Help me decide if I should go tubeless

I’m only 6Ibs heavier so that sort of psi sounds super comfortable. How much sealant did you use?

around 2oz per tire.

you can always just put a spare tube in it and get home, so it really shouldn’t be any different.

1 Like

I’ve been road tubeless for 3.5 years and approx 15K miles with only one flat. In my A race two years ago (LOTOJA) multiple people had flats due to staples being thrown out on the course. I got home and when inspecting my tires I found three staples in my tire. I never had any idea because the sealant did its job. I pulled the staples, gave the wheel a spin and kept riding with that tire for another 500 miles. I’m 100% a believer.

3 Likes

not in my opinion. tubes way easier.

I cant imagine going back to tubes now. Id say definitely give tubeless a try.

I still carry a spare tube everywhere though - not used it yet.

I think somebody should invent a really light and compact “get you home” spare tubeless tyre that you can fit in a saddle bag.

2 Likes

I feel the same, went tubeless with my road bike last year on 5000’s and have loved every minute of it, not one issues, I did find a small steel sliver in the tire after a ride that caused no issues, it surely would have flatted me on tubes.

1 Like

You can get a 38 gram Tubolito tube. The downside is that it costs $25! The alternative is a 65-75 gram ‘light weight’ butyl tube.

1 Like

Yeah the tubolito tubes were on my radar but they are even more expensive in the UK :money_mouth_face:

GP5000 Tubeless 28mm on Roval rims. Easy to install and after more than a year zero punctures (that I know of).

Previous to this I was on GP4000s with tubolite tubes and before that normal tubes and did get a couple.

2 Likes

@SeanH : I don’t race for money, but racing CX was much more fun on tubeless pressures rather than tubed… Burping was an issue in one race, I think, but that was a high speed 180 on pavement.

Setup and finding out what that minimum pressure is can be a slow process, but if you like to fiddle with your bike at all, its totally worth it. Far more rewarding than worrying about sealant stained socks, which has honestly never been a concern with Stans… Or maybe its the black and gray socks I wear? I’ve never worried about sealant on the bike, but the garage floor is sometimes not as clean I would like. Its just seasoning to go along with all the other stuff I spill.

@Matthew_Taylor (OP) I’m less sold on tubeless road because the risks of self-damage are higher during the pressure finding process…

2 Likes

Tubeless all the way. I run tubeless on all my setups now (mtb, cross, gravel, road) and don’t see myself ever going back to tubes. The first time may have been a little bit of a hassle, but I can now do a tubeless setup almost as fast as setting up tubes. It’s lighter; my tubeless setup is around 60g lighter per wheel, and that’s a 28mm tubeless tire (Schwalbe Pro One) compared to a 25mm tire/tube combo (Vittoria Corsa). It’s been more comfortable because I can run much lower pressures. And since converting in April 2018, I’ve had 0 flats (maybe some punctures that were sealed). I feel way more confident on tubeless than running tubes and would trust tubeless for all my big rides/races.

1 Like

Just put tubeless on my bike about a month ago. GP5000tl 25s Roval CX50. Totally uneventful. Just put them on and inflated them. Ride quality is great and I’m loving not having to add air to my tires before each ride which is what I had to do with latex tubes before. Have yet to puncture.

Sweet, this sounds easy enough for me to do. Thanks.

What sealants are you using? I was running Cafelatex and having really good performance with it, switched to orange seal (both for road tires) and haven’t been impressed.

Stan’s. Never tried anything else because I’ve never felt the need to. Stan’s has been great.

2 Likes

Used stans awhile ago. But the ammonia in it has kept me clear since I found it eating a Dura ace rim bed.

1 Like

Continuing to run GP5000s TL 28s and have had good success on Bontrager Aeolus D3 TLR wheels. Unlike some other wheels, the GP5000s were relatively easy to mount on the rims the first time and now very easy to pop on and off by hand.

I’ve pretty much switched over to Stan’s Race Sealant. You can’t put it in through the valves, so have to pop a tire to pour some in, but if it can seal big holes it is worth it. I also started carrying the new Stan’s Dart plugs. Haven’t had a chance to use one yet but they also look promising for filling in larger wholes.

I think I would be a lot more uncomfortable with tubeless if I hadn’t had quite a few years of experience running it in my mountain bike wheels. I also wouldn’t want to run it if I was running a more delicate tire. The GP5000s TL have been robust and it is sounding like the new Schwalbe Pro Ones are also pretty puncture resistant.