Hi, I've been "ghetto tubeless" on all my off-road bikes for several years, and I set up http://www.tubelesswheels.com to spread the word.

Up to now I've used CO2 but I was defeated just now by a 2.55" 29er WTB WeirWolf tyre. It's huge and there's just not enough "oomph" in a CO2 cartridge.

So! What's the minimum compressor that can do tubeless? You need a fair blast to get the initial seating, but I'm sure I don't need a £130 thing that can fire nails into concrete blocks at 100 paces.

Any recommendations?

Cheers, al.

most 6 litre tank compressors will be fine – you need the tank to get the initial blast of air to blow the tyre onto the rim but after that you're fine.

I've got a clarkes one off ebay – was about £60.

Compressor? Mark did mine with a track pump.

Make an air tank with a 2 litre pop bottle & duct tape

Pump it up as far as you dare with a track pump & then open the valve

Thanks Colin I've done quite a few by now! TP often works but when it doesn't CO2 to the rescue. In this case not even CO2 works. Time to get industrial!

Thanks wwaswas – the tank's the thing then. OK.

a.

Grr – I was assured that no such shenanigans was necessary.

Have I been mis-sold by my LBS?

I got one for my tubeless as my mother wanted to ge me something extra special for my last birthday:

I got this from Machine mart:

£176 inc VAT

I was looking initially at this though:

£123 in VAT

The flow rate is spot on but you soon go though the 24 litres of stored pressure and then the motor kicks in. The flow rate is important to inflate tubless IMHO. I tried for a while to do it with a track pump and it depended on the type of tyre – My MK's were fine but Maxxis ones became a bugger. I think also its best with a new tyre to inflate them over night with a tube to get them seated then the next day do the tubless 🙂

I can also instantly dry off the chainset after washing and blast clean cranks etc with degreaser (avoiding bearings 😉 to mention just a few additional jobs I can now do with it 🙂

Here – found it [despite the shitty search function]

http://www.singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/diy-tyre-inflator-made-out-of-old-lemonade-bottle-for-tubeless-how

Also recommend this:

http://www.screwfix.com/prods/88444/Power-Tools/Air-Tools/Metabo-RF363-Tyre-Inflator

And one of these if you have presta valves 😉

Try Aldi, there's is about £70.

uplink: Wow! What top-rate bodgery =)

It MUST be tried.

Also a bloke wrote to me to describe how he'd used a high-pressure road tyre and a wee bit of tube to do much the same. I'll try that first.

Cheers all, al.

Was just going to post mine up, but see uplink's beaten me to it. So have you made one to my design, uplink (or made one similar independently)?

Strangely I never read that thread after I posted. I actually have a plant sprayer in the garage – bought for away from home bike cleaning – had it before I made that compressor, yet never thought to try it with tyres!

Halfords do a plug in electric one for £50ish, comes with hose etc.

I have the aldi one, the flow never sems great, though my vlves may be full of latex.

druidh – get a new lbs, yours must be ****

My compressor will go up to 8bar (115psi) comfortably, it has a diddy 5L tank and will spank the lot seating a tyre and is as noisey as sin, but pisses all ove the track pump and Co2 cart' methods…

Cost me £35 off Fleabay (2nd hand) and came with a tyre inflator…

The £60 jobbies look pretty similar…

you rang?

i always use a TP as the last time i used the compressor i looked like i had been in a massive bukkake party.

scared of it now….

So have you made one to my design, uplink (or made one similar independently)?

no – luckily I have a big workshop type compressor

you rang?

i always use a TP as the last time i used the compressor i looked like i had been in a massive bukkake party.

scared of it now….

Just keep an eye on the dial, wear saftey specs, and make sure the bead is aligned correctly before you dump 60psi in it…

funnily enough i was doing all those things…

what i hadnt checked for was the damaged bead on the tyre!

Well, that was a massive waste of time. Not un-entertaining though. Tried CO2 and ran out, track pump, garden spray (minus spray!), turning the tyre inside-out and leaving it for a bit, putting the tyre in a warm bath to soften it, car tyre via 2 track pump heads on a hose. More soap. More fluid. More of the above. Nope.

This is the first tyre that's defeated me in 3 years – I've had difficult ones but I'm beat this time… I put a tube in!

FAIL!

al.

could try tieing a strap/rope round the tyre and force middle of tyre into wheel rim(tighten loop), lube/encourage sides if tyre towrads rim whilst doing it, pump like the wind once it's all clamped – should be less volume to fill and should be better sealed

Compressor is the way to go, we have one on the team van,we have a 25 ltr tank, Oil free type with a water trap.retracting hose real next to the side door, compressor mounted on the left wheel arch probably the most used bit of kit at the races, great for blowing dirt off, water off after washing the bike, and best of all Tubeless tyre inflation, if you get a Topeak blow joe hose repair kit, this can be used on one of them blowers with a nozzle, the blow joe hose goes on this clamped with Jublee clip, it does not have a gauge so you know what the pressure is, but Bohle do a nice electric pressure gauge. come and check out how we do it on the Salsa team at the bike events this year.

a compressor has been one of the best things I've bought for the garage

mtb, motorbike, kids inflatables, balloons, allsorts. So handy.

got mine from Axminster toolshop for about £120 I think.

Just finished 3 tubless builds – 2 new wheels 1 tyre rebuild – got the tyres up in seconds and the one rebuild was already sealed – all with the compressor and now I have time to watch a bit of telly tonight – best tool I have got recently 🙂

Track pump for me. Just put a swampthink (wire bead) on a 321 rim with a stans strip with no soap just a fast pumping.