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Tubeless Conversion - How to ?
I am currently considering converting to tubeless tyres and after reading a lot of the posts here am still a bit confused on the "How to" piece and the choices out there.
Can anyone provide any advice / info on the following questions ?
I currently have Sun Ringle Equalizer 21 rims and a Maxis High Roller 2.35 / Larsen TT 26 x 2.00 tyres on a Commencal Meta 55.2:
1) What steps would I need to follow to convert to tubeless ? At the moment I'm assuming I'd buy something like the Stan's kit and follow the instructions ?
2) Having never done this before is it easy to do or am I safer getting the LBS to do it ?
3) In terms of tyres do I go UST or non-UST ?
4) I'd be riding the Dam, Red Hill, Appin & Ourimbah on a regular basis, what would the best tyre options assuming that changing tyres becomes more a pain with a tubeless set up ???
Any advice appreciated !
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I have just ordered the gear to do the same to my bike. I have Mavic 317 rims which are not tubeless specific but I did purchase UST tyres and a kit. I have gone with an Ignitor up front and a Larsen on the rear which is a pretty common combination around these parts, perhaps a Crossmark on the rear. This will replace my current tubed set-up of Ignitor on the front and Crossmark on the rear which has been great.
There are going to be those that have done this a million times who are better suited to telling you how easy it is. I know CROMERBOY has done it a few timwes recently and said that he had a terrible one the first attempt which resulted in him needing to use the service station air-compressor to make it stick but then on his new bike did it at home with a floor pump and said it was not nearly as difficult as the first attempt. perhaps he is out there to enlighten us and give us some tips.
I'm going to attempt it at home with a floor pump, I know that a lot can depend on the rims you have and apparently Mavics are not too difficult. Then again, best laid plans of mice and men and all that...!
http://youtu.be/WRM7gq1fcoQ
It worked for me for several months some time back using non tubeless tyres. Eventually one tyre went down when out riding and I put tubes back in the tyres and now only use tubeless specific rims and tyres as there is a bit of luck involved in this ghetto approach. I use a compressor to get the air blast needed for the tyre to seal against the rim.
Tubeless, all you need to know: http://forums.farkin.net/showthread.php?t=86107
I've had mixed success using "No Tubes" kit.
Did my Kona with non UST rims and non UST Ignitors- bugger of a job to get them to bead up - needed a third hand and servo compressor - but once they sealed that was it - off and riding for many kilometers without a hitch. Get yourself a presta to shrader adapter about $3.
I then semi retired the Kona to commuter and so during one of the many wet weekend ends I decided to try and convert my Genius after way too many pinch flats.
I don't know if it was because I was reusing the rim strip and it was stretched, the non UTS DT Swiss rims or the non UST Nobby Nics -but this one has been a failure. Installation was a piece of cake and the tyres beaded up using a floor pump - happy days. But there seemed to be a lot of sealant seaping through the sidewall join in both the tyres. It took a lot of shaking and leaving, inflating but eventually they stayed up - after 2 days.
First outing around the dam riding on the downhill hill - hissing from front tyre - pulled over and there was a small (2mm) slit in tyre - rotated tyre down so the sealant could do it's thing but all this did was spray sealant over everything - ( I did give the sealant a good shake prior and I scooped it into the tyre rather than injecting. So back to tubes.
Anyway the Nobby Nics puncture if you look at them the wrong way so as soon as they are worn out - I will try again but with UST Crossmark tyres - hope this helps. Steve
I have been running ghetto tubeless on Mavic XM117's with Larsen TT folding and Crossmark LUST for a few months now with no problems (including Dirtworks and Capital Punishment).
(1) There is plenty of online videos and instructions, as have been already referenced in this thread. I used a schwalbe 20" inner tube as they have a removable valve core. This means you can seat the tyre first, test that you are getting it to bead, then add the sealant through the valve. Always used a servo compressor. Saves time and effort.
(2) Personally found it pretty easy, but i do enjoy getting my fingernails dirty.
(3) non-UST: Pros= lighter; Cons= harder to seal, lighter/thinner side walls but saying that my Larson on the back is showing some wear, but it has held up to a few races and plenty of flogging..)
UST: Pros= seals easy, stronger sidewalls, Cons= heavier.
(4) I run Larson TT (2.0) on the back, Crossmark LUST (2.1) on the front. Very happy with that setup as far as low rolling resistance (compared to Kenda Nevegals, although less grip) and better grip than Maxxis Monorail & Ignitor.
Strongly recommend doing it.
Also, whilst i don't like drawing buisness away from LBS, the price of sealant and tyres from overseas online retailers is hard to pass (i.e. $70 for sealant in LBS, $17 o/s...)
compressor use it or do it all at the servo , I had too with mine ,the only problem I had the rear one the actual valve hole was too big so it leaked thru there but the front is still inflated & never lost any air YET. Make sur You have your brass thing that goes over the valve too it lets the air in quicker as well.
I have always been an advocate of tubes... Mainly because of the style of riding i do. Plus it's the whole change thing.
However, I finally bit the bullet and converted my Rush wheels to tubeless. I have NON tubeless XC717 rims and UST Crossmark tyres. I purchased the FRM tubeless kit from NBC. I wanted to use this particular kit as I wanted to take advantage of getting rid of as much weight as possible. Doing the ghetto setup uses effectively half an inner tube. Add to that the sealant and the weight saving is starting to negate itself. Making the only advantage no pinch or thorn flats and better rolling resistance. However, the FRM kit uses fiberglass tape and for my rim doesn't require anything else. The kit comes with rubber rim strips for other rims, but a handful of rims that are listed don't require it. I had schraider style holes in my rims so this made sealing a bit more difficult around the valve. But after a couple of days of shaking the wheel around to get the sealant to do it's thing. It's finally staying up. Sealing around the tyre was no problem at all. I had to take mine to the servo for an initial seal up. The tyres had been used on these rims with tubes, so I thought I might get away with a floor pump, but needed the extra oomph of compressed air.
Considering it was my first attempt, I found it quite easy. I was expecting it to be a hell of a lot more difficult.
I haven't ridden on them yet, but can't wait to try them out, I'm a bit nerveous about it but excited to see the results. I'm going to weigh the tubes and old rim strips to see exactly how much weight I saved.