TPU Inner tubes

[Sergeant Pluck]

The Pirelli ones have a matching repair kit which contains that same adhesive, Tip Top Camplast. That’s the Cinturatos which have “Do not repair” printed on the tubes...

Long may I not have to use it.

[finch]

As much as I’m likely risking it by saying it I haven’t had a need for a spare in the last couple of years - not that my mileage is huge. If the TPU are as resistant to pops as the articles and blurbs seem to suggest then perhaps at Chinese prices it won’t really be that big of a deal replacing them when needed. The linked article suggests they’re very recyclable which is nice

[perpetual dan]

Agree with SP here , have rims which don’t need tape but tubeless tyres are heavier AND expensive - then there’s valves and sealant - it’s probably unfounded but I also don’t want a mess made of bike/clothes and possibly having to mess about with plugs and/or tubes at the side of the road in a tyre that has sealant in it.
…

In the last month both my front and rear tubeless have had flint cuts that wouldn’t seal. I felt the air escape against my legs, but there wasn’t a big mess on me. I spent a while trying to coax a seal, and got quite a lot of sealant over the rims in the process. But, I was pleasantly surprised at how little mess was made when I actually took the tyre off to put a tube in. Maybe I’d already leaked most of the sealant by then? The wheels cleaned up easily enough.

[finch]

That was another 60km on Sunday , variable quality of surface. No problems , lost about 8psi over the week so quick to top up. No visitations , great ride quality as far as I can tell amd the spare in my pocket was tiny - along with a co2 inflator and no tyre lever ( Michelin ) felt like I could have carried 3 spare without really noticing - I… like them

[Sergeant Pluck]

So far so good here after 2 or 300 km, including some unplanned off road. I do think the ride quality is better, all other things being equal. All being well I’ll keep them on this bike, as it is less frequently ridden than the commute bikes, rather than switch to tubeless.

One thing I did was to fit these valve guards. The (unthreaded) plastic valve stems on the Pirellis are quite loose in the rims I have - my thinking is that even though they don’t rattle (AFAICT) it would be best to avoid excessive movement of the valve stem.

https://www.wiggle.co.uk/rapidracerproducts-anti-rattle-valve-guards

[finch]

Hmm - tempted to put one of those valve guard thingamydoos on the inside of a rim

[Sergeant Pluck]

Another few hundred km on the TPU-tubed bike.

I’ve been experimenting with lower pressures, and doing some gravel rides. The off-road stuff has at times been of the type where I’ve been concerned about it being too much for the bike in general, and having thoughts such as “that bit really needed a MTB”. There have definitely been opportunities for pinch flats - bottoming out, not super hard, but hard enough to feel somewhat relieved to still have air in the tyres. Tree roots at the bottom of deep dips etc.

I am continuing to find that very little topping up is needed with these tubes - having said that, I run them at 38 - 40 psi.

So far so good...

[Sergeant Pluck]

The trial of these tubes has come to an end for now, as I have switched to tubeless. When the tubes come out, it looks as if they permanently take on the shape of the interior, there is no elasticity. They look impossibly thin, membranous almost.

However, the tubes have been fine, no issues at all for I suppose 1000km anyway - lots of that off road.

[finch]

I’ve actually had one flat - to be fair it was a large sharp piece of glass , front wheel and red lacement tube have been fine but mileage has dropped off a cliff durning nov/dec cause my riding buddy broke his wrist

[JefO]

Have any of you found any disadvantage (other than initial outlay) to using TPU tubes?

[finch]

Outlay is a non thing already 2x tubes for £7 on eBay - I put them in my boys bike and so far so good cause I’ve switched to tubeless

[Lightning Phil]

More and more tyres are tubeless compatible (or tubeless ready, which I understand is technically not the same thing, though I can't remember the details) so new tyres aren't really the problem, it's the rims.

As a slight aside, most tubeless ready / compatible tyres are heavier than their non-tubeless equivalents,

Schwalbe pro one tubeless 622x30c is 25g heavier than non tubeless.

[Zed43]

Figures. The sidewalls need more rubber to prevent them from being porous which is a PITA to get airtight with sealant. I had a hell of a time back in the day to get Compass Jon Bon Pass (35mm) hold air.

My velomobile is now on TPU (from aliexpress) on all wheels. First 600km without issues (didn't expect any yet as also new tyres). For PBP I'll also bring a couple of regular butyl ones in 406 size just in case.

[Frank9755]

I used my first one yesterday.  It was an emergency repair following a sidewall blowout on a tubeless tyre. 

I was a bit aprehensive as I had read that care was needed in using them, and having to boot the tyre was an additional complication, and it was a tandem as well.  But it was fine, and got us home no problem. 

I look forward to taking the tyre off to see what shape the tube is, given the boot.  Not sure if it will be reusable.  Maybe it would be in an other tyre of the same size...?

[andrew_s]

When the tubes come out, it looks as if they permanently take on the shape of the interior, there is no elasticity.

That's why I've held off from TPU tubes.

