[Damo]

After flicking through all the tubeless threads here, I'd like to see who actually uses and who doesn't...

Add any extra info about your setup too. And reasons too, if you so feel like it.

 

[bullcrew]

I have 1 set with strans rim strips and 1 with ghetto, tubeless 3 years now. Urban/DH/FR etc... weight 220lbs tires Kenda single ply nev/BG combo or Nev/Custom cut nev.... No problems and the DH casings are crazy strong for it.
I pulled my DH tubeless kendas off the other day and the stans was still white with no lumps (mind you I aired them up 10 months ago) they were a perfect seal.

 

[gonefirefightin]

I built a set of the new tubeless 823 mavic discs and running a 2.5 michelin tubless set up with no sealant at all and it works great dry

 

[J_B]

1 set 823's with non ust 3C Maxxis Minion DHF F&R with Stan's.....no problems at all.

 

[buckoW]

Hey Damo,
I think it is too rough around here to play with tubeless. It is such a pain in the ass to change a flat out on the trail with the fluid all over your hands/gloves and then have a wobbly wheel and sticky grips for the rest of the day. Not to mention that ripped sidewalls are common and straight rim beads are hard to come by when there are 25 lifts out your back door. Just my experiences and opinions. Racing = yes , riding = no. IMO.

 

[ruggs]

In my experience: Racing:no, Riding:no, townie: maybe. I am a tubeless lover turned hater. I first used 823's with stans and UST High Rollers on my dh bike. Kept puncturing the tread, and the stans wouldn't fill the holes. Went through a few tires this way, and then went back to tubes on the big bike, but kept tubeless setup on my trailbike. So far this spring I have punctured three brand new UST LUST 2.35 high rollers three weekends in a row (three different tires, two different bikes, different riding areas each time, with brand new Stans, well shaken). That was the final straw for me. I never once tore the sidewalls, and rarely had the bead burp, but every single UST tire has had a puncture in the tread that Stans wouldn't seal, even though they were pretty small. Maybe other tubeless setups work better (stronger non-ust tire?) but for me, they just dont work. I now have tubes on my bikes, and don't flat anymore! Doesn't make sense to me to buy a brand new tire all the time, or to have tubes in a tubeless setup; much heavier. Apparently most people have better luck than I did, but I think tubeless is WAY over-rated.

 

[FCLinder]

Michelin Tires all Tubeless
Azonic Outlaws (they use alex rims)
Maxxis DH2 tubeless rim strips. (Which they don't make anymore)

Been running this setup now for 3 years and it works great.

 

[CRoss]

In my experience: Racing:no, Riding:no, townie: maybe. I am a tubeless lover turned hater. I first used 823's with stans and UST High Rollers on my dh bike. Kept puncturing the tread, and the stans wouldn't fill the holes. Went through a few tires this way, and then went back to tubes on the big bike, but kept tubeless setup on my trailbike. So far this spring I have punctured three brand new UST LUST 2.35 high rollers three weekends in a row (three different tires, two different bikes, different riding areas each time, with brand new Stans, well shaken). That was the final straw for me. I never once tore the sidewalls, and rarely had the bead burp, but every single UST tire has had a puncture in the tread that Stans wouldn't seal, even though they were pretty small. Maybe other tubeless setups work better (stronger non-ust tire?) but for me, they just dont work. I now have tubes on my bikes, and don't flat anymore! Doesn't make sense to me to buy a brand new tire all the time, or to have tubes in a tubeless setup; much heavier. Apparently most people have better luck than I did, but I think tubeless is WAY over-rated.

Ever hear of a patch? Just take a normal tube patch and patch the holes in your tires.

 

[Spunger]

I just got done trying this.........and here's my ideas on this.

I have Arrow DHX rims. I got the widest Stan's strips, some sealant, and figured we'd give it a shot. I got the front to air up fine with no real issues, but the rear no matter what I tried (tried the same as the front) then played around with the thickness of the tape, from 2 layers to one and couldn't get the tire to hold. The bead wasn't perfect but it was a new tire. I'm sure if I tried another new tire with a better bead it would have worked fine.

