Okay, so my first attempt at tubeless have gone fairly well; the first one has gone up beautifully.

I’ve an issue with the front tyre which is leaking around the valve. My tyres are WTB Riddler 45c and I’ve been running them tubed at around 40psi. When the front tyre reaches 40psi it starts to leak around the valve (the WTB valves don’t have o rings).

I’ve had a look at the valve and it appears that the rim tape (Schwalbe) has lifted where it folds up over the shoulder of the rim and sealant has bot underneath meaning that it won’t re-stick. I’m using 21mm tape in my Hope XC rims which is the recommended size.

Is my only option to clean everything up and retape and is 40 psi (gravel riding too high); the Schwalbe tape is rated for well over 100psi?

I’ve had a look at the valve and it appears that the rim tape (Schwalbe) has lifted where it folds up over the shoulder of the rim and sealant has bot underneath meaning that it won’t re-stick. I’m using 21mm tape in my Hope XC rims which is the recommended size.

Proper tubeless rim tape or just normal stop the tube getting cut tape?

proper tubeless rim tape. I went for the Schwalbe high pressure tape as my tyres are a tad hard to seat.

The odd this is that the tyre went up to 60psi when I seated it without leaking and only started to leak after I’d added the sealant.

I suspect that re-taping with be the only option.

Tips for taping was 2 laps and make sure you break a sweat getting it on and tight….
If it’s lifted up then the sealant will escape, unless the valve is slack then that is probably the easy way out

Do up the valve ring as tight as some pliers will get it and try again before retaping

if your doing your valve ring up with pliers make sure you have them out on the trail when you need to remove it – for me it’s more a sign something else isn’t right – could also be the rubber bung on the stem is the wrong shape for the rim profile

I’ll try retaping and see if that helps; the locknut is up nice and tight (although it might be worth getting a couple of O-rings) and the other tyre seems to be fine. Is 40 psi reasonable for a 45c gravel tyre in tubeless mode?

It just seems odd that the first tyre seems fine and that this one didn’t start leaking until the sealant went in (as above it went up to 60psi to seat without leaking).

Tightening the valve doesn’t fix the problem. If you’ve nipped the tape elsewhere with levers the air will tend to escape from the valve. I would take it off and start again with fresh tape. A good tip is to use a heated kebab skewer or similar to make your valve hole in the tape rather than cutting it

Does the tape cover the full width of the rim bed? It shouldn’t be possible for the edges to lift because they should be pinned down by the bead.

I’m not convinced that this Schwalbe tape was the best options, it seems stiff and prone to lifting; perhaps I should have stuck with Stans!

Before you retape, try taking the valve out and smearing a bit of Vaseline on the base of the shaft/bung before reinsertion 8)

I do this every time I’m setting tubeless up now as I’ve had small leaks around the valve before.

Retaped with exactly the same result – leaking from the under the valve lockring; the first tyre holds whatever pressure I put in and was sorted in minutes.

This Schwalbe tape is also rubbish, each time I remove the tyre it slips and lifts; I wish I’d just stuck with Stans.

To be honest I’m beginning to wish I’d never bothered and I think that the only option is to stick the tube back in!

Any air escaping will tend to find its way to the valve hole, even if that’s not where the leak is. Have you put any fluid in yet?

Do up the valve ring as tight as some pliers will get it and try again before retaping

I did this & pulled the valve through the hole tearing the rubber off. Be careful.
Note I am particularly ham fisted though.

Just lost a 3rd run of the Schwalbe tape – I think that buying that rather than Stans was a big mistake! It seems to have minimal adhesion and is rather too stiff to stick down (unless it’s old stock and has deteriorated).

Gorilla tape for the win! 🙂

http://www.wilko.com/adhesives/gorilla-tape-handy-roll-914m-x-25mm/invt/0421519?nst=0&gclid=CjwKCAjw7frPBRBVEiwAuDf_LbWBCEdvW2w1oetayZx5BHikrevRPJzfXkS0TBL56OY-eDmihXNfnRoCodYQAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

Do it again but heat up the tape and rim bed with a hairdryer before you start and as you go. You may need to spend some time getting as much sealant as possible out of the rim.
Once you have a short length stretched out and firmly down it’s easier to pull it taut as you go.

