I ride a budget hardtail mountain bike with the original wheels which means I’m stuck on inner tubes until I upgrade to a new wheelset or buy a new bike. I’ve ran inner tubes a long time, and know a thing or two about some of them. I’ve found that the best inner tubes for mountain bikes are slightly higher priced. At least, initially – it’s totally worth the extra investment which I’ll explain why later below.

Here are 3 puncture resistant inner tubes I’ve tested on my mountain bike:

I have not tried these tires, but they are on my radar:

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Trailworthy Inner Tubes

The three inner tubes I mentioned above that are puncture resistant are the best ones I’ve tried so far. I would like to try the Diamondback, Sunlite, and Kenda tubes but it will be a while because I like to patch my tubes…to the point where they’ll look like frankenstein before I change my tube. It’s just more cost efficient. Some of you might disagree, but I haven’t once had a patch go bad unless I pinch flat or had a thorn hit the same spot.

I think inner tubes should have a “trailworthy” designation, because anything not trail rated should definitely be out of the question for mountain bikers. *ahem* walmart stuff *ahem*

Maxxis Welterweights

Quite simply these are made by the most well known mountain bike tire manufacturer. It seems to go with the flow that they would also know a thing or two about good inner tubes.

Enter the Welterweights. Here’s the highlights for me:

Used by professionals and amateurs alike
Tested for durability
0.90 mm thick walls

Used by pros? Check for trail worthiness. Durability? Trailworthy check. .9mm thick walls? Double trailworthy check.

See, those are hard facts that cannot be made up for tubes that are puncture resistant. It’s a testament to Maxxis products. Read real user reviews and learn more details here: Maxxis Welterweight Reviews

Schwalbe SV21 Tube

Schwalbe tires are up there when it comes to trailworthy tires. Their inner tubes, the SV21, are no exception.

What my caught my eyes are the following specifications:

PUNCTURE RESISTANCE – Higher quality butyl rubber gives better protection
SUPER AIR TIGHT – Less requirement to re-inflate unlike other tubes

When I tried these tires, it was hard to go wrong. I wanted thorn resistance. I wanted resistance against pinch flats. I wanted durability. I’m not asking for much.

I paid a hefty price for these when I absolutely had to buy them from a bike shop. They’re much more reasonable on Amazon. You can check their current price here: https://amzn.to/2OiyGOD

Diamondback Thorn Resistant Inner Tubes

Diamondback is a bike company first and foremost. But since they do make their own parts and tools to keep costs lower for customers, I thought I would give their inner tubes a try when I bought them from Amazon.

Out of the box, these inner tubes a little heavier than you would normally expect, but I would take the slight hit in weight over getting constant thorn punctures and pinch flats.

I couldn’t believe how heavy they were, but they’re probably the most durable “feeling” inner tubes when fitting them into the wheel. I was so ecstatic over not getting pinch flats that I could’ve cared less about how much they weighed. I definitely wouldn’t use these for a race but to each their own. I was really happy with these before I got a horrible pinch flat that too big to fix .. my fault for practicing trials on brick benches – those edges are SHARP.

They’re also pretty well received by users, read reviews here: https://amzn.to/2DBqyVr

Why You Shouldn’t Buy Cheap Inner Tubes

I’ve had my fair share of buying cheap inner tubes because of all the punctures I’ve had out on the trail. It’s pretty obvious big brands like Maxxis and Schwalbe know a thing or two about tires, but just from all the different one’s I’ve used over the years.. brand does matter. This is one place where the more you pay, the better it is – you just have to be sure to do your research. Fortunately, I’ve already laid out some of the best tubes up there for serious riders who still WANT to run tubes.

In the beginning I would go out and buy new tubes every time I had a flat, well, this adds up in costs ridiculously fast.

Just thinking about bunny hopping a curb or plowing through a rock garden where I could get a flat that will potentially cost me $7 to $8 bucks. At that point, riding wasn’t fun anymore – it defeated the purpose of riding to be honest. It’s like PAYING to ride through a rock garden… hell no.

I, of course, then found out about patches and that changed the game – let’s just say, I saved a lot of money by using patches… a new bike’s worth of money. And like I mentioned before I like to turn my inner tubes into a frankenstein of patches before I replace them. That’s mountain biking on a budget – just be sure you know what you’re doing though – and be smart about when to get a new one.

Why It’s Better to Get the GOOD QUALITY Inner Tube

I’m a big believer in using patches with inner tubes. But a combination of GOOD QUALITY inner tubes, PLUS, patches… is a really the ultimate advice I can give you through my experience.

