I gave up quickly on slime tubes for the reasons stated by others. It's
impossible to repair a puncture when you get one, and worse, difficult to
reinflate the tube. I also gave up after a couple winters on studded tires.
Their rolling resistance is big-time (2+ mph for me), plus they are very
noisy.

Mr. Tuffy liners stop many (not all) punctures, but their sharp edges
themselves cause leaks. That can be cured with thick thorn resistant tubes,
which I do use. But they too have a downside. They are more susceptible to
stem failures than other tires.

I have had success with Bontrager kevlar-lined tires. Like the Mr. Tuffy
liners, they don't stop everything (I've had failures when I hit a 1 1/2
inch screw and a 1 inch nail), but they do stop a lot of small stuff. Plus
they're good for 5000 miles or so on the rear wheel and almost indefinitely
on the front. I assume I'm giving up some speed because they are moderately
heavy. I use them with the thorn resistant tube and sometimes a Mr. Tuffy
liner, though I'm leaning against that right now. On long trips, my spare
tubes are not thorn resistant. They're too bulky.


"NYC XYZ" wrote in message
oups.com...
Hi, All:

Thanks for turning me onto this latest must-have item! =) So that
Schwalbe Marathon Plus sounds like the thing to get to avoid
punctures...but how heavy is "heavy," really?

And what about airless tires? What are they, how do they work?


TIA!!