So I took everything out. The tires were a PITA to clean up. Stan's really does make a mess. I put the tubes back in and figured I'll wait until I need a new wheelset to try the tubeless deal, then I can get tubeless tires and rims that go together.

I'm sure some of it was my installation problem with the rear, but it was a fairly easy system to use anyways. I have no complaints about it, just didn't work for me. I've never gotten a flat running Hutchinson DH green tubes so I just baby powdered them up and installed them.

We'll see how it goes, but that's my take atleast

 

[buildyourown]

Kept puncturing the tread, and the stans wouldn't fill the holes.

What are you hitting that you are puncturing the tread? I've never seen this except for stuff like goat heads and other thorns.
Tubeless is the shiz if it's working for you. I'm not sure what people are doing wrong but almost everyone I ride with is running it.

 

[buildyourown]

I have Arrow DHX rims. I got the widest Stan's strips, some sealant, and figured we'd give it a shot. I got the front to air up fine with no real issues, but the rear no matter what I tried (tried the same as the front) then played around with the thickness of the tape, from 2 layers to one and couldn't get the tire to hold. The bead wasn't perfect but it was a new tire. I'm sure if I tried another new tire with a better bead it would have worked fine.

I'm telling you. The ghetto setup is way less finicky to inflate. No messing with tape, just inflate, shake, and ride.

 

[CRoss]

I'm telling you. The ghetto setup is way less finicky to inflate. No messing with tape, just inflate, shake, and ride.

ghetto or if you can get your hands on the Maxxis strips.

I heard Maxxis threw away boxes and boxes of the rim strips

 

[ruggs]

Ever hear of a patch? Just take a normal tube patch and patch the holes in your tires.

Yep, I have heard of those "patch" things. Don't really feel like doing that everytime I ride. I'd rather have something a little more reliable.

And ya, I agree, tubeless is the shizz when it works. I'm just trying to let some people know that it doesn't always work. I have wasted a lot of time, energy and money on tubeless; was just trying to possibly save someone some headaches.

None of the punctures in the tread had a thorn, glass, or anything else in them so it's hard to tell exactly what it was. Each puncture I was JRA, sometimes rocky areas, other times not...

 

[DirtMcGirk]

After a lot of stupidity I finally punched through the side of my Michelin tire the other day. Other then that on glitch, I have tubless on every bike I own, sans my road bike, and soon I will convert that.

 

[kidwoo]

What are you hitting that you are puncturing the tread? I've never seen this except for stuff like goat heads and other thorns.
Tubeless is the shiz if it's working for you. I'm not sure what people are doing wrong but almost everyone I ride with is running it.

Meh.....you live in the PNW.......all those roots are pretty nice and round

 

[bdamschen]

My trail/mini dh bike is rocking tubeless. I like it a lot, I never worry about pinch flats or even minor punctures anymore since I'm rocking stans with it.

My dh bike would be too for the piece of mind, but I don't have tubeless rims and I'm too cheap to spring for new ones. I was on a retarded weight weenie kick for a while where I ran an XC tube and tire in the rear of my dh bike thinking if I have high enough pressure I could keep from pinch flatting. Nope. First run of the season last year at northstar and it's flat.

My cheap skate piece of mind now comes from a ridiclously burly dh tube I had to buy on the mountain that I'm pretty sure has a thicker sidewall than the tire that covers it.

 

[MinorThreat]

My cheap skate piece of mind now comes from a ridiclously burly dh tube I had to buy on the mountain that I'm pretty sure has a thicker sidewall than the tire that covers it.

Haha! Last year I ran a set of thorn-resistant tubes that were much the same way. Darned things were so burly and heavy I think I could have gotten away with having tread vulcanize onto 'em and skipping the tire.

 

[dhkid]

i am running a full ust set up.

if you puncher, you can patch it up with a normal patch kit. for races where i have been flatting left right and center during practice, i just go up a couple of psi and use a couple cups of stans for security.

i didn't go tubeless for less flats, i hardly got any flats with my tubed set up. xc tubes, powder and nice maxxis dual ply tires go a long long way.

