CaffeLatex: A Long Term Use Update
November 4th, 2009 by Guitar TedLast summer I conducted my test of CaffeLatex sealant. (You can find my final review here) In short- I found CaffeLatex to be an excellent sealant for tubeless use and that it worked well in tubes also. It was found to be easy to use and install with the CaffeLatex injector system. All was pretty positive in the short term. Now that the summer is gone and we’re well into fall, I wanted to check back in with some of my experiences since that time.
The Conti Race Kings with CaffeLatex saw the most usage since the final review on CaffeLatex in the most varied of situations.
I probably got the best all around conditions for testing this sealant from the Continental Race King set up I used since mid-summer. This wheel set saw single track, pavement, and gravel use over hundreds of miles of all three types of surfaces mentioned. It also bears mentioning that I was using a Stan’s Flow rim with yellow tape and Stan’s valves in this set up, which is arguably going to be representative of the most common set up 29″er riders would use CaffeLatex in. Since this is the case, I am basing my long term research comments on this example, although I do have other CaffeLatex set ups in my stable.
Long Term Performance: Several things about CaffeLatex still hold true from my original commentary. It sealed up punctures well, held air pressure reasonably well, and otherwise was “invisible” from the standpoint of riding. The only sign of CaffeLatex present being the occasional bubbling at the valve stem during pressure checking of the tires. I never experienced any burping, or major tears, punctures, or other calamities, so I can not speak for such occurances. I can only say that I rode the Continentals hard on all surfaces and did have a few crashes, tires bottoming out on the rims, and ran them through glass on the road without any concerns at all.
The longevity of the sealant is where I feel CaffeLatex doesn’t perform any better than current competition in the sealant market. I checked the Continentals recently after seeing some leak down in the rear tire over a period of a few days, which had not been typical before. I peeled off the tires to find that the sealant had in fact all dried up. Only a dried, brownish covering of residual CaffeLatex was found on all the surfaces inside the tire/rim well. My best guess is that somewhere between three to four months is what I got out of the sealant for lifespan. This compares to my Stan’s experimentation pretty evenly in terms of how long it takes for the sealant to dry up. CaffeLatex was boasting of a longer service life, but in my experience with a well used wheel set, this doesn’t seem to be the case. I will say that other, lesser used wheels do still exhibit evidence of CaffeLatex being present, (audible when shaking wheel, puffs of bubbles at the valve stem when opened), but I think my main test wheel set is going to be a more representative example of lifespan for the product.
Conclusions: I still feel that CaffeLatex is a superior sealant in terms of installation, and use over the lifetime of the sealant, but I will modify my overall impressions of the product in terms of the length of usable life of the product. In this light, it is no better or worse than anything else I have tried that is commercially available. However; the sealant is a synthetic latex, with no ammonia, installs into tubes and tubeless tires easily, and does seal minor punctures with ease. Due to these attributes, I will still give it my recommendo, but with the caveat that you will be well advised to check on the status of CaffeLatex every couple of months. In the sealant market, CaffeLatex is a great choice amongst some other great choices. If the life span claims would have panned out, it could have rated the best, but that accolade is reserved for the time being.
What is RSS?
Get our articles in your inbox:
Thank you for the objective update. It’s clear we can get the straight stuff on this blog.
Have been using Caffelatex since mid-summer too, and have had no flats (none with the Stan’s-treated ones either – I do love tubeless!). I will now check the first tires treated with CL and see what I find.
Will continue use, however, if for no other reason than the lack of corrosives in the CL.
One other thing I have encountered – my injector does not go through Prestas very well – blows the goo every where and pops the hose off the barb. I just pull the core of the valve and use the syringe tip itself with better results, but I can’t inject a tube. I did watch the video…
How does it compare to Stans on small holes in sidewalls?
I have used the product this summer in my mountain bike with good results and also in a set of tubular road tires. I keep having to put air in the road set but I think it is a function of the extended stem I have to use. The one problem i have experienced is when I go to add air if I am not careful to have the valve on top and wait for the juice to roll to the bottom i will bet a burst of juice back into the floor pump. This raises hell with the pump and requires a tear-down and clean out.
Lee T, I injected Caffelatex into some Presta tubes recently with the injector, tube and schrader adapter and it all worked great on 4 different tubes. Maybe your hose got stretched out?
