On the question of Slime inserts

[Old Timer]

These are the inserts you put in the tyre between the tube and the crown (for those who don`t know)

I took them off of my Alien kit because I punctured and fitted Marathon Plus tyres.
They were in Annes mtb and she punctured yesterday! When you take them off you will find that you thought you had them nice and positioned and they either move or are not in the right place to start with.(and they tend to scuff up the inside of the tyre) Her problem yesterday was that it had moved and rubbed the one patch she had in that tube and caused it to leak now and then. We got home OK( although I can`t move my left arm for pumping)

So! just fit Marathon plus tyres from the start and don`t waste the time and money on the inserts in my book. OK! some might have them and they are fine and good luck but I`m no slouch in fitting things and if I didn`t get it right then I`m sure many more will be in the same boat.

 

[flecc]

I fully agree Dave, I have a low opinion of those inserts and very much doubt they have much penetration resistance anyway.
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[lemmy]

So! just fit Marathon plus tyres from the start and don`t waste the time and money on the inserts in my book.

I agree. Fitting a pair of the Marathon Plus in January has kept me puncture free for nearly five months now. Previously I would get a puncture on average once every week.

The Marathons have improved my enjoyment of cycling almost as much as my Kalkhoff - at a cost of £40 odd.....

 

[Vikki]

I tried some of those inserts on my old bike and got a puncture on the first ride out. I just couldn't believe it. I took the tube out and saw that it was the insert itself that had caused the puncture by slicing into the tyre (5mm slice). I checked the edge of the strip and came lose to cutting myself as there was a considerable amount of flash on the edges from the extrusion process. I threw it away. It was still there on the way home so I rescued it. I sanded the edges down and refitted it and it was quite good after that.

However, when I later had the tyre off to replace it I found that the insert had made a variety of small and long shallow cuts. It wasn't far from giving me a major flat.

My new bike (Wisper 905se City) has Kenda KWest puncture resistant tyre and thay have been brilliant. Only one punture in the front and one in the rear in 16 months.

My rear needed replacing as I'd got down to the green strip so replaced it with a Marathon (no plus) with kevlar guard. Got a punture in it in the first week! The slime in it got me home, more than home really as it was Sunday when I saw it was going down. Slime hase always got me home so I'm more than pleased with it as a secondary line of defense.

Oh yes, don't go near slime inserts with a barge pole.

Best regards.

Vikki.

 

[Andrew harvey]

These inserts have edges that are angled, (feathered), in one direction, put them in the wrong way up and you slice straight thriough the tube. Hence your first ride puncture Vikki. The stupid thing there's no right way up indication on them you have to feel for the sharp edge,.....best bet good tyres.

 

[Vikki]

They were ok after I'd removed the sharp edge but much later, on renewing the tyre, I found I was perilously close to multiple punctures. Probably two months. That's when I invested in kevlar band tyres.

I did fit them correctly according to the instructions (the taper being fairly easy to spot) but the sharp edge was more like a flash edge sticking up. Even Slime agreed this shouldn't have been there and I'd been unlucky. They offered to send me some things and replace the inner tubes but I said I couldn't really let them suffer the expense of postage from the US (silly me, of course). It was only a patch.

Ooooo! I did try Kevlar tape at one time and that worked well for a couple of months. Then i got a puncture and on removing the tyre I found the Kevlar tape had gone all crazy-paving on me and was no longer whole. It just fractured into smaller lumps.

Like you say, best solution is a good tyre with built in protection from the off. Retrofit seldom works.

I've done 114 miles on my Trike's Big Apples and (touch wood) not a sniff of even a wound in the tyre. Can't say the same for the Marathon on the back of my Wisper but by the looks of it something big and nasty broke through the lining on that. Been good as gold since. Easy to fit, too.

Funny though, it Says Marathon on it, it says Kevlar Guard, it doesn't say PLUS on it so I don't know what kind of Marathon tyre I've got (it is Schwalbe though).

Best regards.

Vikki.

 

[flecc]

That's just the ordinary Marathon Vikki, no special extra puncture protection on that. Only the Marathon Plus has the additional puncture protection layer.
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[Vikki]

Hi, Flecc

But it says Kevlar Guard on the sidewall Also, when I was digging about in the hole left by that traitorous puncture producer of ill repute I saw yellow fibres in a mat (I was making sure nothing was left in the hole) that looked the same as that kevlar tape you can buy.

Just had a look on their webby. The Plus has something called Smart Guard, a special rubber protective strip, mine's just regular Kevlar.

Is Kevlar not very good?

Best regards.

Vikki.

 

[flecc]

Yes, they've got Kevlar on the other tyres which is quite good, but the Plus version has a thick inner layer that repels sharp obects and also gives moe thickness to defeat punctures. You can see that thick penetration resistant under layer here, shown in blue:

 

[Vikki]

Yep, saw that on their webby. It looks really good. It makes sure I know what to ask for next time.