To Tube Or Not To Tube? Evaluating The Benefits, Tradeoffs, And Considerations Of Tubeless Tires

Tubeless tires have long been the standard in the mountain bike world.  The road seems to be catching up, and quickly.  So we look at what is different about a Tubeless tire from the clinchers the roadies might be a little more familiar with.  

There are a few main differences in tire construction and consequently how they work.  The first is the difference in the bead.  Since clincher tires rely on pressure from a tube to hold the tire on a hooked rim, they can use a slightly more flexible bead.  Some use wire and others use an upgraded kevlar fiber bead.  

When you move to a tubeless tire they don't have the tube to do the work and are often designed around the newer hookless wheels (also called Tubeless Straight Side or TSS).  This requires a bead that can't stretch so some brands are using a more higher grade of kevlar fiber, aramid, and very few are using carbon fiber beads.  Carbon fiber beads are the best beads available today to address the safety concerns that have been raised about hookless road wheels.  This is because it is so strong and rigid in one direction that it virtually eliminates the ability to stretch.

You will also see a slight different tire construction for Tubeless or Tubeless ready tires with the latter being much more prevalent in the performance market today.  There will often be another butyl layer in the tire or other methods to "seal" the tire more completely since the tire itself needs to contain the air rather than relying on a tube.  

Most high performance tubeless ready tires skip this step.  We have said this is because it adds weight and rolling resistance which most customer don't want when buying a performance tire.  This means the sealant is actually required to keep air in the tire and is almost the final step in the manufacturing process since it is required to run the tire.

To be able to run tubeless tires you do need to have a rim that is tubeless ready. This means that the rim has some small safety ramps inside of the rim bed to help hold the tire on the rim in the case of a rapid loss of air.  It won't stop any blowoff, but it will certainly reduce the risk.  You also ned to have tubeless tape, tubeless valves, and a high quality sealant will go a long way to having a good experience.

Tubeless set-ups on the road have a lot of benefits.  The first one is a little bit of the elephant in the room that not many brands want to talk about.  That is that it is what is "new" so almost all of the R&D and new technology is coming out on the tubeless side of things.  When is the last time you saw a brand release a clincher only or a tubular tire?  This means that the fastest tires available on the market are tubeless tires.  Even if you can run them with a tube, the tires are tubeless.

If you have the ability to run a tire tubeless, there are also plenty of benefits of doing so.  The most obvious is the ability to run sealant to seal small punctures.  Nothing is going to seal a massive sidewall slash , but running over a small nail, a thorn, a piece of glass, etc can get sealed right away rather than having to sit on the side of the road for 5-15 minutes changing your flat tube out for a new one.

Secondly, a tube is a source of rolling resistance.  The interaction of the tube and tire is friction that slows you down. By removing that layer you will not only have a slightly faster rolling option, it is often times lighter as well.  The weight depends on how much sealant you use and what tube you are comparing to, but often times tubeless set ups will roll slightly faster and be at least a little bit lighter.  

On the same topic as punctures, there is a specific type of flat that gets virtually eliminated as a possibility when running a tubeless set up.  That is the "pinch flat."  Pinch flats are when you have an impact on the tire that deforms the tire enough that a small piece of the tube can get under the bead as it rotates.  Then when the tire returns to its normal shape the bead rolls back to its normal place and pinches the tube causing a flat.  This is typically a rapid blowout, not a slow leak so anybody who has experienced this will tell you it isn't fun.

Since there is no tube, it is virtually impossible to have this kind of flat.  With tubeless the only way to have a "pinch flat" or "snakebite" is to hit something so hard that the force of the tire deforming actually rips the tire itself.  It is certainly possible, but much less likely.  If this is happening you are also likely to be damaging your rim as well.

If you are riding off-road on gravel or mountain bike the benefits are even greater when it comes to preventing flats.  With all the rocks, debris, and sharp objects that are on gravel roads or trails it helps to have sealant in the tires to seal those smaller punctures.  Tubeless will also allow you to run a lower pressure since the pinch flat risk is all but gone. This will be more comfortable, often faster, and will prevent punctures as well. It really can help almost every aspect of your ride.

Like almost all upgrades in cycling there are a few drawbacks to consider. The first one being the setup.  The initial install of tubeless tires is typically more difficult due to the lack of stretch in the bead.  This is mitigated. bit by the fact that any fast tire these days is typically tubeless so that is the same challenge for any fast option.

As part of that set up, you will need to pour in, or inject sealant and inflate the tire.  This can be slightly more difficult as there isn't a confined tube that will help to seat the tire bead into place.  It can sometimes require a compressor for certain tire/rim combinations to get seated effectively.  This can usually be overcome with a few tweaks to the installation technique, but certainly something to take into account.

