Accessory help for new RadMini

[Vern60]

Hi All,

I just ordered myself a RadMini and am pretty excited. I've seen that there is a facebook user group where one can find good info on mods and accessories, however I've never been a facebook user so I'm hoping someone could help me here.
I have two questions about accessories.
The first, is I'd like to get some sort of throttle assist. I have read that a few folks seem to enjoy the cramp buster which I believe is more my style than a thumb throttle, (such as from 1859 Northwest). Does anyone have a link or know which version fits the Mini? CB2 or CB4 for example?
My second question is more of a hypothetical. I've ridden bikes and motorcycles pretty much my whole life, but never fat tires which I hear are prone to flats. I don't believe there are a extraordinary amount of thorns where I live, but ya never know. I've never been one to have much confidence in patches, typically have always just put in a new tube, but they seem to be pretty pricey. Would any Mini riders recommend just going with stock until my first flat, or would you be more proactive? I guess what I'm trying to get at is what might be a wise investment now? Thicker tubes? Better Tires (I've seen some nice recommendations on this forum already)? Or things like slime or Mr Tuffy liners? Some of this can be quite expensive so I thought I would ask for some opinions before investing a lot. Initially I am thinking maybe just some thicker tubes and Mr Tuffy liners? That way I'd be ready when I get my first flat?
Thanks in Advance

 

[mrgold35]

I have two Radrovers and a Radcity Step-Thru and the 1859 Northwest thumb is one size fits all for the Rad Power Bikes. The thumb throttle is a moon shaped hard plastic with velcro on the back side for easy on/off and adjustment for perfect placement. I've had zero issues with the attachment slipping or any problems using my thumb or palm to apply power. I sometimes use my palm to apply the throttle and my thumb to up shift if I need max acceleration getting across an intersection in hurry.

I haven't found any fat tires or tubes that have the same level of flat protection like smaller versions. The best we can do is find tires with thicker tread, go tubeless, add liners, and/or tire sealant to help reduce flats. I went with Mr. Tuffy, Stans, and carry a spare tube. My 2014 700X40c pedal bike NEVER got a flat on my fun ride or work commutes with Mr. Tuffy+Stans sealant. I never even had any flat kits or tire changing tools other than a hand air pump until I purchased my Radrover in 2016. I was getting weekly flats even with just Mr. Tuffy with my fat tires. I reduced my flats from goathead thorns down to 1-2 a year once I added two 2oz bottles of Stans per tire. I usually get 1-5 goathead stuck in my tires on every ride. A few thorns are large enough to make it to the tube and Stans will take care of while riding. I sometimes need to add more Stans after a few months because of the amount of goathead thorns.

Stans and Mr. Tuffy are zero help from road debris like glass, screws, or auto parts from accidents. This is when the spare tube comes in handy. You will be an expert at fixing flats and have it down to a science with a fat tire bike.

 

[Vern60]

Thanks mrgold35.
I'll try to do a little more internet research but yeah, looks like at a minimum I'll get a few spare tubes, some sealant and also some tire liners. I will probably try to hold off on some new tires for awhile. I am curious about the moped tire idea ... I'll have to find where that was referenced in an older thread.

 

[Vern60]

This might be a stupid question, but I've never actually used any tire sealant on any of my regular bikes before. I am reading up a bit on them and most appear to be for tubeless tires. I've also heard that it's uncommon to have a removable valve stem for adding sealant. Yet, I read a lot of folks on the forum here appear to use Stan's or similar. Are their particular tube brands to buy, or how to get the sealant into the tubes? (I believe Slime used to sell pre slimed tubes).

 

[Nova Haibike]

There is no reason why you can't use a tubeless sealant in a tube. I do not know how long Slime will stay liquid inside a tube, but regular tubeless sealant is supposed to be changed once every six months or so, so it could be a rather expensive way to help prevent flats. Your Rad Mini will have Schrader valves, so you can remove the core to add sealant.

While I personally can't remember the last time I have had a problem with tubes due to poor quality, the big name brands (Continental, Michelin, Schwalbe) claim to be more accurately manufactured.

 

[mrgold35]

My radrover has the larger schrader valves like you find for a car. I find schrader a lot easier to work with compared to Presta valves (easier to dress up Schrader valves also with caps, stems, and lilghts). I remove the core and pour/squeeze the 2 oz bottles of Stans into the tube. I haven't had an issue summer or winter commuting with sealant gumming up, clogging the valve, or effecting the tube (+5500 miles with winter lows: teens/20s, summer highs +100 degrees). The only issue I've had is from road debris that make holes too large for sealant to work. I've had hole too large or too many for patching like 1/4" slit from glass or 3" screw that rips 3-4 extra holes in the tube as the tire deflates. The sealant can make a pretty good mess in the tire. I now carry paper towels, alcohol wipes, and latex gloves in a ziploc bag to clean things up when that happens.

