Author Topic: To go tubeless or stay tubed. (Read 26985 times)

L CC · « **Reply #200 on:** 16 May, 2021, 09:32:35 am »

Sticking some anecdata in here..

I had a hole that wouldn't seal. Glass-strewn cycle path in Gateshead. Plugged it. Didn't have the right glasses on, couldn't see properly. Re-plugged at home. Seemed OK. Didn't hold pressure overnight - time to GAMI. Shop topped up sealant, all good, but recommended a service (hmm, income generation, surely not) and said if I was planning on 'events' rather than just riding, perhaps changing the tyres would be prudent. Recommended Spesh Roubaix.
Service duly booked, bike not ready to collect 24 hours later.. Tyres not holding air. "we've had this before with these tyres" WTF, why did you recommend them then...!
Anyway, they don't want to send it home till it spends a night without a massive pressure drop. I guess if I was DIY I'd do as recommended upthread and take it for a ride to settle the sealant in, and they're not likely to do that given that the grease monkeys are big 6 foot blokes and the bike is XS.

TimC · « **Reply #201 on:** 16 May, 2021, 01:00:14 pm »

Can't they stick the wheels in another frame for a settling-in ride? I had to do a ride on new Schwalbe Pro Ones to get them to seal properly (Hunt rims). They were fine after that, but they wouldn't hold air until then.

zigzag · « **Reply #202 on:** 16 May, 2021, 01:02:34 pm »

i would ask how much sealant they've put in and if they sloshed it around properly. if the whole internal surface is covered with sealant, air leaking should stop. (there are some "tubeless" tyres that leak no matter what, but afaik roubaix are not one of them)

jiberjaber · « **Reply #203 on:** 16 May, 2021, 04:56:54 pm »

Quote from: zigzag on 16 May, 2021, 01:02:34 pm

i would ask how much sealant they've put in and if they sloshed it around properly. if the whole internal surface is covered with sealant, air leaking should stop. (there are some "tubeless" tyres that leak no matter what, but afaik roubaix are not one of them)

This

Horizontal wobbly rotation both sides should get a decent coating all around. Shouldn't take a ride to sort. If it's not working after that then either needs more sealant or more likely the tape might be insufficient.

Davef · « **Reply #204 on:** 16 May, 2021, 07:42:23 pm »

My gut feeling is that the sealant does not stay distributed over the inner surface and runs down collecting at the bottom when the bike is not in use. Only when you are riding is it distributed. Of course that might be completely wrong, but like whether the light actually goes off when the fridge door closes, I will never know for sure.

jiberjaber · « **Reply #205 on:** 16 May, 2021, 08:43:42 pm »

Quote from: Davef on 16 May, 2021, 07:42:23 pm

My gut feeling is that the sealant does not stay distributed over the inner surface and runs down collecting at the bottom when the bike is not in use. Only when you are riding is it distributed. Of course that might be completely wrong, but like whether the light actually goes off when the fridge door closes, I will never know for sure.

Depends on the sealant. Caffé latex foams in movement for example whereas Stans doesn't. Some sealant needs shaking before putting in the tyre so the bits that help plug are distributed, try that with Cafe latex and it will be a bubbly mess when you try to decant

Most sealant will however pool when the bike has been stood for a while.

yoav · « **Reply #206 on:** 20 May, 2021, 07:28:41 pm »

Experienced my first puncture with new (to me) tubeless setup. I was riding on a gravelly path when I heard a loud ‘ping’ followed by a hiss. After about 10 seconds, the hissing stopped and that was it. No palpable softening of the tyre. I continued my ride uneventfully. Impressed, so far.

Hot Flatus · « **Reply #207 on:** 20 May, 2021, 07:56:12 pm »

I can't remember if I've posted this but...for when it is too big to seal one of these is worth the money:

https://www.westbrookcycles.co.uk/dynaplug-racer-tubeless-tyre-repair-kit-p342562/s632813?cid=GBP&gclid=Cj0KCQjwkZiFBhD9ARIsAGxFX8BVtSgaqGY-FvzRPf1d8elOMTim-YaQR36KFE_DRPUMJ1sKt97ZMzQaAmoFEALw_wcB

yoav · « **Reply #208 on:** 21 May, 2021, 08:42:24 am »

Thanks. I did actually buy one. The Stans version rather than that one.

L CC · « **Reply #209 on:** 21 May, 2021, 11:25:04 am »

I got this one- lives in the bar ends, lovely purple.

neilrj · « **Reply #210 on:** 21 May, 2021, 04:31:52 pm »

Quote from: fboab on 21 May, 2021, 11:25:04 am

I got this one- lives in the bar ends, lovely purple.

Want, link please!

L CC · « **Reply #211 on:** 21 May, 2021, 04:52:09 pm »

Bling

L CC · « **Reply #212 on:** 21 May, 2021, 06:37:09 pm »

Quote from: fboab on 16 May, 2021, 09:32:35 am

Sticking some anecdata in here..

I had a hole that wouldn't seal. Glass-strewn cycle path in Gateshead. Plugged it. Didn't have the right glasses on, couldn't see properly. Re-plugged at home. Seemed OK. Didn't hold pressure overnight - time to GAMI. Shop topped up sealant, all good, but recommended a service (hmm, income generation, surely not) and said if I was planning on 'events' rather than just riding, perhaps changing the tyres would be prudent. Recommended Spesh Roubaix.
Service duly booked, bike not ready to collect 24 hours later.. Tyres not holding air. "we've had this before with these tyres" WTF, why did you recommend them then...!
Anyway, they don't want to send it home till it spends a night without a massive pressure drop. I guess if I was DIY I'd do as recommended upthread and take it for a ride to settle the sealant in, and they're not likely to do that given that the grease monkeys are big 6 foot blokes and the bike is XS.

