Trek Fuel Ex8 2010/Bontrager Wheel/Tyre Nightmare

tjmaxx

My other half and I picked up our new Trek Fuel Ex8's (2010 models) on Saturday. We took them out for a steady run to get acquainted with them - 1 hour into our ride and we had our first puncture - no worries we think - little did we know. 30 minutes later and the Bontrager tyre still will not sit on the rim! Now my other half has been mtb'ing for years and gets a puncture nearly every time we go out so the guy's a whizz at fixing n changing in no time at all. So you can imagine his frustration when he can't sit the tyre on the rim. Suffice to say, we set off again, with the tyre still not sitting correctly and the poor guy's having a really crap ride on a bike he's just parted a huge amount of dosh for. To add insult to injury he got another puncture in the rear tyre - now we had two tyres that wouldn't sit properly and had spent almost 2 hours trying to sort them out. When we finally got home he tried again with a floor pump, and found the tyres 'pop' into position if you over inflate the inner-tubes by approximately 3 times the normal amount of air pressure that should be needed (i.e. 90 psi as opposed to max of 30psi)!! We went out again today and had 4 punctures!! 3 of them where mine. Problem was, I couldn't physically inflate the inner-tubes to 'pop' the tyre on to the rim.

Has anyone else experienced this problem with Bontrager wheels and tyres?

supersonic

Some combos are notoriously difficult and many use the over inflation to pop them into place.

RevellRider

The Bontrager tyres and rims, like Supersonic said need to be over inflated for them to seat right. Treat yourself to some C02 inflators

Also having 6 punctures in 2 rides, can I recommend maybe something like Stans Sealant in your tubes?

pauljoes

60psi to seal them should be fine then wish i had known this when i 1st had my bontrager wheels tho.

Mark_K

Go tubeless and say good bye to punctures !!!!

GHill

My feeling is that it's more the rims than the tyres, had similar problems with my 09 Ex 8.

tjmaxx

Not sure about tubeless as there's a lot of conflicting reviews. Has anyone tried changing the tyres and if so, what fits?

I'm absolutely gutted, because I cannot physically inflate these tyres with a hand-pump and carrying a floor pump around isn't an option

projectsome

bontrager rims are not the easiest to get tyres on!! it's near impossible to get half the tyres on them. took me 4 hours once.... There was one instance where I just gave up and took the wheel to my LBS. changed to a different set of wheels as soon as I could

pilsburypie

I have a 09 ex 8. Do yours have rhythm x tubeless ready rims? Anyhow, mine do and they are a tighter than a gnat's chuff to get tyres on.

Where the hell are you two cycling to get that many punctures?

Anyhow, if yours are tubeless ready, then go tubeless. I did that and have had no issues for over a year since I did it.

Even if you don't want to go tubeless then you can use a tubeless fitting trick to help your tyre beads pop onto the rims. splash soapy water all over the rims and tyre beads before inflating and they should pop on at around 40-50psi. Much easier than going to 90psi if you only have a mini pump. If you are out and about and don't fancy carrying a bottle of fairy in your pack then splash some juice from you camel back or bottle on the beads and rims first to make them slippery.... really helps. Drunk all your juice... then it's wee wee time on your wheels

D-Cyph3r

Really? I've had 3 different sets of tyre's on my EX8 since january and yeah while it can take a bit of man handling to get them to seat i've never had to over inflate the inner tube to 3x pressure. :S

I just inflate to 40-50psi, grip the wheel between my legs, roll the tyre to the needed direction with some man power till it's seated then let the excess air out.... never had to do any more than the area completely opposite the valve.

tjmaxx

lol, thanx for all the help - I note there's a lot of man-handling suggested, not a lot of use for a girl eh?

I guess the point is, should it really be this hard? I have uprader from a Giant - a bit of a tractor admittedly - but nevertheless I've never had any issue with sorting a puncture. I can easily change my other half's Specialized too - however I'm at a loss with the Bontrager...Suffice to say, some rather pointed emails have been sent to Bontrager and to Trek...

This is one extremely mardy lady.

cgarossi

I have a 09 Fuel EX8 and I can attest to the fact that the Bontrager tyres are difficult to fit or remove.

Its only Bontrager tyres I've had issues with and have since changed to Maxxis High Rollers, but have also used Hutchinson Toros with no issues in tyre changing.

I would avoid Bonty tyres if you are looking to fix puncutres on the trail. My stock Bonty tyres are hanging up as spares only now. They are crap anyway and need to be changed as soon as possible in my opinion.

Also I have found running the tyre underinflated for a while helps spread the tyre around the rim evenly, even if it doesnt click into the bead. Pump up to a decent pressure after riding around for five minutes and they wonky fit should be less noticable, then over inflate when you get home.

mtbdave3

I have 2006 fuel ex8 that I run bontrager race x lites rims and jones xr tires. I run them tubeless with bontrager super juice. And in 4 years of hard riding have never had a flat on the trail. I inflate them to 32 psi before each ride and always carry 2 co2 cartridges with me just in case. These tires and rims require about 60 psi to seat the tires. thats is why a hand pump will not work. you are lucky to get a floor pump to work.Buy a small air compressor for the house and always carry co2 on the trail. I also carry a inter tube just in case i get a flat and run out of co2. I've never had to use it, like I said I've never had a flat on the trail. I'm on my 3rd set of tires and I love them. They are great fast rolling tires with good climbing and corning qualities. Tubeless tires grip better and don't flat as easy as tube tires!!! but you do have to air them up for each ride.

ali$tair

The tyres it comes with will be no good for winter anyway.

I bought a 2010 EX 8 a couple of months ago and changed the tyres last weekend due to them being awful in anything other than dry conditions.

It took me 45 min's to get the first tyre off, I snapped 2 tyre leavers in the process, it was ridiculous!

I put my new Michelin's on within 10 minutes - on my first outing I got a puncture and managed to get the tyre straight off with just the one leaver.

Must be the combination of tyre and rim that causes the problem

BlueAdvocate

I came across this and it was down to pressure. I have the stock Bontrager XDX tyres on Bontrager Duster rim (On my Remedy), got a puncture (second that day) and I couldn't get it to sit quite right on the rim. The issue was not enough pressure; I think I just got bored pumping up and only put about 20 psi in the thing. Back home with the track pump I upped it to 30-35 and it was fine. Lesson.. pump harder you lazy sod (that's to me not you ).
Need some winter tyres (or at least some that will be better in the mud) anyway. One thing though the I can get the tyres off the rim no problem.