Working with tubeless!

[pcxmbfj]

I'm mounting Hutchinson Intensive tubeless onto Shiman Ultegra wheels. I've used tubeless and tubeless ready tires on my mountain rides for years and am convinced that is the future of bicycling tires.

The front went on almost effortlessly using my compressor and preping the tire as shown in the Hutch youtube video.

The main tip from this post is I used gel shaving soap, in the tube, from a dollar store instead of the Hutch lever because there is no bike shop in town and had no desire to engage the Christmas traffic. It probably is much cheaper, $1, also.

Rear tire was a different story.

Bead had a fold in it from packaging and did not pump up under same procedure as front and even using a ratching tie down strap around the tire hope to help force bead outward when applying compressor air.

Second tip, strap around tire.

Third tip will come if I get the rear mounted today after inflating with tube to hopefully get the fold aligned with bead hook in tire.

Next installment to come?

[dekindy]

I had the same problems as you until I learned the proper technique; except I had problems front and back.

Squeeze both sides of the tire into the center channel as tightly as possible while first making sure to get tire sealed around valve stem. Doing this I have never failed to install tires on the first inflation attempt with a floor pump. This method insures that the tire expands uniformly and seals. The other methods insure that there will be unequal pressure at various points where the tire meets the rim and you will chase your tail trying to seal them all while creating other gaps.

It also helps to make the tires as supple as possible by warming in the Sun or throw them into the dryer. I was able to finally locate the Hutchinson lube applicator and that seems to do a better job of moistening the sidewall.

[cfox]

Bikes tires that require shaving cream, sealant, tie-down straps and an air compressor, all to make things...easier. Hmm. The future of bike tires is the past for me (tubulars).

[FastVegan]

I am with cfox on this, tubeless is fine for my automobiles but I am sticking with tubulars for all my bikes.

[bcroslin]

I use Schwalbes on my road and mtb and I've never had any issues inflating with a compressor. I will sometimes also inflate the tires with a CO2 in a pinch.

Did you use soapy water around the bead? I've never heard of anyone using shaving cream.

[merckx]

Good lord, this sounds like a lot of work! Maybe more than pedaling the machine? I'll stick with tubs, thank you. They are easier to mount and perform better on the road.

[pcxmbfj]

Bikes tires that require shaving cream, sealant, tie-down straps and an air compressor, all to make things...easier. Hmm. The future of bike tires is the past for me (tubulars).

Bike tires that require glue, offer limited sizes, disposed of after a puncture, expensive as an automobile tire, and can roll off rim in a turn??:)

[Cat3roadracer]

I second the tubless revolution. I have a pair on a mountain bike that I mounted about six months ago. I have yet to pump them up after the initial installation. It more fun, however, to try to seat the bead with a hand pump (just kidding, I don't own a compressor).

[cfox]

Bike tires that require glue, offer limited sizes, disposed of after a puncture, expensive as an automobile tire, and can roll off rim in a turn??:)
-glue seems a tad easier/simpler than shaving cream, sealant, straps and a compressor
-available in sizes from 19mm - 'cross size, by many different brands vs what, 10 tubeless tires on the market, only one over 23mm?
-tubs are the only bike tires that can be repaired
-price? worth every penny, but probably only $30 more than a tubeless tire
-any half decent glue job and you won't roll a tub

this is the new tubular vs clincher debate!!

[sokyroadie]

--tubs are the only bike tires that can be repaired


Don't think I agree with this statement. ;)

Jeff

[gregblow]

I had the same problems as you until I learned the proper technique; except I had problems front and back.

Squeeze both sides of the tire into the center channel as tightly as possible while first making sure to get tire sealed around valve stem. Doing this I have never failed to install tires on the first inflation attempt with a floor pump. This method insures that the tire expands uniformly and seals. The other methods insure that there will be unequal pressure at various points where the tire meets the rim and you will chase your tail trying to seal them all while creating other gaps.

It also helps to make the tires as supple as possible by warming in the Sun or throw them into the dryer. I was able to finally locate the Hutchinson lube applicator and that seems to do a better job of moistening the sidewall.

I agree! you will get better over time. and in reality all you need to do is get both sides of the tire in the center channel and you will never have a problem.

[oldpotatoe]

I'm mounting Hutchinson Intensive tubeless onto Shiman Ultegra wheels. I've used tubeless and tubeless ready tires on my mountain rides for years and am convinced that is the future of bicycling tires.

The front went on almost effortlessly using my compressor and preping the tire as shown in the Hutch youtube video.

The main tip from this post is I used gel shaving soap, in the tube, from a dollar store instead of the Hutch lever because there is no bike shop in town and had no desire to engage the Christmas traffic. It probably is much cheaper, $1, also.

Rear tire was a different story.

Bead had a fold in it from packaging and did not pump up under same procedure as front and even using a ratching tie down strap around the tire hope to help force bead outward when applying compressor air.

Second tip, strap around tire.

Third tip will come if I get the rear mounted today after inflating with tube to hopefully get the fold aligned with bead hook in tire.

Next installment to come?

Really? What cfox said.....or just a nice clincher, without a bunch of pressure, some sealant in the tube..

