[Closed] Remind me why I still run inner tubes?

Best decision this decade. Well done.

Embrace nature, dont fight it! Thats exactly what I did after reading an old copy of Mountain Biking UK. It suggested filling tires with grass, bracken and other wild stuff as a "get you home" method after puncturing. I did exactly this, and it works so well Ive never bothered to go back to innertubes.

Tubeless is fantastic but it's not infallible, so I'd recommend always carrying a lightweight tube with you.

Because you like changing your tyres to suit the predicted conditions. Of course, British weather being what it is you can guarantee that when it really matters you'll be needing your winter mud tyres in the height of summer... Go tubeless! (Ghetto works really well and Cafelatex is excellent).

Because they are less faff, and because punctures are usually pretty rare really?

I remain unconvinced that the benefits of tubeless are worth the hassle and expense of trying it.

Small can of tyreweld eh.. Much less aggro £1.99

I had a thread on here recently asking about hte merits of tubeless, and the consensus seemed to be that if you get a lot of punctures they're worth it. I hardly get any punctures so didn't bother.

i reckon on about 1 puncture ever 750-1000 miles combined on and off road so not sure why I should bother tbh
Canals are definetly the worst place for getting punctures as they just strim the hedges /verge scattering thorns everywhere.
I have seen plenty of folk with tubless puncture as well and it is a lot more faf than just swapping a tube

Tubeless has been around long enough now that if it really was a wonder-solution then it would've practically replaced tyres/tubes already...

Other than allowing use with much lower pressures, I don't see the point...

Tubes really are easier. I used about 15 CO2 cans when I tried to go tubeless last because one tyre wouldn't seat then on the first ride out with only one wheel tubeless I burped that and had to push home. I have given up now.

Tubes with a little bit of juice in is the best compromise unless you have a full tubeless setup.

1 puncture in 7 years, and that was probably a fitting error or defect (split next to valve).

What am I doing wrong?

Takes 15sec to fit a tube. Judging by the vids on the Stans site, it'll take me an afternoon to go tubeless. And then another afternoon and another bottle of slop each time I want to change tyres. I'll stick to conti tubes.

don't forget the faff of dealing with a valve that's bunged up with tyre jizz...

i don't buy the whole 'you can run lower pressures thing' - every time i've tried running less than loads i've had tyre burps and a consequent deflation.

there's room for improvement, but i like the idea.

Stans tubeless system with Stans rims seems to be superb. The video on their site of other tubeless systems burping at 35psi and theirs not is interesting, and the nail path of death is quality.

I've gone tubeless on Stan's Crests on the front and its superb so far, will go tubeless on the back once I'm happy the tyre is what I want to go with. I never change tyres to suit the weather and just run them til they need changing so not fussed about not being able to swap tyres all the time.

Because they are less faff, and because punctures are usually pretty rare really?

I remain unconvinced that the benefits of tubeless are worth the hassle and expense of trying it

Tubeless is only a faff getting the tyre inflated the first time, once that's done it's a lot more reliable - I haven't had a puncture for years, and I used to pinch flat with monotonous regularity. (Said that: next weekend I'm going to get a flat for sure...)

Judging by the vids on the Stans site, it'll take me an afternoon to go tubeless

not sure where you get that, took me about an hour including letting it stand to set the yellow tape for an episode of family guy.

Tubeless is only a faff getting the tyre inflated the first time

I had no problems but I had already been using the tyre with a tube beforehand so there weren't any bends in the bead like on a new tyre.

This is why for me, if you dont have these then it may not be worthwhile. For me it is like a new world of no punctures.

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Yep tried tubeless, lots of faffing, never really got it working. After 1/2 day couldn't get the tyre to seal.

Looked at the cost of getting more tyre jizz, thought about the extra faff of trying to get the tyre to seal vs going riding. Banged in an inner tube and went riding....

There used to be a little thorn catcher gadget that bolted to the brake mounts that swept thorns etc off your tyres.