Tubeless tires are also something that requires more maintenance than a tube'd setup.  Once you install a tube, it is pretty much there until you puncture.  With tubeless you have sealant which is comprised of a liquid latex.  That liquid will dry out over time meaning that you need to have a regular cadence to ensure the sealant is still liquid and effective.  Most sealants will last anywhere from a week or two on the lowest end all the way to 6 months or more with SILCA's newer Ultimate Tubeless Sealant.  

Personally the biggest drawback for tubeless tire setups is the very rare times when you get a flat that won't seal and can't be plugged (more on that later).  This means you need to install a tube and often a boot.  The issue is that when you unmount the tire it is going to be a sealant covered mess.  Everything is going to get covered in sealant and be slippery when you try to install the tube.  It isn't the end of the world, but certainly not a fun experience.  If I have that ever 25 punctures and all the others seal, i'll take that tradeoff but some might not come to the same decision.

Your riding discipline will certainly impact the gains you should expect from running tubeless tires and particularly a tubeless set-up.  If you are riding mountain bike for example it is almost non-negotiable.  You can run lower pressure to get better grip, drastically reduce punctures, and say goodbye to pinch flats that would otherwise be rather regular.  

For gravel riding and racing it isn't far behind mountain bike.  The risk of puncturing is so high that willingly running a tubed set up is asking for trouble.  I rode Unbound 100 this year with a friend who chose to run tubes on this notorious flat prone course.  A minor miracle that he made it through without a puncture but he knew it was a bad enough idea that he chose not to tell me until after the race and said he was expecting to have to explain why he was pulling a tube out of his bike during his first puncture.  It can certainly work, but only a lack of time led to that choice and I would caution anybody from trying that.

On the road tubeless has really began to dominate the pro peloton, but amateurs are a little slower to adopt the tech.  I think this is because some of the benefits we talked about above aren't as important for most of us on the road. If you aren't racing, fixing the occasional puncture on the side of the road isn't that big of a deal.  Road riding is certainly the discipline I think tubeless might be more up in the air.  That being said I have been on tubeless road for 5+ years and I wouldn't go back.  I have been saved numerous times and I really don't like to stop my ride to replace a tube.

At this point you can either pour the sealant in that open gap and push the remaining part of the tire in place, or you can skip the sealant and inject it later.  Once the tire is fully mounted you pump it up to a ridable pressure and you should hear the bead pop into place multiple times.  This can sound like a gunshot going off so don't be alarmed, you didn't break the wheel.  You may be able to do this with a floor pump but if not, you should look to a compressor to seat the tire.  If you didn't install sealant already, you would remove the valve core, inject the sealant, and re-inflate the tire.

Maintenance for tubeless tires is more than tubed set ups but it certainly isn't a big deal.  The only thing you want to look out for is the sealant levels in your tire.  We always recommend checking the tire about once a month.  To do this you can use a dip stick to check the levels, but even easier is to remove the wheel and shake it back and forth.  If it sounds like liquid, you are probably good, if it starts to sound more like syrup sloshing around or you can't hear it at all, then it is time to replace your sealant.

From there it is as simple as opening the tire, pouring out the old sealant, and adding new sealant.  About once a year we suggest taking the tire off and cleaning out the dried out sealant so that you aren't carrying a bunch of extra weight around in the tire.  

Most small punctures should seal on their own which makes this answer the easiest, just keep riding!  For those that don't seal we strongly recommend having a plug kit handy.  There are a ton of different options out there but in general they are some sort of rope, rubber, etc that you stab into the puncture.  This turns a large puncture into a series of smaller punctures and lets the sealant do its job to seal all those little openings.  You can use multiple plugs for big punctures until it seals.  

Sometimes you will experience a puncture or more often a slice that won't seal on its own and can't be plugged.  First of all, sorry because this is never a fun way to spend your time that should be riding.  At that point it is time to install a tube.  If you have plugged the tire previously make sure all those plugs are removed if they have a sharp point on one end so they don't puncture the tube you just put in.  

If it is a slice or puncture big enough to need a tube you may also need a boot.  This can be a gel wrapper, a dollar bill, etc.  Something that is structural enough to not allow the tube to go through the big hold int the tire and get punctured by the casing.  After that you simply install the tube, re-install the tire, and inflate.  

I always recommend carrying a gear wipe in your saddle bag just in case you need to clean up a mess like this on the side of the road.

This is a personal decision but here at SILCA we are big fans of a tubeless set up.  There are certainly drawbacks, but we think the benefits far outweigh those small negatives.  

If you are off-road it is a no-brainer to go tubeless, but on the road you probably have a little bit more difficult decision to make if the benefits outweigh the negatives enough to make you dive into the tubeless tire game.