Solid and foam-filled bike tires are theoretically puncture-proof, but air-filled pneumatic tires dominate the bicycle tire industry for many good reasons. SG1 is the most recent innovation in tire puncture protection from WTB, and delivers best-in-class puncture resistance and air retention for high performance bicycle tires that don’t compromise on ride quality.
How much puncture protection does your bike tire need?
Every manufacturer promotes their latest bike tire puncture protection as the best available, so you see a lot of competing claims out there as people try to establish their “puncture-proof” tire as the must-have model. How much puncture protection do you need? The answer is as much as possible without wrecking your ride!
Tire technology today is focused on both puncture protection and air retention. When you consider that air retention is puncture protection at the micro-scale, then the need for appropriate sealants and compounds to manage air retention as well as accidental punctures becomes clearer.
WTB has been working on bicycle tire puncture protection since we first designed bicycle tires for Specialized starting with the Ground Control tire, which was launched in 1986. Through the years WTB has developed a series of puncture protection technologies, including casing improvements and tire lug placement.
Ride quality, efficiency and traction should be the priority for tire performance
The problem is not designing effective puncture protection, but making a bicycle tire that performs well, is comfortable, and has effective puncture protection. Focusing on puncture protection can distract riders from tire design that performs poorly in other areas, like ride quality, rolling efficiency, and traction.
WTB’s tire casings are part of our tubeless compatible system
WTB tire casings are the best available today because we have spent decades refining tubeless tire laminates, compounds and sealants to create high performance tire systems that have puncture protection built into exceptional engineering. At WTB, puncture protection is not a marketing trend, but part of the WTB Tubeless Compatible System (TCS) for optimization of both tire protection and air retention.
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The history of WTB tubeless ready bike tire technology
WTB was first to market with “standardized” tubeless ready rims/wheels and tires. WTB has been at the forefront of modern tubeless puncture resistant bike tire technology since 2010, when we released our 26+ tubeless tire and rim concept the Tubeless Compatible System, (TCS).
Our progressive innovations to improve TCS tubeless ready technology now integrate the best in tire, rim, and sealant technologies. Field testing and feedback from riders led to our Inner Peace technology for improved sidewall protection and air retention as well as tires like the “Thickslick” which has strategically added rubber for casing integrity and puncture protection
SG is WTB’s latest generation of puncture resistant tire construction and has influenced the competitors who follow our innovations (and in one case even the abbreviation ‘SG’!). Combined with the improvements we have made to tire sealant and sidewall construction, SG delivers the best combination of ride quality, air retention and puncture protection when integrated with our full range of tubeless ready bike tire technology.
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The SG Series - the right tire puncture protection for everyone
With great tires comes great responsibility… WTB’s Tubeless Compatible System provides the optimal tubeless ready complete tire set up for every level of rider, from commuters to athletes. The SG series recognizes that riders come to us with very different demands for their perfect tubeless ready wheel or integrated components.
The tire is a critical part of the optimized tubeless ready set up, and all SG tire systems optimize sidewall air retention and puncture resistance. We have developed a series of SG tire technologies to meet the demands of different cycling disciplines for different levels of performance.
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SG: Adventure Road, Gravel, Cyclocross, XC & Trail Bike Tire Puncture Resistance
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SG1: Ultimate Durability for eMTB & Enduro
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SG2: Puncture Protection for Adventure Road, Gravel, Cyclocross, Trail & Enduro
The 120tpi reinforcing of our SG and SG2 casings gives them the supple, rolling flexibility for Road, Gravel and Trail riding. Increased bead to bead protection of SG2 improves sidewall resistance for the more adventurous riders. SG1 adds additional capping layers and bead protection for heavier bikes and bigger impacts.
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What’s special about WTB SG1 tire casings?
In our relentless pursuit of tubeless ready optimization, we realized early on that there wasn’t a one-size-fits-all answer to puncture protection for bike tires. You wouldn’t make ultralight tires for high performance road racing with the same number of layers and reinforcements you use for MTB tires designed for rough downhill trails! Our SG series applies innovative technologies to optimize puncture protection across our full range of high performance tires.
