Was wondering if anybody heard about guys using pool noodles as tire balls?

[jmac26]

Was talking to someone that was at a gncc and they were telling me guys were using pool noodles in there tires cheap version of tire balls. Do they work?

Originally posted by jmac26
Was talking to someone that was at a gncc and they were telling me guys were using pool noodles in there tires cheap version of tire balls. Do they work?

i guess that would kind of work. Tire balls if 1 pops there are still the others to keep the tire inflated. I would be interested to see someone that has pool noodles in their tire and how that holds up. Its much cheaper thats for sure

[400exrider707]

Originally posted by FoxHondaRider
i guess that would kind of work. Tire balls if 1 pops there are still the others to keep the tire inflated. I would be interested to see someone that has pool noodles in their tire and how that holds up. Its much cheaper thats for sure

Unlike tire balls, a fun noodle will never "pop" either...

I'm interested to see if anyone has tried this...

[BlaineKaiser450]

haha that sounds kinda cool

Originally posted by 400exrider707
Unlike tire balls, a fun noodle will never "pop" either...

exactly! the only thing is noodles deteriorate after some time but as long as it fils the tire who cares.

[bradley300]

they work as insurance against a tire going flat, but you need to run air in your tires unlike tireballs. if you try to run no air in the tires and rely solely on the noodles, they will flatten and deteriorate with a race

[Groves187]

There is a company that is making somthin like this, Its in a little different shape than a pool noodle and is a little harder compound. Angela Butler is running them in her worcs bike. I will ask her who makes them and let you guys know.

Originally posted by jmac26
Was talking to someone that was at a gncc and they were telling me guys were using pool noodles in there tires cheap version of tire balls. Do they work?

i do it, yes it works, it doesnt work as well as tire balls but it will allow you to finish races on flat tires

Originally posted by Groves187
There is a company that is making somthin like this, Its in a little different shape than a pool noodle and is a little harder compound. Angela Butler is running them in her worcs bike. I will ask her who makes them and let you guys know.

please find out, im very curious, i searched google and found nothing

[ricksmx865]

i run pool noodles.... and have had good success thus far, as well as alot of the guys i run races with

after the race last weekend i had a nice gash in my sidewall and didnt know it untill the race was over

i would definatly recommend this to anyone on a budget, i think i spent around $20 bucks in noodles and did all of my tires

let me know if ya'll need any more info

[bradley300]

now that the tire wont hold air, do you feel comfortable racing again just like it is, or will you replace the sliced tire before the next race? just wondering how well the noodles hold up with no air in the tires, ive heard they dont hold up well, but never got a chance to see for my self

[j_cyrus3]

I put noodles in my back tires. I busted both tires on the first ride, but I didn't know until I went to ride the next day. I rode without air in them and I couldn't hardly tell the difference. I bought the "monster" noodles. They are about 3x the size of a regular noodle. While I have the front end off of my bike I will be putting them in the front also.


I am also gonna try putting a tube in there on top of the noodles.

edit: I also noticed with the noodles, the bike seems to hook up really good.

[bradley300]

yeah thats just like with the tireballs, instead of the tire being 1 huge contact patch, its 14 (or however many noodles your using per tire) smaller ones

[ricksmx865]

Originally posted by bradley300
now that the tire wont hold air, do you feel comfortable racing again just like it is, or will you replace the sliced tire before the next race? just wondering how well the noodles hold up with no air in the tires, ive heard they dont hold up well, but never got a chance to see for my self


ya im not replacing it! .... ive patched it up the best i can... ill throw some air in it just before i hit the line and if it last it last, if not i feel confortable enough wit the noodles in there..... i also when for the "monster" noodles

my buddy has been running no air in his and has done several nationals without any problems

like stated before these are NOT tireballs nor do they perform as good as tireballs, however they are NICE insurance for someone on a budget

[JH Racing]

tyre Johnnies they are made in the UK is the insert that Angela is using. They are a harder foam than a pool noddle I tested some last year on MX and the stayed together no problem I did not try to ride them on a flat though.

[Scro]

I googled Tyre Johnnies, didn't see any kind of website. But it did pull up an ATVsource article on Tim Shelman. Looks like he was/is sponsored by them.

[jlm996s]

Here is a link.

