crazzywolfie

i was wondering if anyone has tried using slime in there tires because i have seen it at wal-mart and it looks like it may stop me from getting soo many flats. i know you can buy tires with stuff in them that pevents flats for $5 more than a regular tire but a container of slime is about $10 and i could see myself filling at least 4 tires with the stuff if it works.
https://www.slime.com/product/82/Tube-Sealant.html

storckm

I remember hearing, a long time ago, that that sort of stuff could glue your tubes to you rims. There are some reviews here:

https://www.mtbr.com/cat/tires-and-wh...21_154crx.aspx

I most of my tires have kevlar (or whatever it's called) belts under the tread, and I get very few flats. Less than one a year, I'd guess, including my wife and kids (whose tires don't have belts).

So, with no personal experience, and without a huge amount of evidence, I'd tend to recommend against it.

bkaapcke

It will get you home on a pump up or two, which was fine with me when I was a newb. However, as I got more adept at taking care of the bike,, and fixing flats on the trail, I stopped using it. Got real tired of taking a tire off only to find a huge mess inside. I switched to Schwalbe Marathons and have way less flats now. Yes, every now and then, a flat needs fixed on the road. I figure it just comes with the territory. Besides, it gives me a chance to practice swearing. You know, just like plumbing repairs. bk

You wouldn't want your swearing to get rusty, would you?

crazzywolfie

from the sounds of it you are suppose to put it in the tire before you get the flat. i try to maintain my bike as little as possible so this might help me cut down on maintenance.

i don't think it would be possible for my swearing to get rusty as long as my truck is around.

LesterOfPuppets

I used to roll with slime all the time in AZ. Good against goatheads. Never had a tube stick to a rim. I had a mess a couple times, but that usually only happens when you gash your tube with a hole too big for the slime to seal.

And yes, it's used prior to punctures - you unscrew your valve core, slime up your tube, reinstall valve core.

Always park your bike with the valve stems at the top of the wheels, so you don't get slimed when you go to pump your tires up before your next ride.

I'm a Mr. Tuffy guy now.

tcs

My buddy and I rode the Caprock Canyon Trail, which the Texas Parks Department had recently paved entirely with tribulus terrestris (a.k.a. goathead thorns). In 31 miles he stopped 17 times to repair flats on his Specialized Armadillo tires - typically 2 or 3 punctures per stop. I'd Slimed my tires, so every time we had to stop for him I'd get my pliers out, pull out three or four goatheads, see tiny green dots appear, and call it good. I never even added any air to the tire that day.

YMMV,
tcs

crazzywolfie

i am pretty cheap when it comes to my bike but if it will save some time and money in the long run then i might do it. i tend to only get small holes in my Bikes anyway. i already rap the rim with with electric tape to try tp prevent the loss of air even if the tube starts to leak. thanks everyone for your opinions and stories about slime. i think i might try it.

Torchy McFlux

It's terrible stuff and I hate it.
Sloshes around in your tubes making them heavy and uneven, seeps out and sticks to everything when there's a puncture, seals up the valve more often than they'd admit...
Use a Mr.Tuffy if you want maximum puncture resistance. Or buy better tires.

crazzywolfie

i don't think i would feel the sloshing or extra weight on my bike. my bike is a solid steel full suspension frame and it has triple tree front forks which makes it even heavier. i can't justify spending $30 for a set of MR. Tuffy's for my bike tires.

LesterOfPuppets

The wheels are a little out of balance for the first half mile or so of each ride. You won't notice that unless you live at the top of a steep hill, or just happen to begin each ride by mashing up to 30 mph for no apparent reason. After that, they're just a little heavy, no big deal if you're willing to make that trade-off.

And to keep the valve clear, after filling with slime, when you first inflate the tire leave a little room. Say you like your tires at 40psi, just take it up to 30. Let sit for an hour with the valve stem at the top of the wheel, THEN top it off to desired pressure. This will almost always keep your valve clear.

If you should ever want to let air out of your tire, only do so after they've been sitting at least an hour with the valve stem at the top of the wheel.

sknhgy 

This has been my experience. I might use it if I rode in goatheads all the time. Otherwise it is a messy bandaid.

az2008

If it's a mountain bike with lower-pressure tires, Slime should be a good choice. Usually the people who hate it are those who ride on the road and have higher-pressure tires (causing a big mess because Slime doesn't seal well under high pressure). Slime with thorn-resistant tubes (thicker on the tread side of the tube) might be a good choice for a mountain bike too.

If you had a hybrid or road bike, I'd recommend something like Bontrager Hardcase tires or Specialized Armadillos. (But, those are expensive and sound like they wouldn't fit your budget anyway.).

fietsbob

I heard a cautionary tale from someone who had a tire blow off the rim and had neon green Slime all over the place,
including the Cat, who was Unfortunate to be standing near by when the blow out happened.

crazzywolfie

it is a mountain bike and i have it setup for off-roading. i usually keep the tires at about 35psi. it has the biggest tires on it that i could get for free which is a 26x2.30 in the front and a 26x2.20 in the back. from the sounds of it slime would work great for what i need.

snafu21

I have it in my MTB. I run the tyres at 15 psi. It's an extra layer of insurance.

It's also water dispersible, so if your tyre should explode, the stuff hoses away. I carry a spare tube anyway, so don't bother with patches until I get home. I've not had any issues with valves becoming blocked. Slime can turn a fast puncture into a slow leak. And, it makes finding the puncture easier. But it's heavy, and you can't easily transfer it to a new tube.

I seem to recall the instructions on the bottle say it's not for high pressure tyres, but I can't check that at the moment.

LesterOfPuppets

One more tip. If you drive to the trailhead of a trail that's full o' goat heads, you'll want to make sure your slime is well distributed before you hit the trail. I usually just flipped my bike over and spun the tires for a while 'til they were somewhat balanced, indicating slime was somewhat evenly distributed around the outside of the tube.

canopus 

Question: How does this stop air from leaking? Answer: It doesn't...

crazzywolfie

if you rap electric tape around the rim it helps prevent the loss of air if the tire tube starts to leak and it starts to act like a tubeless tire.

canopus 

No it doesn't. There is nothing to stop the air from going through the hole(s) in the tire or the hole around the valve stem because that isn't sealed when you run a tube.

Al1943

If you do not have good rim tape then electrical tape may help prevent punctures caused by the tube extruding into the spoke holes, but it will not seal the tube or tire from leaking.
Instead of using electrical tape all bike rims deserve Velox rim tape.

crazzywolfie

the electric tape seals itself around the valve stem because i only use a screw driver to punch a hole through the electrical tape for the valve stem. maybe it does not completely stop a leak but it does slow it down. i have had it nearly save me a few times if only i had a air pump to fill the tires to reseat them on the rims.

canopus 

Thank you for proving my point with your own words.

crazzywolfie

for all i know it could have saved me more time than i know of but there has been a few times when the tire has broke free from the rim and i could here air leaking and i was able to get it back on before too much got out but it was not enough to ride on. now if i had a portable air pump i could have filled it up and kept going.