Hey folks - I’d pester Dave Rome about this but I thought it would be more fun to get a wider range of views here. And then we can pester Dave and get him to do a Threaded on it.
My old MilKit sealant injector is finally about dead and I’m thinking about what to get to replace it. I liked a lot of things about it, but it doesn’t work with non-removable cores like Fillmore valves, which I have on one bike. Tried the Stan’s injector, and the plastic threads on the end of the injector tube stripped after about 10 uses. Your mileage may vary but I found it to be exactly worth the $9 it costs. I don’t like cheap, disposable crap, especially when it’s plastic. The cup approach works fine for new tire installations but it’s kind of a pain for topping off sealant because you have to pop the bead off and then get it to re-seat.
So: what do you use? Ideally, I want something that works with multiple types of valves, is easy to clean afterward, and lasts more than a few uses. Hit me with your suggestions and thank you!
I have a 4oz bottle from Orange Seal with their little injector system that has a clear tube that stretches over the valve. I saved the bottle and have used it dozens of times. Top it off from a larger bottle, easy to eyeball 1/2/3/4 oz.
I bought this on Amazon. There are a lot of versions of this on Amazon. I use the clear tube–one intend attached to the injector, the other screwed on to the valve stem–to put sealant in my tires. I use Fillmore valve stems, so I’m not really worried about clogging issues. It works well and doesn’t make a mess.
I’ve used the Orangeseal small bottle, a Schwalbe/Stans small bottle and a cheap injector from either Aliexpress or ebay. All worked fine but I can’t remember the last time I used one as now always pour sealant into the tyre and theen pop the bead back on.
Sometime get a tiny bit of sealant on the rim doing it that way but it easily wipes off and thr tyre pops back on easily enough.
I have a two small Stan’s bottles with nozzles trimmed to fit around a regular presta valve (core removed) and a Fillmore valve. I just fill them up when a refill is needed and squeeze away
I have the old Silca sealant injector and other than the plastic hose coming loose from the syringe in the beginning, I haven’t had any issue injecting sealant with the Fillmore valves.
On my other bikes with removable valve core, I use a KOM cycling tubeless injector.
I’ve used syringes, the Straz funnel and everything in between. I use Peaty’s sealant which has big particles in to help block bigger holes. If the sealant you use has that, it will block any internal valve syringes. You also have to clean the syringes if you don’t use them regularly.
Little bottles like this are what I’ve gone back to. Easy to pour into and just squeeze into the valve. Putting sealant in with a valve at 3 O’clock makes the back spray much less too.
I have a couple Straz funnels. The blue one which works on valves that are threaded all the way and the orange one which works for ones that are partially threaded (Reserve and Specialized are the ones I have that are like this). I really like the funnels as I find them cleaner and easier to use than syringes/bottles/etc for injecting sealant
I’ve tried the Straz funnel. I wanted to love it, but I think it’s got a flaw because it’s not vented: when I fill it with sealant, the sealant just sits there until I tap the funnel a little, and it doesn’t quite drain completely, so I always get a little mess when I remove it. Or am I doing something wrong?
If by “breaking the bead”, you meant unseating the tire and then unmounting a portion of it, that’s what I do with the Schwalbe Thunder Burt 29x2.1” on Reserve 25|G rims because they are not that difficult to mount. On my road setups in which the tires are significantly harder to mount, my preference has always been to inject the sealant rather than pouring it in because it can get really messy trying to re-mount the tire.
Yes, that’s my preference too, Changren. One thing I’ve found is that when you unseat a portion of the tire, the “sealant boogers” at the tire bead that can make re-seating the bead a bit of a challenge. And, simply from a speed perspective, some kind of through-the-valve approach is great because you can just top off and ride.
I’m intrigued by the funnels but David Watson’s comment is exactly the concern I have: you’re basically relying on gravity to get the sealant past the valve and if it doesn’t flow you’ve got a messy waste of sealant.
I don’t have the sealant funnel but perhaps squeezing the tire - to create negative air pressure - prior to pouring the sealant into the funnel might help. The Straz sealant funnel does not appear to come with a plunger, not unlike the plunger in Shimano’s bleed funnel. Such plunger might be handy if for whatever reason you are unable to get the sealant to drain through the valve.
Yeah, squeezing the tyre helps draw the sealant through the funnel but it’s not quick compared to using a syringe or little bottle. And again if you use a sealant with particles in, it takes evening longer and can block. I really want to use the funnel more but sadly it’s not as good as just the little sealant bottles you get.
I have the funnel and it’s generally ok, but on mtb tires with inserts sometimes it just doesn’t work. I keep using it and hoping it gets better, but my go-to solution is a syringe. I buy them for about $2 at the local ranch co-op in the veterinary section, they fit inside the stem with core removed and I can force sealant (Orange Seal) past the inserts.
50ml syringe from pharmacy still going after many years. Won’t be replacing it with anything else.
It fits straight into the valve, give it 10 seconds before removing to allow pressure to equalise to avoid blowback but I’ll also give squeezing the tyre a try.
