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The tubeless tire setups common in the MTB world have been slowly starting to creep into the fat tire road bike niche.  The benefits of weight savings, running lower pressures and near flat-proofness all translate to some degree.  I have been asked, and do not recommend that the commonly available 38-40mm tires be set up tubeless for most riders.  The risk of failure is too high for most of us.  That said, today I did this:

Things are not always what they appear though.

There are a few perimeters that all come into play to make tubeless setups work.  Removing the rim from this discussion for now, the tire generally needs a bead that has near zero stretch, and a sidewall/casing with a butyl liner to protect it from the solvents in the tubeless compound.  Tubeless setups are generally run at lower pressures for improved traction and comfort.  The sealing solution is meant to seal up any small gaps in the system, but also seals any punctures along the way.

That all sounds great for what we want out of our light and supple 38mm tires.  I brought this up a few years back while talking with Kirk Pacenti ant NAHBS.  He has a strong grasp of tubeless design and had recently launched his 650b PariMoto tire.  The first problem is with the tire itself.  To make them proper for tubeless they have a butyl liner bonded to the inside of the tire.  With large MTB tires this liner is significantly lighter than the tube it replaces.  As the tire gets smaller the point of diminishing returns is approached.  The available super light tubes weigh about the same (100-120g) as that the liner and a full load of sealant would weigh.  The zero stretch bead needed adds further weight.  Then there is the pressure consideration.  Riders at or over 180 lbs will likely be running pressures greater than 45psi.  this pushes the limits of where non-tubless tires will stay on the rim without a tube.

So what did I do to my wheels this afternoon?  With the goathead thorn season getting ready to ramp up and some dirt road group rides planned I wanted to add a bit of insurance to my system.  I decided to take as much of the good as I could and set up an optimized system for the 38mm tires and my weight (210 lbs).  Starting with the Velocity A23 tubeless rim, the secure tubeless ready fit gives a snug fit with the tire bead.  The Soma C Line tires are one of the widest, light 380g, and supple 700c tires on the market at the moment.  I opted for the super light Q tubes at about 120g each for the 700x 35.  This set up alone has been going great for months now.  Taking it to the next steep in flat protection I added 2 oz, half the normal amount for a full sized MTB tire of Orange Seal to each Tube.  This will add about 70g to each tire, less than  standard tube and aramid liner.

The process was simple.  Let the air out to the tire, having a presta nut on will help later

Next up grab a 4mm wrench and remove the valve core from the stem.

Insert the plastic end of the supplied hose onto the well shaken bottle of sealant

And the other end goes over the stem.  Invert the bottle and squirt in about half.

Turn the bottle right side up an detach the hose.  Re-install the valve core and inflate to the desired pressure.  I keep my C Lines between 55 and 60 psi.  Repeat on the other tire and ride.  It is that simple.

What are the gains in theory, and how is this different than a basic Slime brand pre-filled inner tube?  The whole system is optimized to be light and supple for decreased rolling resistance.  The level of safety is high.  Time will tell if there is improved air retention and flat protection.  The end is a system with all of the good parts of each improvement and less risk to safety.

There have been reports of successful tubeless setups with 42m tires and lower pressures.  I suspect the rider weight and load were also correspondingly lower.  While there have been successes, there have also been failures.   The tires and pressures we are using on “Rando” bikes are close to the margins of safety for tubeless design.  The price of failure is high.  Failure being the front tire coming off of the rim at speed with total loss of air pressure.  While I want improved performance as much as the next rider, I do not think tubeless is the right choice for our needs.  I am looking forward to increased flat protection while having the piece of mind that my tire is far more likely to stay on the rim.

This year has started off with a flurry of meetings, and my note taking / business card distribution system was in series need of improvement.  It was time to hit the workbench and fix things a bit.  The “Scout Books Meeting Wallet” samples are the outcome

I like the Scout Books, enough to design a wallet around it.  The paper is great, fountain pen friendly, recycled, and the whole thing is made in the USA.  They get bonus points for building a system that will allow for custom printed journals (another project in the works around here).  The wallet is there to add a bit of protection, and hold the other things I need for quick business meetings, card holding slots, extra pocket, room for a writing utensil in the fold etc.  I can grab this and go.

The secret money pocket for those moments when you should have brought a little extra cash, meetings overrun into meals, coffee etc.  The whole thing drops into the back pocket, and just makes it into a shirt pocket.

All of our leather goods are made with Veg Tanned natural leather produced in the USA.  We treat the leather with a bee’s wax based leather dressing.  Use and sunlight will put on the patina, these are built to last, and will just keep getting better with time.  This is what one of my early wallets looks like with over a year in the pocket

These will be up on the storefront later today as a custom order item.  I also will be switching all of our leather goods, single and double pocket wallets, to a custom order basis so that I can manage the supply a bit better than I have been.  I need the demand to get me sewing, and then make the steps to start working with a contractor for some managed growth of the line.

We love Flat pedals, all sorts.  This is a broad category that includes all pedals that do not somehow attach you to the pedal, i.e. clipless or toe clips and straps.  Grant at Rivendell wrote a piece years ago, The Shoes Ruse, that sums it up better than I ever could into one essay.  After months of compiling commute time data with all sorts of pedals, the clip less showed no significant benefit.  I switched completely to flats.  Last year when considering what pedals to offer our customers I compiled all of my of my thoughts and reasoning behind choosing the VP Vice into a blog post.

The vice is our favorite pedal for the money.  The color options are really fun to add a touch of detail to your build.  The next closest options that offer significantly better mechanical features cost roughly twice as much.  I have helped a bunch of people onto these pedals over the last year.  The only non-positive feedback was the wish that they came in Silver.

Well this year they will.  We are working with VP USA to import a batch of these in Silver (clear) anodized finish.  We are close to our minimums for making the project happen, and need your help to get over the hump.  We have set up a Pre-order on our storefront.  The turnaround time on these is about 60 days, and we expect a mid to late April delivery.

Place Your Pre-Sale Order Here

Today is the last day of the lowest pre-sale pricing, tomorrow the price will go up another $10 before we settle in at the new $95 price point for the year.  To see presale pricing you will need to add the pedals to your cart and use Coupon Code SVPVPS at checkout.  While we can not advertise the price, I will say this is a smoking deal and below the wholesale price of most other thin flat pedals on the market.

The freshest shipment of Randi Jo Caps hit our door step this week and the storefront stock has been updated.  Getting boxes from Randi is always a little bit like Christmas.

 

The first one of the year.  Temps starting in the high 40’s with Santa Anna conditions starting up it started to move between 55 and 75 depending where you were along the coast.  Temperature fluctuations were the least of the drama though with a cross wind gusting to 35mph plus.  That said it was still great to get out and ride, and bring home some food for the week.

Yes, the bag fits my two dozen eggs perfectly, pictures make it look perfect out, it was.  THe wind kept things exciting, and I have some more “handling in a cross wind” data added to the design journal.