Want your GZ to ride better?

[Sarris]

For about the last 6 months I have been using Nitrogen fill for all my vehicle tires instead of air. Here's the scoop... Nitrogen doesn't bleed down so you only have to check your tire pressure every three months. To date (6 months) no pressure change. Nitrogen also displace all the water vapor in the tire, so 99% of your 65 mph bounce is gone. And all the inherant little bike vibes at speed are alot less. Nitrogen is not an oxidizer, so it won't rot your tires from the inside. So, between lower operating temps, most of the ride vibrations gone, and a supposedly longer tire life all looks pretty good to me. And when your tires run cooler you get better gas mileage.(?)

Here's the real gem. The bike rides like it's on air. I had to look down to make sure the tire was on the pavement. I couldn't believe how much better the ride is. I'm not one to rave, but for $10 a tire, nitrogen is for me. And you get a cool green valve cap.
:)

[Dupo]

My dad runs nitrogen in all his vehicles. He cant say enough about it, loves it. I was thinking about running it in my bike tires too, just keep forgetting to do it.

[Easy Rider]

Nitrogen also displace all the water vapor in the tire, so 99% of your 65 mph bounce is gone.

OK, I give up. What is a "65 mph bounce" and why does water vapor have anything to do with it?? :??:

[jonathan180iq]

OK, I give up. What is a "65 mph bounce" and why does water vapor have anything to do with it?? :??:

HEAR! HEAR!

What bounce? :??:

[Quimrider]

LOL Nearly 80% of the air we breathe and compress to put in our tires is...... you guessed it! Nitrogen! I find it very difficult to believe that putting pure nitrogen in our tires will make much if any difference. The only benefit I could possibly see to this is the fact that there should be little if any water dissolved in the nitrogen. But wait we have inner tubes so the moisture in the air in our tires couldn't corrode our wheels from the inside. I"m not trying to crack on anyone, If you like it then by all means fill ur tires with N2. I just don't understand how it could make a difference by removing moisture and replacing the other 20% with more nitrogen.

[Easy Rider]

I just don't understand how it could make a difference by removing moisture and replacing the other 20% with more nitrogen.

It's the placebo effect! :)
If you THINK it will do wonderous things, then it WILL.
It does stop the "leak down" but that usually isn't a problem with tubes anyway.

[Sarris]

Look, they tell me that the minute amount of water vapor in the compressed air can cause a light bounce, usually at 55 to 65 mph. Mine had one. After nitro it's gone. I'm sure this be avoided by draining the water trap on every compressor everywhere you put in air, but the nitrogen is easier. You are missing out on a highly improved ride for cheap. For $20 I believe in the value of this WAY over the value of synthetic oil.
:chop:

[Dupo]

Seriously, you guys need to chill a bit ... and before knocking him, do some googling...

For years, over the road truckers, auto racers and the U.S. military have been filling tires on their vehicles with pure nitrogen. Here's why. In a tire filled with compressed air, the oxygen molecules tend to "migrate" through the wall of the tire over time. That's why, when you open the garage to check on your aunt's dust-covered 1980 Pontiac the tires are often flat. But nitrogen molecules migrate 3 to 4 times more slowly than oxygen, so tires stay properly inflated longer. There are other benefits. Nitrogen retains less heat than oxygen and therefore allows tires to run cooler.

While nitrogen is dry and benign and will not combine chemically with other materials (the metal in tire rims, for instance), compressed air contains trace amounts of water and the oxygen tends to combine with other materials, causing rust and corrosion. If you were to see the inner face (the part enclosing and sealing the inside of the tire) of some fancy aluminum wheels you would be surprised at how corroded they become due to oxidation.

Tour de France bicyclists fill their tires with nitrogen. So do NASCAR, Indy and Formula One racing teams, over-the-road truckers, some fire departments and the U.S. military.

[Easy Rider]

Look, they tell me that the minute amount of water vapor in the compressed air can cause a light bounce, usually at 55 to 65 mph. Mine had one. After nitro it's gone.

