Bitten by Tubeless
#26
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I just grabbed my Varia to charge it after my 69 (giggidy) mile ride. I noticed a bit of schmutz on it. Checked my rear tire - yup, a little more than 10 psi lower than when I set out this morning. This is pretty much my typical tubeless experience.
#27
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Does anyone put sealant inside their tubes? I was wondering about this yesterday when I took a valve core out of a spare to give it to the kid, who needed it for his high-maintenance tubeless setup. (Why do they have removable valve cores in tubes?)
Apart from having 100 ml of fluid sloshing around, would there be any disadvantage to putting sealant in tubes?
Apart from having 100 ml of fluid sloshing around, would there be any disadvantage to putting sealant in tubes?
Living in MI now, I rarely get flats and have certainly spent more time at home messing with getting tubeless to work than I have spent fixing flats. I'd love a tubeless setup that I could run without sealant, but they all seem to require some glue to seal up enough to be ride-worthy.
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No flats in 2019(over 10k miles), and the ride is fast/smooth.
#29
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My personal opinions about tubeless, having in excess of 40k miles sans-tubes:
Do you get a lot of puncture flats? Like more than 1-2 a month?
Do you ride a lot of miles, like more than 100 miles a week, and answered yes to question 1?
Then tubeless is absolutely for you. Otherwise, maybe not. Barring tires like Hardshells, I would get flats every 6 days or so. I live in the unofficial goathead and bottle glass capital of the world. So tubeless, absolutely.
Am I happy about things like rim tape and the cost of tubeless tires? Umm, no. But I had exactly two flats in 2019-- over 10k miles-- and both resulted in the total loss of the tire.
Do you get a lot of puncture flats? Like more than 1-2 a month?
Do you ride a lot of miles, like more than 100 miles a week, and answered yes to question 1?
Then tubeless is absolutely for you. Otherwise, maybe not. Barring tires like Hardshells, I would get flats every 6 days or so. I live in the unofficial goathead and bottle glass capital of the world. So tubeless, absolutely.
Am I happy about things like rim tape and the cost of tubeless tires? Umm, no. But I had exactly two flats in 2019-- over 10k miles-- and both resulted in the total loss of the tire.
But I do agree that it's going to be situational.
I've been using the both the Schwalbe Pro 1 and the G-1 speeds on my gravel bike. Both tires feel much better without a tube, more supple. The G-1 speeds feel like I was driving a truck with tubes. When I set them up tubeless, felt noticeably better. That said, I was paying a lot more attention to inflation pressure after the change to tubeless but I wasn't far enough off before to matter that much.
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#30
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Looking through the offerings from various online retailers I find road tubeless tyres to be an expensive proposition and then there is the sealant, and new rims. - All to solve issues that are largely self imposed by running too thin and fragile race day tyres, all the time. The other solution is to stop fussing over 100g and a few watt rolling resistance and run less fragile tubed tyres at 1/2 the price and 2x the longevity. At least wile training. The likelihood of having a big gash like OPs instant flat is greatly reduced too.
Mind you, I used to get a lot of flats running cheap training tyres that couldn't resist sharp flints. From that perspective tubeless was tempting, but price made me try out different other tubed tyres before taking the plunge. Im glad I did. Since getting tyres with a kevlar belt i have had exactly one flat. Currently running both the lifeline prime race and amour. I see no reason to move on to expensive TL tyres and the associated faff, to solve an issue that is already solved.
Mind you, I used to get a lot of flats running cheap training tyres that couldn't resist sharp flints. From that perspective tubeless was tempting, but price made me try out different other tubed tyres before taking the plunge. Im glad I did. Since getting tyres with a kevlar belt i have had exactly one flat. Currently running both the lifeline prime race and amour. I see no reason to move on to expensive TL tyres and the associated faff, to solve an issue that is already solved.
Last edited by Racing Dan; 12-28-19 at 04:38 AM.
#31
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I can only go by my experience with my Mavic Ksyrium Elite USTs. And, that's been one season. However, the tubeless replace some Mavic Aksiums that came on my new CAAD 12. They are lighter, smoother, more comfortable and easier to spin up. I've had zero problems with set up or use. And, at about $400 a set w/tires they are a killer deal. I'm not going back.
#32
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It depends greatly not just on frequency but nature of the flat. Her previous flat was a 3” nail that ripped a half-inch hole in her tire and put an extra smoke hole in her rim. Luckily it ONLY hit the bed of her Knot64 and the rim survived, but as it was barely at the halfway point of a large loop (of course) we had to risk going back on a boot, which barely held.
