Do Tubeless Road Tires need sealant?

[Onno]

I'm thinking about going tubeless, because my wheels are compatible and I like the idea (in the abstract). I'm confused, though. On this forum I've seen people talk about not using sealant, but on a number of "how-to" pages on line, they always talk about using sealant. Isn't the sealant only about punctures? If you're happy just sticking in a tube once you puncture, why mess around with sealant?

[Kirk007]

One of the nice things about sealant is if you puncture it will often seal while the wheel is still spinning and you never stop to put in a tube. With a good tire and the right rim yes they will seal and you can ride without sealant. And as the core on the tubeless stem is removable you can also carry a small bottle of sealant with you and try to fix by adding sealant to the tire if and when you puncture. I guess an issue with this is whether, if the beads unset during the process, you could get them reseated with the pump you are carrying. I read somewhere that you're not to use CO2 cartridges but that may not be the case. I put one ounce of sealant in the tire. It's not that much and I'm learning how to make the best of a switch to a tube in this scenario (home practice helps).

[ripvanrando]

I have tried several tubeless road tires. Some will seal reasonably well without sealant meaning you do not need to pump them up everyday. Schwalbe (pro one and s-one) and Specialized s-works could be used w/o sealant in my case and Compass Bob Jon leaked even with sealant. I'm forgetting a fifth tire. I would mount and seal the tire and leaving it pressured for half a day or day to stretch the bead a bit. I could go 3-4 days without putting air into the Specialized or Schwalbe but the Compass needed air daily. YMMV.

The obvious concern with sealant is if you need to boot or put a tube in. It is a bit of a mess. Then, good luck getting the tube out after the sealant residue has dried.

I'm considering pulling the trigger on a pair of Vittoria Speed tubeless tires but would definitely run Orange sealant in them

[ColonelJLloyd]

I just setup my first tubeless wheelset. 42-584 Pacenti Pari Motos on Velocity Blunt SL. These tires are notoriously fragile, but fast and supple and about 325g. In 53 miles Saturday I got two punctures, but the Orange Seal sealed them and all I had to do was pump them back up to pressure. Pretty slick.

[YesNdeed]

In the goat head infested South West High Desert, one does not have a prayer without without adequate flat protection. If I move somewhere that may not require sealant, the idea of which sounds surreal given what I'm used to, I would probably still use it. Yes, it's messy, but cleaning my bike beats changing tubes. Some swear by The System (sidewalls cut from an old tire, the remaining center of tire placed between the tube and inside of tire), Mr. Tuffies (the dark side) or my preference, tubeless tires with Sealant. I make my own, but choose Orange Seal when I buy it. I have very, very few flats as a result of this setup, and become comfortable with dealing with them, in the rare event they fail. I inflate road tires to around 80PSI and never have to stop and reinflate. Just keep on riding. I also carry a Park Tool boot in case of a nasty sideway tear. Haven't needed one yet.

[pcxmbfj]

All road tubeless I'm aware of use the sealant for flat protection.

[MaraudingWalrus]

many can seal without sealant. There's no valid reason to run without sealant as far as I can tell.

When I mount I normally try without sealant to see if I'm going to need to use tricks, or maybe just to mentally prepare myself. If it inflates to pressure with no sealant, than I can relax a bit and not hate my life.

Sealant's sealing abilities is what gives what is, as far as I'm concerned, tubeless road it's only significant benefit, which is ability to seal punctures.


Ability to run lower pressures is great, on mtb or cross, but there's still some limit to how low a pressure my fat :butt: can run on the road. Better grip isn't a huge deal on road either like it is offroad...

[Onno]

Again, not having used tubeless yet, the downside of sealant I've seen mentioned is the mess when changing tires on the road, when the sealant doesn't work, and you have to put in a tube anyway. If the sealant is only about puncture recovery, I'd be happy to forego it, since where I ride, the roads seem to be relatively clean, and the punctures I get seem mostly to be pinch flats of one kind or another (often because the tube has a slight twist or nick from installation.) But if the sealant is actually to seal the tire to the rim, seal the rim, then it seems necessary.

[Keith A]

This subject has come up several times on the forum, and here's a good thread to read if you haven't already done so...
http://forums.thepaceline.net/showthread.php?t=190219

[ripvanrando]

Sorry if already mentioned. Removing some tubeless tires on some rims is nearly impossible with just tire irons and that is one reason to use sealant. The Schwalbes needed a Kool Stop Bead jack to mount on one of my rims but it could be mounted on another rim using aluminum tire irons. Since the Schwalbe Pro Ones keep flatting for me (casing cuts like tissue paper) and I did not like carrying a Kool Stop Bead jack around, I took them off the bike and probably have two new ones in my tire collection.

[25.4]

This subject has come up several times on the forum, and here's a good thread to read if you haven't already done so...
http://forums.thepaceline.net/showthread.php?t=190219

Thank you for linking the previous thread. Now, I'm a little more curious about road tubeless. Before, my desire to avoid sealant outweighed the benefits I've heard about.

[Onno]

This subject has come up several times on the forum, and here's a good thread to read if you haven't already done so...
http://forums.thepaceline.net/showthread.php?t=190219

Reading that thread is actually what prompted my question. I hadn't realized until reading it that it was possible to use tubeless without sealant. I'd thought sealant was essential to getting the tires to seal in the first place. Clearly they aren't, although perhaps in some cases they are? I guess I'll just have to wait and try it out myself....

[Keith A]

Reading that thread is actually what prompted my question. I hadn't realized until reading it that it was possible to use tubeless without sealant. I'd thought sealant was essential to getting the tires to seal in the first place. Clearly they aren't, although perhaps in some cases they are? I guess I'll just have to wait and try it out myself....I've mentioned this a couple of times, but I have never run sealant in any of my road tubeless setups and haven't had any issues. Just a couple of flats..and I put a tube in and was on my way.

[pcxmbfj]

All road tubeless I'm aware of use the sealant for flat protection.

I meant only for protection, not needed to ride.

[one60]

The first generation Schwalbe ONE tires (still available) do not require sealant. The 2nd generation Schwalbe Pro ONE microskin TL easy (or some such name) have a thinner, more flexible carcass (think veloflex) and require sealant to be airtight.

Having both, I'd say the Pro ONE rides a bit better but both versions were a slight improvement over the clincher version.

The downside to using sealant even out on the road is (IMHO) minimal. Who among us hasn't mounted a new tube only tear the valve or pinch the tube (despite double-checking) or found a patched tube fails to hold air when mounted? There's a learning curve but its not steep. For me the trade-off has been more than worthwhile.