Tire Liners for Bikes

Tire liners, also known as a tube protectors or rim tape, add an extra layer of protection to the inner tube and helps prevent punctures. Pierced tubes can result not only from obvious hazards such as nails, broken glass, etc., but also from sharp edges around the spoke holes or even the spoke nipples themselves.

Some tire liners are simply long rubber bands made of the same thin material as the inner tube and may come in the same box together with the tube. The better type of tube protector is rim tape; cloth or plastic strips that the bike owner wraps around the inside channel of their rim to cover the spokes.

It is important that the tire liners fit the rims properly. The rim tape needs to be wide enough to cover all of the spoke holes with a bit of wiggle room on the bottom of the rim. If the tire liners are too wide, then they may prevent the tube or tire from making a good & tight bead-to-bead fit. Most rim tape is sold by wheel size and width, so measure your rim's width to make sure you are ordering the correct size.