Tell me again that tubeless is stupid
#26
Senior Member
I have to admit I was a little doubtful about the benefits on a road bike, but no longer. I've now completely worn out a rear tyre without getting a single flat. Admittedly, I was a little disappointed that the tyre (Vittoria Corsa N.Ext) only did 3000 miles - I've gone for GP5000 All Season this time which, I hope, will last slightly longer. I got a comparable performance from a pair of Aramdillos, but they were hard work by comparison.
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#27
I’ve been running tubeless road tyres since 2020 and only had a single roadside flat, which I sealed with a Dynaplug (2x actually as it was a wide cut). Every other puncture has self-sealed without me noticing on the road. I had one puncture that lost a significant amount of pressure, so I sealed it with a Dynaplug post ride and it was fine for the rest of it’s life.
I think tubeless does work best on wider tyres at relatively low pressure. Certainly no problem sealing on 30 mm tyres at 60-70 psi. Even better on 32 mm at <60 psi. Punctures at low pressure are less dramatic and usually seal without significant pressure loss.
The only minor downside to tubeless is maintaining the sealant, but it’s not a big deal. When I’m lazy I ride with dried sealant, which is still better than a tube as you can still Dynaplug any flats. I’ve done this many times with mtb tyres, especially on UST rims without any sealant. This reminds me that I should really check the sealant on my road bike as I haven’t topped it up since last Autumn.
I think tubeless does work best on wider tyres at relatively low pressure. Certainly no problem sealing on 30 mm tyres at 60-70 psi. Even better on 32 mm at <60 psi. Punctures at low pressure are less dramatic and usually seal without significant pressure loss.
The only minor downside to tubeless is maintaining the sealant, but it’s not a big deal. When I’m lazy I ride with dried sealant, which is still better than a tube as you can still Dynaplug any flats. I’ve done this many times with mtb tyres, especially on UST rims without any sealant. This reminds me that I should really check the sealant on my road bike as I haven’t topped it up since last Autumn.
#28
Perhaps one could construct a scenario where that would occur however the confluence of factors causing this to happen would be very rare. A testament to the viability of current tubeless setups is effectively every category of performance cycling has switched to tubeless.
BTW…I’ve been running road tubeless for maybe 10 years or more and like the feel. But as noted above, I agree there can be fewer problems with lower pressure setups.
#29
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I was an EXTREME skeptic about tubeless. Then for some reason unknown to me I bought a rear Mavic UST. Five years later on five road bikes and zero flats. So my opinion was untested theory and once tested became an experience. I like my experience.
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#30
Senior Member
Thread Starter
#32
Senior Member
OP probably doesn't have any tire savers installed either. He'd be unstoppable with a pair of those.
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#33
Banned
Since I've gone to 38s(!!!) on the road, tubeless is a no-brainer. Good to hear it's working with more traditional road widths.
#34
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#36
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It seems more a testimonial for sealant than for tubeless. You can use sealant in tubes, you know.
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#37
Have you tried it?
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#38
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#39
Senior Member
Sealant in tubes was a fail for me as well. Tubeless has been wonderful, but I only have used it on mountain bikes. I suspect I will eventually wind up using tubeless on the road, but in recent times I have been riding very little pavement. I would be likely to go tubeless if setting up a bike for another coast to coast tour or something like that and if I was choosing new wheels.
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#41
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Another satisfied tubeless road user here. I'm running GP5k TRs in 28/30 on a couple different bikes, no issues whatsoever so far in the 9 months I've been running them. I've been running tubeless for years before on my MTBs, similar success there.
#42
Senior Member
I'm guessing the OP means that tubeless is stupid good, or stupid easy? Does that mean it's bombproof?
#43
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#44
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One flat with tubeless in 4 years with GP 5Ks due to sidewall cut. Did pick up a nail once, but was able to ride it home, plug it and rode it another 2K. Ain’t never going back, no ways, no hows. <-OK grammar police, you can feast on that one. 😊
Congrats Koyote on doing it. Good ride!
Congrats Koyote on doing it. Good ride!
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#45
One flat with tubeless in 4 years with GP 5Ks due to sidewall cut. Did pick up a nail once, but was able to ride it home, plug it and rode it another 2K. Ain’t never going back, no ways, no hows. <-OK grammar police, you can feast on that one. 😊
Congrats Koyote on doing it. Good ride!
Congrats Koyote on doing it. Good ride!
(I made the mistake of doing the sealant in tubes experiment on my wife's bike. She was not amused. It was almost certainly a pinch flat, BTW.)
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#46
Sealant in tubes was a fail for me as well. Tubeless has been wonderful, but I only have used it on mountain bikes. I suspect I will eventually wind up using tubeless on the road, but in recent times I have been riding very little pavement. I would be likely to go tubeless if setting up a bike for another coast to coast tour or something like that and if I was choosing new wheels.
#47
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Sounds exactly like my tubeless experience. 48mm Rene Herse Barlow Pass tires on Velocity A23 rims simply would not seat, no matter what we tried, including a compressor, and the strap-around-the-circumference trick. Did not buy and try an Airshot or similar bottle inflator, because l can't take one with me on my unsupported rides, now, can I?
OTOH, I've used sealant in half a dozen tubes, with results similar to those reported here with tubeless. When I finally replaced one tire which I'd run with sealant in the tube for about a year, I found about a dozen places where the sealant had done its job. Those were Schraeder valves, so I didn't even to leave them in a draining-down valve stem orientation. I've even used sealant in sew-ups, and it worked there, too.
I have read that sealant won't work in TPU tubes, but I'll bet somebody will soon invent some that does...
OTOH, I've used sealant in half a dozen tubes, with results similar to those reported here with tubeless. When I finally replaced one tire which I'd run with sealant in the tube for about a year, I found about a dozen places where the sealant had done its job. Those were Schraeder valves, so I didn't even to leave them in a draining-down valve stem orientation. I've even used sealant in sew-ups, and it worked there, too.
I have read that sealant won't work in TPU tubes, but I'll bet somebody will soon invent some that does...
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#48
Years of experience riding tubeless on mountain bikes - wide large volume tires. Very few flats.
Did an experiment on 28mm road tires last year. Dramatic reduction in flats, as in No Flats! Relaced two other bike wheels withtubeless rims and converted all to tubeless. Never going back to the dark side. No flats on any of them so far with tubeless. 'Nuff said.
Did an experiment on 28mm road tires last year. Dramatic reduction in flats, as in No Flats! Relaced two other bike wheels withtubeless rims and converted all to tubeless. Never going back to the dark side. No flats on any of them so far with tubeless. 'Nuff said.
#49
Senior Member
So, with a current setup, you had a leak that could not be fixed with a plug, and the tube would not fit in the tire? I can even imagine a scenario where this would occur. That aside to each their own and enjoy.
#50
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tubeless w/pool noodles
It was informed fun, however - the uninformed wouldn't even get the joke. No photographs exist of Eddy Merckx standing beside the road, holding his broken bicycle with a pool noodle protruding from the wheel. Of course, pool noodles hadn't even been invented then, and we can all be certain that Mr. Merckx would have ridden pool noodles if he'd had them, right?
It's true that I haven't tried pool noodles.
For the record, I believe people who say tubeless works well for them.
But let's have some fun! Blue pool noodles are dorky, but red pool noodles are the bee's knees, and faster, too!
Got pool noodles?
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