Cheap tubless system

[jonzinmj]

I was told by a shop friend of mine of an easy and cheap way to mimic the stan's tubless system. You take a 20inch presta tube and stretch it over your 26inch rim. With an exacto knife, filet open the back side of the tube and remove excess from the sides. This is supposed to act like the strips that come in the stan's kit. You can still use the sealant, but this supposedly saves you a bunch of money. I haven't tried it yet but i was hoping someone might have heard of this or done it themselves. Any tips?

[plume_mtb]

I friend of mine does it. the strips are over priced for sure, but this technique doesn't make me feel all warm and fuzzy either. I guess it works though, try it and find out.

[DjSmallFry]

A friend of mine tried it... the bead wouldn't stay seated very well in rocky descents and corners, which is dangerous as you can probably imagine.

Your supposed to remove the excess tube bits from the sides after the tire is installed (cutting the tube close to the rim after the tire is inflated)

It holds air for the most part, but I'd stick with something designed to hold on tires without tubes.

[Cricket]

I was told by a shop friend of mine of an easy and cheap way to mimic the stan's tubless system. You take a 20inch presta tube and stretch it over your 26inch rim. With an exacto knife, filet open the back side of the tube and remove excess from the sides. This is supposed to act like the strips that come in the stan's kit. You can still use the sealant, but this supposedly saves you a bunch of money. I haven't tried it yet but i was hoping someone might have heard of this or done it themselves. Any tips?

I do it and it works! Just make sure you use black tubes because the other ones won't hold thier bead.

[Kopko]

Lots of people running this system.

MAxxis also makes some rimstrips very similar to the without all the cutting for $5 a piece.

[plume_mtb]

Lots of people running this system.

MAxxis also makes some rimstrips very similar to the without all the cutting for $5 a piece.

which is exactly what they should cost.

[bitterfish26]

never really heard of this before and how exactly does this work again?

[MrTits]

i'm no expert, but it sounds a little like 'beadless' bead locks for offroading/wheeling.

basically, the tube you have stretched fillet cut down the center acts as a 'seal' against the tire can push. since its rubber, it will form around any imperfections in the wheel or tire. think of the tube as sort of a glue/epoxy between two different materials. the hope is to make an airtight seal.

but i could be wrong....

the beadless beadlocks use a sort of tube you put around the rim and between the tire. then you fill the tube and it presses against the bead of the tire, holding it in place.

[Mister Chow]

I've seen a lot of people using 26" tubes instead of 20" tubes. But instead of using sealant, they just skip the step where they fillet the tube.





:D

[bitterfish26]

hahah yeah

[sportcult]

Here's a how-to article on it at nsmb. Gosh, if it works for the North Shore it must be good ;)

Stansless Tubeless (http://www.nsmb.com/gear/tubeless_12_04.php)

[tryandgetme]

Check air pressure weekly and add more latex about every 6-8 weeks as needed.

sounds like a pain in the ass. I just use a tube, inflate to a proper pressure that doesn't pinch flat, check tire pressure every week, and don't add anything else to the tire. And would repairing foreign object damage be a little harder? harder to remove and reinstall the tire...but if you're already sold on the stans idea, this sounds pretty good/cheap.

I get more flats from large pointy objects that punch big holes than pinch flatting, so it's not worth it for me (and don't tell me that latex can seal a 3/16" hole made by that gigantic nail I ran over last week, because I'm doubtful)

I also use a tube in my jeep tires...makes a real good bead lock when you're running 8 psi ;)

[rockyrider]

Well that's the funniest thing I've read anywhere in at least a week.

I've seen a lot of people using 26" tubes instead of 20" tubes. But instead of using sealant, they just skip the step where they fillet the tube.
:D

[bitterfish26]

good call on that one

[bitchslapmadman]

the "ghetto" kit will burp the tyre right off the rim on tight turns. I tried it and it works like crazy except for the burping. Also the cincher tyre is porous and it deflates over night or a week. The porous sidewall, not being a ust, will suck up the sealant in a few months leaving a dry carcuss inside. As long as you carry a spare tube you'll be OK.
You can also buy the hobbycraft latex sealant for 18 bux a jug and water it down 10X as it comes in a concentrated form. It looks like Stan's after diluting and it ends up costing about 3 bux/jug