Comments on: Effetto Mariposa “Caffelatex” Tire Sealant: First Impressions

By: matt

matt — Thu, 15 Apr 2010 00:49:03 +0000

caffe latex sucks, i used it instead of stans and every morning i wake up to ride my tires are flat. i should have suspected somethings up when it took forever to seal on the first installation. the crap bubbled out for hours. My tires do hold during a ride but without the gritty little stuff that stans has i just dont see it is better

By: David Belden

David Belden — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 20:44:03 +0000

I’ve been running Stan’s in various tires for about 2 yrs now and switched to Caffelatex on my MTB 2 months ago. It was just as easy to set up as Stan’s, and I think it does a better job of initially sealing the tires. I started with one wheel with Stans and one with Caffelatex, the one with Caffelatex would lose less air pressure over the course of a few days. Then I switched ‘em both over to Caffelatex.

However, I hate to report that yesterday I got a 1mm or maybe 2mm cut in my MTB tire (WTB WeirWolf 2.55 LT) and the Caffelatex was not able to re-seal it. I rode it for a mile or so with the solution spraying out all over the back of my bike & leg before my buddies pointed it out to me. Then I stopped, put my finger over the puncture and rotated it into the down position so the sealant was pooled up right above it. With Stans this will help it seal. Didn’t work. It just kept slowly bubbling out. Then I lowered the air pressure to the point that it stopped bubbling out and seemed to seal. I ride at 28 psi generally, but I would guess had to lower it to 15 or 20 to get it to seal. Ok, no problem, we had a long sandy climb coming up, and I figured I could use the traction that comes with lower PSI. I started riding and sure enough, it kept leaking. Ultimately I had to put in a tube after a few minutes of climbing.

Compare that with my race at the Sea Otter Classic 2 yrs ago where I put in 3mm cut in a similar tire with Stans with about 2 miles to go (long uphill), kept racing and was able to climb out and finish with about 18 psi in the tire. I took 4th in my category, and changing a tire would have cost me a podium finish at Sea Otter, which was my main go for the season.

I thought I preferred Caffelatex, and even got my local shop to start carrying it, but after this experience, I’m switching back. I don’t want to risk having to change a tire at the Downieville XC.

By: Law

Law — Mon, 11 May 2009 05:35:36 +0000

Any tried this stuff in cyclocross tubular tires or any high pressure tubular road tires?

Very interested….

By: Thunderlump

Thunderlump — Thu, 07 May 2009 16:02:16 +0000

Since its been a few weeks now im curious how the Caffe seal is holding up vs’s Stans sealed tires?

Does it seal holes in the tire faster because of the foaming action?

I am curious about what makes it better than Stans beyond the Idea it doesnt produce rim corrosion?

By: Theran Martin

Theran Martin — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 09:16:29 +0000

The guys at cantitoeroad have awesome customer service. They answered all my questions I had and then some! It was also a relief to find out they ship to APO in Germany, so I will be trying some out soon!