Repair guides › Wheels & Tires
Set up tubeless
Tire sealed to the rim with tape and liquid sealant, no tube. Sealant plugs small holes. Lower pressure without pinch flats. Needs tubeless-ready rims and tires.
Open this job in RideLoadout▶ Watch it done
Tools
- Floor pump with gauge: Topeak JoeBlow Sport III ($$)
- Tire levers: Pedro's Tire Levers 2.0 ($)
- Isopropyl alcohol 91%+: isopropyl alcohol 91% ($)
- Valve core tool: Muc-Off Valve Core Remover ($)
- Tubeless tape, valves + sealant: Stan's NoTubes tubeless kit ($$)
- Tubeless booster / charger: Airshot tubeless tire inflator ($$)
Compare Good, Better and Best for each tool
Steps
- Clean the rim with alcohol. Tape the rim with tubeless tape about 1–3 mm wider than the internal width (check the tape maker's chart), tight, overlapping at the valve; two layers above about 45 psi.
- Punch the valve hole, fit the valve.
- Mount the tire and inflate fast with the core out to seat the beads (pops). Never go above the lower of the tire's and the rim's maximum while seating (hookless: 72.5 psi / 5 bar or the rim's lower limit). If it won't seat by then, let the air out and use soapy water or a booster.
- Let the air out, add sealant through the valve, refit the core, inflate to pressure and shake the sealant around.
Diagram
Sliced across, like cutting through the tireTire, tube and rim
Signs it needs doing
- Slow leaks
- Dried sealant