dkatz1

Since 2004 and 2007, I've had mavic Ksyrium elite wheels on my two bikes. Very happy with them. I like them because they virtually never go out of round, and: I've NEVER once broken a spoke on either set.
Finally, I wore out the pair on the bike I ride the most....the braking surfaces are about to wear through.
So, I ordered a new set (due to arrive today)...I was going to buy at my LBS, but they were out of them, and didn't know when they'd have more, and I'm about to go on a week trip with the bike)...
I've always used Continental gran prix all season tires with these wheels...
I'm sure the racers here will tell me I need to upgrade all of this stuff, and others will tell me how great they've done with much cheaper...but I'm staying with these wheels.
My question is about the tires.
the wheels, apparently, come with tubeless tires. I know nothing about tubeless...sounds like they have their charms, for sure (but what do you do when something goes through them?)..but how do they compare in sturdiness to the gran prix 4 season...I switched to those as i got way less flats with them.....so I'm wondering if I should use the tubeless tires instead of putting on the gran prix four sesaon.

charliep 1

I switched over to tubeless 3 years ago and don't think I would ever go back to tubed tires.

Flats are pretty mush a thing of the past, there is fluid in them that should seal up a small puncture (typical tube flat). Not sure about the durability of all the brands,
I have been using the Hutchinson Sector 28 and just ordered some of there Fusion 5 performance 25s. I like the ride and feel of the tubeless.

Give them a shot you might find you like them

Atlas Shrugged

Been running tubeless for a couple of years now and about twice a year I remove the tire from the rim clean out the old sealant and check everything over before remounting the tire and adding fresh sealant. I know it's unnecessary but for piece of mind, I do this. As I started the process I thought is tubless worth the hassle when I realized that this was the first time worked on the tire other than adding air since the last sealant cleanout. It was planned maintenance rather than a flat repair on the side of the road occurring at some random time subject to Murphy's Law and all. I am happy with my choice of riding tubeless. I carry a Dynaplug if I get leak which won't seal however have not needed it yet.

Running tubeless 32mm Panaracer Gravel King smooth tread on my Diverge which I use for touring and misc. adventure riding as well as 30mm Schwalbe G One speed on my S-Works Roubaix both I am very happy with.

PedalingWalrus

I have also switched to tubeless on all my bikes. Last week I was on a bikepacking trip and had a flat tire in the middle of nowhere. I used one of those 'plugs' and then blew it up with a cartridge and I was back in a saddle in less than 5 minutes, hands clean, did not have to remove the wheel or the tire. I have been carrying the plugs with me for years without a flat and finally it happened...i am happy to report it worked awesome.

LawSchweiin

I mostly run tubeless and like it, but there are some pitfalls. I very much love the low pressures I run with tubeless (4.4 bar in 28s), which give a supple ride. I also have had good experience with the sealant quickly sealing minor punctures. On the flip side, the varying standards around tubeless wheels / tires mean that mounting the tire can be awful or incredibly easy, the latter being worrisome in that the tire would likely peel off the rim in the case of sudden deflation. My hope is that the sealant and larger volume of air I'm running prevent that latter scenario.

jadocs

I have the Ksyrium PRO USTs and run tubeless with Yksion PRO UST tires. I will never go back to tubs.

Teamprovicycle

I'm more performance minded , when tubeless work they are great, corner better roll better , when they leak from the tape get a hole that won't seal , valve that leaks , patch won't hold , bead that won't seat , sealant that never works even with glitter added , they suck maximum donkey balls , I can say in over a year I've mastered them but they still fail at a higher rate than any tubed set up I've had in my life , my Wal-Mart mountain bike from back in the days didn't fail as much , even if you minus human error .....

Senarios you can expect, stuck on the road with no way to inflate you still have to carry two tubes incase you get a double flat that won't seal , seal leaks out now you have to carry the smallest tube like an 18mm 700c cuz u ain't gonna be able to fit a standard tube with out ripping it , you get both tubes in inflate the tire is super wobbly and off balance, if you get the tire rim combo right you almost always need a quality tire lever or 3 , especially if you don't know how to mount and dismount them , took me about a year to get a solid technique,

Don't let anyone tell you tubeless are better they are not the learning curve is extremely steep , even running low pressure commute tubeless can take a lot of trial and error

I'm happy I got tubeless, but they have failed me many times , I have a dedicated pair of wheels for them and have taken way to much effort to set up ,

But over all you can always get better wheels , wheel bearings , drive train , wax chian , more aero and stay tubes and still get more constant bang for buck .

indyfabz

I have had a couple of punctures with road tubeless that would not seal above around 60 psi. even with relatively fresh sealant. Sucks when that happens. And note that not all tubeless tires play well with tubes inserted in them in an "emergency." Definitely make sure you update your sealant regularly.

