Originally Posted by
cyccommute
I was under the impression that it was around 4 ounces per tire but
this video clearly says 1.5 to 2
cups (around 2.3 minutes) and the measure he uses is rather larger than 2 oz.
When using the syringe in the video he says 2-4 ounces (the bottle and the website say 2-3 ounces). When you said cups and 12-16 ounces that assumed a standard measuring cup, but in the video that is a little cup that I think is probably 2 ounces. In this picture it is shown next to a pint bottle. Also it looks like there is a fill line so I suspect that the cup holds a bit more but is 2 ounces at the fill line.
Originally Posted by
cyccommute
The question I have about the "leakage" is do you have to pump up the tires more often than a tubed tire? If you do, then the tire is leaking air which could account for the loss of sealant. But my understanding of the issue is that the tires aren't pumped up any more frequently than normal. The sealant will "dry" out even when the bike is in storage. That says to me that the sealant is being lost by other means.
I probably top off the tires every 3 days or so either way and have not noticed them needing more air than they did when I was running tubes. They may need a bit more, but I have not really noticed it if they do. A assume that the do lose a bit when they seal thorn puncture. Over the course of a six months to a year they get pumped up a lot of times whether they are running tubes or not.
Originally Posted by
cyccommute
Personally, I would be very concerned if the tires leaked air do to impacts. That implies that the tire isn't seated well and could easily burp off the rim. That would also imply that you could end up a ride with less air then you started. I've never found a tire going flat to be a plus on a ride. I might remove or add air on purpose but the tire shouldn't burp out air at random. But I really don't think that is the case.
Pure speculation on my part that the tire might lose some small amount of air at the bead. I have had no indication that there is any concern there. Any way since there none f that has been a concern in a year of daily trail riding I think those concerns fall into the category of looking for problems to worry about and ignoring the fact that I would have been patching tubes many times over that period.
Originally Posted by
cyccommute
"Tire coral" growth is my major concern which requires breaking the bead to remove the "coral". My other problem with the whole procedure is that it's a sealed system and really shouldn't need all this fiddling. They need to change the chemistry of their sealant so that they don't lose the solvent through the tire...which isn't good for the tire rubber either.
All this fiddling? What fiddling? Adding some sealant once a year or maybe 6 months? That once compared to patching tubes many times over the same period. It is a couple minute job once or twice a year.
As far as coral, I saw no buildup of anything at all when I pulled the tire to change a spoke nipple and suspect that I will wear out the tires before there is any significant build up if there ever is. Time will tell I guess. If there is build up, taking the tire off once a year (more likely much less often) wouldn't break my heart. I might even wear the tires out before that happens.
Originally Posted by
cyccommute
I've seen blistered tubeless tires which is caused by the sealant solvent breaking down the rubber.
That is bad if it occurs and if it does I may change my tune at some point in the future, but again I suspect that I will wear them out before that ever occurs, given that I ride my MTB pretty much every day and ride on pavement to get to the trails they don't last forever. I suspect the problems you mention would be worse for someone who rides the bike only once in a while, either because they ride other bikes more or because they just don't ride as often.
Of course as is always the case there are trade offs in all of this. For me and my usage of that bike I think tubeless is a slam dunk. The improved ride feel and elimination of pinch flats even when running lower pressure is a nice bonus.