It's called the "Armour," and it integrates the now-popular protective tire insert with an inner tube to, as the press kit says: "...give the rider better flat protection and the ability to ride at lower PSIs without ever getting a pinch flat."
For a while, I thought those were the very reasons that we abandoned inner-tubes in favor of tubeless tires, but that's just me. In a few weeks, a consortium of two tire makers -
Tannus, which specializes in manufacturing airless cycling tires, and
Vittoria, a high-end pneumatic tire producer - will be releasing a hybrid, inflatable liner that could spell the end of tubeless mountain bike tires - or not.
The Tannus Armour insert is 15 millimeters thick beneath the tread and tapers down to 2 millimeters as it completely surrounds the basic inner-tube. Armour's maker claims that the hybrid solution is easier to install than the most popular tire inserts and more effective in preventing punctures. In their words:
The Armour design allows riders to lower their PSI to as low as 20 psi, whilst at the same time ensuring ultimate protection to their rims. In the unlikely event you get flat tyre, you can also run flat on the Armour without any problems under 10km/h; which could be a real lifesaver. The most noticeable thing about the Armour is its simplicity. Anyone who has installed or ridden tubeless will testify that it is a pain to install and maintain, whilst only being about 60-70% effective against punctures. In contrast, the Armour installation is as easy to set up as a standard tyre / tube combo and requires no special tools or added maintenance.
History Being Made - or Revisited? The Armour concept flips the wisdom of conventional tire-liner makers up-side down. Inserts like Flat Tire Defender and Cush Core are intended to sit against the rim of a tubeless tire, while leaving an air space above to allow the tire carcass some natural flexibility with which to find grip and roll more effortlessly. Conventional inserts create a "bump-stop" for the tire that helps activate the suspension sooner and protect against carcass-tear pinch flats. Puncture resistance is handled by liquid sealant.
| Armour hybrid inserts could be a legitimate innovation - or they could be a satanic reincarnation of the the old-school "thorn-proof" inner-tube. |
Thorn-proof tubes have yet to live up to their name. Katie Bradshaw photo
Armour inserts, however, are compressed against the tire's carcass by the inner tube, which forces the foam element to conform to the terrain at all times. Puncture protection is only as good as the thickness of the insert. Air pressure inside the inner-tube only plays a supporting role to the liner, which should create a noticeably different (albeit harsher) ride quality. The Armour concept is more civilized version of MrWolf's SmartMousse, which takes it to the extreme, with a tiny tube inside a blob of foam that fills the entire tire.
All things considered, the simple addition of an inner-tube to a tubeless tire adds a measurable amount of stiffness to the tire casing - and that lateral support, along with puncture resistance, is high on the wish list for many enduro-type riders. Armour hybrid inserts could be a legitimate performance innovation - or they could turn out to be a satanic reincarnation of the the old-school "thorn-proof" inner-tube. Speculation aside, we will be testing a set soon.
Mentions: @vittoria
@Boardlife69 You might need wider rims or change casing ? I'm terrible a cornering so my tires don't "squirm".
One real issue with tubeless is (if you use light casing) you need to change tyre as soon the sidewalls are a bit used because sealant starts to leak from everywhere.
I once did a test with a tubular tire covered within a light foam, however the foam pushed against the contact surface of the tire, i.e. I was constantly rolling on the foam insert. The rolling resistance pretty much sucked.
As for pressures, I run 6bar in the tubes, 1.1bar in the rear tire, 0.9bar in the front tire.
www.endurorider.pl/oko-x-treme
So don't vote people with tubes and just ride what you prefer.
26 imch ( gasp) !! on park for a reason.
Obviously it for the rolling resistance. I aint following sheeps !
To be honest it's been only a couple of months ago that I started running ProCore. Until then I ran latex tubes without any issues. Yeah they puncture. Takes me a few minutes to swap it out and another few minutes to patch a batch of punctured tubes.
The main reason for me to use ProCore is that it allows me to easily install a tire with a mini pump, just like I could with a regular tube in a tire. If I can't install a tire with a mini pump (when on a trip or trailside when a tire has come off for whatever reason) it seems pretty unacceptable to me. And I won't carry one of these pressurized bottles either. Seems scary to me.
Biggest gripe with ProCore is that as it is now I need to use the Presta valve. They feel fiddly compared to Schraeder. I may change mine at some point. Inflate the tube through one Schraeder valve, inflate the tire through the other one. I just haven't figured how to keep the air guide in place with this approach.
Rim,
Insulation tape (or rim tape if not using draught excluded- see below). Makes it easier to get draught excluded off when changing tyres.
