2017 Elite with Big Ben tires: Tuffy or Slime needed?

[mathlete]

I recently bought a 2017 Elite on ebay. Since there is a lot of construction going on on campus, I was thinking about using Tuffy or Slime. Will they be any useful in preventing flats given that the tires already have puncture guard? If yes, which one would you recommend?

Thanks.

 

[tenroz]

I think I would buy finishline's new water-based sealant. It won't dry up and lasts the life of the tube & tire. Slime is good also but tends to plug up the valve core many times when you go to inflate tire.

 

[rich c]

I hate slime products. Patching tubes with slime oozing out of it is a real pain. Tube patching is so easy, not worth the money for slime in my opinion. I've ridden over 6500 miles in the past 2 1/2 years, only 3 flats.

 

[mathlete]

tenroz:
If you are talking about this, the reviews from customers and mtbr don't look encouraging. Thanks for mentioning it though, I'll use it in future if the reviews are favorable.

rich c:
That is a good point. My only concern is time. Once the classes start, I'll barely have time to sleep between classes and research meetings. Since finishline will also ooze out while patching, tuffy liner seems a better choice.

Thanks to both of you.

 

[KidWok]

I used slime in my ST1 LE for awhile. They sealed up a pinprick hole indefinitely, but couldn't handle a small glass induced gash, which made for a big mess. Now using Orange Seal in tubes. So far so good. Needs to have more added every so often, but most reviews say it works very well.

Tai

 

[hurricane56]

I think you’ll want to use liners as that final layer of defense against small road debris. The liners tend to be hit and miss with various things you’ll run into on the road. They’re reasonably good at stopping organic things like goat heads. Liners are mostly transparent to nails and staples that are typically strewn around construction sites.

I found sealants in tubes to be mostly useless for the road debris that I find along my usual route. Large nails tend to puncture and rip the tube, and that’s much more than sealants can handle. Doing a roadside repair with sealant everywhere is much more of a hassle than just patching it.

 

[Stromer2work]

Two flats in about 3 weeks on my daily commuter, a 2017 ST1x "snowy". I was ready to ride in to work and was flat from the commute home last night. I thought I did recall the back tire feeling funny. Urban ride with plenty of opportunity to pickup roadside junk. First time about 3 weeks ago was on the way out of the local market, I picked up a slow leak and was able to limp home with a CO2 charge.

Going off topic here as I got a second flat this morningunrelated to debris... I grabbed the backup bike, ST2x "utica" and rode to work. I promptly got a flat about a mile from work but that was my fault as I snake pinched the tube. The ST2x rim is fine, I hit the brakes hard before I bunny-hopped the front wheel over the curb and shifted my weight to the front to relieve the weight on the back... but wasn't enough. I heard the hiss immediately. Fixed it fast. I love the ST2s system for removing the wheel. If the ST2 is like the ST2s, I may sell the ST1x as that system isn't totally user friendly for road side change-outs with the two fiddly connectors.

Back on topic, I'm going to order two pairs of mister tuffy liners or similar for my daily ride and my backup. I"m also going to make sure I have presta adapters in each bike tool kit, and two tubes and four CO2's.

 

[mrgold35]

I've had Mr. Tuffy+Stans tire sealant on my old Transeo GT bike with 700X40C tires for +4 years without a single flat. I use the same combo for my 4" fat tire ebike and usually get a flat about every 4-6 weeks. The combo helps against small thorns like goatheads; but, not much help for large road debris like nails, screws, or broken glass. I try to patch first and replace the tube second. My rack bag is full with just tire repair tools/parts. I also got into the habit of giving my tires a quick squeeze during lunch because on two occasions I had an unnoticed slow leak from the morning commute and had a flat when it was time to head home.

My riding conditions over time from the last two years dictated what I needed to prepare for so I don't have to walk the bike home. Best "all else fails" tools to have is plan to get home that includes a cell phone, public transportation, uber/Lyft, and/or friends/family. Sometimes weather can be worst than a flat. It really hurts riding home in a sudden hail storm with no cover other than your home 2 miles up the road.

 

[Stromer2work]

Uber/Lyft, and/or friends/family.

Uber, there's an idea vs walking 5.5 miles, assuming an unfixable repair right in the middle of my commute

On the way into work I could call in and get a ride, but on my way home, I'm on my own.

