The Duckmeister
Has a juicy midrange
Was that before or after he bounced off into a tree?
Noob Question: Tubeless and Speed
- Thread starter Jesterarts
- Start date
I haven't run tubeless in maybe 14 years. Thinking of trying it again but sort of cannot be bothered. I also never loved super low pressure even on dh bike I always ended up with 20 and 24psi. With tubes I currently run 26 and 32 on my hardtail no problems.
My wife's preferred tyre only comes tubless ready and wighs 710 grams. I was going to do it to save her a little rotational weight but she would loose her shit if she had to deal with a tubeless flat vs just changing a tube. Might be easier to buy her lighter wheels, or actually try the new rocket rons sitting here. I currently set her up the 26 and 30 psi on 27.5x 2.1s no pinches so far.
My wife's preferred tyre only comes tubless ready and wighs 710 grams. I was going to do it to save her a little rotational weight but she would loose her shit if she had to deal with a tubeless flat vs just changing a tube. Might be easier to buy her lighter wheels, or actually try the new rocket rons sitting here. I currently set her up the 26 and 30 psi on 27.5x 2.1s no pinches so far.
stirk
Burner
I suspect high pressure contributed to the puncture. Lower pressure would yield a little to spiky stuffWas that before or after he bounced off into a tree?
Lazmo
Old and hopeless
I love tubeless… it feels like you’re connected, it feels like the tyre is conforming to the track, it feels like you don’t bounce off obstacles, it feels like you’ve got super grip… it just feel MUCH better than tyres with tubes do. The vastly reduced flats and slight weight reduction are a bonus.
Last weekend we rode Blores Hill… on Saturday after our initial climb, we bombed down Jim’s and both of us had major moments as the track was really sandy… washing out all over the place, losing the front on every second corner. Got to the bottom of Jim’s and my wife was complaining about how hopeless she felt. So, I let a fair bit of pressure out of the front tyres of both bikes… to much less pressure than you could possibly run tubes. Straight away instant grip, a huge noticeable improvement. Yes the tyres were squirming, and not ideal for hardpack, but the sandy trail dictated running low pressures, so the trade-off was more than worth it.
I know people do it without it, but tubeless is much easier to set up and maintain if you have a compressor in your workshop… just buy a cheapo, it’ll do the job. It pays to ride your bikes often too… and I keep a trackpump in the boot and check the pressures before every ride. Our dually’s are getting on a bit and have skinny rims, so I run about 22psi front and 25psi rear, whereas my Cotic has wider rims and higher volume tyres, so I run 18psi front and 20psi rear.
I say do it… you’ll most likely love it.
Last weekend we rode Blores Hill… on Saturday after our initial climb, we bombed down Jim’s and both of us had major moments as the track was really sandy… washing out all over the place, losing the front on every second corner. Got to the bottom of Jim’s and my wife was complaining about how hopeless she felt. So, I let a fair bit of pressure out of the front tyres of both bikes… to much less pressure than you could possibly run tubes. Straight away instant grip, a huge noticeable improvement. Yes the tyres were squirming, and not ideal for hardpack, but the sandy trail dictated running low pressures, so the trade-off was more than worth it.
I know people do it without it, but tubeless is much easier to set up and maintain if you have a compressor in your workshop… just buy a cheapo, it’ll do the job. It pays to ride your bikes often too… and I keep a trackpump in the boot and check the pressures before every ride. Our dually’s are getting on a bit and have skinny rims, so I run about 22psi front and 25psi rear, whereas my Cotic has wider rims and higher volume tyres, so I run 18psi front and 20psi rear.
I say do it… you’ll most likely love it.
stirk
Burner
A tubeless flat is dealt with the same as just changing a tube but the tubeless sealant is all nice and slippery which makes tubing up easier.
And going tubeless reduces the incident of tube replacement
Rhys_
Likes Bikes and Dirt
I'm with this guy. Whilst you may very well be okay if you ride reasonably sedately on laid back trails, the tubeless reality for a lot of people is different. You will spend more money on tyres. For a start tubeless tyres are usually more expensive. Secondly it's likely you will eventually get cuts that sealant can't seal, and replace tyres that would still function with a tube. Also, it's all well and good to say you can run lower pressure with tubeless, but you can run into other problems such as burping. Add to that higher maintenance with having to replace sealant regularly (or the frustration when you don't and find a hole won't seal out on the trails) and it's not as rosy as some would make out.
Lazmo
Old and hopeless
I ride plenty of different trails … some laid back, some not …but yeah, I’m sure compared to the young guns, I’m sedate.
Spend more money on tyres… I don’t care, I’m happy to spend more. Compared to my motorbikes, they are cheap.
If you get cuts that sealant can't seal… put a tube in it. If you can’t afford to replace the fucked tyre, leave the tube in it.
Problems such as burping… use a track pump to pump to a consistent non-burping pressure before every ride.
Replace sealant regularly… I just have valve stems with removable valve cores, and I use a syringe to add sealant every few months.
JTmofo
XC Enthusiast
I'm sure everyone on tubeless rides sedate on laid back trails.... must be so rad to be such a pinner, busting shit up all over the trails.....?
