Tubeless vs Tube(merged/sticky)

I tried this for a while. I used a syringe and a big ass hypodermic needle (the kind they use for epidurals) and I would inject Stans into the tube....the Stans would seal up the hole just fine.

But it was not worth the hassle......first, its actually pretty difficult to score a needle (you can't just buy it at Rite Aid). Second, you never knew how much sealant you had left in the tube. And the needles and/or syringe would always clog up, no matter how carefully I cleaned them......

also, i think Stans needs to be exposed to the air in order to dry and seal a puncture.....some of my punctures would not seal and I think it was because sealant would get trapped between the tube and the tire and would remain in a liquid state..

 

Tire pressure?

What is the lowest tire pressure you run in a tubeless tire? I'm concerned about damaging a rim now. I saw maximum pressure of 58 on my continental mountain king 2.2. Any recommendation?

I'm a tubeless newbie.

 

How much do you weigh? How aggressive of a rider are you? What trails do you ride? Are these true UST tires or regular tires converted with sealant? What rims are you using? All these factors will contribute to your actual riding pressure. The thicker/stiffer the sidewall on the tires are, the lower the pressures you can run.

As a point of reference, I am 135lbs (~160lbs in regular riding gear). I ride somewhat aggressively through pretty rocky terrain. My favorite trails are up in the San Gabriels like The Merrils, Sunset and El Prieto. The tires on my do it all bike are Maxxis Minion 2.5" up front and Maxxis High Roller 2.35" in the rear. Both are true UST tires. I run the front at ~21lbs and the rear at ~23lbs. The rims are Stan's Arches. On my DH rig up in Mammoth I use use Michelin DH32 2.8" up front and Michelin DH24 2.5" in the back. They are mounted on Stan's Flow rims and I lower the pressures to about 18lbs/20lbs F/R. I have never dinged/flat spotted a rim nor have I burped a tire.

 

More data: I tip the scales at just under 200, sans gear. I run Specialized S-Works The Captains juiced up with Stan's.

I run 34 psi in the back and 29 psi in the front without problems.

In the past, I've experimented with lower pressures. 30 in the back got me a dinged rim (and no air loss) while slamming my way through a rather rough rock garden, and 27.5 in the front can burp while stopping hard enough to nose stands in firm sand.

 

I weigh less than 200 lbs and not an aggressive rider at all. I just like to roll over stuff. My continental mountain kings tires are 2.2's UST tires and I use Mavic SLR UST disc rims.

It's unbelievable how low your run your tire pressure! That sounds like fun going down!!!

What size tire do you run? My Continental Mountain King 2.2's appear under sized. I think I'll start with this set up.

 

I once had my pressure at less than 20psi... I could hear my rim "ping" when it hits a rock then I got caught in a rut and it pulled my tire in and let all air out #-o so now I'm back to 25f +/- 2psi and 30r +/- 2psi... setup with outlaws and Maxxis high roller 2.5f and minnion dhr 2.35r, I weigh 175lbs no gear

 

2.0, Charles.

 

Is it common for people to run lower than 30 psi with tubeless tires? How do you repair tire punctures?

 

1. Yes.

2. Tire punctures are supposed to fix themselves if you're running Stan's and maintain your tires properly. If it doesn't fix itself, that's why you have a spare tube in your Camelback.

 

When it comes time to "do the switch" and go tubeless (particularly w/Stan's), I think the key is to hook up with a buddy who is allready "tubeless literate" and flaten the learning curve. I would have saved myself hours of frustration if I had done that.

Now I would hate to go back to tubes.

 

Just wanted to add that Competitive Cyclist has an excellent "Tubeless 101" page on their site, complete with videos. For anyone new or curious about going tubeless, it's a great place to start.

 

Tubeless Tire Question

I feel simple for asking, however, if I run tubeless tires, do I need a special rim, and, what happens if I get a flat? Do I carry an x-tra tire?

 

Checkout the workshop forum

 

Standard rim, special rim strip, sealant. Carry a tube in case of emergency.

Or you can use a UST rim and UST tire.

 

OR standard rim, ghetto tubeless set-up with sealant.

I am running ghetto tubeless with a UST tire on non-UST rims and it works great.

... and +1 on carrying the extra tube.
... and +1 on checking out the workshop forum.

 

AGREED No crap here.

 

MB Action?

 

Tubeless Rim Recommendation

I need to replace the rims and feel it is time to finally make the tubelesss plunge. I've done a lot of research and feel certain I will run "regular" tires with Stans sealant as opposed to a UST set up. Which rims would you recommend? I ride a Blur LT2 aggressive, all-mountain style and weigh approx 180 lbs. I'm not a "weight weenie" but I like to keep my ride as light as possible without compromising structural integrity. I'm inclinded to go with Stan's rims but I'm unclear which version. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

 

If you want to stick with Stan's rims then I'd recommend the Flows for strength or the Arch if you want lighter weight. If you want a stronger rim and don't fret over the weight penalty then I'd recommend the Mavic XM819 rims.

Just for reference, I am about 160lbs with pack and ride fairly aggressively on a Foes FXR without problems on the Arch rims. I run Maxxis Minion DHF 2.5" UST at 22psi up front and Maxxis High Roller 2.35" UST at 20psi in the back. I've repeated dropped 6' to relatively flat rocky landings with nary a problem. I also plow through rock gardens with the grace of a rampaging bull. YMMV

 

I ride a 650B ZTR355 on my front and weigh a buck fifty.
The bikes are rigid and generally the rim holds up.

I just managed to bang up my rim on the ride down from Old Camp and that was because I had put a tube in and it was leaking slowly. I lost control on the downhill as the air leaked form the tube and I hit a big rock pretty hard and managed to bust a spoke and push the rim out of true.