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Go tubeless for spring with Vittoria's sealant and Air Liners

Go tubeless for spring with Vittoria's sealant and Air Liners

Yeah, we know what you're thinking 'ooh another tyre sealant, how wonderful'. But guess what, this isn't just any tyre sealant, it's a sealant from Vittoria, maker of the world's finest road tyres and the inventors of the PitStop Road Racing Kit which has saved many a rider's big day out in the past and is a favourite of riders in the know. 

So how does it work? Excellent question. The Universal Tyre Sealant is formulated around a thin liquid base - this is important because it's this base that allows it to find the hole in the tyre quickly so you dont lose too much pressure, which is critical for road tyres that are run at much higher pressures than gravel or MTB tyres. Suspended in that base are platelets which clog together in order to seal larger holes, and this is how one sealant can be used on both road and MTB tyres, which have very different volumes and therefore run at very different pressures.

If you're still a bit sceptical about going tubeless, then Vittoria also have the Air Liner which is the perfect 'get home' failsafe. Put super simply, the Air Liner is a foam insert designed to keep you riding even if your tyre suffers unsealable damage. Vittoria have made Air Liners for MTB and gravel tyres for a little while now, but the road air liners are the latest and greatest creations. The job of the Air Liner is simple: sit inside the tyre and if you flat and ruin the tyre byond repair, give you the ability to ride home rather than having to sit on the roadside and wait for rescue. 

The way they work is pretty smart. When you install the Air Liner inside the tyre, you could be forgiven for wondering how in Earth you're going to fit anything else in there as it looks like a pretty tight fit. But when you inflate the tyre the Air Liner shrinks down under the pressure so it doesn't effect the quality of the ride. It's also made from a lightweight material that doesn't absorb sealant - which is important because it's not a case of using either sealant or an Air Liner, you can use both for two layers of puncture protection. 

And when Vittoria say that the Air Liners are lightweight, they're not messing around. At just 24g for the 25mm Air Liner up to 39g for the 30mm, they;re lighter than even the most race-ready inner tube so you're not sacrificing any weight in the search for puncture protection. 

If you want to give them a go, you can find the Air Liners right here on Freewheel, and learn more on Vittoria's website.

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