Click (http://johnelliottquadracing.com/tyrejohnys.htm)

[XxHonda_RacerxX]

looks kind of like junk to me... trim to fit it yourself... pool noodles are probably a better solution

[ricksmx865]

we found that stacking them in sideways works best....

basically you cut em, for my rears i think it was 11 inches then put em in so the ends are against the sidewall

ill get some pics up if ya'll are interested

[katch26]

http://www.predatorowners.com/index.cfm?action=thread&catid=99&topid=439&thrid=49928#p538257

Originally posted by katch26
http://www.predatorowners.com/index.cfm?action=thread&catid=99&topid=439&thrid=49928#p538257

awesome, they said it had a stiffer side wall which is good because tire roll isnt good.

[88-310r]

I like the idea. anybody ever use them in paddle tires?

[John451]

Yeah I was thinking if that would work before, If I found one stiff enough i would run one in my dirtbike to see how it was. I'd go around the inside in 1 piece instead of cutting it. And idk if it would work so well in sand tires because there's only 8-13 pulling points and it might just flop over and not get traction, i think for any tire its a good idea for backup. Even sand tires. But i wouldnt run them just on those. Any thoughts on the dirtbike?

[nicker71]

Im running them in my back tire for the last half of the season. I havent had any flats yet but I have tried ridding them both with no air and it was hard to tell that they were flat. It will aleast allow me to finish the race if I get a flat. I use tire tubes up front with a thin layer of rubber for extra protection.

[j_cyrus3]

Originally posted by John451
Yeah I was thinking if that would work before, If I found one stiff enough i would run one in my dirtbike to see how it was. I'd go around the inside in 1 piece instead of cutting it. And idk if it would work so well in sand tires because there's only 8-13 pulling points and it might just flop over and not get traction, i think for any tire its a good idea for backup. Even sand tires. But i wouldnt run them just on those. Any thoughts on the dirtbike?


if you don't cut them and put them in sideways your sidewall will not be as stiff.


cutting them is the way to go imo.

[John451]

Originally posted by j_cyrus3
if you don't cut them and put them in sideways your sidewall will not be as stiff.


cutting them is the way to go imo.

Ahh, that makes sense. Sounds like a pain tho. Especially with the rimlocks... And since I put the tires on myself without a machine...

[nicker71]

I ran mine long ways and put them in as tight as I could while still being able to put my rim on. I have beadlocks. I first tried cutting them and putting them in sideways but couldnt get the wheel to fit through.

[j_cyrus3]

Installation sucks. My getting the rim in the tire wasn't the bad part for me, getting the rings to bolt up was the hard part for me. just put both knees on the tire and push down as hard as you can on the bolt with rachet, extension and socket while trying to thread it in. My rim was about 2-3 inches from the bead of the tire. After I got it started though it was fine. Best of luck to you guys.

[John451]

Dam beadlocks. Lol. So useful yet so expensive. My tire guy would flip out if i asked him to do that.

[ricksmx865]

Originally posted by j_cyrus3
Installation sucks. My getting the rim in the tire wasn't the bad part for me, getting the rings to bolt up was the hard part for me. just put both knees on the tire and push down as hard as you can on the bolt with rachet, extension and socket while trying to thread it in. My rim was about 2-3 inches from the bead of the tire. After I got it started though it was fine. Best of luck to you guys.


what he said... i think its definatly better to cut them and stack them in sideways, sucks getting the ring back on but once you get it started your fine

good luck guys :macho

[JCoop]

Originally posted by j_cyrus3
Installation sucks. My getting the rim in the tire wasn't the bad part for me, getting the rings to bolt up was the hard part for me. just put both knees on the tire and push down as hard as you can on the bolt with rachet, extension and socket while trying to thread it in. My rim was about 2-3 inches from the bead of the tire. After I got it started though it was fine. Best of luck to you guys.

JCyrus,

have you tried using want tireballs sells when installing the tire on the rim? All it is, is a long threaded headless bolt and you use a long nut to bring the rim and tire flush. They are simple and work great. I think the tireball website has them for like 5-7 bucks. Just a thought next time you do it to save the pain.