 

[Damo]

So what were your reasons?
If you are adding 2 cups of stans, surely that would weigh nearly 500g!
If my maths is right, 500g of Stans weighs more than a 120g tube...

 

[muddy beast]

So what were your reasons?
If you are adding 2 cups of stans, surely that would weigh nearly 500g!
If my maths is right, 500g of Stans weighs more than a 120g tube...

Not if you're using 5 tubes!

 

[Damo]

Why would you be using 5 tubes again?

 

[davep]

So what were your reasons?
If you are adding 2 cups of stans, surely that would weigh nearly 500g!
If my maths is right, 500g of Stans weighs more than a 120g tube...

I think you guys are confusing the scoop that comes with the stans with the imperial 'cup' measurement.

A gallon of H2O weighs about 8 pounds. 500g would be about 1/8 of a gallon.....half of a liter. Two 'scoops' is nowhere near half of a litre...

I use about a litre of stans fluid over the course of a year for two bikes.

 

[I.van]

Ever hear of a patch? Just take a normal tube patch and patch the holes in your tires.

I have a 2.1 LUST Crossmark here that has a small sidewall hole that stan's won't seal, and I've tried to patch it twice. Thats hard to live with when you had to fork out $80 ( two weeks ago) for the tyre.

I run DT 5.1's with rim strips and UST tyres.I have tried Ghetto tyres, but the sidewalls just felt way too soft when the going got tough. I have to run a Tubeless setup with sealant, or tubes with slime in them because there are so many huge thorns where I live. So Tubeless is the lighter option of the two.

 

[HAB]

I have 1 set with strans rim strips and 1 with ghetto.

Both work about equally well. I use the Stans fluid in both. One thing about the ghetto setup is that it's important to get 20" tubes with removable valve cores. That way you can add more sealant by taking out the valve core and using a syringe. It's way easier and better than having to unseat one bead.

Also, if you're DHing, resist the temptation to try to convert a single ply tire. Even though you don't need to worry about pinch flatting anymore, the extra beef of a dual ply is needed to keep from burping.

 

[Boxxer]

I run Stans on MTXs and non ust DHFs without issue. Also run UST Monorails on Archs with a lil stans fluid thrown in, no issues either.

 

[gonefirefightin]

I have yet to use any stans on my set up and still have no problems

 

[jcook90]

I just switched today, can't ride them for 4 weeks but I dropped 2.88lbs in DH tubes and added maybe 1/2 to 3/4lb in rimstrips and sealant. It helps a lot to have a new tire when switching, the new tire took maybe 15 minutes to complete, whereas the older one was about 45ish (it was also my first tubeless conversion)

 

[CBJ]

After years on Mavic 729 and stans I used Mavic 823 and Maxxis Minion DHF tubeless all last year. Normally I break a rear rim but the wheel set it like new.

I would love a lighter rim with less spokes for the front and/or even fever spokes 823 option like Mavic runs the DeeMax.

Tubeless might not be for everybody but I am a light rider and it works great for me.

 

[dhkid]

So what were your reasons?
If you are adding 2 cups of stans, surely that would weigh nearly 500g!
If my maths is right, 500g of Stans weighs more than a 120g tube...

reasons to go tubeless?

i knew i wasn't going to save weight, main reason was rolling resistance. i was about 125lbs when i first was on tubeless, and i still feel the difference in rolling resistance now. tires still grip really nicely even if you use high pressures.

that race where i was flatting was a one off, it was really hard on tires. otherwise i dont have problems with them at all.

if you use maxxis tires, changing tires is actually easier then with tubes. they inflate even with a mini pump, no fuss every time.