You don’t get flats as much, and when you do get a flat you pay literally next to nothing to patch them.. it just takes a little bit of your time to fix and you’re ready to get back on the trail again.

So yea, don’t buy cheap inner tubes unless you’re really in a bind. Get some puncture resistant and highly rated ones and then patch as necessary. I recommend these patch kits for in-the-field patching:

Park Tool Vulcanizing Patch Kit VP-1
Slime 1022-A Rubber Tube Patch

Remember, you’ll need a good hand pump too if you only bring patches out on the trail. I use this one:

Why Not Buy Better Tires?

Tires can get expensive depending on the materials and features the tire was manufactured with. However, it’s true… getting tires that are more durable, coupled with durable inner tubes, and a patch kit… that’s probably best overall for resistance against punctures and pinch flats.

In my case, I bought these: Maxxis Ardent tires. My tires were the “cheaper” build Maxxis Ardent’s: similar to these: https://amzn.to/2xFZezZ

Should I have bought the better pair? Perhaps, but at the same time I’m also saving up for a really nice bike… I weighed the options and concluded that I didn’t need to spend the extra dough on the nicer Ardent’s… I can make do with good inner tubes and patch kits.

Why I Don’t Like Inner Tubes: But Also Love Them

I wrote this post not too long ago: How to Patch a Bike Tube – The Definitive Guide

I mention in it that I once had 10 or 11 patches on ONE inner tube. The great thing about running with inner tubes was that they’re cheap and easy to fix.

What I didn’t mention was that if I had purchased a really great inner tube that was thicker and was more puncture resistant towards small thorns and pinch flats – I would not have had to go through all that trouble repairing TINY holes.

Here’s what I mean: holes that were difficult to spot under water because the leak was SO slow, but eventually my tire would go flat after a few days. That definitely had me scratching my head a few times about why my tires were going flat.

Since some of the flats on my bike were from holes SO small I was able to get complete most trail rides.. but it really sucked having to fix my tires after the next morning. This happened on one of my bike camping trips, it was all swell until I woke up and had to proceed with a fix.

I really hate getting my bike out for a weekend ride and not knowing that I had a hole to patch up because I didn’t see any symptoms of it going flat. Then it’s: take the wheel off, take the tire off, take the inner tube out, pump it up, put it in water, find the hole, patch the hole, test the patch for leaks, then reverse the order to put the wheel back.

It happened ALL THE TIME. And it’s a PAIN IN THE ASS. I wouldn’t mind patching something obvious, but those tiny thorn holes are the worst.

That’s why I recommend some durable inner tubes.

They’re all I run now. And believe me, I don’t mind the extra weight at all. It’s not like I’m signing up for a race.

So I definitely learned my lesson from constant patching of cheap inner tubes, hopefully you understand the consequences of cheap Walmart grade inner tubes (ask me how I know).

Just like a Walmart bike isn’t capable of trail rides, inner tubes from their bike department definitely can’t handle the trails either.

Sure, you could get tires that have snakeskin and kevlar reinforcement or whatever protection, but those are usually for tubeless setups (which I will have.. someday!)

Just get the best inner tubes, AND THEN PATCH THEM if you get a puncture.

I learned my lesson, so hopefully this tip alone will help you go for the QUALITY inner tube. Sometimes quality and cost go hand-in-hand, but sometimes they don’t. This is definitely one of those times where the cost is worth it. So check out my trailworthy inner tubes above.

Conclusion

Whether you carry a spare or ride with inner tubes, the best inner tubes for mountain bikes are dependent on the trails that you like riding most. If you like plowing through technical rock gardens and the rough stuff, you’ll want durability. If you’re riding around the block on the road then a cheap walmart tube would suffice.

The problem is, all inner tubes are susceptible to thorn punctures – even the best ones. Thorn laden trails are the worst. However, there are some tubes that will guard against thorn punctures better than others as I mentioned above.

It’s okay to patch these tubes, they’re a bit more expensive, but you get WAY more out of them over the long run.

I’m a budget minded rider, but when I know I can get more bang for the buck in the long run that’s the choice I will go with. It’s like buying tools from harbor freight, they keep breaking down, to the point where if I had just bought a quality tool the first time I would’ve saved myself the money from the get-go… know what I’m saying?

Be careful on trails, happy riding, RIDER UP

3 Best Inner Tubes for Mountain Bikes That Resists Punctures