All Things Bikes and Tacos! (...and every vehicle imaginable)

Finally joining the Mountain Bike World! Picked up a 2019 Stumpjumper ST 29er.

 

For your first MTB? Nice. My brother has and older stumpy and he loves it.

 

Hello, friendo! I've been lurking to find somebody with JUST this setup! This may sound weird but, along the same lines as @Erklsim, is there a chance you can drop a couple of pics with the bike in the rack? Perhaps point out the slight issues you mention and contact points? I've been looking for an easier way to load the bike up than installing my cheap hitch rack, strapping the bike up, wrapping the bungee cords and THEN going, LOL.

Now... a question for all of you... Let's talk tubeless. I'm losing my mind swapping tubes (six tubes from the beginning of March to now) but scared to go tubeless for a couple of reasons.
Reasons it's scary
A. It looks messy. Yuck!
2. With how many flats I've had over the last month alone, am I in for new tires before I can even think about it? At this point it's riddled with little holes. *Note* all of the flats have been due to big ass thorns, so small-ish punctures, no snake bites from what I can tell.

Thoughts?

A pic! I've been riding and it's fun af!

 

Yeah I got you. Probably won't be until at least tomorrow though since we're going out of town for the weekend. As for tubeless it does ride nice and you can run lower pressures but depending on the casing they aren't as impervious to flats as some claim. It should seal pokes from thorns but I've still gotten pinch flats from ill-advised line choice. Nice thing is you can carry plugs and a co2 shot and be good to go. I still carry a tube strapped to the top tube just in case anyways.

 

Here’s my method for tubeless... it’s detailed but has been successful for the last 5 years of riding and maintaining tubeless tires/wheels across multiple bikes.

Setting up tubeless and getting it to work consistently is all in the prep and attention to the little details. I currently have four bikes; road, CX/Gravel, two MTBs, and 7 sets of wheels that are used between them. All are set up tubeless, all are performing as they should, and have done so for 3-4 years now. All my tires and rims are designed for tubeless use.

Many problems I've troubleshot with local friends/riders were on setups never designed for tubeless. Can it be done... sometimes; is it recommended, not really, as your tire connection to the riding surface is kind of critical to safety.

Using proper rim tape, at the proper width is key to set up. You want it to be wide enough to cover the spoke holes, but not so wide that it interferes with seating the bead. Gorilla tape works excellent but you take a slight hit to weight vs. dedicated rim tapes. I've used Stan's tape, Pacenti, American Classic, and DT Swiss; with DT being preferred. When taping, I start about 2 inches on one side of the valve hole, then wrap at least twice and stop about 2 inches on the opposite side of the valve hole. I've never had a loss of air through the spoke holes with this method. Any air losses are almost always due to burps from landing too hard, or one freak time where I took a turn too fast and rolled the tire right off the bead.

Nearly all of my valves are Stan's, and I purchased a 10 pack of Vittoria valve cores to swap out when they clog. They can be cleaned but it's tedious work. I've tried TruckerCo, Vittoria, AmClassic, and a few others but the Stan's design with the coned rubber always seems to perform most consistently.

I set the beads with an air compressor and with no sealant in the tire before taking any further steps. I'll go back the next day to see if the bead is still set and the air is holding... most times it is, but there have been setups where I needed to address tape that was too wide, or valves that weren't tight enough. The tire, if tubeless-ready, should hold air at pressure without any sealant solution inside. I also seat the beads without the valve core installed. The air compressor chuck fits over the valve body just fine but you'll need to be quick with a thumb to cover the hole as soon as the bead is set and the tire is up to pressure., then quick again to plug the hole with the core and screw it in. With practice, there is an insignificant loss of pressure throughout this process.

If the tire/wheel holds air overnight without any sealant solution; I'll remove the valve core again, then using an Orange Seal bottle with hose over the valve body; add the requisite amount of solution. MTB tires get 4oz, CX/gravel tires get 3oz, and road gets 2oz. I use the valve body for fill because the bead is already set and I don't want to go through that process again. I then clean the valve body with a cotton swab, and re-install the valve core.

This is important, turn the wheel so that the valve is at the 12 o'clock position before adding any air. This ensures the sealant solution is at the bottom of the tire and you don't risk clogging the valve on the first fill. Make this a habit for all future air top-offs.

Once the tire is back up to pressure, hold it horizontally out in front of you and move the sealant solution around the bead of the tire for a minute or so, then flip the tire over and repeat for the other bead.

As for sealant, I've used Stan's, Slime, and Orange Seal with OS being my favorite. I found Stan's has some corrosive properties to it over extended periods, as well as getting the dreaded "stanimals" from the latex bunching up and drying. Slime stays in a liquid state the longest by a good margin but is much more dense than the other two so it carries a weight penalty, though it seals exceptionally well. Orange Seal is the happy medium. It remains in a liquid state the longest, has some glitter-flake in the solution to aid sealing, and doesn't tend to coagulate into large latex "boogers" like Stan's.

