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I've given up trying to get my 29" Racing Ralph to inflate on a Crest rim. I gave in and had the bike shop do it and it was shredded by a Flint in less than a mile, so am back with a damaged carcass and a tube and endless punctures.
So what will inflate easily on a Crest without a compressor and give reasonably similar performance to a RR, please? Tired (excuse the pun) of feeding endless tubes into it on every ride.
No rocks round our way but lots of roots and flints (Chilterns).
Thanks!
Was it snakeskin or did it have the normal side walls? I've always found that Schwalbes go up really easily on my crests.
When I lived in the Chilterns I use to run a Larsen, the 2.35 one.
Seemed a bit 'thicker' than other single-ply tyres plus didn't have much tread to 'catch' on flints - rear only though. And an Ardent on the front.
26" though, but tubeless and I've a compressor so no idea whether they go on without.
Thanks. Non-snakeskin RR.
Was the Larsen reasonably quick, br? Cheers
Build yourself a ghetto inflator and you'll be sorted...I've Crest 29er rims and have had no problems with inflating any tyres including Racing Ralphs
Maxxis ardent race working well for me as a fairly quick trail tyre, inflates well on both stans and American Classic. Had to get a conti mountain king when away in Scotland recently as badly cut an ikon and that worked well and inflated easily, rolls ok considering the tread. I do use a bonty tubeless pump when away though that helps and a compressor at home.
not used a RR but (non-snakeskin) nobby nics are completely unsuited to flinty ground IME
Larsen TT is very fast and I got them up on Crests relatively easily. But the carcass is flimsy so may not be what you're after (I was perpetually pinch flatting with tubes in).
Any Bonty tubeless ready tyres. Although it is a thousand times easier if you install a new tyre with a tube overnight, then remove it (don't worry about trying to keep a bead seated) and then reinflate.
I've also got Schwalbe Nobby Nics and they go up nice and easy.
I'm not saying you won't need to do a few frantic pumps followed by small adjustment, and repeat a couple of times. If it gets too much, go and have a cuppa, I've occasionally spent 20 minutes trying to get a seal, given up and popped back out an hour later and its gone up instantly 🙂
Edit - what MrNice says...not too flinty round here but the Nics do have a few sidewall grazes than I've had to patch on the inside to keep them airtight.
Specialized.
Maxxis Ikon and Conti X-King, both inflated with a floor pump on Arch rims.
The Conti put up a bit of a fight, but after a bit of careful tugging and "massaging" in the valve area (which is usually where the air is lost in those crucial first seconds) it gave in.
[i]Larsen TT is very fast and I got them up on Crests relatively easily. But the carcass is flimsy so may not be what you're after (I was perpetually pinch flatting with tubes in). [/i]
Never run it tubed, but quick and sturdy and perfect for the South East in summer.
Use snakeskin ones. The non-snakeskin are for smooth dirt only - no rocks.
I've used Schwalbe for years on Stans and other rims and they always go up no problem.
Are you pinching the sidewalls apart onto the bead before inflating?
GB
I inflated an On-One Smorgasboard on my crest 29er rims with a Topeak Mountain Morph pump. This one was brand new, though. Wasn't able to do the same with an older one with sealant residue.
All of em tbh. Except for those faulty Schwalbes of a few years ago.
Maxxis, EXO side walls or TR not the paper thin schwable crap
I just fitted an Ardent and a Crossmark (both non-UST) to a set of Arch rims yesterday. A splash of sealant and a track pump were all that was required.
I've had a bit of trouble with some Conti race kings. Schwalbe have been fine (as GB says, go for snakeskin) and Specialized 2bliss are easy to get up too.
If you want an alternative to a Racing Ralph, try a Specialized Fasttrak.
Thanks all. GB -pinching the sidewalls? No - do tell........
Well I like the maxxis Advantage for heavy duty stuff, so maybe a Larsen is the way to go.
Riding the South Downs Way in a day soon with two much fitter pals so want to be prepared.
Thank you all again.
Bontrager are the most faff free tyres I've used. Straight up and hold air even without sealant. To be honest, pretty much all tyres are faff free with the right technique... just that the Bontys seem the *best*. XR1 or XR2 might be worth a look for you.
My first attempt at tubeless consisted of flow rims and Specialized Purgatory 2bliss and went up first go, using a bit of water mixed with hand soap around the rim and track pump.
Left overnight then chucked some sealant in job done.
crispycross - Member
I've had a bit of trouble with some Conti race kings.
Seems to be the local rule of thumb is you need to add a lot of sealant to get the Conti's coated in enough to hold air. When I binned the race king (came on the bike) it was leaking from about 10-15 different places none of which were really holes just porous side walls.