Going tubeless - long term advice

frankspencer1979
frankspencer1979 Posts: 525
edited August 2013 in MTB workshop & tech
I've just got my tyres successfully fitted this afternoon; Hans dampf TLR on Stans arch ex. I fitted the yellow tape and tubeless valves, and used Stans sealant.

A few days ago, I pumped up the tyres with no sealant, but the next morning they were flat. Used sealant today, inflated to an indicated 40 psi and after a few hours they're still feeling firm. Not been for a test ride yet.

Am I right in thinking that if there was an air leak, the sealant would bubble out a bit?

Also, I was wondering how people get on with similar set ups in this country? How often does sealant new replacing etc?

I still feel a little dubious about the whole thing, like I'm gonna be out in the middle of nowhere and the tyre will shift from the rim a bit and lose all that precious air! Is it likely!?

Comments

  • ricardo_smooth
    ricardo_smooth Posts: 1,281
    The tyres deflated because there was no sealant in there (Stans aren't 'proper' UST). I use stans flow tubeless myself, i've had them burp air once, but they went up again with my trail pack pump. You'll find 40psi way too hard on a tubeless setup. I went from 40psi rear and 35 front to 29 rear 25 front due to being tubeless. I think the sealant is good for about 6 months before you need to un-seat the rim bead and take out all the 'bogies' that accumulate and add some more sealant.
    Sealant will bubble slightly to fix holes/leaks yes
    Tbh you still need to carry a spare inner tube in case you rip the sidewall and the sealant cant cope with the size of the hole. I have found it much better though than running tubes
  • sanchez89
    sanchez89 Posts: 567
    Iv just redone the sealant in my Rubber Queen front tyre on my KHS. im not sure of the exact date when i set that one up tubeless but i no its been at least a year. The tyre had started to deflate quite alot and i could hear a little something rolling around inside, thats when i knew it needed more spunk in it.

    When i opened it up i noticed there were a few big lumps stuck to the side along with a stans 'skin' around the whole inside of the tyre, the big lumps were where little punctures would have flattened the tube. So it certainly does work.

    Lower pressures are only advisable if the rim to tyre fit is good, i.e tight. If the tyre is a loose fit on the rim the likelihood of it rolling off and 'burping' at lower pressure is quite high. I have experienced this with a Nobby Nic i had on the front before the RQ.
    2011 KHS Full Susser Carbon 29er Race Build
    Clank wrote:
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  • dusk
    dusk Posts: 583
    I'm running tubeless HD's on UST rims, I've never burped any air and have run pressures around 25 psi front 30 back.

    I've never had a thorn puncture but have slashed the rear tyre twice and neither time did the sealant work on such a large hole so the spare tube I was carrying was a neccessity
    YT Wicked 160 ltd
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  • frankspencer1979
    frankspencer1979 Posts: 525
    Just been for a quick local ride and the tyres are still on and full of air! Feel a bit more confident in them all ready. Clearance with the front fork brace might be an issue, there's the rubbing sound.

    Got them pretty hard for now, but will experiment when I go somewhere more technical. Cheers for advice, it seems I just wait til they start going down, then inspect the sealant. Easy peasy. :wink:
  • jerryfudd
    jerryfudd Posts: 343
    frankspencer1979 wrote:
    Just been for a quick local ride and the tyres are still on and full of air! Feel a bit more confident in them all ready. Clearance with the front fork brace might be an issue, there's the rubbing sound.

    Got them pretty hard for now, but will experiment when I go somewhere more technical. Cheers for advice, it seems I just wait til they start going down, then inspect the sealant. Easy peasy. :wink:

    had mine tubeless on Stan's Flows for well over a year now just keep 2 bottles of Stans in the shed so i always have it to hand, check the tires feel firm every ride, the pressures every couple or before a big ride and every 6 months (or whenever I think about it) after its been standing awhile make sure that I can hear some excess fluid in the tyre then give it a shake round and forward/backward to coat the inside of the tyre and see how much fluid i can still hear.

    as for pressure i always follow this....

    http://www.notubes.com/help_center_tire_pressure.aspx

    Dan
    2013 Cotic Bfe
  • 97th choice
    97th choice Posts: 2,222
    Running HD's on giant sxc2 rims, they inflate well enough with just soapy water but as said above you need the sealant in there afterwards, I poured it in through the removable core. Had no problems retaining pressure since.

    It is true that they feel way to hard at the previous pressures I would have put in when running tubes.
    Too-ra-loo-ra, too-ra-loo-rye, aye

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  • jerryfudd
    jerryfudd Posts: 343
    cyd190468 wrote:
    jerryfudd wrote:
    as for pressure i always follow this....

    http://www.notubes.com/help_center_tire_pressure.aspx

    Dan
    That actually works out slightly harder then I run with tubes in?? :shock:

    ah, worked out lower for me but then I always thought I ran to high... completely different feel though tyre just feels more supple.... maybe it's our differences in tyre? I'm running a 2.2 spec captain but then was just as good when I ran the 2.0.

    Dan
    2013 Cotic Bfe
  • satanas
    satanas Posts: 1,303
    Yikes! That's 19/22 PSI for me, way lower than I'd dare run with tubes. I'm guessing this is for high volume tyres on smooth-ish trails.

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