Latex Sealant in Tubulars

pippi_langsamer-2
pippi_langsamer-2 Posts: 1,470
edited August 2014 in Workshop
So, not wishing to completely hijack the other thread where this was mentioned, just what is other peoples experiences/ views on injecting liquid latex sealant into £50 race tubulars as a back-up against race ending punctures?

I'm used to riding my MTB with tubeless tyres and rims and sealant, but never with tubulars. Tubulars I've used in the past have been either binned or sent to someone to fix.

So... Here's a few questions:

1) how much liquid latex would one 25mm require?
2) are tubulars repairable by hand once they've been filled with latex, or is this like trying to operate on an intestine full of erm....waste :|

Also, liquid latex only lasts so long before it goes a bit "off", which is fine with tubeless MTB tyres as you can just scoop out the old gunk and refill- can't really do that with tubulars, so surely keep topping them up with latex will only make the sausage heavier and maybe start to counter all the good things one buys tubulars for in the first place?

Comments

  • StillGoing
    StillGoing Posts: 5,211
    I don't fill them beforehand. There's an online video somewhere demonstrating putting some stans in post puncture, just enough to swill to the puncture point. The outside he's already removed any object that caused the puncture and sued a superglue pen to seal the hole. Within seconds the tub is repaired and good to go.
    I ride a bike. Doesn't make me green or a tree hugger. I drive a car too.
  • jgsi
    jgsi Posts: 5,062
    Pitstop can get you back on .. almost within a minute..it works but after that you are riding on borrowed time... but I got an extra month out of it.. before the superglue gave up and pissed the extra sealant out.. and i gave up on it and threw in the bin.
    I just keep an eye on Planet x for sale price tubs.. but at mo I have spares hanging up.
    I just carry pitstop on rides and races.
  • I'm thinking more along the lines of the pre-filled tubs puncturing in eg a road race, and (depending upon the nature of the puncture), sealing themselves quick enough for you not to have to abandon. Even if this means a (very), quick stop to blast in a bit of co2.

    I don't think I'd ever continue to ride a after a race on a tub after such a scenario without either replacing it or having it fixed, hence the fix-ability question.

    I'm also not sure how latex in a tube would mess up the valves. Low pressure mtb tyres don't cause much problems, but I'd imagine the pressure of a tub at 100psi + would be enough to blow some sealant back thru the valve and maybe gunk that up.

    Regarding PitStop, isn't that the foam type sealant?
  • Bar Shaker
    Bar Shaker Posts: 2,313
    In World Rally teams gamble being significantly slower running 'moose' in their tyres against the delay caused by punctures.

    I hated the feel of my MTB with latex in the tubes so would imagine it would indeed negate any benefit of using tubs.
    Boardman Elite SLR 9.2S
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  • jgsi
    jgsi Posts: 5,062
    I'm thinking more along the lines of the pre-filled tubs puncturing in eg a road race, and (depending upon the nature of the puncture), sealing themselves quick enough for you not to have to abandon. Even if this means a (very), quick stop to blast in a bit of co2.

    I don't think I'd ever continue to ride a after a race on a tub after such a scenario without either replacing it or having it fixed, hence the fix-ability question.

    I'm also not sure how latex in a tube would mess up the valves. Low pressure mtb tyres don't cause much problems, but I'd imagine the pressure of a tub at 100psi + would be enough to blow some sealant back thru the valve and maybe gunk that up.

    Regarding PitStop, isn't that the foam type sealant?

    I did put extra liquid sealant in afterwards, but superglue trick is not foolproof as tyres flex.. luckily i was on rollers when tyre finally had enough, although riding on a wet roller for 1 minute proved interesting...improved response times for sure.
  • dennisn
    dennisn Posts: 10,601

    I'm also not sure how latex in a tube would mess up the valves. Low pressure mtb tyres don't cause much problems, but I'd imagine the pressure of a tub at 100psi + would be enough to blow some sealant back thru the valve and maybe gunk that up.

    I find that sealant does tend to "gunk up" the valves. For me it's a slight hassle, but nothing I can't deal with.