Tubeless ready wheels with clincher tyres - rim tape or not?

Yost
Yost Posts: 56
edited February 2019 in Road beginners
I have some new tubeless ready wheels arriving next week (Cero AR30), but I am going to stick with tubes for now. So I have bought some Gatorskins 700x35. Inside the packaging was a note that you should still insert rim tape to the wheels due to possible issues with heat, potentially causing punctures. Is this just Continental being over-cautious or something I should be doing? Also, am I going to have difficulties putting the tyres on as I've read that it is more difficult on tubeless wheels, and it was hard enough getting Gatorskins on my current wheels!

Comments

  • whyamihere
    whyamihere Posts: 7,695
    Tubeless ready wheels are often taped already. If they are, you don't need to worry. If not, you will want to fit rim tape, because you still need to cover the spoke holes to prevent punctures from the tube expanding into them.

    Tubeless rims can actually be easier to fit tyres to as long as you have a good technique - Make sure that you push the bit of the bead already mounted down into the central channel to get some slack to get the rest on.
  • With Gatorskins any difficulties with mounting them could be from the unsupple nature of the tyre itself, not the rims.
  • Yost
    Yost Posts: 56
    whyamihere wrote:
    Tubeless ready wheels are often taped already. If they are, you don't need to worry. If not, you will want to fit rim tape, because you still need to cover the spoke holes to prevent punctures from the tube expanding into them.

    Ah ok. The instructions mentioned that heat from braking could be an issue, rather than an issue with spoke holes. Will have to see what the wheels look like when they turn up.
  • I recently bought some TLR wheels and they came with the two rim tape options.
  • Great thread, answered a couple questions I had when I switch to tubeless after I burn through my stock Continentals, can't wait!