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ContiTPU Tubes are Continental’s Lightweight Response to 7 Layer Dip, from just 35g!

Continental ContiTPU lightweight 7-layer TPU inner tubes, in road, gravel & MTB sizes
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Whether you’re a tubeless devotee or a luddite fan of tubes, Continental’s new lightweight ContiTPU tubes are worth a closer look. Fully made in Germany with 7 layers of thermoplastic polyurethane – perhaps inspired by your favorite Tex-Mex chip dip – ContiTPU tubes promise extra durability without extra weight. In fact, they may even be the lightest TPU inner tube you can get, depending on what size tires you run. Potentially more flexible than most similar ultralight alt tubes, just 3 sizes are said to fit most modern road, gravel, and mountain bikes…

Continental lightweight 7-layer ContiTPU inner tubes

Conti says the unique 7-layer construction of their ContiTPU inner tubes “maximizes airtightness and durability” while still allowing for incredible light weights. Sure, a lot of modern cyclists have ditched classic inner tubes for tubeless setups. But most of us still carry a spare tube for when neither sealant nor plugs can’t fix bigger punctures. So lightweight and packability are key. And ContiTPU tubes look to be about as light and compact as they come.

Tech details

Continental ContiTPU lightweight 7-layer TPU inner tubes, up close detail

Continental describes their tubes as being constructed of the “highest grade of micrometer-thick TPU” stack in 7 individually sealed layers. The tires are 100% made-in-Germany, even down to the raw materials. And each tube is quality-checked to ensure airtightness after manufacturing. They are heat-sensitive though, so you can’t use them in any wheels with rim brakes.

And Continental even made it easy to repair a puncture if they inevitably come, including a repair patch with each tube. That might not sound like a big deal. But TPU tubes require a special patch, and most makers of TPU tubes make you buy patch kits separately. Each ContiTPU tube includes two self-adhesive repair patches with the isopropyl alcohol wipes you’ll need to prep the damaged area before patching.

What’s the difference between butyl, latex & TPU inner tubes? We break it down for you, here.

Lightweight TPU tubes fit into your tires

Continental ContiTPU lightweight 7-layer TPU inner tubes

The new Continental ContiTPU tubes come in three sizes. And they stretch quite a bit when you pump them. So no pumping to more than 4psi outside of a tire. And once you inflate them inside a certain width tire, you can only ever use that tube in the same width or wider tire.

Continental ContiTPU lightweight 7-layer TPU inner tubes, road size

The lightest ContiTPU tube is just 35g for 700c tires from 25-35mm wide. There are lighter TPU tubes for the smaller road bike end of that range, like the ultralight 25g Tubolito S-Road. But if you are riding a cyclocross or fast gravel bike at the wider edge of that range, you might not find any lighter tube out there.

Continental ContiTPU lightweight 7-layer TPU inner tubes, mountain bike sizes

For more off-road gravel riders up to mountain bikers, there are ContiTPU tubes designed for tires 40-60mm wide. For 27.5″/650b wheels those are a claimed 43g, or for 29″/700c it’s just 45g. That range easily covers gravel. On the MTB side that equates to 1.57-2.36″, which is a hair (or more precisely 1mm) shy of the 2.4″ tire width that is super common from XC all the way up to enduro these days. I’d guess you should be fine though, since Conti is clearly marketing them for mountain bikes.

In any case, these would make for seriously light tubes no matter the bike.

ContiTPU tubes – Pricing & Availability

Continental ContiTPU lightweight 7-layer TPU inner tubes, 3 size to fit most bikes

All three sizes of the undyed whitish translucent Continental ContiTPU tubes sell for the same 30€ price tag, including a patch. All sizes also feature 60mm long black Presta valves to fit low- to mid-profile rims. And they have removable valve cores so you can thread on a valve extender for deeper wheels.

The new ContiTPU tubes are out in the market now, available from your local bikeshop and online retailers. But there aren’t a ton out there just yet, so you might have to shop around a bit.

Continental-Tires.com/Bicycle

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Realtalker
Realtalker
5 months ago

They literally do not require a special patch, nor do any other TPU tube. Use a standard Park Tool GP-2 adhesive patch to get the job done securely. I’ve patched countless holes on 3 different manufacturers TPU tube in over 30,000 miles of riding (road) with not a single failure. 26c and 28c tires, 170lbs rider fwiw.

Czechmate
Czechmate
5 months ago

Dear Continental,
If you’re reading this, please know that there are still bunches of people out there that would very much cherish a high quality tubular tyre featuring these TPU inner tubes. We still scour the dark and shady corners of the bicycle aftermarket for your Competition Pro Ltd tubulars that have trickled from service course sources. The high-speed 25mm ALX, the ultra-rugged RBX in both 25mm and 28mm sizes… if you put these TPU inner tubes inside them and release them to the masses, they’d sell like the proverbial hot cakes. You’d be catering for a niche market, but one that still exists and is thriving for the innovation and technological advance that Continental has always been known for.
Yours sincerely,
Us.

Veganpotter
Veganpotter
4 months ago
Reply to  Czechmate

They’re not doing it because they know they’d sell like hotcakes of a very oddball flavor where very few people would want them. I like some oddball things too but I fully understand why nobody is making those oddball things better

Dave in Asheboro
Dave in Asheboro
4 months ago
Reply to  Czechmate

Could you unsew a tubular of choice and replace the latex with putting in a TPU tube before restitching it up? They still sell old school tubular repair kits for getting at the tube inside.

FrankTheTank
FrankTheTank
5 months ago

A bit disappointing that the MTB size is not particularly useful as it comes in 1mm short of the tires size most mountain bikers use. Something that covered 2.2″ to 2.8″ would be way more useful. Hopefully they can fill that gap in the future. Also: fat bikes.

Jonathan McCurdy
Jonathan McCurdy
4 months ago

only wheels I have that I still use tubes on are my older rim brake wheels, so the no rim brakes is kind of a dealbreaker

tertius_decimus
tertius_decimus
4 months ago

WARNING! Never overinflate these while not being installed inside the tube. I temporarily lost my hearing due to the sheer volume of the blast. For 3 months all I could hear is high pitch noise in my left ear. The hearing eventually returned, but the risk of damaging your ear drums is too high, so be warned.

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