bike tubes

[tobybad]

Anyone ever used bike tubes for isolation? Someone on another site was talking about this the other day as a cheap tweek.

[treitz3]

Nope.

[sTiLlLeArNiNg]

I was suggested to get some cork and a PC mouse "mat" and go from there, cheap and relatively easy to make :o

[Ricardo]

I have 6922 Bugle Boy tubes in my bike. They really improved handling.

[everpress]

What is this 'bike tube'-ing of which you speak?

[bobman1235]

He's talking about the "tube" in the tire - a thin, smooth rubber tube. I've used them for a lot of little projects but never as isolation / insulation. Don't know if they'd really be thick / robust enough.

[bikerboy]

Hi,
When I had my TT next to the computer on a desk I used a 20" bike tube partially inflated as a damping pad. I placed the TT directly on the tube and it seemed to work well. I could knock on the desk and hear only a slight amount of sound into the TT. It was hard to keep level but once I situated the tube properly it stayed in place.

[zingo]

If your creative enough to try it and it works, all the best to you.

[treitz3]

OK, I'll come right out and say it. Bike tubes are a bad idea, period.

Look up sorbothane.

[zingo]

Sorbothane®, a one-of-a-kind visco-elastic polymer, was first introduced in 1982. Primary applications included the development of shock absorbing insoles for the athletic and orthopedic markets. Since its introduction Sorbothane® has been used in many varied energy absorbing product categories. Sorbothane Inc. engineers supplied the NASA design team with a unique Sorbothane® isolator to protect shuttle cameras during launch. The Liberty Bell was successfully moved using specially designed Sorbothane® isolators. When Wilson® Sporting Goods needed a superior shock absorber, for their new line of high-tech baseball gloves, they turned to Sorbothane®. Most recently, engineers have devised a series of colossal "ball-in-box" Sorbothane® dampers designed to dissipate wind energy in the new Air Force memorial.

[zingo]

http://akamaipix.crutchfield.com/products/2008/703/p703SSHEET-F.jpeg

AudioQuest Sorbothane® Self Stick Sheet (http://www.crutchfield.com/S-vnniakhcMUn/p_703SSHEET/AudioQuest-Sorbothane-Self-Stick-Sheet.html)

[SCompRacer]

I have 6922 Bugle Boy tubes in my bike. They really improved handling.


You seem to know a lot about tubes, perhaps you can help. I've been bothered by what appears to be dust inside my tubes. I drilled a hole in the glass and cleaned the dust out along with that silver paint at the top. (They never seem do the entire inside, only the very top!) I get the vacuum back in with an AC vacuum pump, but the tire patches don't last long before melting off. Any ideas for something that might work?

[SCompRacer]

I've read about using inner tubes for isolation and even got a tube to try it, but never went further than that. The only issue I can think of when using one tube would be tipping towards the heavy side/corner of the gear supported.

An article...
http://www.soundstage.com/weaver03.htm

An image...
http://i699.photobucket.com/albums/vv352/vettepop/TT2.gif

[tobybad]

thanks, SCompRacer for the link. Went to Walmart today and got some 12" tubes $3.50 each. Have not yet included the sandbags but so far BIG improvement in focus/clarity for $10.50. The money I saved can now go towards speaker cones and cables. GREAT cheap DIY tweek, always looking for more.