Tubeless has mostly not taken off in the tri geek community, even among those like me who experimented.
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Funny thing is that’s my latex tube experience as well. Butyl dies the instant it’s compromised. Earlier this year I went to check AG’s tires the day after a ride. Rear was dead. Pulled out the construction staple, easy clean tube change, done. The latex held pressure enough that the ride was finished without noticing
It depends greatly not just on frequency but nature of the flat. Her previous flat was a 3” nail that ripped a half-inch hole in her tire and put an extra smoke hole in her rim. Luckily it ONLY hit the bed of her Knot64 and the rim survived, but as it was barely at the halfway point of a large loop (of course) we had to risk going back on a boot, which barely held.
Tubeless has mostly not taken off in the tri geek community, even among those like me who experimented.
It depends greatly not just on frequency but nature of the flat. Her previous flat was a 3” nail that ripped a half-inch hole in her tire and put an extra smoke hole in her rim. Luckily it ONLY hit the bed of her Knot64 and the rim survived, but as it was barely at the halfway point of a large loop (of course) we had to risk going back on a boot, which barely held.
Tubeless has mostly not taken off in the tri geek community, even among those like me who experimented.
As far as the tri community, I was just read an article the other day about the adoption rate and how it differs between the pro and amateur ranks - the author compared it to wet suit use years back. Anyway, he says that, at the least, the top men are moving towards it.
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Count me out on tubeless, road or otherwise. There just isn't any part of them that interests me. I repair motorcycles and change tires; anyone who brings me a tire job with sealant in them is headed right back out the door.
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#36
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I rode the desert trails for 8 years in the North Valley there with only one flat tire. Still, these trails offer plenty of opportunity for snake-bites (both kinds).
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My personal opinions about tubeless, having in excess of 40k miles sans-tubes:
Do you get a lot of puncture flats? Like more than 1-2 a month?
Do you ride a lot of miles, like more than 100 miles a week, and answered yes to question 1?
Then tubeless is absolutely for you. Otherwise, maybe not. Barring tires like Hardshells, I would get flats every 6 days or so. I live in the unofficial goathead and bottle glass capital of the world. So tubeless, absolutely.
Am I happy about things like rim tape and the cost of tubeless tires? Umm, no. But I had exactly two flats in 2019-- over 10k miles-- and both resulted in the total loss of the tire.
Do you get a lot of puncture flats? Like more than 1-2 a month?
Do you ride a lot of miles, like more than 100 miles a week, and answered yes to question 1?
Then tubeless is absolutely for you. Otherwise, maybe not. Barring tires like Hardshells, I would get flats every 6 days or so. I live in the unofficial goathead and bottle glass capital of the world. So tubeless, absolutely.
Am I happy about things like rim tape and the cost of tubeless tires? Umm, no. But I had exactly two flats in 2019-- over 10k miles-- and both resulted in the total loss of the tire.
Ben
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I got stranded with a flat on tubeless because I couldn't figure out how to remove enough of the tire to insert a tube. Now that I understand what to do, I'm still nervous it'll happen again. As odd as it sounds, I don't notice much of a difference vs. clinchers.
Sometimes instead, I wish that I bought tubular wheels because I know for certain how to perform a roadside swap, and tubulars have a much more distinctive lightweight feel than tubeless.
Sometimes instead, I wish that I bought tubular wheels because I know for certain how to perform a roadside swap, and tubulars have a much more distinctive lightweight feel than tubeless.
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#41
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I'm still laughing about that.
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Ben
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road (high pressure, 23 or 25C): tubes
MTB: tubeless
track and TT: tubular
MTB: tubeless
track and TT: tubular
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#45
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Question for the tubeless owners that ride a lot and would have flatted a lot with conventional tires and tubes. I assume that the debris that would have flatted conventional tires is embedded in your tubeless tires. Obviously, the tire casing is compromised. Do you try to identity and remove debris such as glass?
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Question for the tubeless owners that ride a lot and would have flatted a lot with conventional tires and tubes. I assume that the debris that would have flatted conventional tires is embedded in your tubeless tires. Obviously, the tire casing is compromised. Do you try to identity and remove debris such as glass?
11k miles on road tubeless this year, and I haven't flatted yet.The tires might be a little more expensive, but not buying tubes or CO2, saves more than the difference in cost.
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#48
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Question for the tubeless owners that ride a lot and would have flatted a lot with conventional tires and tubes. I assume that the debris that would have flatted conventional tires is embedded in your tubeless tires. Obviously, the tire casing is compromised. Do you try to identity and remove debris such as glass?
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