Tubeless ready tyres are the same price as non tubeless ready tyres, in fact you'd do well to find tyres that are not TR nowadays.
Unless you live in 1999, tubeless is without a doubt more reliable than tubed, so much so that the majority (if not all) professional riders (who don't ride sedate on laid back trails) ride tubeless.
stirk
Burner
So many holes here!
Cut a tyre badly enough the sealant and air leaks out, throw in a tube and happy days, keep riding. If the tyre is really munted then tube or tubeless your stuffed.
Tubeless ready tyres have thick sidewalls and are less prone to tearing.
Burps are rare especially with the right rims and are not a major issue anyway.
Replacing sealant once every 18 months with less pumping up of tyres before each ride to replace lost air with tube setups equals less maintenance.
Carry a spare tube anyway just in case so can tube up and ride home.
Winning.
moorey
call me Mia
All correct...other than replacing sealant every 18 months? I need to top it up after about 6 or its bone dry. That said, I'll usually wear a tyre out first.
OP, I resisted tubeless longer than anyone. Had some horror experiences with it in the early 00's. It was impossible to set up and unreliable. Then about 2 years ago, after telling everyone they were wankers, and it's horseshit, I tried it with modern setup and proper gear. Along with dropper posts and discs, it's one of the things I could never go back from. One slashed tyre in that time, on a rock that would have done same to tubes, and no tube was going to patch this 2" hole anyway. Aside from that, between mine and my sons bikes, around 15000km without a flat, on plenty of rocky terrain, including a week in NZ. Maxxis tyres particularly, are a breeze to set up and never lose any air. My lighter swobble XC/trail tyres occasionally lose a couple of pounds a week for the first few weeks, then fine after that.
I used to get a couple of flats every you yangs ride on tubes, at higher pressures, and at buller, I couldn't carry enough tubes to get me through a long weekend. Now, never even consider I might get a flat. I even get complacent about carrying a backup tube on local rides (famous last words)
Ask anyone who knows me how anti tubeless I used to be....now I'm like one of those annoying ex smokers.
Give it a crack, for Jesus.
link1896
Mr Greenfield
Mid 1990s. Hard tail running undamped elastomer forks. 1.75" tioga psychos. I'm sure we ran ~50psi all day everyday.Was that before or after he bounced off into a tree?
moorey
call me Mia
Or liking you....
stirk
Burner
I checked when I bought the tyres and it was more like 14 months and I did top up the sealant with about 30ml a few months ago, still that's a long time and a top up takes less than a few minutes. Based on history I'd have had half a dozen pinched tubes in that time.
Id love to give tubeless a try but im imagining its a messy affair.
Do you guys change your tyres at all to suit different conditions, i feel like tubeless would be nice if you had a couple sets of wheels. At the B24 race during the night i saw a bit of wheel changing as the rain came down where as i had opted to change my tyres just before the race started as it was clear the weather was going to go to crap.
I can change between different tyres in minutes with no mess runnings tubes. Anyone out there running tubeless change there tyres around a bit or leave them on until they are worn out?
Just how messy is it when you remove tubeless tyres (provided there is still wet sealent in the tyre)?
Travis.
Do you guys change your tyres at all to suit different conditions, i feel like tubeless would be nice if you had a couple sets of wheels. At the B24 race during the night i saw a bit of wheel changing as the rain came down where as i had opted to change my tyres just before the race started as it was clear the weather was going to go to crap.
I can change between different tyres in minutes with no mess runnings tubes. Anyone out there running tubeless change there tyres around a bit or leave them on until they are worn out?
Just how messy is it when you remove tubeless tyres (provided there is still wet sealent in the tyre)?
Travis.
So much fun. Oh and pissweak wheels too. Actually pissweak everything in one crash I wrecked 2 wheels, twisted the frame and snapped a crank. Killed mtb for me for ages while I saved for a new bike.
Lazmo
Old and hopeless
Keep the wheel vertical, pop one side of the tyre off... use a syringe to suck up the sealant from the bottom of the tyre and put it in a container, run a rag around it... that's it.
Re-use the old sealant when you put the new tyre on. It might pay to pre mount any new folding type tyres on a rim using a tube to get it into the round shape before you try the first inflation while at a race up the bush... assuming no compressor.
Tubeless is easy.
moorey
call me Mia
Not messy to set up at all, and not THAT messy to swap...but that said, I change complete wheels, not just tyres....or ride a different bike.
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The Duckmeister
Has a juicy midrange
Pretty clean. When setting up fit the tyre almost completely; when there's about 20cm to go chuck the sealant in & pop the last bit of tyre in place. Lazmo's tip with the syringe when removing tyres is a good one, I'll remember that one. :smile:
Changing wheels is easier whether you've got tubes or not; certainly cleaner than arguing with a slippery muddy tyre! Some rims are a bloody tight fit with tyres, so a pain in the arse to change tyres on, again not dependent on presence or absence of tubes.
I've got two bikes, each with two sets of wheels (relics from upgradeitis), with different tyres, so I have a range of setup options ready to go.
Rob_74
Likes Dirt
Then next you'll be riding a 29er...