Wickens & Soderstrom No.8 sealant

SO GOOD
The yoghurt-like consistency and large particles make the W&S sealant handy for seating baggy tyres or fixing bigger holes, so long as you’re patient and keep feeding it in. It works best when mixed with a runnier sealant and inflated with a track pump to force it into the holes.

NO GOOD
The No.8 is so thick that it spreads itself thinly around the tyre instead of forming a pool at the bottom ready to fill any holes. It can’t always fix small punctures at normal riding pressures (30psi or lower) and sidewall punctures are virtually impossible to plug unless it’s mixed with a thinner sealant. It’s not cheap either.

Price 18$ for 300ml (=60$ for 1l)

Cannondale Trail SL 29 SS

The fat aluminium tubes are a constrast to the skinny items seen elsewhere in the test, but this rigid Cannondale uses them to create one of the most old-school - and lightest - rides here.

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KONA SHRED

With a reputation for no-nonsense ruggedness and a background in the always progressive and punishing riding of Canada, Kona have been building hardcore hardtails for longer than almost anyone else. The Shred is the most expensive bike on test but it’s a proper trail tank.

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SKS Airbuster CO2 inflator

The alloy Airbuster has a large knob so you can regulate the flow of gas, a mechanical stop to prevent the cartridge being pierced in transit and a dust cap to keep the valve free of debris. While it works with Presta and Schrader valves, switching between them requires a fiddly change of the valve head. The thin rubber sleeve doesn’t provide much protection from cold spent canisters. You can’t insert much of the valve into the inflator head, so you have to be careful to avoid leaks. Price $33 w/16g cartridge

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