A
Air Free
Guest
Dear Forum Members,
In an effort to help the cycling public, we would like to write a little bit about our business and us.
There are four manufacturers of airless tires for bicycles.
Nu-Teck
Amerityre
Kik Tire
Greentyre
Kik tire went out of business and sold their molds to Amerityre who now produces many of the Kik tires.
Greentyre lost their North American distributor and is embroiled in a lawsuit.
Nu-Teck has had supply problems
Amerityre has sold recreational grade tires for years and now produces the more robust and sturdier Kik brand tires in a very stout urethane formulation.
We at Air Free have been caught in the middle of this ever-decreasing supply of airless tires for bicycles. Our customers who ordered tires have endured manufacturers closures, equipment malfunctions and repeated stock outs.
Our business model is to show all airless tires possible, however the industry is weak and manufacturers are not keeping product on the shelves (in North America). Getting manufacturers to produce new designs of tires is next to impossible. Greentyre is the largest producer in the world and only the Blizzard tire is available here in the States. Two other companies who produce airless tires do not produce bicycle tires. (Spartech, Marathon)
Amerityre keeps a good supply of tires but the Amerityre brand tires are recreational grade and may undergo a makeover this year (maybe) and the Kik brand tires do not fit many popular rims.
Nu-Teck has the best performing tires but supply problems keep the company from growing.
Inserts for tires tend to be squishy (NoMorFlats) or hard (American Airless, Spartech).
In an effort to address negative posts about our company, we invite those who view this post to understand the predicament our suppliers have put us in by not providing tracking numbers or keeping tires on the shelves. We have always stated we were a drop ship business and that we represented the businesses on our website and that tracking numbers were not furnished in many cases.
Additionally, other websites who sell airless tires, use the pictures from our website, (that we took) with out our permission adding confusion as to who really sells and makes the airless tires.
We have worked hard to correct billing practices and order statuses and we no longer bill credit cards at the point of sale.
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Airless tires can be used for motored bikes under the following conditions.
Only Nu-Teck tires customized to higher densities (takes up to 8 weeks) or the already super dense Kik brand tires are up to the task. Airless tires fit very wide rims on the 26 inch size and any width on the 700c size. The 26 x 1.5 Rainier Power Glider which fits an unusually wide rim is the best street tire and is practically indestructible. As tire experts, we can also recommend the Schwalbe Marathon Plus for those who prefer rubber tires.
Airless tires won't work in all applications nor will they fit all rims. Care should be taken when selecting them. We read posts where one customer didn't like them and in the same thread, another swears by them. This almost always has to with density and fit. Unless the use is extreme, airless tires perform well but not if they don't fit right (#1 reason) or the density is too soft.
At some point in the future, we may be able to get Amerityre to produce the Rainer tire in a new urethane which better resembles a rubber tire feel. Until then, the airless tires can be stiff but still acceptable.
We hope this is of use to the reader and we plan on writing more detailed tire descriptions later this year.
Thank you
Air Free
In an effort to help the cycling public, we would like to write a little bit about our business and us.
There are four manufacturers of airless tires for bicycles.
Nu-Teck
Amerityre
Kik Tire
Greentyre
Kik tire went out of business and sold their molds to Amerityre who now produces many of the Kik tires.
Greentyre lost their North American distributor and is embroiled in a lawsuit.
Nu-Teck has had supply problems
Amerityre has sold recreational grade tires for years and now produces the more robust and sturdier Kik brand tires in a very stout urethane formulation.
We at Air Free have been caught in the middle of this ever-decreasing supply of airless tires for bicycles. Our customers who ordered tires have endured manufacturers closures, equipment malfunctions and repeated stock outs.
Our business model is to show all airless tires possible, however the industry is weak and manufacturers are not keeping product on the shelves (in North America). Getting manufacturers to produce new designs of tires is next to impossible. Greentyre is the largest producer in the world and only the Blizzard tire is available here in the States. Two other companies who produce airless tires do not produce bicycle tires. (Spartech, Marathon)
Amerityre keeps a good supply of tires but the Amerityre brand tires are recreational grade and may undergo a makeover this year (maybe) and the Kik brand tires do not fit many popular rims.
Nu-Teck has the best performing tires but supply problems keep the company from growing.
Inserts for tires tend to be squishy (NoMorFlats) or hard (American Airless, Spartech).
In an effort to address negative posts about our company, we invite those who view this post to understand the predicament our suppliers have put us in by not providing tracking numbers or keeping tires on the shelves. We have always stated we were a drop ship business and that we represented the businesses on our website and that tracking numbers were not furnished in many cases.
Additionally, other websites who sell airless tires, use the pictures from our website, (that we took) with out our permission adding confusion as to who really sells and makes the airless tires.
We have worked hard to correct billing practices and order statuses and we no longer bill credit cards at the point of sale.
------
Airless tires can be used for motored bikes under the following conditions.
Only Nu-Teck tires customized to higher densities (takes up to 8 weeks) or the already super dense Kik brand tires are up to the task. Airless tires fit very wide rims on the 26 inch size and any width on the 700c size. The 26 x 1.5 Rainier Power Glider which fits an unusually wide rim is the best street tire and is practically indestructible. As tire experts, we can also recommend the Schwalbe Marathon Plus for those who prefer rubber tires.
Airless tires won't work in all applications nor will they fit all rims. Care should be taken when selecting them. We read posts where one customer didn't like them and in the same thread, another swears by them. This almost always has to with density and fit. Unless the use is extreme, airless tires perform well but not if they don't fit right (#1 reason) or the density is too soft.
At some point in the future, we may be able to get Amerityre to produce the Rainer tire in a new urethane which better resembles a rubber tire feel. Until then, the airless tires can be stiff but still acceptable.
We hope this is of use to the reader and we plan on writing more detailed tire descriptions later this year.
Thank you
Air Free