Two steps forward, three steps back..real advantages to tubeless for MTBs..many(all) of which don't really apply on a road bike, IMHO. Like low pressures, no pinch flats for mud/muck, slop

[oldpotatoe]

Bike tires that require glue, offer limited sizes, disposed of after a puncture, expensive as an automobile tire, and can roll off rim in a turn??:)

Need to learn how to fix 'em.

Many clinchers, including tubeless are the same or higher price than a good tubular.

Roll off if you glue them on improperly..kinda like a clincher that rolls off a rim when it goes flat...even when installed correctly.

[dekindy]

Can we agree that the tubeless clincher stiffer sidewall and the design of the tire/rim interface makes a tubeless clincher less likely to dismount from the rim than a tubed clincher in the case of a flat?

That is the main reason for my adoption of road tubeless. I also do not have to worry about pinch flats. Hutchinson Intensives also last twice as long as a 4000S.

[93legendti]

Since I switched to tubeless in spring of 2012, I haven't had a flat. On our roads, that is quite a feat. Ymmv. I am sold.

[harryschwartzma]

You can also repair a cut in a tubeless tire using a regular tire patch. I have done this with no problems.

[dekindy]

You can also repair a cut in a tubeless tire using a regular tire patch. I have done this with no problems.

Regular patch is okay but should use Hutchinson glue.

[fogrider]

Ha, this keeps coming up...it all works but there are pluses and minus to all. Try them and ride what you like.

Sent from my XT1053 using Tapatalk

[pcxmbfj]

Ha, this keeps coming up...it all works but there are pluses and minus to all. Try them and ride what you like.

Sent from my XT1053 using Tapatalk

Doing my part.

Tried tubulars, clinchers, tubeless, tubeless ready in road and mountain.

Hutchinson made a 26" mtb tubular tire that went on Wolber wheels I got from a Performance tent sale in the 90's. Tires may have been Wolber.

Actually haven't gotten the road tubeless rolling yet because I broke/cracked a finger mtn biking and can't mount the Intensive one handed.

[r_mutt]

i went tubeless- the a few months later, i got a flat on a rainy day- not nice. i ruined 3 tubes trying to get one of them in the tire without ripping it. that ended our group ride and i called a taxi. i'm back on Pro 3's for training.

[mod6]

Plugs work well for tubeless and a lot less mess than putting a tube in. Biggest issue I find with tubeless on my MTB/road is letting the stan's dry up.

[Mr.Bean]

Although Shimano doesn't endorse any specific sealant they have tested Slime sealant and found it to be the best for their systems..

[dgaddis1]

Tubeless is easy, with good stuff. SL23 rims + Hutchinson Secteur 28's = awesomesauce. Tires go on by hand, or with a little help from a lever, and pump up with a floor pump. No shavin gel or lube or even soapy water needed.

Not a good tire for steep, fast, chunky gravel descending tho.

[ariw]

I wonder how many folks bashing tubeless have actually put any miles on a road tubeless setup. I have both tubular and tubeless, and have been using tubeless primarily for the past couple of years. The ride is almost the same as tubulars, but a fraction of the time for installation, and almost zero maintenance.

I have "flatted" numerous times on tubeless, which I put in quotes because i just hear air escaping for a few seconds and then the sealant kicks in. I even flatted once in the middle of a paceline without missing a beat. Only once did I have to install a tube on the road, and it took the same time that changing a standard clincher flat does.

Mounting and inflating tubeless takes a few minutes more than clinchers, but then there is nothing to do to them ... for months on end.

-Ari

[pcxmbfj]

I've got about 35 miles on my Intensive's and like them very much.
Haven't got the road repair issue resolved to my satisfaction but think sealant treatment and air canister will address it.
Don't see throwing a tube into a tubeless tire as a viable option.

[Ralph]

With tubeless clincher.....what do you do on the side of the road when tire is flat and hole too big for sealant to fix? Put in a tube? Can you get the tires on and off with cold fingers? On regular clincher you can put in a new tube (before tubeless rims anyway), or boot the tire. With tubular....it's even simpler and faster to get home, just put on a your spare, and with CO2 just pump it up.

I like the idea of tubeless clinchers, just haven't figured out how to use them for all around use.

[CunegoFan]

With tubeless clincher.....what do you do on the side of the road when tire is flat and hole too big for sealant to fix? Put in a tube? Can you get the tires on and off with cold fingers? On regular clincher you can put in a new tube (before tubeless rims anyway), or boot the tire. With tubular....it's even simpler and faster to get home, just put on a your spare, and with CO2 just pump it up.

I like the idea of tubeless clinchers, just haven't figured out how to use them for all around use.

They are made for this new age in cycling when instead of being self-reliant and using gear that is reliable or, like training wheels with lots of spokes, fault tolerant, you rely on inconveniencing someone else by asking them to spend two hours to pick your ass up when something goes wrong forty-five miles from home.

[dekindy]

With tubeless clincher.....what do you do on the side of the road when tire is flat and hole too big for sealant to fix? Put in a tube?Yes. Or you could carry a patch kit.