[Scro]

I went to Wal-mart yesterday to buy some noodles. The only kind they had were in the shape of a hexagon, and not round. I'm sure this won't make any difference. I'm also going to try a tube on top of them.

If I'm seeing this right in my head, I don't see how you can get a flat. Unless you had a really, long nail or something go completely through the noodles and puncture the tube.

[54warrior]

I love reading about home-made stuff like this. Passing the idea along to some friends!!

[tank69]

I'm heading to Wal-Mart in the morning, this should be perfect for desert racing! Glad I checked in, I was so close to taking the hit for tireballs. Thanks guys!

[John451]

Now i was thinking of running snowmobile picks in my dirtbike for this winter problably just in the back. I was thinking of running the pool noodles in it. Should i go sidewall to sidewall or around it? Its just going to be in the rear of it. Id problably go with the fat noodles that are like 4-6" across the end if i were to do around it. I would really have to jam it in there. I would add a rimlock in the tube nozzle hole for extra holding. Any thoughts or opinions? Thanks.

[John451]

Originally posted by Scro
I went to Wal-mart yesterday to buy some noodles. The only kind they had were in the shape of a hexagon, and not round. I'm sure this won't make any difference. I'm also going to try a tube on top of them.

If I'm seeing this right in my head, I don't see how you can get a flat. Unless you had a really, long nail or something go completely through the noodles and puncture the tube.

Yeah, thats the right idea. We were talking running tubeless with them in it so if u get a flat it just rides on the noodles. But since the tube's protected by the noodles it would be better. The only thing is that its only riding on the noodles where tubeless its riding on air til u get a flat thhen its on the noodles. So i gues i dont really know my opinion on your idea now lol. I gues try and see how it works. It would certainly be a nice ride since you'd be riding mainly on foam. You would really have to crank the tube up to make it feel like having a full tube or filled tubeless feel.

[Yippie-Ki-Yay]

So you should chop the noodles into equal parts and put them in sideways, not just wrat the around the tire...?

[John451]

Originally posted by Yippie-Ki-Yay
So you should chop the noodles into equal parts and put them in sideways, not just wrat the around the tire...?

For a quad, yes.

[iwannaride202]

will this work with just a regular noodle or do they have to be the monster noodle...and if anyone has pictures that would be awesome....

[iwannaride202]

also how many noodles does it take...

[John451]

The monster noodles are better becasue they have more volume and are usually stiffer. I thought someone posted pictures earlier, you might have to go back and click into all the links. But with the monster noodles it will help support the tires alot higher than with the smaller ones which is good because it rides more like air is in it and its a little low.

[iwannaride202]

does anyone know the diameter of the "monster noodle" cuz i could not find any at my local wal-mart but i did find this website do you think the "big boss noodle" from here is the same...it says it has a diameter of 3.5"... http://www.poolcenter.com/pooltoys_noodles_water_logs.htm

[John451]

They're about neck sized in diameter. You can reach around it if you put your thumbs together your middle fingers will touch its rigth around there. So maybe 3.5 across. im not too sure thhough.

[Groves187]

The company that is making somthin like this is Tire Johnys. a pool noodle will not work right, Its made out of way way softer material. look at the tire johnys they are a lot cheaper than the tire balls and i talked to angela buttler and she is running them in her worcs bike and loves them!

[John451]

Haha, those would work great. Im still tryin to think about how to to my dirtbike tire with snowmobile picks and the pool noodles.

[Brauap]

Where could I find these Tyre Johny's?

[Yippie-Ki-Yay]

Originally posted by John451
Ahh, that makes sense. Sounds like a pain tho. Especially with the rimlocks... And since I put the tires on myself without a machine... http://johnelliottquadracing.com/tyrejohnys.htm

EDIT: i quoted brauaps post, but someone elses showed up :confused:

[Brauap]

Originally posted by Yippie-Ki-Yay
http://johnelliottquadracing.com/tyrejohnys.htm

EDIT: i quoted brauaps post, but someone elses showed up :confused:

Thanks, but where can I find where to buy them?

[omeeomy]

it is so amazing what people come up with
im thinkin about doing this
id hate to be miles from the truck with a flat in the trails

[dankbud42o]

awesome idea, anyone have any pics?


Edit: whoops, sorry to resurrect and old thread..found it linked from a new one..