Persevere it’ll be worth it. And yes, Gorilla tape handy roll 25mm £3 from B+Q, Halfords, etc. One wrap overlapped at valve.

yeah, tape it at least “warm” (i.e. keep the rim indoors near a radiator for a while) and get it tight

After taping I always put in a tube & inflate to a nice high pressure for a couple of hours (check the limits on your rims/tyres though) to press the tape down good & tight

try putting an O ring under the lock nut.

it’s worked for me on some wheels and not on others but it’s very easy to do.

I got mine from halfirds.

As others have said almost certainly NOTHING to do with the valve. Air is escaping under your tape. Its lifting at higher pressures. TESA tape from eBay is very good, much cheaper than Stans. Get the wrap down, couple of times if there is space, and put a tube in overnight to seat it properly. Be careful with tyre levers. If that does not work then the tape might not be wide enough. Complete PITA, been through exactly the same myself.

Plus 100 – it’s your rim tape. I use basic electric tape, two wraps. Don’t be afraid to tape one side then move across to the other keeping the tape super tight. Try it. Couple goes and you’ll get the idea. Then stans latex after you get tyre on. You don’t need leavers. Use your booted foot once you have it to the last tight bit. Pump up to 40psi so that it cracks into position. Twirl the wheel to get the latex around and leave over night. Lower to 20psi ne t day and enjoy! And yes you can go lower. Try experimenting to find the ideal pressure for you.

My money’s on the rim tape too. It’s ‘high pressure’ and seems to have a sort of metal tape core, it’s also a little stiff and not very adherent; I’ll try Stans or Gorilla Tape next.

The tyres are hard to seat and I wasn’t able to get them inflated with a track pump. For the first tyre I had a CO2 cylinder and it went up and held air straight away. For the troublesome tyre I had to rely on the track pump only but had to use the ‘tyre lever trick’ of running a tyre lever horizontally under each bead to pull it up onto the bead bed and once that had been done (both sides) I could pump the tyre up with a track pump (although it always leaked from the valve hole (not the valve itself).

I’m beginning to wonder whether pulling the beads up onto the bead bed disturbed the tape enough to allow a leak. Each time I lifted a bead to take a look the tape was in fairly ropey shape and had moved and was lifting in places.

Anyway, I’ve now run out of the Schwalbe tape (a waste of £15) and have had an pointless trip to Halfords who, apparently, don’t stock tubeless tape and have run out of Gorilla Tape! I’ll put the tube back in for now and order some Stans.

Just for reference, is 21mm correct for Hope XC rims; I get the feeling that 22mm might cover the bead bed completely?

I will persevere but I’m had enough for now!!

Stick with it. It’ll work eventually if you persevere. The telsa tape is cheap and allows you to use loads if necessary. Also, an airshot makes life easier and you’ll not be annoyed at wasting any money on co2 cylinders.

Which Tesla tape would I need; there seems to be quite a range?

Again, is 21mm the correct width? It sounds like I could do multiple runs of narrower tape but would a wider tape (say 25mm) interfere with bead seating?

The Hope XCs are quoted as having a 19.5 internal width and the Stans site suggests using tape 2mm wider than the quoted internal width.

Try getting 2 jumbo sausages rolls, stick up down your pants for 5 minutes to warm them up a bit, better if you can buy them hot. Carefully rub the grease round the rim before trying again with the tape. I usually get away with just using one jumbo sausage rolls but two will do the trick quicker.

Thanks Jekkyl, although I’m a Veggie; do vegetarian sausages work as well (different grease I suspect!).

It’s Tesa 4289 you want.

I’m not a fan of Gorilla tape. Had issues with it ‘going off’ after a few months and it’s a nightmare to clean off the rim. Some good advice in the thread, the only thing I’d add is I use some wire wool on the rim first to get a better seat for the tape.

Also enjoy blowing out old fluid with an air-line. No idea if it’s worth it but it’s fun 🙂

IMO it’s best to get tape wider than the rim. I think the last lot I set up it was 50mm tape on 45mm rims. The tyre bead is therefore always sealing against the tape and not the rim and you’re not going to get air escaping under the tape (except maybe at the overlap).

I’d try two wraps of this

TESA 4289

Its either 19mm or 25 mm. Sounds like 25 would be too much but overlapping two wraps of 19 should do it. It is identical to Stans tape, except for the amount you are supplied with.

