[powderboy]

I'm an UST rookie... both front and rear tires on my Cannondale Prophet 1000 go flat pretty quickly. My front is especially bad--only lasts about a day.

Any tips on re-seating the tires to make sure they seal properly?

 

[S.K.C.]

If the tires were factory installed, then it might be a bead seating issue along with the fact that they don't come with any sealant inside the tire - Whenever running UST it's always a good idea to use sealant such as Stan's (which is latex based but dries out quickly and must be re-applied every few weeks), OR what's even better is Bontrager Super Juice (which is Glycol based and takes at least 4 to 6 months to dry out before re-application.)

Take off your tires and check to see that the beads are clean, aren't torn or extremely kinked - I'm assuming that since you are riding a Cannondale Prophet it is coming from tha factory with OEM Maxxis High Roller Tubeless 2.35" tires - these tires have a folding Kevlar bead, so if there are some minor kinks here and there, it shouldn't be too much of a big deal...

Clean the inside of the rim lips where the tire bead will seat with a damp cloth and a touch of mild soap.

With each tire carefully re-install w/ soap bubbles from an agitated soap-water mixture.

After putting on one bead around the rim fill the inside of the tire w/ the appropriate amount of sealant - go to NoTubes.com to find out how much or it should say on Bontragers web site depending on what you use...

Re-inflate the tires with a compressed air system like the kind in the repair shop at your local bike shop.

Hold the tire in front of you vertically and every 10 degrees or so, shake the wheel back and forth (away from you, toward you, etc.) to coat the inside of the tire...

After all that you should be good to go.

 

[powderboy]

WOW... thanks for the explanation. I didn't know it was such a process to seat the bead just right. I'll give that a whirl. Thanks!

 

[Mike B.]

Of course I would recommend some sealant, see my sig. However, there has been a whole rash of Prophets that have valves installed incorrectly and the tires are going flat. Check the valves before you get too carried away.

 

[blue]

I've always inflated tubeless with a floor pump and an assload of Stan's, but I'm tempted to try out the Bonty stuff, I've heard good things.

Usually, making sure the bead is straight and you have enough goo, it should seal and seat just fine without air loss.

 

[caboverpete]

I had the same problem with the Spiders I was running, completely flat overnight. Was washing it one day and noticed bubbles around about 50% of the knobs. Added some stans and all is well.

 

[oldfart]

They shouldn't go flat overnight. If there are others reporting valve problems then check that first with a spray of soapy water. Seating a bead is not a big deal at all. Generally spraying the rim with soapy water then installing the tire by hand on the rim and using a floor pump is all one needs. Just pump the tire until the bead is fully seated as indicated by the moulded in line around the circumference of the tire just above the bead. Some tires will actually pop onto the bead while others slide on silently. Some brands hold air better than others. I have had Michelins which held air as well as tubed tires, and Kenda's and Geax which needed daily fill ups. A sealant while a little messy and adding a bit of weight(if that's a concern) do work to keep air in and seal small punctures. Last weekend the wife got two punctures in two rides. One was a sliver of glass which I patched on the ride. The other was a staple which put two holes in the tire but also plugged the holes well enough that she only noticed the tire being low when she came home. I fixed that with a Panaracer tubeless patch kit without removing the tire from the rim or even deflating it! Sweet.

The kit has a large squre of rubber patching stuff, glue, scissors and a bigish eyelet insert needle thing. Locate the hole, stab it with the needle to make it large enough, cut a 2mm wide strip of rubber, peal off the backing and thread through the needle eye, coat with cement and insert slowly into the hole in the tire and retract slowly such that the strip of rubber ends up "M" shaped in the hole. Cut the strip off the needle and give it 5 minutes and go.