You probably don't talk about your tire sealant often.
It's in your tubeless setup tire (Don't tell us you're still running tubes. WHY WOULD YOU DO THAT?), waiting for its moment to save your ass.
...or spray it with sealant in an attempt to seal your tire.
Well, that is the exact moment you talk about tubeless tire sealant or tubeless "milk" as it is sometimes called. If your sealant doesn't do its job and you have to deal with a topic you don't want to deal with. **FLATS**
I am a Silca Velo ambassador, therefore I am running their Ultimate tire sealant since quite a while. And it is brillant!
In nearly 18000 Kilometers of hardcore off-road riding i never had to put in a tube. Not once all season.
What this little anecdote tells you is that I AM biased, but they don't have to force me to put it in my tires, I am actually happy to have a sponsor that provides a good product.
The interesting thing about Silca's ultimate tire sealant always was that it came in two separate products. On first setup the ultimate tubeless sealant comes into play with long carbon fibres in the latex liquid to seal big holes. When you refill a tubeless replenisher comes into play. This one doesn't have the fibres but compensates the loss of liquid through it drying out, getting out through holes etc.
That was generally a great system, however, you could not install the first phase the tubeless sealant with fibres using an injector tool to inject it over your tubeless valve.
You had to pour it in your tire directly during setup, potentially causing quite a mess.
I took that trade off as the sealant worked insanely good. I never had issues with it and it sealed pretty much every hole i had in my tire, on top i feel it is one of the easier sealants to remove from your rim when you change tires.
The NEW Silca Ultimate Sealant
In their new product Silca use natural AND synthetic latex and using single strand carbon fibers as an occluding agent.
The combination of these technologies results in an injectable sealant with 6+ month install life even in the hottest climates while still sealing punctures of 6+mm.
With the blend of natural and synthetic latex Silca claims they got better co2 compatibility, longevity, and a more even and consistent coating on the inside of the tire. Lastly, Silca Ultimate Sealant is ammonia free, making it more safe for consumers and the environment.
The brand further states they tested the new sealant for 2,5 years and specifically developed it based on customer feedback related to the first sealant. That means longer lasting in the tire and installable through the valve was what was requested most of the time.
On top I feel one product instead of two will simplify the setup for customers by a margin as well.
I have yet to test it but I will add to this article once i got to inject the sealant through one of my Reserve Fillmore valves.
Specifications
- Seals 6+mm punctures
- Injectable through the valve
- Lasts 6+ months, even in desert climates
- Proprietary Natural and Synthetic Latex blend
- Optimized carbon fiber strands length
- Advanced Foaming agents to carry carbon strands to a puncture
- Ammonia Free
SILCA PAYS THEIR GRAVEL PROS TO GET FLATS
SILCA Ultimate Sealant with Injectable FiberFoam, has been in use at Unbound, Big Sugar, Leadville, in the tires of pros and the Silca crew alike testing its capabilities. The Brand is so confident, it offers it's pro athletes a Bad Day Bonus of $500 for punctures that do not seal while racing a Life Time Grand Prix event.
Let's see if athletes get rowdy with tire pressures. 😂
Sealant is a tough category of product, more so than anything else on the bike, you want people to forget about it, even with a puncture, you want it to act quick enough and work well enough to never see it doing its job. Historically, the two main goals of a sealant were to seal and last long. Those two properties have been mutually exclusive. You typically cannot target one without affecting the other. Our first of its kind natural and synthetic latex blend bridges that gap, to create a product that really has the best of both worlds.
- Richard Pool, Marketing Director at Silca
You get what you pay for
The new Silca Ultimate Sealant comes in three sizes. 1 Litre, 0,5 litres and a 65ml refill bottle. There is only one point that might make you hesitate buying the new sealant, which is the price!
€49 for one litre, €29 for 0,5 litres and €7 for a 65ml single fill.
That being said while Silca always is on the very steep side of pricing I do not own one product of Silca that I don't think is worth it's money. I am confident this sealant will follow it's predecessors large footsteps.
Anything to add? Let us know what you think and weather we should report about other Silca products or tubeless setup related topics!