Just who exactly is "they"?
Do you believe everyting "they" tell you?
Do you think there is a minute possibility that the tire PRESSURE is different now than it was before?

I found I had a bounce around 45 after I put on the 16T sprocket. I eliminated it by upping the rear pre-loads one notch. A change in tire pressure may have done the same thing. I've still got the same "wet" air I had before and the bounce has not come back in several hundred miles of riding.......at any speed.

[Badbob]

I always have wet air in Tallahassee FL. :)

[El_Shorto]

Guys, if any of you want proof that you're getting a decent amount of moisture in your tires, do this: go to any gas station with an air filler. Waste 50 cents to get it running and spray the air at the flat palm of your hand at a distance of about 6 inches. After a few seconds, you'll realize that your hand is starting to get wet. Now, consider the fact that you're putting that into your tires for more than just a few seconds at a time. The water has nowhere to go and is going to change the way the pressure in the tire acts more drastically at varying temperatures. Remember that those gas station air compressors are just drawing ambient air and pressurizing it. So you're getting all the humidity and pollution in the air you breathe compressed into a nice tight tube.

[Easy Rider]

spray the air at the flat palm of your hand at a distance of about 6 inches. After a few seconds, you'll realize that your hand is starting to get wet.

Really sounds logical but not true in practice. Unless the tire is completely flat (or VERY low) the rush of air through the hose is nowhere near the volume it is with the chuck open and un-restricted. It is the volume of the flow that picks up the water from the low spots in the hose and carries it to your hand.

However, if you are really worried about the moisture content in your tires, then giving a "foreign" system (like the gas station) a couple of full-flow blasts like you described before topping up the tires would probably be beneficial.

[johncruise]

I'm not fond of chemistry nor any branches of science but....

... what happens if the tire full of nitrogen gets punctured while you are riding? What other things we need to be aware of?

Thanks

[El_Shorto]

same thing that happens if an air filled tire is punctured. nitrogen is an inert gas, remember that the air we breathe is actually 70% nitrogen.

[Easy Rider]

same thing that happens if an air filled tire is punctured. nitrogen is an inert gas, remember that the air we breathe is actually 70% nitrogen.

And you lose you initial $10 investment AND it costs you another $10 to fill the new tire!
:cry:

[Sarris]

And you lose you initial $10 investment AND it costs you another $10 to fill the new tire!
:cry:

$10....... Big WOW. Cheap Bastard.
:tdown:

[riningr]

this is a pretty old thread, but just reading through it and wanted to put my two cents in... Air is 79% Nitrogen, and just a touch under 21% oxygen, that touch under 21% oxygen is made up of a bunch of other gases (helium, carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, argon, etc. all add up to less than 1%)... sorry I'm a scuba diver, so I know the air composition like the back of my hand, so wanted to add in the correct percentage of Nitrogen -- that being said, it's a pretty big scam to get people to fill up with nitrogen other than possibly the aforementioned less leakdown part of it...IMHO at least...

[mrlmd1]

In order to fill the tires with 100% Nitrogen, you would have to start with a totally empty tire, like in a vacuum and then start filling it.
All you are doing by filling a tire that already has air in it, is maybe upping the already Nitrogen concentration inside the tire from 78% to in the 80's maybe. Most places that do Nitrofill empty and fill and purge and refill the tire three times to get it up to 93-95% N2. And you would know what that concentration is only by analyzing the gas inside the tire.
And the tire that sits for years that goes flat because the oxygen diffused through the rubber? Are you kidding? You really believe that? Air is lost by leaking out around the rim seal and valve stem, not through the rubber sidewall or tread. If the tire was that weak you certainly wouldn't want to ride on it.
Studies have shown that testing tire pressures of air vs. N2 filled tires, and leaving them sit alone for a year, the difference in tire pressures at the end of that time is minimal, maybe 1 lb. difference at most, with starting out at 30psi., one losing 3 psi, the other 2 psi in a year. A normal person or garage would also have to periodically check tire pressures,so this doesn't eliminate routine maintenance.
N2 filled tires are touted as better because there is less oxidation of the rubber inside the tire. Good. What about the outside of the tire? Anyone have a recommendation for that problem?
.
While it is true that N2 filled tires have more stable pressures, for us, the average rider, it makes no difference at all. It is used in Nascar because as little as a half pound pressure difference can make a big deal in the handling of the car, airlines use it because of the extreme wear and heat in the tires, but regular drivers do not come close to these extremes.

