I have tubeless ready wheels on my newish gravel bike and i want to try them. I am complete noob and need to clarify few things:
Thank you for your help.
The size depends upon the depth of your rims but I’ve not found much difference between brands and they certainly don’t need to be the same brand as your sealant. I use 30ml (circa 1 Oz) in my road bike tyres and 60ml (circa 2 Oz) in my gravel bike tyres.
Bike shop employee here, most tubeless valves are pretty universal but there are a few things to keep in mind: 1) If you have deeper rims make sure you are getting a long enough valve to make it through the rim and get a pump head on it. Some brands measure tip of the presta valve to the base of the valve but most brands measure in mm from the top of the valve w/o with presta core to where the rubber grommet starts, so just the metal section. You don’t want to get too long either where it looks goofy or could snagged on something. 2) The base of the valve matters in how it interacts with rim profiles/getting a good seal. While this is less of an issue with wider, modern rims, some of the stock wheels (ie Axis Sports that come on some Specialized Diverge have a rounded rim channel and the black supplied tubeless valves had a square base that was a bit wider than the rounded channel and as a result, would not sit flush against the rim tape but no-frills brass Stan’s valves work wonderfully with these). Many tubeless valves will now come with alternate grommets and bases to fit your rim profile. “Dry fit” your valve and look it how it sits before deciding. I prefer the valves that you have to almost “tap” into the hole to finish seating. If you have tire inserts, most definitely get a valve that says it is compatible w/ inserts. These valves will have additional holes in the side of the base and allow air to enter and exit if the tire insert is bottomed out against the main hole at the bottom of the valve. If you use a regular valve it’s a PITA–air is slow to enter and exit the tire and you never get a good air pressure reading. 3) Material may matter: most valves are alloy these days and it’s not a huge issue but if you are using bike in crappy conditions: fatbike, commuting, salty roads, etc I’d use a brass valve as they are more durable. Over time/neglect some alloy valves can corrode and snap off. There are other bells and whistles some valves feature such as colors, larger thumb screws, wrench flats, and core removal tools. Not even going to get into Fillmore or Cliq valves which are another type of tubeless valve. Always remember never install a valve stem with a tool, fingers are enough to tighten the base nut and if you get leaking at the valve it 99% of the time bad rim tape (which is another consideration!). As for maintenance, I’d recommend removing valve core and reaming valve w/ a pipe cleaner every time you add sealant and replace the valve cores annually.
Sealant, many types out there and most real bike products are going to be a liquid latex or synthetic liquid latex based product (different from the old fashioned Slime which was glycol based–stay away from that). Stan’s, Orange Seal, Muc-Off, Silca are all pretty popular. Stan’s is good in that it is “set and forget” so you can add some sealant and a year later your tires will probably still be holding air. You still would want to top off as it may not plug a puncture anymore. It’s great for the low-maint person. There are some downsides in that it can weep through thin sidewalled tires: Schwalbe G-One series, S- Works, Challenge, anything with a porous sidewall is going to look like tiny pin holes. We will spray a brand new inflated tire w/ soapy water before adding sealant and you would be amazed with how sudsy the sidewalls are! For that reason, Orange Seal is a good choice for most gravel and road tires as it makes almost a balloon inside the tire and doesn’t weep like Stan’s. Downside is that is dries up quick 3-6 months so you do have to be on it. They make a endurance version that lasts longer but doesn’t plug as big of holes so if you are MTBing regular OS is great, if gravel/road get the endurance. I have never had any luck w/ Muc-Off and don’t recommend it, plus it might be harder to get when traveling. Have had a few customers on the newest Silca and have heard varying reports: one guy was allergic to it, another had issues w/ it weeping through his S-Works Turbos, and another guy loved it as it sealed up a sidewall gash on a Corsa NEXT. So YMMV. I myself use Stan’s in most of my tires and will top off every year or before a big event. In an established tubeless tire I will just add sealant through the valve as popping the bead off can sometimes take the rim tape with it and then you have to clean the rim and start over. Happy hunting!
TL;DR, the Stan’s brass valves are a bullet proof, long lasting, universal “budget” option at $10 a pop. Most sealants will be priced similarly, Stan’s seems to last the longest but may weep. Orange Seal is less prone to weep but requires more applications. You can get small bottles in either size (bulk is more cost effective BUT don’t go too big as the sealant can dry out in the bottle.)
Woooow what an answer, TR should pin it! I am sincerely thankful for your insights. I was actually considering Stan’s stuff, I will get them. Not super many options in my country. I do mostly gravel or mostly road depends on the season. I will buy syringe for the sealant. So much valuable info. If you live in Bulgaria beers on me!