After another few days they phoned and said they reckon the tyres are faulty. They've put the old ones back on, no problem at all. Claim in to Specialized.

phantasmagoriana · « **Reply #213 on:** 21 May, 2021, 06:46:07 pm »

Quote from: neilrj on 21 May, 2021, 04:31:52 pm

Quote from: fboab on 21 May, 2021, 11:25:04 am
I got this one- lives in the bar ends, lovely purple.

Want, link please!

Damn. Now I'm going to have to go tubeless!

neilrj · « **Reply #214 on:** 21 May, 2021, 08:52:33 pm »

Quote from: fboab on 21 May, 2021, 04:52:09 pm

Bling

Shiny, oh and lots of other colours too, damn it's pretty, hell it might even work!

Why do I keep hearing "precious my precious"

Ordered, got 15% off through MO website to bring it down in price to just below others and with a (no doubt) tacky free gift, I just need tubeless on MY bike now though... No seriously I don't have tubeless! My SO does though so that's OK isn't it ;-)

Peat · « **Reply #215 on:** 27 May, 2021, 08:34:08 am »

Since my glowing testimony of tubelessness a month ago, I have had 2 major failures.

1x Sidewall cut (slate) and 1x flint gash in the tread. Neither were sealed by Stans Darts (though, i use Caffelatex sealant. Perhaps not quite the same properties as Stans?). Sidewall cut was fixed with one of my partners Dynaplugs and a goodly amount of vulcanising rubber cement. The tread gash was about 10mm long and was 'fixed' with the old fashioned worm type repair (doubled over for the width, again used rubber cement).

In both instances, the repairs took a few hours to eventually seal meaning many stops to top up the air.

I have lost confidence in the WTB Nano's i was using and have switched to a set of Panaracer GravelkingSK's that I have run before (tubed). A googling of WTB tyres gives ample evidence that the sidewalls are pretty weak. I found a similar trend with Schwalbe tyres on my MTB and have moved away from the brand as a result.

I won't be replacing my Stans Dart. Instead I now carry Dynaplugs.

In other news, I have bought a 24L compressor for the workshop. Makes mounting even the most stubborn rim/tyre combo an absolute breeze. I also think think that it seats them so firmly that when you do get a flat, the bead is less likely to pop off on it's own.

That's the post.

MartinC · « **Reply #216 on:** 27 May, 2021, 11:02:53 am »

I have to say I've found this thread really informative and useful. Any temptation I've had to try out tubeless has dissipated.

Hot Flatus · « **Reply #217 on:** 27 May, 2021, 11:06:49 am »

In 40 years of riding I've never had a sidewall gash.

Have I been exceptionally lucky, or are there other factors at play?

MartinC · « **Reply #218 on:** 27 May, 2021, 11:37:41 am »

Quote from: Hot Flatus on 27 May, 2021, 11:06:49 am

........Have I been exceptionally lucky, or are there other factors at play?

I think where and how you cycle and the tyres you use are the determinants. The last one I can remember was (a long time ago) when I was commuting on Pasela's and went over a broken bottle in an underpass. Now I don't use skinwall tyres on utility bikes, have better lights and keep an eye out for broken glass now so it hasn't happened again so far. But I'm certainly aware of the possibility.

L CC · « **Reply #219 on:** 27 May, 2021, 11:43:02 am »

I'm generally really unlucky, have 0 skillz and have never had a sidewall gash.

bobb · « **Reply #220 on:** 27 May, 2021, 12:15:54 pm »

Quote from: Hot Flatus on 27 May, 2021, 11:06:49 am

In 40 years of riding I've never had a sidewall gash.

Have I been exceptionally lucky, or are there other factors at play?

I've only had one on a road bike. No idea what caused it. I was on a 100 mile club run, but fortunately it happened after about 99 miles so I only had a short walk home!

I've had a few on MTB though, the worst being after I hit something very metal and very rusty buried in the woods. That was a walking job too - tyre was shredded...

Peat · « **Reply #221 on:** 27 May, 2021, 12:24:54 pm »

My theory on propensity for sidewall issues is down to the material used on the sidewalls.

Before my tubeless days, I would use GP4000s. They were bad for it. They used the soft compound 'black-chili' well over the shoulder and down the side. I feel like if the sidewall material is soft or textured (Schwalbe/WTB), it will be more likely to hold onto a passing foreign object instead of pinging it away.

I'm hopeful with the Gravelkings. They have a smooth & shiny sidewall. When i ran them tubed before, I did have a few flats from the odd thorn or tiny slither of flint, but it was always in the tread.

Andy W · « **Reply #222 on:** 31 May, 2021, 07:29:08 pm »

Front wheel puncture yesterday. About 3 mm long where the tread meets the sidewall it didn’t self seal and was completely deflated within 30 seconds. Attempted to repair with a tyre worm but to no avail. Inserted a tube and rode home. No great drama, I was cheesed off at getting sealant on my clothes but that’s it. I’m booked up to do LEJOG later in the year and am in a quandary as to whether to fit tubes and take spare tubes and a spare tyre or perhaps run tubeless and still carry spare tubes. We shan’t be cycling in the dark however, I’m concerned about a non fixable tubeless puncture and getting covered in sealant. On this thread the consensus seems 50/50. My inclination is to just use tubes as I’m confident re fixing them, both patching and replacing the tube. Do others embark on a tour tubeless?

Hot Flatus · « **Reply #223 on:** 31 May, 2021, 08:23:52 pm »

You seem to have inordinate bad luck.

Andy W · « **Reply #224 on:** 31 May, 2021, 08:38:13 pm »

Do I? A puncture doesn't really reach the threshold of bad luck, in my opinion. I was after constructive comments rather than sarcasm.