How ridiculous are we?

[Mark McM]

I'm one of those darned fools who wouldn't bat an eye at spending $37 for something that will make me 0.0001% faster. But when I looked at the data for polyurethane inner tubes, I found there are butyl tubes that only a few grams heavier (Continental Supersonics weight a verified 50 grams) that have slighly lower rolling resistance, and latex tubes that weigh twice as much as PU that have much lower rolling resistance. Which means that the $37 PU tubes would actually make me 0.0001% slower (even on uphills),plus butyl and latex tubes are both easily patched so I haven't bought any PU tubes.

Some tell me that PU tubes have an advantage for fat tires because they roll up much smaller and are easier to carry, so if I did a lot of fat tire riding I might get them for that reason.

[nmrt]

hah, if i spring for a GT3, i will spring for N2.
heck, i might even spring for He so that my 911 floats on the tracks a bit.

Originally Posted by cgolvin

Funny, that was my thought reading the response from @nmrt — this isn't about splurging on a GT3, it's about springing for the nitrogen inflation once you have it.

And just in case someone else didn't read it the first time I wrote it … buy whatever the F you want.

[hellvetica]

Great idea, make people who don't want to go tubeless pay a premium for tubes! haha. Brilliant marketing, actually.

[HenryA]

That is some expensive toilet paper.
Must wipe better than any other.

[C40_guy]

Originally Posted by Ken Robb

What do these tubes cost in Europe or Britain? It seems that on quite a few items prices overseas have been quite a bit cheaper than in the USA.

Thinking about getting into tube arbitrage?

[Ken Robb]

Originally Posted by C40_guy

Thinking about getting into tube arbitrage?

No, just musing on how the USA market seems to have be soaked by European manufacturers of consumables and components for years.

[NHAero]

Ha, man, you and me both! Clothes budget vs the bike budget, orders of magnitude difference! Yeah, and we have wooden drying racks too, the dryer is probably the best condition 25 year old dryer on the planet. And both the Nagasawa and the Bob Jackson have received nice repaints...

Originally Posted by reuben

When I take a few large steps back and examine myself (a lifelong task requiring lots and lots of practice and embarrassing honesty), I'm always amazed at how much I'll spend on some things and how much I'll scrimp and save on others, despite empirical data that suggests I do the converse.

Bike? Kayak? Stereo? Photography? Sure, I got the bucks. Well, OK, I'm still RELATIVELY cheap on the bike stuff, compared to many on Paceline. But that's a relative, not absolute, scale.

HVAC settings? Clothes? I'm sure I can save $5 or $10 USD somewhere, or just wear that raggedy shirt a few more years. I run my dryer about two times per year because I'm cheap, it's better for the planet, and everything dries just fine in the air, either inside or outside. Heck, I switched it off at the breaker box. And yeah, I rigged a clothesline from the house to the garden to dry clothes, with old fashioned wooden clothes pins, just like my mother and grandmothers did. And I feel pretty good about it - lookit me, savin' the planet.

$1000 USD to rehab/repaint my mediocre mid-1980s steel Bianchi? Sure, I'll pay that. In fact, I did pay that. Lookit me, shipping stuff around and paying for new chemicals, killin' the planet.

[54ny77]

you're all missing the point. when these tubes puncture, the sound is not that of a plebian "bang!" but rather it's a faint echo of an italian aria. shortly thereafter comes free roadside assistance and a fresh cup of cappucino.

if you want to play, you gotta pay.

[XXtwindad]

Originally Posted by reuben

When I take a few large steps back and examine myself (a lifelong task requiring lots and lots of practice and embarrassing honesty), I'm always amazed at how much I'll spend on some things and how much I'll scrimp and save on others, despite empirical data that suggests I do the converse.

Bike? Kayak? Stereo? Photography? Sure, I got the bucks. Well, OK, I'm still RELATIVELY cheap on the bike stuff, compared to many on Paceline. But that's a relative, not absolute, scale.

HVAC settings? Clothes? I'm sure I can save $5 or $10 USD somewhere, or just wear that raggedy shirt a few more years. I run my dryer about two times per year because I'm cheap, it's better for the planet, and everything dries just fine in the air, either inside or outside. Heck, I switched it off at the breaker box. And yeah, I rigged a clothesline from the house to the garden to dry clothes, with old fashioned wooden clothes pins, just like my mother and grandmothers did. And I feel pretty good about it - lookit me, savin' the planet.

$1000 USD to rehab/repaint my mediocre mid-1980s steel Bianchi? Sure, I'll pay that. In fact, I did pay that. Lookit me, shipping stuff around and paying for new chemicals, killin' the planet.

Funny. Kudos.

[m_sasso]

Originally Posted by Mark McM

I'm one of those darned fools who wouldn't bat an eye at spending $37 for something that will make me 0.0001% faster. But when I looked at the data for polyurethane inner tubes, I found there are butyl tubes that only a few grams heavier (Continental Supersonics weight a verified 50 grams) that have slighly lower rolling resistance, and latex tubes that weigh twice as much as PU that have much lower rolling resistance. Which means that the $37 PU tubes would actually make me 0.0001% slower (even on uphills),plus butyl and latex tubes are both easily patched so I haven't bought any PU tubes.

Some tell me that PU tubes have an advantage for fat tires because they roll up much smaller and are easier to carry, so if I did a lot of fat tire riding I might get them for that reason.

You are completely disregarding the puncture resistance and durability of a polyurethane tube.

Have you tried Continental Supersonics or Continental Race Light tubes? I have and never again on a daily rider. So many punctures and friction, rim tape wear throughs, went back to the heaver Continental Race tubes and have not had a puncture or tire, tube issue in 2 years. Rolling resistance has little value if the tube won't hold air.

[Toddykins]

I know its a thing here to dismiss things that don’t conform to your particular idea of cycling - but do you know how much space spare mtb tubes take up and how heavy they are? I run tubeless on my mtbs but carry plugs and similar tubes to these as spares.

[Nomadmax]

I wouldn't pay 37 dollars for 3 tubes.

[reuben]

Originally Posted by 54ny77

when these tubes puncture, the sound is not that of a plebian "bang!" but rather it's a faint echo of an italian aria. shortly thereafter comes free roadside assistance and a fresh cup of cappucino.

I'm not sure where that came from, or what it means, but it's a great little piece of writing, and it made me smile. Thanks!

[oldpotatoe]

Originally Posted by AngryScientist

mixed messages abound!

i thought message de jour was tubulars are dead and pros use tubeless now.

Marketing...what 'some' say to keep 'sponsors' happy and what they actually use. Kinda like rim brakes. Altho that's more obvious.

[unterhausen]

Originally Posted by Nomadmax

I wouldn't pay 37 dollars for 3 tubes.

Isn't 37$ for 3 tubes the current retail price?