The puncture doesn't usually happen until a few revolutions have driven the thorn in.

Might be worth rigging up one of them.

[i]I had no problems but I had already been using the tyre with a tube beforehand so there weren't any bends in the bead like on a new tyre[/i]

That sounds like a top tip. I have new tyres coming so I will fit them with a tube first to get them straightened out.

Luckily I enjoy faffing and fettling so the time factor is not a concern if it means I can get more time on the bike when it is all sorted.

I was a cynic, but no longer. Tyre inflated with track pump, the whole process took ~45mins. No punctures since and I honestly think my bike rides better (maybe I'm imagining it though)
Stans arch's and RQ 2.2s

I had no problems but I had already been using the tyre with a tube beforehand so there weren't any bends in the bead like on a new tyre

That's one of my top-tips, too. It's unlikely to convince the "tubeless is a faff" unbelievers, though. You'll also find that some tyres are easy, and others are a nightmare.

Before I squirted stan's fluid in (sorry) I pumped up the tyre 'dry', just to check it would work with my track pump. it popped onto the shelf (stan's rims) so I just left the tyre in place and put the sealant in, worked a treat. Could be worth trying this as it meant there was no messing around with sealant sloshing around in an unsealed tyre.

UST is brilliant, fit and refit tyres no probs, only trouble is the systems tend to be heavy and/or expensive.

Stans can be hit and miss fitting wise, some combos work fine others need compressor/faffage and you can't switch tyres easily. Plus sealant can dry out so if like me you have a bike that you don't use very often you get a dozen rides out of a setup then 3months later have to refit and add more sealant.

Both offer better snakebite protection than tubes which is the main reason I use it.

Whereas tubes are cheap, light(ish), easy to fit, easy to fix. easy to swap tyres, work with battered rims and tyres and you can get spares anywhere. It's the standard for those very good reasons.

Welcome to the canal commuting club Mister P, I do 14 miles each way (not in winter tho). It's a thorny problem, last year I tried tubeless and didn't last long with it, it didn't work with the tyres I use (speed king supersonics) although someone on here claims they got it to work with much faffage. I also use the bike for mtb and like to change tyres around occasionally.

Anyway, I bought some conti supersonic innertubes and put sealant inside them. It works, well to an extent, the tyre never instantly went down and I never had to do a trailside tube change, but over time the thorn tended to punchure the innertube in more than one place. If you did need to change the innertube, you've then got the problem of lots of thorns to clear out of your tyre. Might be worth experimenting with, you can just fill ordinary innertubes, which probably work better than the light supersonic ones. Or, you can buy the innertubes with the sealant already in.

I'm probably going to try again with tubeless this year.

I've worn out a rear RQ 2.4 in the last 12 months, fitted it ghetto and haven't touched it since. Run at 20psi no burps, just loads of grip. Prior to that most rides I was getting pinch flats. Best thing I've done to the bikes in the last year.

1 puncture in 7 years, and that was probably a fitting error or defect (split next to valve).

I wished I had your luck, first time I ever went out on a road bike with a local group I had seven punctures in 1 day 😳 they still take the piss out of me 6 years later. I still average at least 1 puncture every 10 rides or so. The only good thing is I can change one pretty damned fast now 😀

andytherocketeer - Member

Takes 15sec to fit a tube.

I should like to see that, sounds like an excellent party trick!

I'm a relatively recent and now fully convinced tubeless convert. For me it's about avoiding pinch flats which I tended to suffer from.

I tried ghetto and proper kits. All worked for me. Main reason for ghetto not working IMO is the tube you're splitting having too big a reinforced section at the valve which stops the tyre seating properly there.

I've always used the cheapest ghetto tubes I could find, never had a problem with the tubes.

And for those hassle-mongers amongst you, I've just done one in about 15 minutes that included drilling the valve hole to take a proper size valve. Awesomes.

I will be running sealant in the tyre so that should solve the thorn puncture issue?