jadocs

UST...never had problem one. Problems above are a result of either the tire or the rim having variances in standards or the wheel was not prepped properly. Other points: not all sealants are created equal (orange seal for me), carrying a spare tube is a good idea in case you experience a large cut but the preferred method is to carry a plug kit (plug it and go - much smaller package than a tube, you don't even have to remove the tire). Having said all of that any puncture or cut you would experience on a tubeless tire you would also experience on a clincher....so either way you will be on the side of the road, the difference is on tubeless you will only be on the side of the road if the puncture or cut was big enough for it not to self seal, and you would be back on the road in under a minute if you use a plug kit. I have noticed punctures that have sealed on my bike only after I got home and was cleaning the bike off. Never even noticed it on the ride. If I was on a clincher I would have had to be breaking my tire levers out and changing a tube. Last thing, ride quality is superior to tubs.

pickettt

Dedicated tubeless wheels and tubeless tires, don’t try and rig anything else. I’ve had 7 flat tires in ten years of riding road tubeless. Always carry a tube anyway. If your tubeless setup is flatting more often than tubes, you’re doing something wrong. This one didn’t go flat...

bruce19

I have also been running Mavic Ksyrium Elites (and Aksiums) for about that period of time. About 3 months ago, after seeing this GCN video ( ) I deecided to give Mavic Kysrium Elite USTs a try. I just bought a rear because I have always been skeptical about tubeless. So, I bought one and mounted it on my Guru Sidero which is a 10 sp. SRAM system. Holy sweet Jesus! Just as GCN has said....faster, smoother, more comfortable and lighter. Easy to set up and inflated with a floor pump. So impressed that I bought a front and, eventually, a second rear set up for my CAAD 12 which is 11 sp. 105. I can't believe how these wheels have transformed the bikes. A set with tires cost me less than $800 at Competitive Cyclist. FWIW, the wheels you bought that come with tires seem like they might be USTs.

If a tubeless tire is punctured to the point that it can't self heal, you put a tube in it. So, you will carry a spare tube just in case. Bear in mind that the kind of damage that would puncture a tubeless would destroy a clincher. Watch the video. I will never go back to clinchers. I love these things.

bakerjw

I almost exclusively use Hutchinson tubeless tire on my road bike. Earlier this year, one of them gave up the ghost, so I picked up a new set. While waiting for them to arrive, I put on a set of Vittoria Rubinos and ran tubes for the first time in years. In 1 week, I had 2 flats. As soon as the tubeless tires arrived, I put them on and have been flat free since. I will never go back.

The only time that I do run tubes is on our road and mountain tandems. That is a different animal completely though.

superpletch

I have been using tubeless tires on my touring and road bike for a couple years now. On this springs pacific coast tour my 700x35c schwalbe touring tires worked great until the last 50 miles of the last day when I had two flats within 20 minutes. both times I stopped and used a dynaplug and was back rolling with 5 minutes each time with no mess or having to remove wheel or tire. I still carry a tube for emergencies but have yet to use one.

My road bike has been challenging to find a tire that balances durability/traction/and speed. I have fallen in love with Schwalbe g-one speed. I am running 700x30c and am amazed at the comfort with lower tire psi, how incredibly fast they roll, and the confidence in cornering/braking and traction. They are not the longest wearing tires, but its worth the tradeoff with its benefits if your bike will accommodate 30c tires.

I like fiddling with my bikes so tubeless is awesome for me. Its not hard to do yourself and takes very little maintenance but if you rely on a bike shop for all your work, unless you find a good set up out of the gate, it may get a little frustrating.

embrace tubeless! get a plug system for repairs and always keep a spare tube and pump with you. It is not recommended to use C02 with tubeless sealant.

Atlas Shrugged

+1 - G-One Speed 700-30c
+1 - Dynaplug

dkatz1

I do like the softer ride...

86az135i

Uh....sounds like you either have the worst luck, equipment issues, or might be having operator error issues.

In my experience, the only trouble I had was trying to use gorilla tape. The perforations leak air. Once I got a dedicated rim tape (DT Swiss, also used DT Swiss valve stems) everything was great. I had a tubeless wheel and bought some tubeless tires. The things held air even without sealant and weren't too bad getting on and off.

It definitely works. I've pulled out a few goatheads after a ride that would have left me needing to change the tube. I still carry a tube just in case.

TiHabanero

From a performance perspective, tubeless is the best option out there. Lower rolling resistance than tubulars, and certainly lower than a tube/tire combo. As a luddite, there is no need for them in my world. Have not had a flat in years with the conventional tube/tire combo. Running Conti's cheapo $20 tire in 28mm. Nothing special, no liners, etc. dirt roads, crap on the side of the road, etc. Just don't have problems and I weigh 235lbs. If I lived in goathead country, for sure tubeless would be on my bikes.

jlockwood98

I'm in this camp as well. I can count on one hand the number of road flats I've gotten in the past ten years. Fixing an isolated flat once every three years isn't enough motivation for me to justify trying tubeless on my road bike.

I do run tubeless on my mountain and gravel bikes. I carry spare tubes as well as a plug kit. The only two tire issues I've had off-road over the past many years were 2 mtb flats where I got large gashes in the sidewall of 120 tpi tires. Had to use a tube and a Clif Bar wrapper as a boot to get going - too big to plug. I stopped using 120 tpi mtb tires.

Teamprovicycle

If you use dyna plugs you need to get the bicycle version, and.once you poke it through you destroy the tire , and if it still doesn't seal you.will still have to patch from the inside .