would you avoid getting a buggy with blow up wheels because of potential puncture probs?

[angels1]

Morning all,

Am hoping to buy an off road quinny this week end from a work colluegue second hand (comes with lots of fab attachments etc and all ready to go) but several people have said to me 'ohh, don't buy that, it's got blow up wheels and you'll spend your whole time getting punctures'. Is this true? Surely so long as you have a puncture repair kit at home to fix when needed and we keep a spare wheel in the car for a last minute change if needed it shouldn't be too bad? I like the idea of an odd road one so we can take it out and about for walks etc and if we get a good deal on a second hand quinny then if it doesn't work out and we realise we have other priorities once we know how and where we will use it most (which I can't see us actually quite figuring out until baby is here) we can always get another second hand one.

Any comments/experience?? Am I really mad?!

Btw the buggy has already been used for 2 years if that makes a difference to the life of the wheels - not sure how long they're expected to last.

I had my Out N About Nipper double for a few years and only had one slow puncture, which I had repaired for 7 quid on the spot at a local bike shop.

IMO inflatable tyres are much easier to push, especially off road.

Blow up tires are much more practical. I've never had punctures (with Bugaboo or Phil & Teds) but I believe a lot of people fill the inner tubes with some sort of slime (available from bike shops) whick seals any punctures as they appear.

Is it a Quinny Buzz?

I've bought a Buzz and have even bought the optional pneumatic front wheel as I feel that kind of wheel is easier to push, especially when not on tarmac, and gives a lot more grip.

Punctures are a risk, but not one that bothers me TBH. You might want to check that the tyres of your one aren't worn down though.

I think it's a quinny speedi I think jareth. Love the name btw - the labyrinth is the best

Thanks

Good. A Quinny Buzz is beyond useless for off-roading as the tiny front wheel gets stuck on everything. Had no idea you could buy a different wheel for it, that might have helped a lot!

In answer to your question, I think it would be fine. I never had a puncture in the Buzz for the 7 months I used it.

I LOVED my 3-wheeler <a class="break-all" href="http://www.google.co.uk/imgres?imgurl=www.comparestoreprices.co.uk/images/ma/maclaren-mac3-pushchair.jpg&imgrefurl=www.comparestoreprices.co.uk/push-chairs/maclaren-mac3-pushchair-reviews.asp&usg=__0MhTMEWo-pVjei6vI4b0GvJfwYA=&h=298&w=298&sz=17&hl=en&start=3&zoom=1&tbnid=7phgTCGC15F5xM:&tbnh=116&tbnw=116&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dmclaren%2B3%2Bwheel%2Bbuggy%26hl%3Den%26sa%3DG%26prmdo%3D1%26biw%3D1152%26bih%3D773%26tbs%3Disch:1&itbs=1" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Mclaren with inflatable tyres - I was so sad when dd2 grew out of it (she has disabilities, and is now 8, which is a bit big for a pushchair). It was so comfortable for her even in the roughest ground.

We are very rural with prickly hedges so we did get punctures - but I got strips of mountain-biking Kevlar from the bike shop and fitted that - then no problems!

We had ours for about 5 years of constant use - and now my sil has it.

Btw does the quinny have a big enough front wheel? For real off-road you need a big wheel that doesn't bounce and catch on every lump of mud and rock.

We have a buggy without blow up wheels, and its crap on pretty much any surface that isn't the polished floor of a shopping centre. It's a quinny zapp (and we only bought it because nothing else would fit in our boot).

used Phil & Teds nearly everyday for 3 years on all terrain and never had a puncture, now have nipper double and no probs so far, have debated filling tyres with slime but not got around to it yet.

Hi,

We have a Phil and Ted's with pneumatic tyres. To be honest, I did have a couple of punctures when I was out and about in richmond park with my baby. It was a bit of a hassle. HOwever, they are easy to repair and you can now buy emergency squirt-in puncture repair stuff that fixes the puncture. It comes in a small tube and is quite portable. Generally the benefits of pneumatic probably outweigh the hazards....

I have bought a Mountain Buggy which has 3 "proper" tyres. We haven't started using it yet. (That would be silly as I'm only 37 weeks and dont have a baby yet ) but I am a keen cyclist - and cycle in London loads - and have hardly ever had a puncture. So, I can't give you advice, but I can tell you that we're in the same boat if it turns out to be a stupid option!

We have an easylife 3-wheeler which we got for ds1 10 years ago - despite daily use for about 7 years, the tyres are all still going strong.
It's all ready to use for the fourth time!

You just have to learn how to blow up the wheel and repair a puncture.

And try not to go over glass in the first place.

I've had my Phil and Teds two years and have only had one puncture, from very sharp twigs. The tyres need to be pumped up every couple of months, but that's easy.

I love my blow up tyres, even though one had a slow puncture and my dad filled it with that weird foam stuff to stop it going down and he decided to do the other one for good measure and they both ended up blowing up with lots of nicotine coloured goo going everywhere and me with two flat as pancakes tyres and having to pay 20 quid for two new inners. I still love them.
So there's your answer.

We have a mountain buggy with blow up tires - had it for 6 years and have had a 3 punctures...but when it happens it is a bugger! Still wouldn't swop them.

For what it worth we bought wheelchair inner tubes which are stronger but for some reason we only got 2 of them and ave never had a puncture on those wheels.

Never had puncture on my (old) Quinny freestyle either in town or on numerous country walks. Big buggy but dream to push x

I had a Phil & Teds, and I did get the occasional puncture, (maybe 3 in two years?) but lovely local bike shop sorted them out for a very reasonable cost, and the additional ease of pushing on inflated tyres means it's absolutely worth it.

Turning down a good second hand pushchair because of the odd puncture is like refusing a dishwasher because you don't like filling up the salt container or cleaning out the trap.

We've had masses of punctures in our mountain buggy as every other hedge round here is a hawthorn ...but DH got some 'gunk' to protect the inside of the tyres and we haven't had a problem since.

hi guys, ordered a bugaboo bee 2010 model and was wondering if it has inflatable tyres or not ?, anyone know
youve got me thinking now

We only got one or two punctures in more than 3 years, and that included a lot of forest walks. I didn't even think about that tbh.

I had a Quinny given to me. I loved it. Was lovely to push, BUT I had several punctures in a very short space of time, even with that stuff you can get to put in the tyres (slime??) - I had to give up on it eventually and buy one with normal wheels . That said I had spent more in just a couple of months on new tyres, new inner tubes and puncture repairs than I did on the cheap buggy

Bugaboo bee is not inflatable tyres

thank you

We got ours filled too at the bike shop - I prefer them for when they're little.

We have had a quinny speedi for 15 months and today got our 1st puncture! I dont think it has inner tubes but just the outer tyre - not sure if that makes a difference. It is very easy to push off and on road. Would defo recommend.

Good luck!