By golly, sealant actually works

[Keith A]

I've been running road tubeless for several years and have never needed any sealant...until now. I had a brand new IRC tubeless tire that just wouldn't hold air. My under the water test showed that it wasn't sealing completely at the rim. So I tried soapy water, reseating it multiple times and even rotated the tire on the rim...nothing worked. I had no problem bringing the tire up to pressure, but it would be nearly flat in a few hours.

So I finally gave in and tried some Orange Seal Endurance. That was last night, and when I got up to ride this morning, the tire had only lost a tiny amount of air

[ColonelJLloyd]

So you've been running road tubeless for years without sealant? And that means you've had nothing puncture the tires in that time, until now?

I'm dumb, I guess. I don't see why you would run tubeless tires without sealant.

[Keith A]

Shimano said using sealant would void any warranty for their wheels. In all these years, I've only had a few flats with my road tubeless, and I just popped in a tube and kept on going.

[Mark McM]

I think the question was really meant to be "if you're not using sealant, why would you use tubeless tires?" In other words, if you're not using sealant, there's not much advantage to running tires without tubes.

[Keith A]

Originally Posted by Mark McM

I think the question was really meant to be "if you're not using sealant, why would you use tubeless tires?" In other words, if you're not using sealant, there's not much advantage to running tires without tubes.

Lower air pressure and no pinch flats.

[Tony]

Originally Posted by Keith A

Lower air pressure and no pinch flats.

+ lighter wheels!

[AngryScientist]

and no mess on the road when you need to change a tire.

the weight issue is also true.

[ColonelJLloyd]

Road tubeless is so weird.

[ariw]

Road tubeless is awesome, never run mine without a little sealant though. The IRC tires ride really nice, a little wide for their stated size and not always cheap or easy to find.

Ari

[Mark McM]

Originally Posted by Tony

+ lighter wheels!

Nope.

Tubeless tires themselves weigh more than non-tubeless clincher tires. After adding a tube, a tubeless tire weighs virtually the same as a non-tubeless. TLR (Tubeless Ready) tires weigh about the same as regular clinchers. But TLR tires need sealant, which weighs about as much as a tube.

For example, the Continental GP 5000 TL tire weighs 300 grams, but the GP 5000 (non-tubeless) tire weighs 220 grams. Add an 80 gram tube, and the two tires weigh the same. Or add 2 1/2 oz. of sealant to the GP 5000, and it again weighs the same.

Contrary to the marketing claims, tubeless do not have lower rolling resistance, better grip, nor lower weight, than standard tires.

[kppolich]

Originally Posted by Keith A

I've been running road tubeless for several years and have never needed any sealant...until now. I had a brand new IRC tubeless tire that just wouldn't hold air. My under the water test showed that it wasn't sealing completely at the rim. So I tried soapy water, reseating it multiple times and even rotated the tire on the rim...nothing worked. I had no problem bringing the tire up to pressure, but it would be nearly flat in a few hours.

So I finally gave in and tried some Orange Seal Endurance. That was last night, and when I got up to ride this morning, the tire had only lost a tiny amount of air

The problem I had initially with not sealing at the rim is that I was sloppy with my rim tape and it was riding up into the bead channel. I took a new razor blade and ran it along the bead, sealed right up. Of course sealant helps, but getting the bead 100% makes things easy.
I also just did a yearly inspection of the Orange Seal in my HED Belgium + and Schwalbe Pro1 tires that I setup last year. The sealant was dried in the tire and did peel off nicely all the way around with no mess. I added new Stan's Race sealant for this go round and I will check on them in a few months.

[ColonelJLloyd]

Originally Posted by Keith A

Shimano said using sealant would void any warranty for their wheels. In all these years, I've only had a few flats with my road tubeless, and I just popped in a tube and kept on going.

So that tire's remaining life was served with a tube in it then? Or you patch it on the inside after riding home with a tube?

Originally Posted by AngryScientist

and no mess on the road when you need to change a tire.

Hmm. Well, I've never had to change a tubeless tire or put a tube in one on the road. Hell, I've only had one puncture that was obvious at the time. It sealed after a few seconds, I brought it back to desired PSI, and kept riding.

FWIW, I'm an Orange Seal Endurance user and, except for a set of Schwalbe G-One Speeds in 700x30, all my tubeless experience is with tires 35mm and wider.

I'll take the 4oz weight penalty all day for the benefits of sealant.

[makoti]

I'm just trying out a friends' Mavic setup & in the two weeks I've had them, I got what would have been two flats. Neither stranded me or even made me stop (Well, one did, but that was to look at how badly the tire was failing. Mavic tires stink). Sealant took care of both punctures & I was able to ride home. Yep, the sealant works.

[johnniecakes]

Can sealent be added into regular clincher tubes? Would it add any puncture resistance?

[Jaybee]

Originally Posted by johnniecakes

Can sealent be added into regular clincher tubes? Would it add any puncture resistance?

Yes. Yes. You can still get pinch flats.