deepakvrao

Yes, crazy. If I order 400 dollar wheels, shipping will be about 100 dollars, then 250 dollars duty. You might also want to factor in that the dollar converted to our local currency is not cheap either. 1000 dollars a month is considered a very good wage. It's what an average software engineer would make.

This is not whining, but kind of trying to make others aware of the situation.

Anyway, if you can share a link for the Ultegra's I'd like to look at them. My daughter is going to study in the US, so I have a courier for 4 years :-)

Nope. Velocity is imported by a local cyclist who got into the business and sold locally. Probably under invoiced etc to save on duty. Anyway, I thought Velocity is a US based company?

chaadster

You gotta pay to play wherever you are, but being able to afford the very best in any category, whether bike tires or cars or whatever, is the realm of only a few, and it doesn't make sense to complain about not being able to afford something like that.

chaadster

I see, thank you.

Velocity was originally started in Oz, and only came fully to the USA in '12, so I thought there may still be some Austrialia subsidiary, ownership status, or maybe licensing loophole which was being exploited, but apparently not.

Hiro11

I agree with this. The vast majority of the time, when someone on the internet complains about the trickiness of their tubeless setup, you find out that they're using non-tubeless rim and tires and some kind of tape they found at Home Depot. They're then shocked and annoyed that it didn't work well. I've used four tubeless setups over the years. I half-assed the first setup (as you say) by using a non-tubeless specific rim. I had endless issues, it just never worked 100%. I then shifted to all tubeless-specific setups and have had zero issue with setup since. Yes, it costs a bit more but we're talking an amount of money comparable to what lots of people spend that on coffee every week.

Whadya know: using something as it was actually designed produces better results.

dvdslw

For the money, the Ultegra's are hard to beat. I rode my 6700's for two years and never had an issue even with their low spoke count and my 225lb weight. Here's a link for crc, free shipping to the US Shimano Ultegra 6800 Road Wheelset | Chain Reaction Cycles

deepakvrao

Wow, that's a steal. I was just about to order 2 wheel build kits from Taiwan to the US for the new Titanium bikes that I have as an ongoing build project [a long 1 year project by the looks of it].

I was about to say low spoke count, and then re read what you said. We have some bad stretches of road, but my wife is 110 and I am 155 pounds, so I hope these will hold up.

Sheesh, what the heck to do with the 66 yard roll of Stan's that I just got?

The current a23s make my 25mm Pro Ones measure 28mm. Would the rim width here make a big difference? Should I maybe order 28mm tyres for these rims? I have loved the ride after switching from 23mm clinchers to these 'effective' 28mm tyres.

Lastly, what tubeless tyres had you been using with this set up?

Thanks for the pointer to these wheels

dvdslw

You are welcome, and don't worry at all about the lower spoke count on these wheels, at my weight I rode these wheels over curbs, pot holes, etc..., they are still as true as the day I bought them. Yes, the only down side is their width but I just looked up the A23's and they appear to have an 18mm internal rim with where the Utegra's are 17mm so the difference should be minimal loosing only 1mm.

As far as which tubeless tires I tried, I used the Hutchinson Fusion 3's in both 23mm and 25mm, along with the original Schwalbe One's in both 23mm and 25mm. I seem to like the ride of a smaller tire as opposed to a larger tire, not sure why because the concensus these days seems to be that a larger volume tire is better but I will tell you that the 25's had a much softer feel compared to the 23's. The Fusion 3's were indestructible and I never had a problem with them, ever. The original One's (not the pro one's) were a much faster tire in comparison to the Fusion's but they didn't last long and they rode so good it didn't stop me from buying another set.

I'll say it again, for $300 you'd be hard pressed to find a better value in a road wheel especially a set that gives you an almost foolproof tubeless experience with the Ultegra's rim design. I think you'll find the Ultegra's along with the Pro One 25mm tires a pretty sweet riding setup.

