IN BRIEF
Spanish BMX brand Fly Bikes sells the Cobra Tube, a patented linear inner tube: a straight strip of rubber rather than a closed ring. It slips around the rim, between the wheel and the frame or fork, without tools and without removing the wheel. It comes in 20 and 26 inches, with a Schrader valve, and weighs 160 g in the 20-inch size. Fly plans other sizes and Presta valve versions around the middle of next year, which could interest mountain bikers. Singletracks points out, however, that French company Lineatube has been making an open tube on the same principle since 2011, has sold more than 1 million of them and already offers it in Presta and in 20 to 29 inches.
| Type | linear (non-annular) inner tube, patented |
| Sizes | 20 and 26 inches |
| Valve | Schrader |
| Weight | 160 g (20 inches) |
| Maximum pressure | 110 psi (claimed by Fly) |
Fixing a puncture without taking the wheel off: that is Fly Bikes’ promise with its Cobra Tube. To get there, the brand simply did away with what forces you to remove the wheel, the fact that an inner tube is a ring. Singletracks notes that the principle has existed for years in BMX sizes, and that Fly is preparing other sizes and Presta versions.
The Cobra Tube, an inner tube shaped as a strip, not a ring
The Cobra Tube is a straight strip of rubber. Fly presents it as a linear, patented tube that can be replaced in a few seconds without tools. The fitting described by the brand fits in one sentence: you pass the tube between the wheel and the frame or fork, then insert the valve into the rim hole.
20 and 26 inches today, Presta tomorrow
For now, the Cobra Tube targets BMX: it only exists in 20 and 26 inches, with a Schrader valve. Fly claims 160 g in the 20-inch size, and a maximum pressure of 110 psi, which Singletracks finds impressive given the welds at the ends.
What comes next will interest mountain bikers. “We are planning to make more sizes and Presta valve versions in the near future,” a Fly representative told Singletracks, aiming for the middle of next year. Singletracks notes that French company Lineatube has also been making its open tube since 2011 and already offers it in Presta, Schrader and in 20 to 29 inches.