So, to summarize:

- Ensure tire and rim are tubeless-ready.
- Wrap tape sufficiently, but not so wide as to interfere with bead setting.
- Puncture the tape at the valve hole with a screwdriver that is slightly smaller in diameter to the valve body.
- Ensure the valve is adequately covering the hole and is tight to both the tape surface as well as the threaded ring on the outside of the rim ( I will often press my thumb against the valve rubber while I'm tightening the threaded retaining ring).
- Spray a little solution of dish soap and water all along the bead of the rim. This aids the tire to pop into the bead. Like 1Tsp per pint of water... It just needs a little help.
- Seat the bead and listen for the pings, then inspect all along the bead for even setting. There is a raised "ring" of rubber a few millimeters from the bead that provides a visual reference for correct distance. If that ring is trapped under the bead, or looks uneven in distance anywhere around the circumference; the bead is not correctly set. (This is the same method if you're using tubes).
- Read the specs on the sidewall of the tire to learn what the maximum pressures are for that specific tire. Manufacturers have set limits on maximum air pressure before it will blow off the bead. Check that the tire holds air without any sealant. I wait 24 hours.
- Add the sealant through the valve body and give it a quick swipe with a cotton swab or easy burst of air before re-installing the core. (keeps latex sealant from gumming up the valve core threads)
- Rotate the valve to the 12 o'clock position (tire vertical) and air up your tire to desired pressure.

My tires will lose a couple of psi between rides, and some setups will lose pressure at different rates, but none of them have lost the bead, or unseated the tire.

Is it a little involved, yes... but once set, it's unlikely you'll have to futz with it for months, at least until you decide to check the sealant levels/condition and/or top it off... even then, I usually only have to unseat the bead for a few inches at the opposite side of the valve to visually check and that's about every 6 months to annually.

If mounting an older tire that was previously used in a tubeless application; it's worth the time and effort to work around the tire bead to remove any dried latex that would interfere with bead setting. The same holds true for the bead seat in the rim wall. Dried or bunched latex hiding in there will interfere with bead seating and air retention.

I guess I could make a video to show some of these procedures and tips, but have my doubts it would have any value over what's already out there.

Sent from my PU-286 Explosive Space Modulator

 

As a total rookie... My line choice is closer to a bulldozer with no driver at max throttle... soooooooo, maybe some new tires (now the questions of casings and all this voodoo science comes to mind) would be a good idea prior to making the jump to tooooooobless. I'm a bigger guy so I still run my pressures a little higher than necessary, so maybe I'll be alright??? LOL! Much appreciated on any pics you can jam out whenever! Have a good trip!

Yoooooooo! Although a video would be awesome, I think this post about covers every question I had (aside from my personal model specs (wheel/tire combos etc... (DT Swiss M1900 spline and Maxxis High Roller II (apparently world's thinnest casings (came on the bike when I bought it(how many parenths was that?))))). Also, based on this wonderfully detailed method to getting it right on the first crack, I'd be assed out anyway on trying to bead seat with no sealant, as my front is swiss cheese now, so I'll likely start gathering parts from the recommended list you gave and, eventually, add new tires to the mix and do it all in one shot. This level of detail is awesome, dude! Thanks so much!

MORE PICS!


This is my life now...

LITERALLY the next day... I replaced it, went on a five mile ride and came home to this...

In other news... this is my buddy's bike after coming down a tiny TINY little bit of chunk on his "I wonder if I'll like riding bikes" bike. Poor guy keeps breaking it! It's at the LBS he got it from and they have a Trek rep coming in to check it out becuase they were confused (or didn't want to deal with him at the time).

 

Loving my GG The Smash so much. It’s stupid how this thing climbs for what it is.

 

My Cannondale Slate, what a fun bike!!

 

So what’s the most cost effective way to ship a bike these days, as in private selling via pinkbike, etc.?

The wife gave me the go-ahead to sell her bike, which has been ridden less than 100miles. Toying with the idea of selling mine as well to possibly get a new to me bike

 

www.bikeflights.com

 

2019 Kona Blast. Almost 100 miles on it since early february. First bike with disc brakes and an air fork. Loving it. Although both factory tubes have leaked at the valves. I think tubeless is in the near future for me.

 

Snow is starting to melt higher and higher...

 

Going tubeless is a no-brainer. Better traction, more reliable, less hassle. Setup is critical, and if you don't want to do it, get a shop to do it for you.
Sounds like you need a thicker casing as well. If sticking with Maxxis, look at DoubleDown. That shit is tough, but of course heavier than what you're running.
For reference your 2.4 HR2 are 915 g. and the DoubleDown version is 1065 g. in 2.3, or 1115 g. in 2.5. I'd stick to the 2.3 since your M1900s aren't really wide enough to run the 2.5. 150 g. might not be too noticeable, but again, not tubes so you're probably right about the same place you started.
Get the tires you want, tape, sealant (bigger bottle since you need to top it off every 250 miles'ish). I'd suggest looking at Minion DHF up front, and Aggressor out back for your type of rides.

 

Here’s my new whip, a used Trek Emonda. I stole this immaculate bike. $350.00 OTD from my cousins pawn shop.

 

Another mtb training day.

 

Broke out the Trans Am for a hardtail party today, complete with chamber of commerce weather!

 

Thank you. I've posted in here a few times but relatively new in this thread. I'm just recovering from prostrate surgery and have just gotten back on my bike (Diamondback Hybrid) and this beauty shows up at a price I can't pass on. I'm trying to get back in some type of shape as I'm doing the Bo (Jackson) Bikes Bama charity ride at the end of this month. 60 miles with only just over 1,000 ft. of elevation should be an easy task.

 

Here's my other ride. Cost was about a kidney but the ride is priceless. 2018 Giant Trance Advanced 1 Carbon

 

This afternoon.

Waiting on front rail to arrive. Meanwhile mounted to side rails.

 

Honestly packing it well in a bike box from a LBS and sending it insured through UPS is like $120 in the continental US. I’m sure there may be cheaper options but the ease and infrastructure makes it my go-to method every time.