What bike tire features do riders want?
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Everyday Riders: durability without compromising traction, stability, and control on roads, well formed tracks and maintained trails
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Pro Riders & Athletes: supple riding, with good flow, excellent traction and stability with extreme puncture resistance, especially sidewall pinch puncture resistance on hard downhill trails
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Specialists: resilient, durable & stable tires for heavy, harder riding bikes including bikes with a mass up to 60lbs (~30kg), enduro racing and eBikes.
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With WTB’s SG tire puncture protection and air retention systems, we aim to provide the right level of protection for specific riding conditions, styles, and types of bike. The result is a stable of high performance tires that are best in class for grip, durability and efficiency with puncture resistance that matches real world riding conditions.
You don’t have to take our word for it. Independent testers have already reviewed and rated our Judge SG1 as the perfect rear bike tire for winter in Europe, where consistent wet and slippery conditions push any tire to the limit in terms of traction and stability.
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SG1: custom puncture protection that suits your choice of ride
WTB has been refining tire puncture protection technology since the advent of the mountain bike to produce the optimal tire for mountain, gravel and recreational riders. We prioritize air retention and puncture resistance with our lineup of performance bicycle tire designs. When you choose a WTB tire, you are choosing a tire that has the performance and characteristics you want, with puncture proofing and air retention features that suit your ride.
Puncture protection and air retention that matches bike rider demands.
We have always been at the forefront of innovation that responds to the evolving needs of bike riders. In addition to designing many of the first mountain bike specific tires. We developed the world's first specific 29" tire (the Nanoraptor) in 1999, and introduced Road Plus tubeless in 2016.
WTB SG1 puncture protection for supple, responsive mtb tires
Of all the components in a properly set up bike, your mtb tires work hard at the intersection of performance, safety and comfort. SG1 is a response to the increasing weight, power, and endurance demands of eMTBs, enduro and gravity riding. WTB works hard to make the optimal tire for tubeless ready riding. SG1 is the toughest casing we have ever made, designed for tires that will take the most punishment and still maintain a supple, responsive ride.
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Which 2024 WTB tires feature SG1 bike tire puncture protection?
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Trail Boss - cuts through loose over hard for trail, enduro and eMTB riding
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Vigilante - trail, enduro, gravity and eMTB in loose, rocky and wet terrain
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Judge - rear focused gravity, enduro and eMTB all weather tire
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Verdict - rugged all-terrain gravity, enduro and eMTB
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Inner Peace+ (green), and under tread protection (yellow).
Technical features of SG1 puncture protection
SG1 is a development of our SG tire puncture protection technologies, and features our proven sidewall, tire bead and tread cap protection systems with refinements focused on the specific demands of modern enduro and eMTB riding. SG1 builds on our tradition of creating a reinforcement system that improves handling, grip and stability instead of compromising them.
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Full tread cap nylon shielding
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Rim, bead and sidewall protection
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Reduced sidewall flex
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Pinch flat protection
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Improved air retention
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Air tight, rapid sealing 60 tpi weave
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Flat fibers for significant weight reduction
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Stable even at low tire pressures
The entire tread cap is reinforced by a lightweight puncture resistant nylon layer. This is particularly important when running lower pressures to improve traction, because it increases protection further from the centerline. This gives additional protection against sharp objects hidden in soft surfaces.
Inner Peace+ bead & pinch flat protection
SG1 features Inner Peace+, which is three times the height of our original Inner Peace bead reinforcement. The Inner Peace+ butyl bead insert protects the rim, tire bead and the sidewall, giving better stability in cornering and under compression even at low pressures. The result is superb pinch flat protection and better air retention, without compromising on grip.
Air-tight flat over-locking weave
The 60tpi flat over-locking weave of WTB SG1 makes the tire more air-tight, and also easier to seal in the event of puncture. The tight, flat, weave strongly resists hole enlargement. This increases the likelihood that your tire sealant will rapidly resolve minor punctures and in the unlikely event of a serious puncture makes it easy to fix with a WTB Rocket Plug tire puncture repair kit.