Can you get the tires on and off with cold fingers? If you mean the dead of Winter I don't know. No different than regular clincher in Summer. Not worried about Winter. If you are, install a regular clincher during the Winter.

On regular clincher you can put in a new tube (before tubeless rims anyway), or boot the tire. With tubular....it's even simpler and faster to get home, just put on a your spare, and with CO2 just pump it up. If you have the proper technique, get both sides of tire in center channel and sealed around valve, you can inflate with any pump. Using a compressor or CO2 is nonsense if you are doing installing the tire properly.

I like the idea of tubeless clinchers, just haven't figured out how to use them for all around use. Might also carry disposable medical gloves on the bike if you use sealant. They take up very little room and are also convenient for dealing with oily, gritty chains.

I studied youtube videos for tubed and tubeless and really concentrated on learning proper technique. Now I no longer dread changing tires because I know how. The only difficulty I had was with sealant. Shimano 7850sl vavle stems do not have cores that can be removed and did not realize Stan's could be installed using the Caffelatex injector. At least I assume it could have been since Stan's now has their own injector that I cannot tell the difference from Caffelatex's. Would have saved a lot of mess.

[dgaddis1]

They are made for this new age in cycling when instead of being self-reliant and using gear that is reliable or, like training wheels with lots of spokes, fault tolerant, you rely on inconveniencing someone else by asking them to spend two hours to pick your ass up when something goes wrong forty-five miles from home.

What?? No. False.

I've had one flat in over 1200 miles on my tubeless Secteurs, and that was a cut from descending a steep and fast gravel hill with big sharp gravel.

At the bottom, with a flat tire, on the side of a gravel road, I pulled the tire off, put a tube in, and continued the ride. Little messier with the sealant, but not a huge deal. Didn't even need a tire lever.

It is not rocket science y'all.

[don compton]

I understand the benefit s of tubeless first hand on my cars. I used to own a BMW 630csi that had tube type tires. I had a puncture and the tire blew out and was ruined. But with all the hassles with handling tubeless tires on bicycles, I have my doubts. I just do not get enough flats in a year to justify the B.S. that you have to go through with tubeless. It reminds me of spending a few bucks upgrading(????????) to disc brakes on a road bike.:confused:

[dgaddis1]

I understand the benefit s of tubeless first hand on my cars. I used to own a BMW 630csi that had tube type tires. I had a puncture and the tire blew out and was ruined. But with all the hassles with handling tubeless tires on bicycles, I have my doubts. I just do not get enough flats in a year to justify the B.S. that you have to go through with tubeless. It reminds me of spending a few bucks upgrading(????????) to disc brakes on a road bike.:confused:

It's not just about flat protection. Tubeless rides better than tubed clinchers, and is more user friendly that tubulars.

I'm a fan, but as a MTBer who does a little road riding and some commuting...I'm a bit biased towards tubeless.

[dekindy]

Although Shimano doesn't endorse any specific sealant they have tested Slime sealant and found it to be the best for their systems..

I have not heard this before and would be interested to know the source of this information.

[wallymann]

It's not just about flat protection. Tubeless rides better than tubed clinchers, and is more user friendly that tubulars.

tubeless will never ride as good as a tubie. so that works for my race tires. if its a crit, there's a wheelpit if i get a flat. if its a roadrace, for masters-phatties like me if i flat i'm done.

as for regular clinchers, my vittoria open corsas ride almost as nice as my tubies and work great as far as on-road issues for training.

i guess for folks used to living with tubeless and sealant from MTBing, where that system makes alot of sense, then making the leap to road tubeless is a no-brainer. but entering a 3rd page of discussion i still struggle seeing the benefit of tubeless for the road.

[redir]

i went tubeless- the a few months later, i got a flat on a rainy day- not nice. i ruined 3 tubes trying to get one of them in the tire without ripping it. that ended our group ride and i called a taxi. i'm back on Pro 3's for training.

Me too, sort of. I went to tubless on my mountain bike for about a year. I thought I was sold on it till I got sick and tired of burping and I got just as many if not more flats then tubes and then you have to deal with the mess.

Back to tubes for me.

It may be because I weigh in at 210lbs. I need well pumped up tires anyway so I can't really take advantage of what tubeless supposedly offers.

It's always been tubular on the road for me.

[dgaddis1]

I have not heard this before and would be interested to know the source of this information.

Some sealants have ammonia in them, which can corrode bare aluminum. For whatever reason Shimano didn't anodize the "inside" of their rims. Anodized rims don't have any problems.

Most rims are anodized all around, and most also require tape to seal off the spoke holes, so the sealant doesn't really come in contact with the rim itself anyways.

[dekindy]

Some sealants have ammonia in them, which can corrode bare aluminum. For whatever reason Shimano didn't anodize the "inside" of their rims. Anodized rims don't have any problems.

Most rims are anodized all around, and most also require tape to seal off the spoke holes, so the sealant doesn't really come in contact with the rim itself anyways.

Thanks, but I know all that. Instructions indicate not to use alkaline sealant agents but to my knowledge I have never heard of Shimano recommending a specific sealant.