Don's Home Home& Garden Bike Tire Flat Protection Contact

Puncture vine (a.k.a. Goathead) [Tribulus terrestris] thorns are a constant problem if you ride in the country in the South-West. It is prevalent from August - September.
 
Plants can become 10 feet in diameter!
A small woody fruit (seed) – the bur – has long sharp and strong 1/5 to 1/3 inch (5 to 8 mm) - long spines which easily penetrate surfaces, such as bare feet or thin shoes, the rubber of bicycle tires, and the mouths and skin of grazing animals.
Bike tires are 8 to 9 mm thick. The CST Tracer çity Classic where I was getting the punctures was only 5 mm and still appeared to have a lot of tread after 2 years of moderate around town use.

Spines are aligned so that at least one is pointing upwards when lying on the soil surface.

• Thicker tires
• Tubeless tires
• Tire liners
• Goop (Slime) you put in the tube to seal punctures
• Airless tires

See Puncture Resistant Tire Liners Test: | BicycleRollingResistance.com

Mr. Tuffy seems to be the most popular.

Stop Flats: Puncture Proof™ Tire Liners $20-$30/tire at Freewheeler in Davis

Tannus Armour Puncture Protection $40 each - At Ken's Bike-Ski-Board Davis

At 221 grams it can add almost 50% to the tire weight.

Thicker Tires:
Specialized Armadillo Elite Captain Control tires 645 grams for $60 each. The Armadillo's bead-to-bead Kevlar casings works really well at preventing thorns from puncturing the inner tube but the combination of their stiff casing and hard rubber matrix causes the tires to slip around on everything except for AC (asphalt concrete), concrete and hard pack.
The Specialized All Condition Armadillo Elite 700c Tire is the most flat-resistant tire available | JensonUSA.com.

I ended up getting a Schwalbe Marathon Plus 560 grams ($60) . A 3mm thick Green Guard rubber puncture protection belt offers improved flat resistance. And I'll cary a can of slime and pump or CO₂ cartridge in case of an emergency.
with a total thickness of 9.0 mm the Schwalbe Marathon Plus is the thickest tire of all tires tested to date. |
Note: The outside diameter was larger than my old tires, so I had to raise the fenders.

Continental Gator Hardshell 253 grams is another good one.

Performance results from Road Bike Tires Overview at BicycleRollingResistance.com 2015
 
The Specialized Armadillos were not out when they did these tests in 2015. See review at RCUK

Many road tires offer extra puncture protection. But this also adds weight and rolling resistance. If you’re commuting or riding where there's a lot of debris and want to avoid punctures, the bulk might be worth the reward.

Tubeless:
Mountain bikes are predominantly tubeless which contain a small amount of liquid sealant inside the tires. When the tire is punctured by glass, thorns, rocks, or other debris, the internal pressure pushes the sealant out and seals the puncture almost instantly. Sealant contains natural or synthetic latex, so the seal that’s made when a puncture occurs, closely mimics the tire itself.
Tubeless-compatible rims required .
heavier Requires annual maintenance to renew the sealant.

	Air Foam	Tannus
Cost Installed	<$100	$120 to $160
Simulated Pressure	45-65 PSI	80–115 PSI
Weight	280–320g	310–800g

MTBR says "I purchased a 2011 Camber Elite 29er a few months ago, which is equipped with a Specialized 29 x 2.2 Captain Control front tire and a 29 x 2.0 Captain Sport rear tire. The trails and gravel roads I ride on are riddled with puncture vines on each side of their clearings. In August the goat head branches dry up and fall on the trails and roads where they can readily puncture your tire. I have been getting at least one flat on every ride, which is getting really old. The last thorn I picked up has worked its way through and outer knob and lodged itself in the casing where the only way to remove it is the cut the inside of the casing and dig it out like splinter, which will destroy the tire.""
Here are my three options:

1. Purchase (2) Specialized Armadillo Elite Captain Control tires for $70.00 each. The Armadillo's bead-to-bead Kevlar casings works really well at preventing thorns from puncturing the inner tube but the combination of their stiff casing and hard rubber matrix causes the tires to slip around on everything except for AC, concrete and hard pack.

2. Convert to tubeless using Stan liners and latex compound for about $65.00 assuming both my tires will seal and the Stan Liners fit my Specialized/Alex rims. Note; I have read that Specialized 2-Bliss and their non tubeless ready Sport tires do not seal very well--has anybody successfully converted Captain tires to tubeless? The other concern I have with tubeless is the Latex drying out because the bike will be stored in my garage, which can get up to 110 degrees in the summer.

3. Ghetto tubeless with either two 24" inner-tubes or Gorilla tape, Stan's presta valves and latex. This setup ranges from $20.00 to $40.00.

4. Two very heavy slime 29er tubes for under $30.00.

5. Tire liners for $50.00. 6

. And my cheapest option is to tough it out and either patch and or replace my tubes every week on the trail or at home.

Can anybody weigh in on the pros and cons of the options above or offer other alternatives for my thorn problem?

Tubeless is going to be your most flat resistant choice. I would try the Ghetto method first vs spending money on the Stans rim strips. I have used both in the past and here is my findings:

-Split Tube is easier to seat the tires, no chance of leaking around the valve stem or spoke holes, and prevents burping. The downside is it's one and done, but if you don't switch out tires often then this is the method I'd recommend for the first time user. Use Q-Tubes, Continental, or Schwalbe tubes that have removable valve cores if you use Presta tubes. This will allow you to add more sealant.

-Gorilla Tape makes it much easier to swap tires. Tape the rims and really make sure it's stuck down before mounting the tires to prevent leaks. How easy it is to seat the tires is very dependent on the rims. Some rims work really well while others can be a real b!tch to get the tires seated. The Gorilla Tape does not create a seal between like the split tube so there is a bigger chance of burping or a blowoff.

Specialized 2Bliss tires work fantastic with latex sealant, not sure where you're hearing different. The rear Sport tire I cannot comment on since it is not a 2Bliss model, but it is wire bead so it should at least not have any bead blowoff issues.

Split-tube ghetto tubeless is only one-and-done in terms of the trimmed tube, not the tire. If you pop the tire bead out of the rim you will have a hard time getting the trimmed tube to sit properly back in the same place. Sealant can last between one and many months depending on the heat and how often you're getting punctures. Use a schrader tube or a presta tube with a removable valve core and you will be able to pull the valve core and pump new sealant in through the valve without breaking the tire bead loose. This doesn't let you clean out the tire, but the dried sealant won't really leave much weight.

Links:
Best puncture-proof tyres for cycling 2022 CyclingWeekly
Best Road Bike Tires For Puncture Resistanc | BicycleUniverse
Best Road Bike Tires|TRIGearLab
Road Bike Tires Buying Guide | TheProsCloset.com
Puncture Resistant Tire Liners Test: | BicycleRollingResistance.com