With the Procore double chamber system mountain bike tires can reach completely new levels of grip, control and puncture protection. In the inner chamber there is high pressure, and with 0.8 bar in the outer chamber the tire almost “sticks” to the ground. Both chambers are filled with air through only one valve.
Off road, riding at lower pressure means better performance but at the same time it increases the risk of failures. “The limit so far is at about 1.5 bar, below which it’s hardly possible to dare to ride normal MTB tires”. explained Schwalbe chief developer Markus Hachmeyer.
With Procore there is now the possibility that the air pressure can be controlled in the tire‘s double chambers. The inner chamber consists of the inner tire and tube with the patented dual valve. It is inflated with high pressure from 4 to 6 bar. The outer chamber on the other hand is tubeless. It consists of a standard tubeless compatible MTB tire. It is filled with a little sealing liquid and very low air pressure of 0.8 to 1.5 bar.
The effect is spectacular: The high pressure inner chamber almost completely eliminates the risk of punctures. At the same time, the inner chamber secures the tire on the rim. This means that you can ride with a much lower tire pressure in the outer chamber and significantly improve grip on even the roughest terrain. With one Bar air pressure, the tires almost “stick“ to the ground, and give the bike much more grip and feel.
In addition, an increase in damping and traction brings decisively better bike control, plus much lighter tires can be ridden. Even in tough conditions “burping”, the dreaded loss of air at low pressure in conventional tubeless systems is eliminated.
Provided tubeless compatible rims – Universally applicable
“Every performance-oriented mountain biker who has ever ridden the system will not want to do without it. The improvements in riding characteristics are similar to major introductions like the suspension fork or adjustable seat post,“ says Hachmeyer. For this it is even worth the additional weight of 200 grams per wheel. As for real hardcore mountain bikers, they now have the additional advantage that they can ride with significantly lighter tires. Because the risk of punctures is greatly reduced, they no longer need heavy downhill tyres.
The Procore system is universally applicable. The rim must be tubeless compatible and have a width of at least 23 mm. With narrower rims the assembly is very difficult. The tyre must also be tubeless compatible and should be at least 57 mm wide.
The new, patented dual valve is exceptional: It allows you to fill both chambers. The upper part of the valve is a selector. Completely screwed in, the inner chamber is inflated. Completely screwed out – about six turns – the outer chamber is filled.
Joint Development with Syntace
The reason for considering the development of a dual-chamber system was the trend to very wide rims, for example from Syntace. Thus, the riding characteristics of tires with low inflation pressures have become significantly better. Hachmeyer: “This had prompted us to give a great deal of thought as to how we can eliminate the risk of snake bites. In discussion with Syntace we realised that they were already working on the same idea. We are very pleased that we could agree to develop the system together and bring it to market! “
The complete Procore Set (two Procore inner tires, two Procore tubes, two AirGuides, tubeless rim tape, tire levers, Easy-Fit Assembly Fluid, two bottles of Doc Blue) is available from specialist bicycle stores and costs 195 euros. In addition, components such as the Procore inner tire (59,90 €), the Procore special tube (19,90 €) and the AirGuide (2,90 €) can also be purchased individually.
(Didn't stay on the bike much that day though!)
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