Flat fibers reduce weight and increase puncture resistance
For SG1 tire construction, WTB uses thin, flat nylon fibers instead of conventional round fibers found in many other tires on the market. Flat fibers have smaller gaps between individual fibers, which reduces the amount of fill rubber. This keeps tire weights down while increasing puncture resistance, improving performance and durability.
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How did WTB develop the SG1 tire puncture protection system?
Like all our tire protection technologies, SG1 is a direct response to the evolving demands of bike riders for better performance. Downhill and enduro riding on larger, heavier bikes and the revolution in eBike manufacturing have increased the speed of bikes and the loads that bikes need to endure even in normal riding conditions.
When bikes get heavier and speed increases, it becomes more difficult for riders to maneuver in order to avoid obstacles and respond to changes in terrain. Punctures become more frequent because tires have to soak up significantly more energy, more quickly and frequently than ever before.
Customers started adding tire inserts but this can negatively affect how a tire feels. Our goal with SG1 was to create a tire with the durability of tires with inserts but without compromising ride quality and feel. Research indicates that riders prefer a ‘lively’ tire to one that is excessively stiff and reinforced.
Some manufacturers just make a dual ply tire with four layers in the side wall and six under the tread, but this makes a very stiff tire with inferior ride quality, which needs to be run at low, unstable pressures over rough terrain. Our objective was to make a tire that had class-leading puncture protection, but the supple tire characteristics and ground conformation of a single ply tire without being limited by stiffness.
After experimenting with several different casing constructions including bead to bead protection, we found the perfect combination for increased protection where it mattered most at the tread cap and bead / sidewall transition with flat fiber construction and fewer layers than a stiff dual ply tire. This is SG1, with an effective four layers all round and an additional flexible reinforcing layer under the tread cap, which gives much better trail conformation than dual ply, and also better than a traditional downhill tire.
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Compounds for fast rolling tires with high grip
The exact blend of the rubber compounds used in our tires is of course a secret. What’s not a secret is the performance! Our latest formulations give a noticeable improvement in traction, especially in the wet, as well as increased durability and longevity.
WTB Tritec significantly increases tread life & improves grip.
Our updated Tritec compounds deliver superior tread durability, rolling speed and grip for excellent traction and stability. Tritec tires can be configured for fast rolling or high grip during manufacture by varying the compound across the tire and tread.
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Firm rubber base
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Medium stiff center knobs.
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Soft compound side knobs
Our new Tritec Fast Rolling and High Grip compounds give you tires that last longer and have improved grip even in wet conditions. When you add SG1 puncture protection that’s a win-win-win from our perspective as well as yours.
All new WTB tires are packaged using 100% recycled materials and zero plastic packaging
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WTB tubeless bike tires are compatible with all ETRTO and ISO 5775 rims
Designed and engineered by WTB for superior and dependable air retention and ease of set up compared to other tubeless systems on the market. Our Tubeless Compatible System (TCS) is a patented tubeless bike wheel, rim, tire and sealant system designed to international sizing standards. Every component of WTB TCS can be used with any other tires or rims manufactured to ETRTO and ISO 5775 standards for tubeless bike tires and accessories.
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SG1: A New Era In Puncture Protection For Mountain Bike Tires.
WTB has been at the forefront of bike tire technology for decades, refining our SG puncture protection system to produce the perfect tire for every type of rider and every type of bike. We prioritize performance in our tire designs, and include excellent puncture resistance as a feature, but not the first objective of bike tire design.
Wilderness Terrain Bikes was founded in Marin County in 1982. Our team has generations of pioneers of mountain biking in California working together in pursuit of biking excellence. We focus on bike saddles, tires, wheel systems, grips, and accessories designed by riders for riders.
When you choose a WTB tire, you are choosing a tire that has the performance and characteristics you want, with puncture resistant features that suit your ride. You will find the full range of WTB products here at wtb.com including the latest and best tire protection that doesn’t compromise riding performance! You can also find our products at rei.com or on Amazon.