Not to throw a wrench in your plan but but for slightly more cash, here's another wheelset worth taking a look at if you want a little bit of depth to go with your tubeless? While I have no personal experience with these wheels, the Shimano RS81 C35TL's are almost identical to the Ultegra's but also have a carbon fairing attached just like the Dura Ace C35's. These wheels caught my eye as a budget option when I was first looking to go deep and I'm sure they perform every bit as good as the Ultegra's. If you do shop around for them online, be sure that they have the *TL* after the C35 and NOT a *CL* because they were offered as a standard clincher version as well. Shimano RS81 C35TL's https://www.bike-discount.de/en/buy/s...bon-alu-213587

deepakvrao

So, resurrecting an old thread.

I finally got the hang of tubeless, and have not had to remove a wheel even once in almost four years of using tubeless. That's for me and wife, so I would estimate about 70,000kms.

One of the missing pieces was dynaplugs. Have saved me a couple of times when sealant did not work. I've stopped carrying tubes totally.

I got some wheels from BDOP, and some carbon wheels from Light Bicycle. All set up tubeless with some 'alternative' tape from amazon. Using Stans race and Orange sealants. Schwalbe Pro Ones and GP5000s as the tyres.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

deepakvrao

Also, on a side note, since we were discussing import duties of India. It is now 90%, and thanks to covid, travel is out of the question. Totally screwed for cycling stuff.

Sy Reene

Those are some long lasting tires! Somewhere in the neighborhood of 20k+ miles?

deepakvrao

Hehehe, I should have mentioned it as 'not have had to remove the wheels on a ride'....

MattTheHat 

My experience hasn’t been anywhere near as lengthy as the OP. I just put the tire on. I don’t retape. I do wipe the rim down with a paper towel to remove any old sealant goo. I’m not sure it’s really necessary. The time that it takes to wipe the rim off and pour in sealant Is about the same as I’d spent poking the tube into place.

It’s entirely possible that the wheel set has a lot to do with it too. Slight differences in rim profile probably affect how we’ll tape lays down and how a given tire fits. My Roval C38 wheels came pre-taped with factory tape that seems much tougher than Stan’s and hasn’t needed to be replaced so far.

WhyFi

You're responding to a snarky, not-at-all-thought-out, 4-year-old comment.

MattTheHat 

You are correct. A thread, that like me, other people will read.

And apparently my snark-o-meter isn’t fully functional why I first wake up. Guilty.

Aladin

Tube-ass... no one has valve leaking issues? That has been my issue.. slow leaking. Think due to refilling valve and subsequent toggling of valve hence loosening. I run narrow Kinlin 200's which means bead to valve clearance is close... usually have to push the valve up during mounting and then seat again.

No SEAL-nots for me. F the drying out routine.... I lack the intrinsic sense of when the sh*t is dry. Been high and dry due to seal-nots.. I carry the worms and CO2.

To those considering tubeass.. the boys pecking at this lack of inner 'condomes' are making some very salient points. Is tubeass worth the grief... ? Only IMO in one regard----> the ability to run near flat and get home. Done this couple times.. say 10 psi when entering the garage. Nice in cold weather in that regard.

Org sealnot.... of late JUNK. Last bottle did not produce... so so seals and dryed easily. Purchased last summer and used then.

Got gallon of Berryman ... appears to be JUNK also. Does not flow.

The many use Stan's Race I guess.... be interested in what is actually working of late... not drying out so quickly.

WhyFi

I admire the willingness to rebut idiocy, but pace yourself - there's too many opportunities here and you'll burn yourself out.

Aladin

MattTheHat 

That cracked me up!

sfrider 

Who takes a tire off to top off the sealant level??? My tires don't come off until it's time to replace them!

Atlas Shrugged

I have been running tubeless for a few years with good success but had a solid learning cure as well with a few disasters. Removing stem core while there was still some pressure in the tire was a sight to behold. It was a orange seal volcano! Just mounted a pair of Specialized Trigger Pro tires on a DT Swiss rim and it was crazy easy. Tire could be removed and installed without a tool, standard floor pump seated the tire, tire stayed seated while core was removed and sealant added. The systems seem to be getting better every day.

shelbyfv

Wow, I know this hurts! You've gone to lots of trouble through the years to avoid those import duties.

Tom L

I found out last week after having to change the tire on my road bike, that an old tooth brush, in the kitchen sink with water running on the rim
did a great job removing the old sealant from the inside of the rims, getting rid of the old sealant really quick and easy