Tubeless tires anyone?

[DavidCH]

Very expensive valve and tape.

I asked the rim manufacturer to send me the tape and valve and customs here in Spain charged me €45 for the parcel from USA as the 2 valves and tape were sent in a box. I'm livid.

I'm going to try and channel my chi.

 

[RojoRacing]

Enve sells some of the most expensive tape and valves and in my opinion they are both among the worst at what they are supposed to do.

 

[RojoRacing]

Also back last year when I swore my valve was leaking and I was doing everything to get it to seal better, it ended up being my tape was weeping air through the glue. No bubbles in the tape, it was just pushing the air through the glue.

 

[bazzawill]

@RojoRacing you have another convert from Orange Seal to Truckerco. Their online store now ships to Australia at a reasonable rate, isit only just cheaper than Orange with shipping plus from what I hear should work better (not that I have had an issue with Orange). I also picked up some tape in case I need to swap out the gaffer

 

[DavidCH]

Centering the chi worked. I replaced the valve. I noticed as I was doing it that the dime piece of inner tube that I had centered on the valve had ruptured as I had tightened the valve up too much. It’s a skillfull art to get these tubeless wheels blown up.

 

[3WHELZ]

I would recommend Silca valve stem extenders. Absolutely, no leaks and well machined. Their SpeedShield is an added bonus in that it protects the rim and improves the seal.

 

[RojoRacing]

I don’t recommend any tubeless valve extenders because they restrict the air flow enough to make beading new tires near impossible. If you need a longer stem I recommend first Speed Evolution stems which come in different lengths but if you really need something long Silca makes some crazy long ones but they’ll cost you.

 

[ratz]

I don’t recommend any tubeless valve extenders because they restrict the air flow enough to make beading new tires near impossible. If you need a longer stem I recommend first Speed Evolution stems which come in different lengths but if you really need something long Silca makes some crazy long ones but they’ll cost you.

Ditto, used those Speed Evolution ones on the RAAM bikes and they are the best ones in my tool-chest. I have a few silca that I had to get when others were out of stock and they are about the same just much more pricey

 

[ed72]

I've run tubeless on HED Belgium plus, A23, FLO30, and FlO60 rims. I have used Specialized S-Works, Schwalbe Pro-one, Vittoria Corsa TLR Speed, and Compass tires tubeless. On some rims Stans tubeless valves stems have a bulbous end that pressed against the inner wall of the rim making it impossible to seat the bead. I spent months trying all manner of tape trying to seal the HED rims and even had contact with HED support personnel. My suspicion is they used some sort of mold release type agent (silicone) that permanently contaminated the surface. Some tire/rims are easier to seat than others. None were fun. I had unsealable flats using Schwalbes on every Brevet and tossed them all into the garbage but I hear they fixed the early casing problems. I ran tubeless during the TRANSAM bike race. It was 110-120F for the first week. One of the racers from Finland had the same Schwalbe casing problem at 1 am the first day, he was screwed and had to walk all night back to a bike shop where he downgraded to normal tires/tubes. During the race, I kept losing air and had to refill 2-3 times per day, I guessed it was hitting huge potholes all day and a slight burping of air out of the rim/tire interface. After a week, I decided to retrofit back to tubes. Surprisingly all of the 80-90 ml of sealant was one hard booger. Anybody ever try to remove the tubeless valve stem and convert back to tubes in the middle of the night? In the rain?

After a couple years, I have decided tubeless has zero value for me and now run latex tubes with sealant inside them. Tubeless is not faster, lighter, cheaper, longer wearing but they are a major PITA. YMMV

 

[DavidCH]

run latex tubes with sealant inside them

Nothing's perfect. I use this setup on one of my bikes and if I use stan's then I sometimes find the valve gets weaker. Even so it's a whole lot easier to replace the valve. Even so the way I ride I find once you have a tubeless wheel that's secured ... I have fewer punctures and even if I do I still have a tire that stays on the rim. A clincher at 50kph and you have a flat; even with an inner tube with sealant, still might roll off the rim. So for me with a fast bike I prefer tubeless. The bead is a very diffucult to put on but equally it's a very difficult to pull off.