 

[frorider]

as usual w/ these polls, my answer is 'several of the above'.

i have 7 wheelsets in the garage, from AM to DH.

some are mavic UST rims and UST tires. some are UST w/ converted tires. many are std rims converted to tubeless; some w/ UST tires some w/ converted tires. recently got the stan's flow rim for my AM hardtail.

have had pretty good results w/ all the combos listed above for sierra / socal / PNW riding. however tire selection has a lot to do with it.

stan's by itself doesn't do much when i get tears. but combining stans with green motocross slime & glitter seems to do a better job.

from my perspective, you can either a) patch a tube if running tubes b) insert a new tube c) patch the tire & keep runnign tubeless.

so really the only difference between a and c is the messy goo aspect. that can be managed by hanging the wheel vertically (on a tree branch or bike handlebars) while patching the tire.

no system is perfect but overall i prefer tubeless.

 

[HAB]

So what were your reasons?
If you are adding 2 cups of stans, surely that would weigh nearly 500g!
If my maths is right, 500g of Stans weighs more than a 120g tube...

500g is way off, as is 120g, unless you're running something super thin. 200g is closer for the tube. When people say 2 cups of Stan's they don't actually mean 16oz. 2 cups refers to two of the little measuring cups that come with the kit, which are 2oz each.

 

[go-ride.com]

I've been running tubeless for a few years now. I haven't used any actual UST rims or tires, but I've used a number of other combos:
1. Stans rims, Stans strips, Stans sealant
2. Non-UST rims, Stans strips, Stans sealant
3. Non-UST rims, Maxxis strips, Stans sealant
4. Non-UST rims, ghetto strips (20" bmx tubes), Stans sealant

The best results I've had are from the Non-UST, Maxxis strips, & Stans sealant. Unfortunately, as others have said the Maxxis strips are not available in the USA. They were just a bit ahead of their time. Hopefully, Maxxis will bring them back with a schrader valve.

When you have the system down they work great. They are messy if you tear or puncture a tire, but that's only once or twice a season for me. Way less than pinches or punchers with tubes. They are also a pain if you need to make a quick tire change if course conditions require it. I usually have a 2nd set of DH wheels with tubes so I can put whatever tire on I need.

I've also heard some complaints from top DHers (ie: good World Cup racers) that they don't like the feel of tubeless as much as with a tube. A tube does add stiffness to the sidewall of a tire and maybe that is something they like. You can add additional psi to a tubeless set up to equalize the overal firmness of the tire, but that's not the same feel as a thicker sidewall.

 

[Damo]

Whats an Oz?
Hill, Rennie, Kovarik?

 

[C_Mo]

823 + regular Maxxis 2.5 F/R + a bit of latex primer for the initial seal. Holds air great and it's a lot cheaper than Stans.

 

[Damo]

I have Mavic 721s. I have stacks of new Maxxis tyres. I have 20" BMX tubes. I have Stans sealant. I have seen the how-to videos. I want to try this 'ghetto' setup (what is there to lose?)

What I haven't got is the know-how of how the tyre gets onto the rim when there is a stretched innertube over the rim? It's a tight fit at the best of times without an added few mms of rubber added...

 

[HAB]

What I haven't got is the know-how of how the tyre gets onto the rim when there is a stretched innertube over the rim? It's a tight fit at the best of times without an added few mms of rubber added...

Lots of swearing. And beer.

 

[dhkid]

721 + tubeless =

thats why i changed to 823s

some ppl have good luck with that set up, but most dont. no harm giving it a try, but be prepared to be frustrated. its not your fault, its the rim.

 

[Jase76]

I have Mavic 721s. I have stacks of new Maxxis tyres. I have 20" BMX tubes. I have Stans sealant. I have seen the how-to videos. I want to try this 'ghetto' setup (what is there to lose?)

What I haven't got is the know-how of how the tyre gets onto the rim when there is a stretched innertube over the rim? It's a tight fit at the best of times without an added few mms of rubber added...

Soapy water is your friend.

 

[no skid marks]

823 for the win,closest thing to perfect(unless you're huge or ride like Rennie,be real,You don't).

 

[freeridefool]

Can someone explain this ghetto setup with 20 inch tubes for me. Im hurt this week so the time is now if Im going to try going tubeless.