The first rule of putting a new tube in is to make sure that whatever punctured the last tube isn't there any more, and in the case of non-obvious causes, that means finding the hole in the tube.
Small holes are very much easier to find if you inflate the tube to jumbo size, so the hole leaks faster, but with a TPU tube it would subsequently be unusable even if patched, due to being too big for the tyre.

[Kim]

Has anyone seen these in 28-559 (presta)?  I put one in the front wheel of the Red Baron (28-406) for SCIENCE, and concluded it was a marginal gain without any of the problems associated with tubeless, so now I'm looking to save a few grammes on the rear, where I couldn't get tubeless to work in the first place.

All I seem to be able to find in 26" are MTB widths...

[Zed43]

Have any of you found any disadvantage (other than initial outlay) to using TPU tubes?

They form to the outer tyre. I planned to put 28mm Schwalbe Pro One tyres on the front wheels for PBP, but the TPU tubes would not fit (too large) after a 2000km in the 32mm tyres. Could have used my spare TPU tubes, but <shrug/>

Other than that they're still fine (front and rear) after 4000km.

[perdido]

Have any of you found any disadvantage (other than initial outlay) to using TPU tubes?

I've used schwalbe aerothan tpu tubes...
I could not use thread on mini pump, also had issues with my track pump. It would blow off the pump head around 5 bar due to the smooth plastic stem. My solution was to lightly sand the valve stem to provide more grip for the pump head.
Schwalbe aerothan tunes are easy to repair using schwalbe glue less patches.
I normally cut patches in halves as I find them rather large for a simple puncture.

Aerothan seem to have gone up in pricing, so I'm not planning on buying them at current prices.


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[zigzag]

one of the disadvantages is that it is difficult to find the puncture hole, as they don't stretch. no problem at home by submerging it in water, but tricky outside. best to have the spares to swap and do the repair at home.

[andrew_s]

one of the disadvantages is that it is difficult to find the puncture hole, as they don't stretch. no problem at home by submerging it in water, but tricky outside. best to have the spares to swap and do the repair at home.

Not finding the hole until you get home will give a higher rate of repeat punctures.

You'd check the tyre, but if you don't find anything, what do you do? Put in the new tube anyway, and hope? Spend the 15 or 20 extra minutes that a thorough tyre check would take?

[hubner]

one of the disadvantages is that it is difficult to find the puncture hole, as they don't stretch. no problem at home by submerging it in water, but tricky outside. best to have the spares to swap and do the repair at home.

Not finding the hole until you get home will give a higher rate of repeat punctures.

You'd check the tyre, but if you don't find anything, what do you do? Put in the new tube anyway, and hope? Spend the 15 or 20 extra minutes that a thorough tyre check would take?

I carry a lightweight spare tyre (about 200g), it's nearly worn out but good enough to get me home. This is on my commuting bike with thin racing tyres, one of which has damaged threads on the sidewall repaired with a tyre boot.

If I get a puncture and can't find the hole in the tube or what caused the puncture in the tyre, I would fit the spare tyre rather than risk getting a repeat puncture, although I do carry a puncture kit.

[TimO]

I just got a couple of these, off of Amazon, for a total of about £24 including some patches.

For me it's not about the weight or the rolling resistance, it's about the volume. The bike I'm using at the moment has 650b×47 tyres, and the inner tubes are quite large to carry. The two TPU tyres are in a box which is less than half the size of the single 'normal' tube!

I haven't used one yet, and hopefully won't for a while, but I normally get a handful of visitations every year, so it's only a matter of time. London commuting isn't friendly to tyres and inner tubes.

[JefO]

I am now awaiting delivery of some TPU tubes, some for my 1950s steel roadbike and some for my 29er.

The roadbike is equipped with a very small (period) saddlebag, it will not accept tools and two conventional innertubes. So that was a no brainer.

The 29er... have you seen the size of a 29er 2.4" innertube (if you can find one)? They are massive... one only just fits in a large saddlebag. 

[tomj]

Bought some RideNow TPU 700C inner tubes from Aliexpress late summer. Arrived as expected, nicely packaged, bright pink colour, no quality concerns, tube weight varied, some were 36g others a little under or over. The bulk buy included repair kits, each comprising two small wipes and two self-adhesive patches.

First impressions, the tubes are impressively light and much smaller than a conventional inner tubes although I’m not sure I noticed any major difference when riding.

Care is needed when fitting as they are one size 700x18-32C, more tube to push up into the tyre to avoid pinching.

Downside as mentioned is that puncture repair is not so easy and little if any long term real life experience on how reliable repaired tubes are.

My repair method, identify puncture, wipe area, apply patch and apply pressure for an hour or so. (I now place a piece of stiff cardboard either side of the tube patch and gently squeeze in a vice, bonkers).

Overall great value, impressive size and weight, I will certainly ride these tubes in the summer.

[TimO]

My repair method ... and gently squeeze in a vice ...

Not entirely practical for a repair mid-ride, but I'd imagine that the pressure of the inner-tube against the tyre would behave similarly, once minimal adhesion holds things together adequately.