Mark Adams Just as easy to install as a standard type, this self-sealing road bike inner tube has Slime’s advanced sealant inside to instantly and repeatedly seal punctures. The sealant is guaranteed to work for 2 years, so you can ride over poor road surfaces more confidently.
Features:
- Valve Type: Presta
- Removable Valve Core: No
- Tyre Size Compatibility: 19-25c option suits 19-25c wide tyres, 28-32c option suits 28-32c tyres
- Extra strong with Slime sealant inside
- Designed to seal tread area punctures
- Instantly seals tread area punctures up to 3mm / 1/8″ in size
- Seals multiple punctures repeatedly
- Non-toxic and non-flammable
- Cleans up with water
- Sealant guaranteed to work for 2 years
Slime Smart Tube Review:
Quality: The tube is well manufactured, finished is excellent, and I couldn’t spot any product flaws during the tube test or when inspecting the tube after puncturing.
Instructions: The installation instructions provided are very good, and it is very easy to install this tube on the wheel. The tube seems to fit without issues out of the box, though I checked it with a tyre pump before installing the tyre, just in case the tube was kinked.
Installation: Installation is very simple, you simply remove the old tube and replace with the new one – it has a sticky tape attached, which is one of the best features of Slime Smart tubes. The Slime Smart inner tube has two length options, 19-25c which suits road tyre widths of 19-25c, and 28-32c which suits road tyre widths from 28-32c. The Slime tube needs to be unstuck from the sticky tape and inserted in the tyre. As the tube is stored by itself, there is no chance of dirt getting inside the tyre. I checked that the tyre was not kinked while re-installing the tyre, so all is good. The tyre was installed without any issues.
Velocity: When you get a puncture while using the Slime Smart tube, you need to remove the valve core from the tyre, and release the sealant inside the tyre. Simply seat the tube inside the tyre by using your thumb over the valve to push the tube inside the tyre. You will hear Velco strip inside the tyre and the final part of the tyre will be seated by the valve itself. After this, you will want to inflate the tyre to about 60% of your normal tyre pressure, depending on the tyre. Slime tubes recommend re-inflation to 50% of your normal inflation pressure.
I had the Smart tube installed on a pair of Schwalbe G-One tyres, which are pretty narrow road tyres. The first natural puncture I got was from a piece of glass which was stuck in the tyre and I did not notice. I let a lot of air out and thought the problem was fixed, but then I got another puncture, this time almost on the other side of the same tyre. It was after this second puncture that I thought something was not right.
I took the tyre off the bike, and there was a lot of sealant in the tyre, both inside the tyre, and on the Velco inside the tyre. I decided to deflate the tyre to about 50-60% as per the instructions, and rode around for another 45 minutes. After this time, with the tyre at a very low pressure, I did not notice any punctures. I decided to check the tyre the next day, and there was no punctures, so I have ridden since with no further punctures on this tyre.
Although the tyre showed a puncture at 10am, it was not until 1pm that I decided to check for a puncture, which there was not at that time, but the following morning we had a ride, and I checked the tyre as we were leaving and there was no puncture.
The Slime Smart tube is designed to seal multiple punctures up to 3mm/1/8″ in size. I am not too sure what the size of the puncture was the morning after I was checking it, but when I replaced the valve, the tube appeared to be totally normal.
After the first puncture, I did not notice any air escaping from the tyre, so I would assume that the puncture sealed from the inside of the tyre. This may be the reason why it was not easy to see the punctures in this tube test.
The Slime Smart tube worked, and it worked in a couple of punctures that I had that were not noticeable and were not able to be seen. This feature is excellent, and the tube is definitely recommended for those of you who are not keen on having to remove a tyre for a tube repair.
Puncture protection: I was on a ride, and I had a flat. I removed the valve, and there was a hole in the tube that was larger than the valve hole, like a large hole, that was partly sealed up and partly open through the inner layer. The tyre was not flat after this puncture in the tube, but I would say about 30% was lower than the other, and I didn’t want to chance this puncture getting any more wear on the tube, so I removed it. The tube is designed to run in the tyre at about 50% of your normal tyre pressure, so I replaced it with another tube, inflated the tyre to 50% as per the instructions and rode for 1 hour with no punctures. I was very pleased with this!
