Show off your Mountain Bike!!!

An air compressor helps, as do removable core valve stems.

Be sure to slosh the sealant back and forth thoroughly with the wheel held horizontally so the bead gets covered with sealant all the way around

 

Good luck! Be patient with them. Getting the bead to seat can sometimes be a pain. Pump them up to 50-60 psi and bounce them around to splash sealant all over and push it into any gaps. You will never go back to tubes.

 

Latest resurrection project...2009 Fuji Reveal 2.0. Got frameset from FS thread here and spec'd it up with full XT / Raceface / WTB / Avid............shakedown cruise pics, flawless performance. Lovin the 5" of plush and the 2.35's................bike #18.

 

all went well today, took them to a local gas station for an air compressor lol. front tire went on in a second, the back wouldnt seat so i used something i had read about for offroading if you loose a bead. You wrap a ratchet strap around the tire semi tightly(i only had some rope so made it work) then when you start inflating the bead should seat and you release the strap/rope and it inflates. I was a little nervous it wouldnt work but it popped it right on, was kinda cool.

I sloshed thoroughly and they are holding air well, took it for a spin around the neighborhood and nothing went catastrophically wrong, will check in the morning and take it for a quick morning ride before work. Very excited!

 

What is the point of going tubeless? And how do you re-seat the bead if you get a flat?

 

Less flats (no pinch flats)
less weight
less rolling resistance
ability to run lower psi so softer ride
no expensive tubes

and if you get a flat on the trail you just toss a tube in it till you get home

 

All that, and the lower psi and lack of tube makes the tire more compliant, so you get much better traction. Also, less rotational weight, so your suspension can be more responsive. Basically more control all the way around. I had more flats with tubes than I have ever had with tubeless. At one point the back tire on my Sawyer had like 7 places where it had been punctured but the sealant had done its job and I never even knew. I did slash a sidewall on Flint Quarry, but that would have trashed any tire, tubeless or not.

On another note, I took the new Stache out for its first ride this evening (setup tubeless running 17psi, 3 inch tires on 50mm rims). All I can say is WOW. So much fun, and hard to describe. Kind of feels like cheating, it just runs over everything. I didn't feel that much faster, but based on my Garmin data, about 0.5 mph faster average speed, and I was just playing around having fun. That's on a trail that is still drying, with several slime-covered rock sections compared to previous dry runs. Railed through switchbacks and popped off of small rock features like a BMX bike. Just kinda weird for what the bike is. Lots of hate going around about the new Boost "standard," but I think Trek's Project Weird has come up with something.

 

Tubeless saves weight and the tire is puncture resistant.

 

I have friends that have gone tubeless and have told me they couldn't even tell a difference in weight / handling. Are they crazy?

 

I am not qualified to comment on their sanity. If they were running higher pressures with tubes and continue to run that pressure, they probably won't notice much. I used to have to run 35 to 40 psi to keep from flatting with tubes. I run 30 rear and 28 front now and could probably go less, and I do notice a difference.

 

I've thought about going tubeless, if nothing other than less flats and not buying tubes. I just think it's funny people are like "save weight!" what does a tube weigh? half a pound each? Maybe there's more physics involved that I'm not smart enough to understand

 

Too much rotating weight and the bike just flys off in all directions............

 

I felt my wheels noticably lighter but where i most noticed it this morning on the first ride was the softer ride and more traction in the tight turns

 

On my 29mm (inner width) rims, I can run 27 in the front and 29 in the rear with tubes. Zero flats in 900+ miles this season. I ran tubeless last season on a different bike, to be honest, I don't know if I'll go back. Running 22-24 psi tubeless, I was hitting the rims on rocks through the tire, and it was unpredictable and squirrely. Also, in reality, by the time you add tape/valves/sealant, you really are not saving any noticeable weight.

 

You dudes running that low of pressure must all weigh less than 150 lbs. I never run less than 50 psi or so or it feels like I already have a flat. I may lower it 5 psi if riding in soft or wet stuff but I weigh 200 so no 20 somethin psi in mine. That would = pinch flat festival and/or bent rims and the rolling resistance would make it seem like the bike was carrying around another extra 50 lbs besides the extra 50 it seems I have on folks running that low of pressure.

 

I wish I was at 200lbs. Haha, I'm 235lbs. No idea what the psi is in my tires atm.

 

I'm 170lbs. I haven't run 50 psi since I had 17mm rims and 26x1.9 tires. The newer technology like 29x2.3 with 29mm wide rims allows for much less tire pressure and a much better ride quality.

 

I'm 195, and rider weight is one factor, but like Rob mentioned, tire diameter and width will also affect how low you can go. The higher the volume, the lower psi you can likely run. But 50 is way too high even on 26x2.0 with a 200 lb. rider! No more than 40 (with tubes) is necessary. You shouldn't notice a difference in rolling resistance, but then again, until you go down to about 35 you may not notice a difference in traction. What works without flatting also depends on the trails your ride (lots of square edges/rocks, or smooth hardpack) and your riding style (do you ride lightly, or very aggressively?).

Rotational weight, even on a 29er, really only comes into play at higher speeds. The bike will want to continue straight and fight your effort to turn a little bit (the wheels are like a gyroscope). I did feel this on the Stache with 29x3.0 tires, but never really noticed it before, so for most people it is not a big deal. Ditching tubes will cut overall bike weight down about 3-4% more or less. That's not a bad statistic, but at nearly 200 lbs. I have other weight items that will make a bigger difference.

For me, it's really not the weight, it's the reliability and traction. First you have to pick the right tire, though.

 

Ride quality is covered by my fork and rr shock. I still wouldn't roll that low because cornering would be all wavy or weird feeling. All of my bikes aren't vintage, granted most of them are gettin that way but even on my 2014 29er I have tried messing with pressures and just don't prefer it that low.

 

Is that Buff Creek?