Anyone used mousse tubes?

[John Orchard]

Has anyone here used mousse tubes?  I hear that they give a low-pressure feeling, which I am cool with.  Apparently they don't last long; what are your experiences?

All the Youtube vids that show people fitting them, show them using a tyre fitting frame, can you just use tyre levers without the frame?  I guess I'll need longer tyre irons than the 6" ones I've used for the last 40 years (the very same set, even in my shop I had for a couple of years!).

I'd like to ditch air-tubes & rim-locks, at least until I get sick of paying-out $150 everytime I have to change the them.

[Ktm181]

Has anyone here used mousse tubes?  I hear that they give a low-pressure feeling, which I am cool with.  Apparently they don't last long; what are your experiences?

All the Youtube vids that show people fitting them, show them using a tyre fitting frame, can you just use tyre levers without the frame?  I guess I'll need longer tyre irons than the 6" ones I've used for the last 40 years (the very same set, even in my shop I had for a couple of years!).

I'd like to ditch air-tubes & rim-locks, at least until I get sick of paying-out $150 everytime I have to change the them.

I havnt fitted them but i have ridden on them, HARSH, get ready for some more suspension $$$$, unless they have improved. Great idea, especially in a cross country, you just smash through everything....AND  buy more rims, well my bikes owner did anyway, they had a lot less impact absorption and the rims paid for it. Personally i like the feel of tubes. Oh, and the mousse fall apart with higher speeds and heat, or they did, we are talking 2009 versions, SPEAK to Ballard or someone who pays the bills for a current Pro Class rider, i think some of the Mx guys use them too now. How many punctures do you get? I kid you not when i say i  have not had one off road puncture since 1983, heavy duty tubes, power every time, new tube every new tyre, tape the rims instead of bands, always run taller profile tyres, it all helps...actually youve been around a while, you already know all this!!!! WHY THE MOUSse after all these years???

## after re-reading this i had to run out-side and find some wood..."touch wood"...dont want to spoil my good fortune with flats now do i!!!!

Kt.

[Bitten]

I hope this is not hijacking the thread as I think its related (Sorry John) but I was also thinking about those new tube locs that you see advertised in magazines

They are smaller in dia than a normal tube and inflate to a high pressure and it locks the tyre bead into the rim allowing you to run at less than 10psi in the tyre body

Not that I have a great problem with punctures but just looking for maximum traction

I think they cost about $150 per wheel to set up but are meant to last many tyre changes

By the way I was looking at this for a modern bike not the vintage

Anyone use these or can attest to the long term use?

Cheers

[curly001]

Bitten,

I've been using the Tubliss on my TT500 for 2 years had no problems the only thing is the small inner locking tube needs to be checked before each ride( weekly/monthly) as they slowly loose pressure and need 100psi. Easier to do with a compressor than a manual pump. I've done 2 changes in that time only for new tyres.
Note I don't race only vinduro an bush bashing.

Curly

[Nathan S]

I've used Michelin, Pirelli and Techno mousses in various bikes.

My Michelin rear mousse got very soft after ~12 months and 2,000~2,500km. It had a hard life - the 24 hour, the A4DE and a 12 hour, plus a fair bit of trail-riding in there. It was a big sized one (Michelin 140/80, IIRC), but I'm pretty sure it would still work fine in a 100/100 tyre (Michelin 120/90).
The matching front is now near the end of its life (18 months, probably 2,800km) - its still OK for trail riding, but I wouldn't race on it now and I reckon I'd be far more comfortable using a rimlock with it.

Michelin says that they last six months (virtually regardless of useage), so I don't feel ripped off.

The Michelin ones start off a bit harsh, but feel like a tube at ~13psi for most of their life. It's a different feel to a tube - more of a 'dead' feel to it, but I actually prefer the way mousses feel. Some people talk about revalving their suspension to suit mousses, but 99.9% of us don't have our suspension even close to needing that sort of detail...

The Pirelli is about the same as the Michelin - I can feel far more difference in different tyres than I can between the two brand-name mousses.
Haven't had the Pirelli for long enough to comment on longevity, but they're supposed to be slightly superior to the Michelins.

The Technomousse supposedly doesn't have a defined shelf-life - they will eventually wear out with use, but not with time. They feel very 'dead', both in your hand and on the bike, but you quickly get a feel for them. Definitely a lower performance option than the Michelin/Pirelli mousses, but they're still quite good and about half the price.

A mate runs them (Michelins mostly), and is religious about lubing them - to the point that he will remove a good tyre just to re-lube the mousse. He gets exceptional life out of his mousses, so there's probably something in his theory.
That said, he and his missus had a Michelin cause them to DNF this year's 24-hour (on the back of their sidecar, so it was really punished). Several sidecar teams DNFd from the exact same thing this year. Seems that the bike shop that fitted them either forgot to lube them, or used very old stock mousses and they just didn't last.
He's back to fitting his own...

[Ktm181]

now THAT Nathan is superb info, i'd never thought they'd last that long, changed them out regularly along with the lube thing, if your a racer, especially a front runner, you'd have to look at running them.

[80-85 husky]

has anyone seen the small multi tubes that fit in your tyre (about 4 of them) so it doesn't matter if 1 goes flat. a mate saw them on utube...