I bought six RideNow TPU tubes a few months ago. They started out halfway to being OK and went south from there.
One tube lost so much air (from new) overnight and on rides that I replaced it with another. Bubble testing shows nothing. Down 1.
Two others have had punctures and the repair patches for the tubes failed. Down 2 and 3.
Another had a puncture and the patch is holding when testing for bubbles but the tube deflates in four or five hours. Down 4.
One is OK and in use on the bike, the remaining new one is in my gear as a spare. I've gone back to butyl on the rear.
Has anyone done better than this? Do different brands survive better?
So far the repairs have been alcohol wipe and self-stick patches but I plan on getting some glue and perhaps cutting patches from one of the tubes to see if I can get a working patch.
Have you tried TPU tubes?
- DrShifty
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Re: Have you tried TPU tubes?
Postby jasonc » Tue Feb 06, 2024 1:55 pm
my rear wheel has a ridenow tube. i had a puncture at the end of the year and replaced it. sadly i didn't get all the glass out of the tyre so it punctured another tube. going ok since
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Re: Have you tried TPU tubes?
Postby Mr Purple » Tue Feb 06, 2024 3:28 pm
Yeah, I trialled a bunch of RideNow tubes before I went tubeless.
No real issues, no more than butyl tubes. Having said that I literally never patch a tube - once they punctured they went in the bin.
I find them useful as spares now I ride tubeless road and gravel. Simply because I very rarely ever need one and they don't take up much room. Tubeless is much better than tubed in every way I find, though you definitely need the right wheels for it.
No real issues, no more than butyl tubes. Having said that I literally never patch a tube - once they punctured they went in the bin.
I find them useful as spares now I ride tubeless road and gravel. Simply because I very rarely ever need one and they don't take up much room. Tubeless is much better than tubed in every way I find, though you definitely need the right wheels for it.
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Re: Have you tried TPU tubes?
Postby robbo mcs » Tue Feb 06, 2024 7:54 pm
I've been using TPU tubes for 5 years. I have tried many brands, but not ride now.
They are certainly not all equal. The weak point is the valve. Some brands have cores that work loose and leak from there. If you have one that went flat and you can't find it, good chance that is it, try tightening the core. Others leak from around the base of the valve.
Out of the ones I tried tubolito was hopeless. The best has been revoloop, they have a much better quality plastic in the valve assembly than most. However, they cost 2-3x ride now. However, I have some revoloop tubes that have done multiple changes of tyres, and still going strong
Also worth noting the thickness (and weight) varies quite a bit, both between brands and within a brand.
With regards to repairing, I've done it a couple of times. You need a dedicated TPU repair kit. Not a job for the side of the road, the patches need an hour or so to completely set.
They are certainly not all equal. The weak point is the valve. Some brands have cores that work loose and leak from there. If you have one that went flat and you can't find it, good chance that is it, try tightening the core. Others leak from around the base of the valve.
Out of the ones I tried tubolito was hopeless. The best has been revoloop, they have a much better quality plastic in the valve assembly than most. However, they cost 2-3x ride now. However, I have some revoloop tubes that have done multiple changes of tyres, and still going strong
Also worth noting the thickness (and weight) varies quite a bit, both between brands and within a brand.
With regards to repairing, I've done it a couple of times. You need a dedicated TPU repair kit. Not a job for the side of the road, the patches need an hour or so to completely set.
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