55OCLV and TubeLESS Tires???

Superslinky

Michael Press said...

> What's the objection to tubeless tires? I don't MTB much
> so I'm not familiar with the tradeoffs for those bikes.
>
> Seems like not having to deal with tubes would be a big
> improvement and make tire installation easier and faster.
> I could see one downside - possibly having to replace a
> whole tire if you get a flat, but I seem to be unusual in
> that I rarely get get flats.
>
> What would be wrong with road tubeless tires.? Extra
> weight? Higher cost? Something else?
>
> Thanks, Michael

I ride tubeless on my MTB. I use the bike for about 50/50
road and off- road use. I use Michelin Jet S tires that
function reasonably well in most conditions. I can tell you
that there are some big pros and cons. The biggest problem
with them is getting them to seat after you install them. I
have yet to get them to seat using a floor pump. Every time
I have resorted to taking them to a gas station. Maybe a CO2
pump would work, but I have my doubts. This means that a
flat while riding means installing a tube. My particular
tires puncture very easily and I can count on patching at
least the rear after any major off-road ride. But the Jet S
is an ultra-light semi-slick and a knobby tire probably
wouldn't give me any trouble. My rear tire also has about
3000 miles on it and it is time for a new one. If there are
no punctures, my tubeless tires hold their pressure longer
than my tubed tires, surprisingly. The Jet S tubeless is
slightly heavier than the regular Jet S and a regular tube
and up to 100g heavier than with an ultra-light tube. Rims
are also heavier. The lightest UST rim from Mavic is 100g
heavier than their lightest non-UST rim. The tubeless rims
and tires are slightly more expensive.

One very nice benefit is that I have never completely
flatted one of them. The other day I counted 3 separate
punctures in the rear tire and the bike was still quite
rideable. All I had to do was stop every 15 minutes and pump
it back up. Sounds like sarcasm, but it beats walking. I
gave in and installed my spare tube the first time ever and
decided it was time for a new tire. It seems like tubes
always fail completely for
me. Either they hold air or they don't. There may be
something to the rolling resistance claim, but I
wouldn't swear to it. I have both kinds of Jet S tires,
so maybe I will experiment someday and see if there is a
measurable difference.

Installation is more difficult, but easy enough when you
know the trick of making sure the bead is inside the center
depression of the rim while removing or installing. The big
installation problems come from trying to get the bead to
seat. But since a road bike has a much smaller volume of
air, it may much easier.