Verdict on Slime inner tubes

[johnnyb47]

Hi again.
I've been googling Slime inner tubes and there seems to be a fair few mixed views on them. I want to continue cycling through out the winter months but work dictates my rides will be in the evening darkness. Also where I live some of the roads are fairly isolated and the thought of getting a flat in the middle of nowhere on a dark winter evening doesn't inspire me much to going out. So I'm thinking of fitting some Slime tubes to help ward off the dreaded puncture in the darkness of winter. The big question is though , are they any good. My riding is purely road bike stuff with a fair amount of country lanes / roads where there can be a lot of thorns laying about. Because the tubes are slightly heavier because of the slime that's inside ,does it make much difference to the ride of the bike. I appreciate that this subject has been flogged to death on forums but who better than to ask the experts here.
Many thanks .
johnny

 

[Supersuperleeds]

When I've used them in the past they have worked brilliantly. Make a right mess of the tyre though. Others don't rate them at all.

Rather than the slime tubes I would go for marathon plus tyres, keep them properly inflated and regular checks of the tyres for embedded debris and you will be unlucky to get a puncture.

 

[wonderloaf]

At the moment I'm using the Decathlon version of Slime tubes and wouldn't be without them (find them to perform the same as Slimes but are a bit cheaper). I live in North Hampshire and around here the country roads are littered with small flint fragments, thorns, etc. and I find that they are quite effective at sealing small holes up to a 2mm but beyond that it gets a bit iffy. OK so they're a bit heavier and more expensive than a normal tube but in my mind that a small price to pay for the convenience of not having to stand by the side of the road (normally when it's peeing down with rain) struggling to fix a p******e.

Some people also say that they have problems patching a hole in a Slime tube because the sealant runs out and stops the patch adhering. This isn't my experience, if I'm at home I'll clean the Slime off with a solvent (something like white spirit) and fix the patch as normal. I've also had to apply a patch at the roadside a couple of times and not had any problems.

I think Slime tubes are a bit Marmite but they allow me to enjoy my cycling without having to worry too much about visits from the p******e fairy!

 

[johnnyb47]

Thank you both for your positive views on the Slime tubes. Its always good to ask someone in the know before parting with money

 

[screenman]

Slime works for me, I pulled 14 thorns out of one tube after a cyclo cross season. In five years of racing cross I never had one flat using sealant.

 

[mick1836]

When I've used them in the past they have worked brilliantly. Make a right mess of the tyre though. Others don't rate them at all.

Rather than the slime tubes I would go for marathon plus tyres, keep them properly inflated and regular checks of the tyres for embedded debris and you will be unlucky to get a puncture.

I've used Schwalbe Marathon plus on my current and previous bike, only had two deflations, first caused by inner tube presta valve and second in a brand new Michelin inner tube a hole in the tubes joint I presume caused by a foreign body within the joint as the tyre carcase had not been pierced.

 

[johnnyb47]

Slime works for me, I pulled 14 thorns out of one tube after a cyclo cross season. In five years of racing cross I never had one flat using sealant.

That's impressive to hear. If can withstand that kind of punishment it should be a walk in the park for what I do. :-)

 

[Truth]

Extremely impressive