 

[Vern60]

mrgold35, you remind me why I hadn't used sealant in previous bikes Thanks for the input guys, I've spent quite a bit of time today reading up on sealants and valves! Nova Haibike, thanks for letting me know that the cores can be removed from all Schrader valves, so I'm good there. What else I learned was that Stans is latex based with various sized crystals to seal a hole. The latex dries which cements the hole closed, probably better for tubeless applications. Slime is anti freeze based, (glycol ????) and has cotton bits in it. Tends to dry out less, but is much more viscous. For starters, I'll try the Slime, (made for tubes - they do also make a latex variety I'm told).
Also, as the RadMini uses 20 x 4 tires which makes finding tubes more difficult. I in fact could not find any 20 x 4 tubes for any of the 3 manufacturers mentioned (Continental, Michelin, Schwalbe). On Amazon I found two, one by Mongoose and another by Stingray, I ordered one of each for comparison. The Mongoose is priced at 8+ and the Stingray at 17. I'm curious what brand RadPower sells, I think they have spare tubes for $15 on their website, but no manufacturer is listed that I could see.
Thanks again and here's to hoping I never get a flat!

 

[Banzai]

Hello Vern60, glad you chose the RADMini. I think that was the right choice too. Funny that all the riding I do where cactus is known to leap out into the path, I seldom ever get flats. My pickup truck gets more flats than any of my bikes ever have, and that includes when I desert raced motorcycles and to this day still invariably find myself riding over bushes too. In any case, Green Slime works perfectly on my truck tires, and if you check the next time in your local Walmart, I saw some inner-tubes being sold already pre-slimed. Good luck...

 

[Nova Haibike]

IME most tubes come from out of China, and the brand is unimportant. It is rather the same situation with e-bikes, where different brands may come out of the same factory. So I would recommend buying the cheaper Mongoose tube.

 

[Vern60]

That's funny Banzai Yep, I used to live in Arizona so I know what you mean about the cacti. Desert racing motorcycles reminds me of a very old movie, I believe it was called On Any Sunday? Or something similar to that, definitely showing my age but that movie was all about riding and racing motorcycles, fun!
Yep, I think the RadMini will be a lot of fun and get me some exercise as well.
That sounds about right Nova, though for my other bikes some tubes are definitely made with a thicker rubber - I might be mixing those up with thorn resistant tubes...

 

[Banzai]

It would be nice if some enterprising fellow would design an airless tire that can retain all the good characteristics of tires at the different pressure levels they are commonly used at. I delved into the possibilities of using airless tires last year before purchasing my RAD Rover, but those advertised where not getting good reviews from the users. Loose tires where slipping on the rim, tires that fell off the rims during use, and a general lack of adequate usability were the most common complaints. The best ideas in airless tires seem to be coming from Michelin working on honeycomb design tires for the military but reports are that they are still several years from making them widely available for farming equipment and cars. There are some videos of some of these tires in use in Youtube and there were a couple on bike tires with the same design running up and down stairways, but unfortunately until they are made available to the public, we are forced to ride on whatever the experts say will work reliably. I'm not really pressed to change anything, so my thoughts on tires is really not to fix anything that's not broke. I could get a flat tomorrow but it won't convince me I need to find better tires. As shown for the past year, the tires RPB puts on their bikes are working excellent for me, and there is no need to change them for the huge inconvenience and unnecessary expense required to do so.

 

[Vern60]

Great post Banzai!
I've seen those honeycomb wheels or tires before, mostly on quads, (and in videos, not in person). They do look promising. I know for kids bikes, and I think my sister put some on her horse carriage, they have the solid foam but I doubt those would have the same performance as what we currently have.
I'm also happy to hear that your stock tires are working well for you! As of right now, my plan is to just run the stock as well and see how things go. I did buy some stuff to prep though, a couple of tubes, some slime and some liners. That way, when I do get my first flat I can either just swap a tube, or ... put in some slime and liners as well - but at least I'll have the stuff ready to go and won't have to wait.

 

[Cowlitz]

Our local bike mechanic "localized" my tires by putting heavy duty liners in them and then he put slime in. I got a flat on my Rad Mini before that which was caused by a goat head.

 

[Vern60]

Sounds nice Cowlitz, have you had any flats since? I'm thinking it was a good idea to get prepared buying some extra tubes, slime and liners ahead of time. I don't think I'll install them until I actually get a flat though ... who knows, maybe I'll get lucky.
Now though, between all the flat talk I forgot about potentially getting a cramp buster for the throttle. Anyone know what size would be required? I see Amazon lists at least a couple.