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Arrgh I'm doing my nut in. Have a new pair of these wheels and have taped with Stans yellow tape... and retaped, double taped... Air is coming out of the valve hole so I can't see how tape is the problem. So I've tried paring the tubeless valve to sit nice in the rim walls, have tried extra layers of rubber (piece of tube cut into a 'washer'), have tried cone-shaped washers (from brake mounts) to push it in, the valve has been coated in stand fluid... Nothing works. Air is pishing out around the valve screw.
I've read a few other posts ([url= http://singletrackmag.com/forum/topic/air-leaking-from-tubeless-valve-hole ]eg[/url] )but tried anything suggested and still no joy.
Has anyone else overcome this?
Silicon/bath sealant?
Hmmm OK, I haven't tried tat one.
This isn't totally helpful because it gives you more possibilities, but air coming out by the valve doesn't mean the valve's leaking- if air leaks into the rim anywhere, the easiest place for it to escape is usually the valve hole as nipples seal up their eyelets pretty well. So it could be you're looking in the wrong place.
IMO the best way is to keep it simple- one layer tape, cut very cleanly (super sharp scalpel is my favourite way, there's others, what matters is just that you get a perfect hole. And the best valves I've used are these:
http://www.superstarcomponents.com/en/alloy-tubeless-valve.htm
The taper tybe valves are much more forgiving ime, and these are bigger and squishier than Stans so work even better- I had a set of stans rims that some monkey had drilled out for rim strips, incredibly badly, and these still sealed them up- didn't really believe it'd work.
There's tons of bodges but if the parts are decent then doing it right should work, better than anything else.
Had this recently and it was because I hadn't cut the tape for the valve hole neatly. Sharp knife with no raggedy bits.
A washer made of material, jeans/tea towel, can help as it lets the goop clog up through it where a rubber one doesn't
[quote=BoardinBob ]Had this recently and it was because I hadn't cut the tape for the valve hole neatly. Sharp knife with no raggedy bits.
That's when I've had it happen. A very small rat-tail file makes a neat job of it.
I've got the Hope Tech Enduro wheels and both me and a friend have been having this problem. It's proving to be more difficult than with other wheels to get a good seal using stans tape.
As Northwind has pointed out, don't assume the problem is at the actual valve area.
I resorted to wrapping about four laps of electrical type on my rear one after getting frustrated with (and running out of) the proper tape.
Had this with my mavic wheels, I just bought fibre reinforced tape from a model plane seller on ebay and wrapped a few loops around it, job done. Get some o-rings under the presta valve washer thingys too.
Tape has to be pulled pretty tight when putting it on to a properly cleaned rim.
Then +1 for a really neat cut (small cross with a scalpel blade here) and the Superstar valves (they have round rubber conical bungs not rectangular blocks).
This has worked perfectly for me on Hope Tech Enduro wheels.
Grease around the valve before you insert it into the rim. Job done 🙂
Thanks for the posts. Those SS valves *look* just like the ones i'm using with conical bungs - I'm amazed anything is getting past them, especially when I've tightened super-tight with pliers.
A clean hole cut ... I was struggling getting a clean circle so cut a square on a short strip, put that over the valve and then taped the whole rim overlapping that - no joy.
Back to it tomorrow...
Have you added sealant yet, if not add some.
Otherwise check all the tape as others have said, just 'cos it's leaking from around the valve it doesn't mean it's leaking from there.
You don't need to cut an actual valve hole sized hole in the tape. Just cut a cross perhaps three quarters of the size of the hole then put the valve in. The tape will then sort of lie against the cone of the bung. Firm finger tight should be more than enough to pull the bung right against the hole. Are you pulling the tape really tight when you put it on?