 

[3WHELZ]

I don’t recommend any tubeless valve extenders because they restrict the air flow enough to make beading new tires near impossible. If you need a longer stem I recommend first Speed Evolution stems which come in different lengths but if you really need something long Silca makes some crazy long ones but they’ll cost you.

I stand corrected, not valve extenders; I should have said a tubeless valve kit, https://silca.cc/collections/tubeless/products/tubeless-valve-kit-w-speed-shield

 

[ed72]

Valves get contaminated with sealant whether tubeless or tubes. It helps to pump with the valve stem at 12 O'Clock. I remove valve stems from old tubes and replace sometimes or take the valve out and clean the sealant from the o-ring. My front tire tube valve needs a little love right now but it seals fine.

 

[Balor]

One of *possible* advantages of 'true' tubeless setup is using tire inserts that can prevent pinch flats.
Cannot have that with a tube. Combined with a rim that has wider, hookless design (lots of area to redistribute pressure) and you have something nearly indestructible... yea, Huck Norris for road bikes, basically.
I think it can be had by using crosslinked polyethylene foam of relatively high density - about twice as much as those used in camping/yoga mats, latter is too fragile (I've tried).
You can even stuff a piece of solid rubber there - it will be even better, but will add a LOT of weight (but little rolling resistance, because it will not deform during riding and contribute to hysteresis losses).
Can serve instead of suspension in a, ehehe, pinch.

 

[bazzawill]

I don’t recommend any tubeless valve extenders because they restrict the air flow enough to make beading new tires near impossible. If you need a longer stem I recommend first Speed Evolution stems which come in different lengths but if you really need something long Silca makes some crazy long ones but they’ll cost you.

Silca's 100mm valves are actually a 40mm with 60mm extender

 

[3WHELZ]

The 80mm are a single valve. They work fine for FLO 60s.

 

[Osiris]

They came in today, no custom fees I might add. Those who know me well know I have promoted tubeless for the last buncha years. Here's an early 2015 post of that very thing. I have run tubeless almost exclusively since 2014. Since this time I have been essentially flat free. I had one flat where I had let the sealant dry and another when I forgot to put sealant in the tire and flatted when hitting a brick going down Wolf Creek Pass. There were other times when the tire went soft but I was always able to get home. My expectations for this new box of tires is that other than maybe a refill or two and pumping up occasionally I will forget about them until they have become worn out. No flats, no drama, no nothing. This is based on their past performances. Yes, there is a learning curve for proper mounting. With this said, I've seen it a number of times when "expert" mechanics pinch their tubes when loading tubes. I've seen grown men call there wives to come get them when they flat because they don't know how to change a flat. I've seen tubes popped when over inflated using CO2 cartridges. This isn't because the tube system is flawed. When you get it right tubeless works just like tubes.

My only complaint about tubeless tires is that they're very difficult to get on and off the rims. I do remember someone mentioning that this may be because my American Classic Argent tubeless wheels are an older design, and that they've since come out with a newer style tubeless rim that makes the process much easier. Anyone care to confirm this?

 

[3WHELZ]

I know that I am repeating myself, but I have found the Hutchinson Sector 28 tubeless tire to be the easiest tire that I have placed on a 700c rim. Installing Conti Gatorskins was wrestling match requiring tire levers. Hutchinson's just require two thumbs.

 

[3WHELZ]

Just one word of caution based on my own experience, do not use tape that encroaches into the bead seat. You may experience unexpected deflation. The 25mm tape was just about a mm too wide for a road wheel.

 

[ratz]

 

[jond]

Inner tubes on my fatbike weigh 1.5 kg. No brainer to go ghetto tubeless. Sunringle rims run 4-5 psi.

Mtn bike plus tyres too no brainer.

But the benefits of tubeless on road wheels are less plus the mess.

Schwalbe Pro one v latex and Conti s is marginal.

Still if pesky wire flats are eliminated.....so it comes down to where you ride how much you ride flat risk and convenience.

I don’t carry a spare tube on the fat bike.

But everyone tubeless I know carries tubes....it’s complicated I know.

When will conti shine on tubeless.???