 

[hurricane56]

I try to get in the habit of visually inspecting the rear tire for debris when I get to work and again when I arrive home.

There’s nothing like getting back to your bike , geared up and ready to go home, only to find your tire flat.

 

[Stromer2work]

ST1x had a nice small piece of tire cord steel belt. very hard to dig out, but I got it. I put a patch over that spot on the tire as a temporary fix until my mister tuffy ultralight browns get here.

 

[Chuck E. Cheese]

I got a flat on my rear tire about 100 miles in to owning my ST2. I had added orange seal to the original tube, but the nail I ran over went straight in and punctured the tube from the front as well as the side that contacts the rim. When I replaced the tube, I used a pre-filled Slime tube and added a brown Tuffy liner. My front tire has the original tube with Orange Seal in it, but at some point I'll add the other Tuffy liner to that as well. Both tires are the original Big Bens, which I like a lot. You can only do what you can do. Bikes ride on the sides of the road where debris accumulates. Sooner or later you're going to get a puncture. I have a Gaadi tube I carry with me for quicker repairs on the road, and Velosurance in case I get truly stranded, but mostly I just try to avoid riding through debris where possible. I'm not going to let the inevitability of a flat prevent me from riding. Take precautions but realize some things are out of your control.

 

[mathlete]

Thank you all. I read somewhere on the forum that Tuffy liner can cause pinch flats and damage the tube from the inside. Any advice how to avoid the damage? I'll be driving 95% on city roads but with lots of potholes.

 

[Ravi Kempaiah]

Thank you all. I read somewhere on the forum that Tuffy liner can cause pinch flats and damage the tube from the inside. Any advice how to avoid the damage?

Use sand paper and chamfer the edges of the liner. I had 2 pinch flats because of this. Learned the hard way.
Keep the edges of the liner smooth and you won't have a problem. Once I fixed, I did not have any flats for 5000+ miles.

 

[mrgold35]

Thank you all. I read somewhere on the forum that Tuffy liner can cause pinch flats and damage the tube from the inside. Any advice how to avoid the damage? I'll be driving 95% on city roads but with lots of potholes.

Also, trim the ends of the Mr. Tuffy liners with minimal overlap. I had too much length and the liner slid sideways at the overlap and bunched up to cause a pinch flat.

 

[mathlete]

Thank you Ravi and mrgold for the suggestions. My local shop doesn't add liners but they said they'll do it for free with the assembly if I bring the liners. They also suggested adding something called "innertube" for puncture protection from the sides. Do you think both of these'll make the tires too heavy?

 

[Gator]

I use Tuffy's liners and Slime and Sunlite thorn resistant tubes and Big Ben tires with Race Guard. I commute to work and so I take all the precautions I can. Some will say its overkill, but it's not their bike, their commute or their job. I have heard/read numerous folks talk about how Slime clogs the valve cores. I have been using it for 20 + years and I have never had a problem with putting air in or taking air out of a tire with Slime. I have had thorns, goat heads, glass, and staples puncture my tire, but Slime saved the day over and over and over again.

Enjoy your ride =D

 

[mrgold35]

Thank you Ravi and mrgold for the suggestions. My local shop doesn't add liners but they said they'll do it for free with the assembly if I bring the liners. They also suggested adding something called "innertube" for puncture protection from the sides. Do you think both of these'll make the tires too heavy?

I really don't worry too much about make my ebike too heavy compared to up time and riding comfort. I usually only ride under 30 miles max with my average around 15-20 miles (plenty of range with my 11.6 ah battery). I rather pack extra gear to help against flats, weather, extra battery for longer range, or needing extra water. An extra 5-10 lbs isn't a big deal for me on an ebike compared to when I had my pedal bike.

 

[mathlete]

Awesome! Thank you Gator and mrgold35.

 

[Chuck E. Cheese]

A question for other tire-liner users:

Does keeping tires inflated to higher pressures reduce the chance of pinch flats from tire liners? It seems that if there is less movement of the tube within the tire due to being fully inflated there would be less opportunity for chafing and pinching. I made that assumption and have kept my rear tire around 50-55 PSI since installing it. Due to laziness I haven't installed the front tire liner because I haven't gotten a flat yet. I typically run my front tire around 40PSI to improve the ride, but if I need to inflate it further to reduce tire-liner-caused flats, I might not install the liner at all. Front flats are comparatively easy to fix on the road.