Ppsssttt. Not another Flat! Since
the dawn of innertubes inside rubber tires, flat tires have been
dogging bicycle riders and stealing the fun. Inventors have come up with
many ways to stop these puncture flats. Here are the top 10 available
today.
Nothing
steals the joy of a bike ride like a flat tire. And for most of the
cyclists in the world there is a three strike rule. If you get three
flat tires in a short period of time, you hang up the bike. The sad
part of all this is that there are ways to prevent flats that are easy
and inexpensive. One of the top experts on bicycle flats in the US is
Randy Kirk, and he is flabbergasted that anyone ever gets a bicycle
flat.
"There have been dozens of methods and products over the
past 50 years or even longer that provide good protection against
bicycle inner tube punctures. But the real breakthroughs came about 30
years ago. Today there are very high tech answers to flats, and yet
riders continue to put up with the saddest sound in
cycling…..psssffftt."
Here are the top ten
ways to prevent flat tires, with number with number 1 being the best overall solution,
taking into consideration effectiveness and cost.
1.
RhinoDillos Tire Liners - In 2011, a West Coast bicycle products
company brought a new tire liner to market. The big difference was an
improvement in the quality of the plastic. Using the dual durometer
approach, the company was able to significantly improve puncture
resistance while maintaining or even reducing the suggested retail for
dual durometer liners. With this product there really is no reason to
double up with other products.
2. Flat
resistant tires. Many tires today have extra rubber, added layers, or
other methods designed to provide resistance to thorns, stickers, rocks,
and other road and off road debris. This is a high cost solution, and
tires designed to be flat resistant are trading off other benefits such
as weight or comfort.
3. Combinations - Using a combination of
tire liners and either heavy duty tubes or tube sealants has been a
successful way to deal with the worst thorns in desert or tundra regions
of the US throughout the Western 10 states. This can be expensive and
very heavy, but not as heavy as the
airless inner tubes, and generally the ride is better, too.
4.
Dual Durometer urethane tire liners (standard plastics) - By using two different plastics in tire
liners manufactures were able to improve the puncture resistance of the
side of the liner closest to the tire while making that portion next to
the tube softer and less likely to do damage to the tube. This
breakthrough became the standard until 2011. Inexpensive and very
effect. Light weight.
5. Single durometer urethane tire liners -
About 30 years ago, the plastic tire liner revolutionized flat tires due
to inner tube punctures. Today, such products are divided into
inexpensive liners where the plastic is all one type. These are more
likely than their more expensive brothers to get punctures and they are
also more likely to cause flats due to sharp edges. However, they are
very effective and low cost.
6.
Kevlar tire liners - These are very effective at preventing flats.
They are the most expensive solution and do have a rap for not lasting
very long. Some reviewers say that they disintegrate inside the tire
after a few years.
7. Inner tube sealants - The idea of this
product is that you have a liquid chemical in the inner tube that is
always on the ready to find any hole and fill it up. These products
have varying degrees of effectiveness, but are generally good at what
they do. There can be issues with valve stems being clogged and
removing the tube from a tire after a few leaks can be difficult.
8. Wrapping an old inner tube around the
new one - Some folks do a DIY method of flat prevention. They cut open
an old inner tube and wrap it around the new one. This is more
effective than a heavy duty tube, but not by much. The cost is perfect.
Only your time.
9. Airless Innertubes - The most
popular of these is a very thick rubber hose that gets the needed
rigidity from the thickness of the tube, rather than air pressure. They
are fairly expensive, very heavy, and for any but the shortest ride are
very sluggish riding.
10. Heavy duty inner tubes. These are
merely inner tubes that are extra thick. They do provide some benefit,
but the trade off in weight is only worth it in the special case seen in
#2 which follows below.
So, don't take a chance on
ruining your day with a flat. The bicycle industry has plenty of great
approaches that can save you embarrassment, time, and stress.
Step number 1. Roll out the liner and give it some time to relax from the shape it has acquired from being rolled up. You may even want to double it back on itself near the end, by rolling it the reverse way. This will make the liner easier to handle.
Step number 4. When removing the tire casing, only remove it half way, and leave the inner tube partially inflated. This will make it easier to install the liner. So deflate the tube partially at this step in order to make it easier to remove the tire casing. 
Step number 6. Feed the tire liner up into the crown of the tire casing with the curve of the liner matching the curve of the tire. For dual durometer tire liners (by far the best) this will be the side of the liner with the thin color strip against the tire, and the side without the color strip facing the inner tube. The color strip is made of very tough material and provides more resistance to puncture than liners that are all one color (single durometer or single hardness).