Foam draught excluder onto insulation tape
www.screwfix.com/p/stormguard-extra-thick-weatherstrip-black-3-5m-2-pack/40425?tc=OB2&ds_kid=92700022063965889&gclsrc=aw.ds&ds_rl=1241687&ds_rl=1245250&ds_rl=1244072&gclid=CjwKCAjw3qDeBRBkEiwAsqeO7qyUPCQaq-4hYsbhdTmdSIoCqlv5qkEFAIxAatx5MK5zmZMp1TrZsxoC6OsQAvD_BwE
on rims with big drop centres. It pushes the split tube out and gives better contact with the tyre. I had some rims where I couldn't get air into them so started using this to force the best towards the edge of the rim and seal it better.
Split tube (24" on 29er and 20" on 26" with Schrader valves (so you can remove cores and get lots of air in (this may mean drilling your runs but I've done it on lots of aluminium rims with no issues,
Tyre.
Use a Stans syringe to get sealant in once you have the tyre on.
I have only ever used a track pump and have used this method on many rims and tyre combos.
Let us know how you get on.
@WAKIdesigns : ProCore has been working fine for me so far. Even though I've never set up a tire tubeless, I actually expect this to be easier. I just watched Steffi Marth perform it in their instruction video and I followed along, with mini pump. Inflating got a bit heavy though, over time. It may be some sealant in the valve. I looked on the internet and I came across the suggestion to flush it with hot water, so that's what I'm going to do next time I'm taking the tire off. I'm tempted to work with two valves though. One for the tire, the other for the tube. Ideally I'd go back to Schraeder valves for both, never really got along with Presta. But I haven't figured out how to keep the air guide in place. My rim manufacturer Syntace (who co-developed the ProCore system) recommends to cut the valve out of the ProCore tube and use that as the tire valve (so that it also keeps the airguide in place) and use another thin tube with Schraeder valve as the actual tube. So yeah, I might actually try that. My W35 rims already have the second drill at 90 degrees. If you're using different rims you may want to drill your own. If you're using a different number of spokes (other than 32) you'd obviously have to drill under a different angle suitable for a valve (and somewhere between the valve and the weld/rivet/sleeve).
I'm also really loving the Terravail Kennebec 29×2.6 tire. Beefy knobs and a strong sidewall.
Im running Blunt 35s and Flows MK3 on my Krampus. They're good for up to 2.5 but were a bit narrow when I had 29x3 Knards (since sold as the side walls were too weak). I did like Dirt Wizards but they were well heavy. Will check out the Kennebec. Really want a 2.6 / 2.7 Minion DHF which I think is coming.
This is pretty much how I do it except I usually cut the tube and wash it first before mounting it on the tube. Also I use a Stans injector and use small scissors to cut the excess tube off once finishes.
ep1.pinkbike.org/p4pb13005783/p4pb13005783.jpg
Also, who DOESN'T use a reflector to balance the valve stem weight?
Thanks!
I find tubless easy to install, maintain and almost completely effective against punctures. I got one flat the whole season this year, and that was from a piece of glass on the trail slashing my tyre...
What can I do to make it so I need to buy these inserts and add a bunch of rotational weight to my bike?
Either this doesn't happen to anyone else cos I'm an outlier due to being just so big and strong and fast (seems unlikely - I'm big but not huge, not very strong, not exactly WC fast either) or it does happen to lots of other people and they're basically in denial about how annoying it really is, I'm not sure which is the case. Tubeless still ranks lower than a triple chainring on the list of things I want on my bike right now, and believe me, I really am no fan of tubes either. It's just the marginally less bad option.
What rims and sealant are you running to have so many problems?
I prepare my rear tires with 35 or more psi for my 187 lbs with full gear.
Because I have enough grip if I going fast and I don't Buckle or Bend my rims if I just land on a massive root or stone after a jump on real singletrails or just going fast over anything.
Yesterday I just hit a big boulder because I was to close to the rider Infront of me with 35kph and the rear wheel now got the first dent. This rim was superb for One year and 7000miles. I can replace it but because it is only a minor debt and the wheel is still true I don't spend 100$ for it. I am cheaper with the replaced rim then this tire insert nonsense and I had also no flat. I need to pedal the shit up, f*ck the extra weight...
Or you can run more pressure, you know most tires can handle 60 psi and yes some guys run that with success
@JohanG 200lbs and raced DH for about 10 years. Certainly not the best or fittest rider in the world but also far from the worst.
@BornOnTwo Squamish/Whistler/Pemberton mostly. 60psi sounds fantastic, might even be able to turn my enduro bike into something with the grip of a hardtail at that point. In reality anything much above 30psi becomes really quite harsh, at 40psi grip is severely compromised. Honestly, think about what you're saying.
I'm about 92kg/200lb+ and can't go lower than 35psi on a rear on any surface with grip and rocks on it. Well not if I want the rim and tire to survive and it not to roll in the corners. Just physics and the fact they design tires around racers that are about 20kg lighter I think.