@skidder: Well, I never experienced any of that “sweat” that sometimes plagues conversions from regular tires with the exception of my Rampages, and then it was minimal.
If you mean an actual sidewall puncture- I didn’t experience any throughout the testing period. I did have some punctures seal in the tread area.
@skidder: Sorry! That comment above was mine!
@randyharris – the hose might indeed be an issue, but it never surprises me that I just screw up the process. At any rate, I am not anxious about sealing tubes – pretty much hate ‘em, except on Vulpines on the commuter.
@skidder – strangely, the only tire I have seen “sweat” on tubeless set-up was an XDX 29 – Bonty never has that issue, but this one had 15-20 very small pinholes in the sidewalls. The Caffelatex was exemplary at sealing them up – it held 45 pounds from pump-up through to the next day, when I aired it down to 25 and rode. No issue since.
Have picked up goatheads through Bontys and Stouts tread and sidewall – both CL and Stans worked flawlessly and kept the riding uninterrupted.
Any need to clean out the dried CL or just replenish?
@maheoway: Just add new. The skin left behind by the old sealant was next to nothing, and I did not see any clumps at all.
I have gotten longer life out of the Caffelatex than I have out of Stan’s here in Colorado. I haven’t had any issues with the stuff. If you do have “sweating” thru the sidewalls on non tubeless ready tires try this trick. Go to any hardware or hobby store and buy some Elmers Spray adhesive. Turn you tires inside out and give them 2 lite coats with the glue. It does not add any noticeable weight, it does not stiffen or effect the tire and it will prevent any sealant from “sweating” thru the sidewalls. I used this trick on my Race Kings and it worked like a charm!
I’ve been using Caffelatex since sometime in June. I’ve watched it seal a sidewall puncture in a Bontrager 29-3 with no problems. I definitely saw the “sweat” effect when I converted my Nevegal. I’ve also been running it in presta tubes in the tires on my commuter. It was pretty cool to watch it repair a puncture in the front tire of my commuter one evening. I saw some foam coming out of the tire as it was spinning. It quickly sealed the puncture, and I only lost a couple of pounds of pressure at most. I think that this stuff is awesome. I highly recommend it. It’s also pretty easy to make your own injector with a syringe and some tubing.
Any idea how this would hold up during the Winter months?
Also, when you have your wheelset setup for tubeless (with whatever sealant you like) is it easy to change tires? Could you throw some tubes in or would you need to clean your wheelset? Or is it best to just keep using sealant and inject the wheel again?
Sorry for all the questions. Tubeless is something I’ve been contemplating. The low pressure aspects would be good for Winter single-speeding on snow mobile trails.
@Dust: Last year I didn’t see any issues running tubeless in colder weather. I hadn’t started using CaffeLatex then, but I suspect I’ll get similar results this winter. We’ll see.
As for changing tires, yes- you can either clean out the old sealant, use a tube, or capture the liquid in the tire by suctioning it out, (CaffeLatex’s injector could do this really well), and re-introduce it into your next tire. A bit messy? Yeah, it is.
I usually leave a tire set up on for several months and check it. If it is dry, I take it as an opportunity to swap tires if I want, otherwise I just add more sealant and keep on rolling.
Ok. Thanks, Guitar Ted. I’ve been interested in this for a while. I’d like to build a wheelset this Winter (to keep me occupied on those cold Winter nights) and I’d like them to be tubeless if my budget allows.
So, without the ammonia in this material, would it be safe to convert my WTB Stouts? With the newer tires made in China, I have heard — and seen pics — of serious problems when using Stans, including bubbles in the actual tread surface, so have stayed away on these particular tires.
@Kosmo, yes Caffelatex will converth WTB tires just fine. I have used it on their Exiwolf as well as the Kenda Small Block 8 (folding bead non tubeless) which is not recommended for tubeless at all.
@Oderus, the spray Elmer’s sounds like a great trick. Both Rampages and Mtn. Kings have sweated a lot for me. I’ll also second your opinion regarding the life of CaffeLatex- I’m in N CO and I have over 4 months (maybe 5) on my first CL conversion. I popped the beads yesterday and it’s still liquid, still foaming out the valve too. Stan’s, wasn’t 3 months before I had to refill.
I’m certain I didn’t put a lot of miles on like GT did so that might be part of it. Lots of night rides though.