_23_1356.jpg

 

One very important thing to do though is to carry at least two spare valve cores with you as they can get stuck and cause slow leaks (talking from experience).

 

Oh, and this advice even applies to the ghetto conversion.

 

Shrader valves on the girlfriends bike. I guess I can add slime

Can't check my bike till tomorrow but according to the photo on Silverback site it is Presta valves. I guess slime can't be added and I should buy the tubes with it in.

If my bike has Presta valves then does that mean the rims were designed for those valves? So I must always use Presta?

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Shrader valves on the girlfriends bike. I guess I can add slime

Can't check my bike till tomorrow but according to the photo on Silverback site it is Presta valves. I guess slime can't be added and I should buy the tubes with it in.

If my bike has Presta valves then does that mean the rims were designed for those valves? So I must always use Presta?

 

Some presta valves have removable cores. Conti-tubes have removable cores, so no need to change valve type. Presta cores are easier to remove: just use a long nose

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Some presta valves have removable cores. Conti-tubes have removable cores, so no need to change valve type. Presta cores are easier to remove: just use a long nose

 

Personally I would say use the same tubes on both bikes if you can. Less issues and easier to maintain. The Presta core remover is easily sourced from your LBS.

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Personally I would say use the same tubes on both bikes if you can. Less issues and easier to maintain. The Presta core remover is easily sourced from your LBS.

 

I was thinking same tubes in both would be better as far as spares, pumps and bomb adapters goes but are they interchangeable. Her bike came standard with Shrader and it looks like mine has Presta. Surely the holes in the rims are different?

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