From on article on this subject---
A quick look at a few of the nitrogen generator manufacturers' websites can give you an idea what may be driving some of the interest in swapping tire gasses. N2 machines can operate for as little as 25 cents an application. The generators themselves go for as little as four grand. After the first 200 or so nitrogen fill-ups, these things are more profitable than pretzel carts.

This is hype, a lot of crap. It is unnecessary but it it makes you feel good, like you are really accomplishing something, then go for it. Get some high octane gas to go along with your Nitrogen while you're at the station.I have a bridge I can sell you too.

And, for exactness and correctness sake, the atmosphere contains 78% Nitrogen.

[Skunkhome]

I worked for one of the largest interstate LTL freight companies with one of the best safety records. They do not and never have used nitrogen in their tires. Frankly in a long haul situation the tires don't last long enough, time wise, to oxidize on the inside and I have never seem any significant rust inside the bead on rims that remain in service for decades. There probably is significant merit in filling racing tires with an dry stable inert gas due to the extreme conditions and heat they are subjected to but to equate that to the tires on your family sedan is in my opinion specious. I do know for a fact that nitrogen filling of tires are beneficial to the vendors. Most of the information or misinformation about nitrogen filled tires is being circulated by vendors who stand to profit from exaggerated benefits in everyday use. If you think it is beneficial in your street bike than more power to you.

[blaine]

Believe none of what you read,and only half of what you see. :) :2tup:

[mrlmd1]

Why is oxidizing on the inside of the tire even a concern? There is the same amount of oxygen on the outside. But nobody gives a crap about that or says it causes any damage. It's actually exposure to the UV light of the sun that damages tires - if you look on the inside of a dry rotted tire all cracked on the outside, the inside will look as clean and smooth as the day the tire was made. Where's the damage from all that O2 sealed up in there for all those years? How ridiculous an argument do you want to try and make that N2 is better to inflate a tire with?

[Scheezo]

I worked at a car dealership for a couple years. One of the techs thought it be fun to fill two of my tires with nitrogen to see what would happen one November. In the late spring my tires with air were a little low and the ones with nitrogen were still at the correct psi. When tires lose air pressure they tend to wear down more. Nitrogen works, sorry to burst people's bubbles. Do I think its worth $10? No. They over charge but if you want your tires to last longer then Nitrogen is the way to go.

[blaine]

I worked at a car dealership for a couple years. One of the techs thought it be fun to fill two of my tires with nitrogen to see what would happen one November. In the late spring my tires with air were a little low and the ones with nitrogen were still at the correct psi. When tires lose air pressure they tend to wear down more. Nitrogen works, sorry to burst people's bubbles. Do I think its worth $10? No. They over charge but if you want your tires to last longer then Nitrogen is the way to go.

Or check your tires once a week. :2tup: :biggrin:

[Skunkhome]

[c:394f8n08][/c:394f8n08]I worked at a car dealership for a couple years. One of the techs thought it be fun to fill two of my tires with nitrogen to see what would happen one November. In the late spring my tires with air were a little low and the ones with nitrogen were still at the correct psi. When tires lose air pressure they tend to wear down more. Nitrogen works, sorry to burst people's bubbles. Do I think its worth $10? No. They over charge but if you want your tires to last longer then Nitrogen is the way to go. purely anecdotal! There is evidence that super dryed air will give comparable results.
There is absolutely no information confirming any advantage for ordinary vehicles that is not put out by anyone other than people who stand to benefit by perpetuating the myth. It is just a great way to make money off lazy and/or gullible people.

[Dupo]

I fill mine with helium. When i blow a tire, it sounds pretty dam funny.

[mrlmd1]

Makes your bike much lighter too, and much less unsprung weight for better handling.