I'm on my first gravel bike, and just getting things the way I like it. I've been tubeless since 2009 when I was making my own shonky tubeless liners.
I've always thought tubeless on the road was a dark art - with glues and stuff, and now I've got a gravel bike - I want to find out.
Is it all just the same? tubeless ready rims, tubeless tape, tubeless valves, sealant? Anything funky and different to worry about?
Easy peasy. If you're happy with MTB tyres tubeless then gravel should be a skoosh.
My 40c gravel tyres often seem to go up better than the MTB 🙂
If you want guaranteed success install tyres with tubes the night before, then next day just pop one bead off to install valve/add sealant etc.
Also inserts seem to make inflation easier, occasionally I can get away with just a normal pump.
Don't make my mistake and use too narrow a tape though, I used 21mm tape in a 20mm internal rim, gave it two wraps to make sure rim was covered edge to edge, but it still lifted and leaked (not in love with Juice Lubes tape to be honest, just doesn't seem as sticky as e.g. Stans).
Easier IME.
I've just done this for the first time on a gravel bike after years of tubeless on mtbs. It was very straightforward. The only thing I noticed is that the tyres didn't "pop" quite so satisfyingly when they seated as mtb tyres normally do.
Yeah no satisfying pings when I put G-Ones on DT Swiss with the factory applied tape. They were still inflated at riding pressure 2 weeks later when I finally got around to ordering the goo to put in via the valve. Hardly any effort pumping with a 20 year old cheap plastic track pump.
A doddle 🙂
I've always thought tubeless on the road was a dark art - with glues and stuff, and now I've got a gravel bike - I want to find out.
You're thinking of tubulars, maybe, where the self-contained tyre is glued onto a special rim. Tubeless road and gravel are basically the same principle as mountain bike tubeless and work pretty much the same.
Higher pressures mean holes can take longer to seal generally depending on the sealant, but ime, tubeless gravel works great. I'm less convinced by road tubeless with smaller tyres and higher pressures, but as I don't run tubeless on the road, that's more a gut feeling than anything based on experience.
Everything is the same in terms of setup. As mentioned, I'm of the opinion that tubeless gets harder to both setup and maintain as tyre volume goes down, and pressure goes up. I run it on road (35c) and gravel (45c) as well as MTB. MTB has been the easiest set/forget, but that could also be down to being taped well.
Disclaimer: I've never, ever had success seating tyres with a pump. I went Airshot and it's paid for itself in terms of time and reliability.
As above, you're confusing tubeless and tubular, tubulars don't have a bead (and the rim doesn't have a sidewall, just a shallow U shape that matches the radius of the tire). The tyre is sewn around the tube to make a big skinny doughnut and then stretched and glued onto the rim.
Gravel tubeless is exactly like MTB tubeless.
Road tubeless is slightly more faff depending on the rim. And IME I'm not sure the sealant really does much beyond seal up porous beads and sidewalls, I think it's just tougher tyres that don't puncture. Above 70psi it struggles to seal without a plug.
Road tubeless was a nightmare, had to put the tyres in my brew-fridge at 25 degrees C to warm them up and be supple enough to get on the rim. Luckily they've never puncture to date.
MTB tubeless was more of a faff due to the higher volume of the tyre and the less snug fit, until I made a ghetto inflator many years ago, now it's a doddle.
Gravel tubeless has been the easiest of the lot, went on with just a track pump.
As for the setup, it's the same for all types.
Oddly I find gravel harder than MTB. I do wonder if it is just my tyre/rim combination. Works ok with an inflator most of the time. On my MTB I normally manage with a track pump these days.
Tyres are gravel kings and I know that the latest rework on these did make them a tighter fit. So makes it likely a tyre problem.
As above it’s tubular that involves glue etc. no idea why anyone would think that’s a good idea on UK roads unless you carry a spare set of wheels around! All tubeless setups very similar IME, road pressures are a bit of a challenge though. I’m currently using Silca sealant and got a front puncture in some 35mm Continental AS last week. Spaffed sealant all over my legs and shoes before I noticed and I now can’t get the residue out of my very expensive tights 🙄. Tyre sealed well enough though without any need for additional air, so zero ride impact other than stopping for a minute to let the sealant work. Tyres at 55 psi before the puncture so not massively high.