Not using wire bead tires are you? I tried one once and it was burp city totaly useless. Had no grief with folding bead. And I find hookless rims less burpy than hooked.
Wanna avoid Easton arc then, got some last year and getting ready to chuck them, having strange burp problems with them when I shouldn't.
I kept ripping out derailleurs, changed the way I ride and where I ride and I don't rip off derailleurs anymore - I never blamed the derailleurs. Honestly your problem is probably attitude.
Foam core plus a tire is a huge chunk of change. If the whole enchilada cost about 100$ it would make a great flat proof rear tire.
Do you still need sealant?
Final weight compared to tubeless tire with sealant and foam core?
That tube in the tire. If it punctures what then.?
Stay tuned for more inquisitive remarks and cunning puns.
That's a no from me dawg
Pros:
- massive gain of grip
- no more hassle to air your tubeless (the procore chamber seats your tire automatically upon inflation)
- impossible to blurp the tyre
- rim is covered against damages
- highly tunable
- adds tons of fun to your bike
Cons:
- expensive (?)
- can be a pain to setup after some use (sticky sealant)
- valve can clog from time to time (happened to me once in 4 years).
- add a little bit of weight
In my opinion, the Prococre beats any other similar system on the market hands down. I personally find the whole pool noodle/Huck Norris/whatever alternative gimmick rather expensive and laughable in comparison to Procore to be honest.
I run my tires at 24/26 PSI and love the confidence Procore gives me to smash through whatever I feel like. When I ran tubes I got a flat every other ride (once 3 in one ride) with 32 PSI. When I went tubeless I really struggled with burping every few rides. Once I rolled the front tire right off the rim pushing through a corner.
I still experiment from time to time with cheap DIY foams inserts, but haven't found one yet that's offers the same amount of protection as my Procore does. Currently I have an Armaflex synthetic rubber noodle with around 55 kg/m³ in my front tire (around 190g per tire), but I don't have high hopes that it'll last long. The cost was only 2 euros for 2 meters though, so if it does break, at least I haven't thrown out 30 or 100 euros out the window.
Good comment although I do agree with @sp00n82 comment about the "digital" feel. I have to run 90+ psi in the back and around 80+ psi in the front inner chamber to prevent pinch flats with my 225 lbs riding weight and it does make the inner chamber pretty hard on anything other than crazy rock gardens. I still do pinch flat from time to time (maybe twice a year) but I use to pinch flat practically every other ride with both tubes and tubeless so I'm pretty happy.
BTW, even though I run 90+ psi in the procore inner tube/carcass, I have yet to explode the Light Bicycle carbon rim I sometimes use (although it is the "downhill" layup).
I do wish Schwalbe would release:
- Procore tubes / carcasses with different sizes. The existing size is perfect for a 2.35" Maxxis DHF or DHRII but I find it allows too much squirm / compression / rolling resistance when used with the Wide Trail tires and wider rims. I had to jump up from 28 psi in the back to 36 psi in the back to get decent rolling resistance when I went to a WT tire in the back and I've concluded that with 28 psi I was actually riding ("sagging") onto the inner procore tire carcass in the center contact patch otherwise which with a WT tire and wide rim results in too much rolling resistance due to the excessive sidewall flex.
- Procore tubes with longer valve stems so they could be used with more carbon rims than is currently the case.
Not peer reviewed in the sense of journal articles, but certainly peer reviewed in the court of public opinion, and seemingly pretty reliable.
However, adding this kind of rolling weight (and likely rolling resistance) strikes me as the wrong way to make tires and rims more damage resistant. I'm running a Huck Norris in the rear, and that seems to help; a system more like Cushcore but designed from the rim bed up (like when the UST standard was developed, allowing for broad tubeless adoption) could be revolutionary-if the industry gets together to do it.
Nope, you're doing something wrong.
When asked about the subject of inserts didn’t Danny Hart say something along the lines of “no, don’t think you need them if you run the right pressure”.
I would guess he dents a few rims but he’s not a rider that flats every other run. Maybe all these pinch flat types are running super stiff carbon rims? If they had cheap alloy it’s just dent a bit, no flat and carry on?
I've been riding Summit's bike park since it re-opened in '13, and flatted once, and that was because the POS Butcher tires have(had) sidealls made toilet paper.
Conversely, the two times (I remember) people riding with us on tubes,they flatted multiple times. One guy flatted every fricken run til everyone ran out of spare tubes to give him.
IME, that's a LOT more effective(tubeless) than 60%
Well, it looks wrong to me anyway, testing will tell, but I doubt this will perform as well as a cush core
m.pinkbike.com/photo/16342058
technology.nasa.gov/patent/LEW-TOPS-99
I'll see myself out
Wankers.
That said: This seems like it would be very effective.