fred@umcp-cs.UUCP (05/20/84)
In reference to the recent discussion of tire savers: No one seems to have mentioned this: I have installed on my bike two strips of PVC plastic of about the width of the tire tread and about 1/8" thick, inside the tire between it and the inner tube, for preventing flats. They don't seem to add noticeably to the weight of the wheel. The pair I bought were sold under the trade name: ``Mr. Tuffy'', and cost $11. Do they work? Well, I haven't had a flat with them in, but I haven't been using them for a long enough to tell. Anyone else have any opinions on these? - Fred Blonder harpo!seismo!umcp-cs!fred
hodor@hplabsb.UUCP (Ken Hodor) (05/23/84)
I commute more than 20 miles per day. For the first 6 months of my commute I had flats every 2 to 4 weeks. I put "Mr. Tuffy" between my inner tube and my tire since then. I have ridden with "Mr. Tuffy" for more than 6 months now. I have had 3 flats. One flat was due to a 1 inch nail going through the tire, "Mr. Tuffy" and my inner tube. I felt something bumping down the road for a little while but I did not think much of this and decided to keep on going. If I would have stopped I may have saved a flat. The other two flats were due to cuts in my inner tube. I do not know if the inner tube got cut from improper mounting of the tube inside the tire or if I hit a pothole that cut the tube on the rim. There is one problem with "Mr. Tuffy." It is relatively light but I noticed a significant difference in the acceleration of my bicycle. All high performance tires have very low mass. For commuting this is not much of a problem. I rarely have to stop and start. Ken Hodor hplabs!hodor