Page may contain affiliate links. Please see terms for details.
Racing roadkill
Guru
You got lucky. Tubeless on road bike is the worst idea anybody has had since a certain German chancellor decided to expand his borders. The relatively high pressure to volume ratios on typical road tyres mean that you tend to lose pressure so quickly, that if it happens on a fast descent, it gets really ‘interesting’ really quickly. If you get a side wall slice, worms won’t help, and fitting a tube is your only sensible option, which negates the whole point. The only positive about tubeless, is that you can run really low pressures, without pinch flats, which is fine, on a mountain bike. If you run those low pressures on a typical road bike tyre ( 23mm to 25mm) a). You’re an idiot, and b). You’re an idiot, IMHO.
Last edited:
I have had a puncture with tubeless coming down a mountain at 40+ mph. The slow deflation saved me. I use 25 mm tyres at around 85-90psi. I use 75 mil of sealant per tyre.
A wall slice will scrap any tyre. I carry an inner tube for those rare times where a tyre gets such a bad hole even plugging wont work. These are extremely rare to non existent events
A wall slice will scrap any tyre. I carry an inner tube for those rare times where a tyre gets such a bad hole even plugging wont work. These are extremely rare to non existent events
You keep spouting this nonsense, just because you could not get tubeless to work does not mean that hundreds of thousands of other people are wrong for using it very successfully.
I got lucky? Nonsense. Lots of people use tubeless successfully, l read an article recently where the pro peloton are moving towards using them more as tubular are phased out!
Also your scénario of descending is flawed, as in the the same situation with tubes at higher pressure the air would come out of the tube even more quickly with a high likelihood of the tyre coming off the rim. Providiing tubeless are fitted on proper tubeless rims the tyre should stay on the rim.
A lot of problems encountered using tubeless are caused by user error IMHO.
Will Spin
Über Member
In my experience, tubeless provides plenty of opportunity for this to occur!
Stompier
Senior Member
Unlikely to happen anytime soon, imo
I do not get that, they are as simple as hell.
I agree however it seems to being considered, similarly not long ago discs were being discussed in a similar. Vein.
This article simplifies and explains all you need to know about tubeless if you are struggling.
https://thecycleclinic.co.uk/pages/tech-page
Stompier
Senior Member
The two aren't really comparable, imo.
"If you get a side wall slice, worms won’t help, and fitting a tube is your only sensible option, which negates the whole point."
Not necessarily, side walls can be repaired with worms and used at low pressure, as a get you home measure. You can ride at 30 psi if needed.
Not necessarily, side walls can be repaired with worms and used at low pressure, as a get you home measure. You can ride at 30 psi if needed.
confusedcyclist
Veteran
Tubeless, great until they stop sealing. Then just a huge PAIN IN THE WHOOPSIE. If you've got hours to kill in the garage, cleaning old sealant off rims, or the patienc/moneye to take them to the bike shop when they stop sealing, then I'll admit, probably worth it. Otherwise, tubes are inexpensive and easy to replace. You're conversing with someone who came back to a flat front tyre 4 days in a row, after initially appearing to get a successful seal each and every time. Eventually I caved and put in a tube. Being late for work 4 days in a rule is not good and my boss must have been rolling eyes, flat tyre again? Yeah right 
.
My newest bike came advertised as tubeless tyres. I've no idea if it has tubes or sealant in, and dare not look, just in case I can't get them back on and sealed again
.My newest bike came advertised as tubeless tyres. I've no idea if it has tubes or sealant in, and dare not look, just in case I can't get them back on and sealed again
Last edited:
I commute 14 miles daily on my Trek, figured on a puncture fortnightly on tubed tyres, went from that to none in 14 months on tubeless. When I did get a split too big for the sealant to be effective, I discovered that the tyre had 3 previous punctures where it had worked without me realising.
Tubeless is brilliant imho
Tubeless is brilliant imho
