Talking About: Tubeless

Sit down for an unscripted delve into Benji’s mind, and all that he knows about tubeless set up, and tips for getting the most out of it. Benji and Ha …

By stwhannah

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Nice chat about tubeless stuff – always good to have a refresher. What I would like to know is what tips you have for REALLY tight tyres? Is this just a function of particular rim-tyre combinations (ie I have to live with it)? Or are some tyres worse than others?

I have a Ribble with own brand rims (Level) and I had a horrible time getting a Magic Mary fitted and a pretty horrendous time taking off and re-fitting the DHR on the back (not helped by including an insert). I had sore thumbs and wrists for weeks afterwards. I now can’t bring myself to consider replacing tyres (seasonal tyre change? – harhar!) and basically expect to wait until the tread has gone and then cut it off. None of my other wheels is anything like as challenging.

The rim doesn’t have much of a central channel, so the usual trick of squeezing it into the middle didn’t make much difference.
Can you help!?

Love the scoop cup. Next time at the charity shop!

What I would like to know is what tips you have for REALLY tight tyres? Is this just a function of particular rim-tyre combinations (ie I have to live with it)? Or are some tyres worse than others?

I think you just have to live with it. I am using Mavic Cosmic Elite UST rims and have had 4 different tubeless tyres on them.

Challenge CX tyre – bent then rim getting it on and had to buy and install new rim. Would not inflate due to state of rim so removed and quickly sold them
Michelin Power CX tyre – went on with a bit of effort, tricky to inflate but just used track pump
Vittoria Terreno TNT – went on with just hands, inflated easily with track pump
Hutchinson road tyre – went on with just hands, inflated easily with track pump

I’m curious to know the environmental impact of the sealants. All this talk of glitter and upvc shavings has got me curious about this aspect of it.

@marktrinder some rims are less than well designed for tubeless. However, it may be possible to alter the Bead Seat Diameter and channel depth slightly by changing the rim tape. Factory tapes/strips can be rather thick. A thin, slick tape, like Stans, Mucoff, etc., layed carefully in a single overlapping at the valve hole layer will give the best performance for tight rim/tires. Conversely, 2-3 layers or a thicker tape (Gorilla) will increase the BSD slightly making a loose rim/tire combo seal up tighter. Best of luck to you!

Nice chat about tubeless stuff – always good to have a refresher. What I would like to know is what tips you have for REALLY tight tyres? Is this just a function of particular rim-tyre combinations (ie I have to live with it)? Or are some tyres worse than others?

There’s a tool you can get for mounting tyres that is decent – just google tyre-seating tool and you’ll see variations on the basic principle. Soapy water on the bead can make a big difference if it’s hard to mount.

Times I’ve encountered a brutal tight tyre it’s usually taking it off that is harder ime, and I don’t know of any new tool ideas for that. Road tubeless more prone to this ime, I usually get the larger MTB tyres manipulated OK.

For removing…
Wheel on the ground with a block of wood supporting the rim.
a pair of stiff vibram walking boots.
Feet on tyre at “ten to two” position.
A gentle bounce, followed by an all your weight stomp.
Easy!

When I first set up tubeless I originally found getting a decent seal with rim tape (was using Stans and Muc Off tape) a nightmare, even with new and clean rims. I found running an additional layer of electrical insulation tape over the top of the rim tape then applying a bit of heat with a hairdryer got a decent seal. It also gives a nice clean finish!

Don’t know what kind of scientist was operating the camera, but micro is smaller. sorry to be pedantic… micro = small, macro = big…