IMO it’s best to get tape wider than the rim. I think the last lot I set up it was 50mm tape on 45mm rims.

Okay, so the rims are Hope XC (quoted as 19.5 internal width); would 25mm work or would I be better using 2x 19mm wraps?

I’d be concerned that the bead might not seat correctly if you use 25. The tape will end up in that ‘hook’

I’ll give it another go when I’ve got some more tape and time. It’s a first attempt at tubeless so I guess that it’s going to be a learning experience and it sounds like I’m not the first one to run into trouble; I’m sure that it’ll be worth it in the end!

I may have rushed things a little too, it sounds like it’s worth setting the tape by inflating with a tube and leaving for 24 hours, so I’ll give that a go and see what happens.

When I had an issue with sealant slowly bubbling out of some spoke holes I used a syringe and put a few drops of sealant on the base of the nipples where the sealant was coming out and this fixed it for me

The good tyre seems to be losing air too (although not audibly).

New tape, some extra sealant on a proper inflator are on their way. The cost is starting to worry me and I’d been happy to stick with tubes if I could just get the flipping tyres on and off easily in the event of a puncture but I can’t (and the LBS suggested that this is likely to be an ongoing issue, with various brands, as everything seems to be going down the tubeless route); I’ll have to look at it as an investment in the future!

I’ll probably start from scratch with both wheels and leave them for a day or two (and perhaps ride) with tubes in place following the addition of the new tape; hopefully this will help it stick down firmly (although I still think that the Schwalbe stuff was pretty poor). After that I’ll just have to keep my fingers crossed! From what I’ve read it can sometimes take several days to get everything airtight (I think that I rushed it a bit).

your good tyre is probably fine – definitely don’t do anything until you’ve ridden on it for 10 minutes to get the jizz swilled around properly. If it still leaks then, fair enough

Thanks for all the tips, I appreciate it. I’ve built up a few bikes and usually pick up new skills fair quickly after a few goes (bleeding brakes was a bit nerve racking first time) but this tubeless lark has got me flustered!

I’m getting edgy that I haven’t been out on the bike for a while (new build) but it makes sense to take time out to do it right and tubeless certainly seems to be the way I should be going. Hopefully the cost and time will be an investment.

Thanks again all! I’m sure it’ll be worth it.

PJay – Member
Thanks for all the tips, I appreciate it. I’ve built up a few bikes and usually pick up new skills fair quickly after a few goes (bleeding brakes was a bit nerve racking first time) but this tubeless lark has got me flustered!

I’m getting edgy that I haven’t been out on the bike for a while (new build) but it makes sense to take time out to do it right and tubeless certainly seems to be the way I should be going. Hopefully the cost and time will be an investment.

Thanks again all! I’m sure it’ll be worth it.

If you look through my profile, i had similar when goign tubeless, some hit, some miss, some that defy logic, some that just worked effortlessly. After some faffing and trial and error, all of my wheels are now tubeless and all stay up pretty well, if i go 3-4 weeks without riding a particular wheel combo it may need a bit of air pre-ride… but i can live with that.

Just be patient 🙂

I think it’s about a year since i made the jump, i’ve not flatted since.

If you look through my profile, i had similar when goign tubeless, some hit, some miss, some that defy logic, some that just worked effortlessly. After some faffing and trial and error, all of my wheels are now tubeless and all stay up pretty well, if i go 3-4 weeks without riding a particular wheel combo it may need a bit of air pre-ride… but i can live with that.
Just be patient
I think it’s about a year since i made the jump, i’ve not flatted since.

Thanks Weeksy, it’s kind of you to post that and reassuring too. I kinda know that I need to go tubeless (the WTB tyres are so tight to fit and hard to seat that I think that on the road/trail puncture repair is a non-starter) and it seems to be the way cycling’s going (or has already gone, I’m way behind the times).

I’ve found other threads on Singletrack about issues with Hope XC rims and tubeless but I’m sure that other folk have got them set up. I appreciate to that it can take a few days and some rides to slosh the sealant about and get them properly sealed and air tight. I think that I just need to take the time to get it right, but I’m impatient to get out and ride.

The WTB valves don’t have O-rings and I haven’t been able to find any to buy but I might try cutting something out of an old inner tube; greasing the valve seems to be recommended too.