Customer Reviews

Slime Smart Tube Schrader Valve Bicycle Tube (26 x 1.75-2.125)

5 star:		(23)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(7)
1 star:		(10)

 

 

I'm a cyclist who predominantly bikes roads with a mountain bike. I do not drive, so cycling is my way of transportation -- that means ~25 years of biking!

I've used these tubes over the past 8 months. I purchased 4 tubes, and as of yesterday I'm completely out. There are a lot of negatives to these tubes, but they do provide one positive. The negatives first:

* Easily punctured, probably due to cheap rubber being used for the tubes themselves. My destinations are very close (within 1-2 miles at most), and mostly paved streets, as well as a community bike/jogging trail and a park. The latter two mean thorns!

* Sufficient for small punctures, e.g. thin pieces of glass or metal, and (if you're lucky) thorns. The smaller the hole, the better chance it is these tubes will work for you. These won't work for metal shards that dig into your tire/tube in a straight like (e.g. a razor), or pinch flats.

* Incredibly messy when punctured while riding. The first thing you'll hear is air leaking, followed by neon green slime flying all over the place.

* The slime is in no way permanent like a patch would be. Don't let these tubes make you think the slime somehow re-galvanises the rubber tube from the inside out: they don't.

* You cannot patch these tubes once punctured. The slime is impossible to clean off (despite the box claiming it's water-soluble), and the patch will never stay. You're absolutely forced to replace the entire tire.

* Added weight, combined with a very strange feel when riding (caused by the slime shifting/moving within the tire in somewhat of a coagulated blob). Kids probably won't care, but experienced cyclists will definitely notice the difference. It's enough weight (especially on a mountain bike) that it's worth noting here.

The one positive:

* These _will_ allow you to get home once the tube is punctured. I've had all 4 punctured, and the procedure works like this: you'll stop to find your frame covered in said slime (hope you have mudguards!) before attempting to find the puncture hole. Assuming you find it, the trick is turning the tire so that the hole is against the ground (allowing the goop to flow via gravity down into the hole). Give it 45-60 seconds to set, and you should be okay for the remaining ride (hope it's a short distance). If air starts to leak again, repeat the process. Tedious, but after a while, it works.

The manufacturer would do well to use a different kind of rubber, and advocate thicker/heavier tires. My mountain bike uses incredibly soft tires (I find even the smallest of rocks dug deep into the elevated gripped areas!), which contributes to the problem.

The bottom line for me is that these tubes let me make it to work/home in the case I get a flat, but are otherwise worthless. Then again, they're fairly cheap tubes...

I ordered several of these tubes expecting to not have to change a bike tire for a long time. I was sorely disappointed. I'm not sure why, but I have had several flats on every bike I've put these on. I haven't treated them roughly - I just ride to school and back, about a mile each way. I keep the bikes outside, but I'm not sure what difference that would make. The tubes appear to be particularly vulnerable around the valve, and when something goes wrong smelly green stuff gets oozes out around the valve.

In short: try something else! This is a great idea but has been horribly executed by the Slime guys.

Amazing how many folks buy a bike and complain when the factory tubes go flat. BUY these things!!! THEY WORK!!! Don't leave home without them! I have seen significant punctures sealed or slowed by the glue compound in these things. Just remember..when you add air or check your pressure...to rotate the air valve to the upside position..(10-2)..so the slime compound doesn't foul your air valves. NO bike should be without them. Highly recommended.

I used to swear by pre-Slimed tubes - I used them in my bikes for at least 5 years - but I've stopped using them because they've become unreliable.

The idea behind pre-Slimed tubes is great. The tubes come with just the right amount of an anti-flat goo already loaded in them so that the tire can fix itself if you get a small/medium puncture flat. This self-sealing action lessens the risk of a sudden flat that throws you off your bike since the tire deflates slowly. You'll probably be able to make it home before being forced to change the flat.

I used these tubes for years and everything was great. Unfortunately, this year I've gotten a series of tubes that all failed at the valve stem within a few days of installation. The tubes were installed properly, one even by a professional. I wonder if the company that makes these changed their manufacturing process (cheaper! faster!). Anyway, I can't use something that I can't rely on.

Therefore, one star.

I've been stranded twice by these tires. Sure it can fix some flats but if you get a pinch flat (common in the rockies) it doesn't work. Worst of all the slime makes it so you can't patch the tire effectively (no matter how carefully you clean).

Avoid the gimmick and just use your $1 patch kit and don't be stranded.

I've been using these tubes for years. When I get a puncture, I can hear the air coming out. Sometimes they seal before all the air leakes out and sometimes they don't seal at all. I've even gotten flats with the extra thick version of these tubes. The last time I got a flat, I was 19 miles away from home. From that point on, I carry an extra tube with me with all the tools to fix a flat out on the road. These aren't bad tubes, just don't expect miracles.

I thought I was being smart, getting self-patching tubes; but in spite of the hype, I still got a flat withing a couple of days of street riding. What followed was an exercise in frustration.

First, I tried patching the hole with a "'Slime' Scab" - a patch with pre-applied adhesive. That lasted about two days - came out in the morning to a flat tire after doing no riding at all! When I pulled the tube back out, I could see where the slime liquid had worked its way out under the patch and was leaking again.

Well, I cleaned up all the adhesive residue with acetone, and patched the tube with a standard liquid vulcanizing patch. Unfortunately, I put a little too much pressure in (to hold the anti-thorn liner in place against the tire), and when I tried to let out some pressure, the valve wouldn't release it. In my laziness, I figured "what the hell; it's not that full," and tried to get the tire on anyway - in the process, putting another hole in the tube! That's one way to release the pressure, I suppose! So, I fixed that hole, and started over with less pressure.

When I got it all pumped up, the stem had a slow leak that wouldn't stop. At the same time, the valve wouldn't actually open up to fully release the pressure. Then, when I tried to unscrew and pull the valve completely out, the fibers in their "Fibro-Seal technology" liquid were locking it in place. I had to find some super-fine needle-nose pliers to get in there and actually yank it out! Once I got it out, I saw all the fibers stuck in the valve assembly, and had to spend some time unclogging it under running water. Had I been on the road, that would have been an impossible situation.

I never should have tried to get fancy tubes. I'm done with "Slime" tubes. A liner and extra thick tubes kept me flat-free for two years on my last bike; I think I'm going to go back to that system again. I'm going to get some plain extra-thick rubber tubes, and swap 'em out first chance I get.

This is not the tube for racers. It's heavy. It's 5 times thicker than a normal inner tube. Plus, it's got that green sealant inside. Thus, it's great for travel cross-country. Thorn-resistant as all heck, and because it's so thick, it stays inflated for a very long time. I don't have any problems with the valve tearing off...that has something to do with the rim's valve hole. Good price here at Amazon; it's ten bucks at Walmart.

Great tube for hostile glass and thorn ridden trails. You will have very few flats when you use this. You can also put slime into regular tubes, but this makes it easy.

I bought one slime tube and when it was eventually punctured, I first heard a loud hiss, then I look down and my legs are sprinkled with green liquid. I briefly found the affected area of the bike tire and the hissing stopped for about three seconds. After that, the tube deflated completely. This product states the slime that is inside the tube will seal any punctures so the air will not escape from the tube. I noted this as a bit false or at least unlucky with me. That's the first strike.

The second strike is, if you are trying to save money, like me, you want to patch your tires.
With the slimy liquid coming out from the tube it's almost impossible to get a patch to stick to the tube.

Although I did like how tough the tube is, I rather buy a regular tube to save money then to buy a new slime tube every time I have a flat.

-Kevin.