Originally Posted by
guadzilla
Thanks for that link - will check it out shortly.
Re whether the answer would be different - no idea. Am seeing a lot of chatter about people running tubeless at lower PSI for more comfort without risking pinch flats. So was wondering if there is a good tradeoff, where you can lower the pressure by X psi and not lose much in the way of rolling resistance but gain some comfort.
In all likelihood, yes you can likely lower your PSI a bit running tubeless without harm, as the physiological and perhaps, psychological benefits, would outweigh any losses due to lower than optimal tire inflation. Take the chart below from the first article I linked.. and look at the yellow line. For illustrative and directional purposes only, this is for a 25mm tire, but you'll note I think only an approximate 2 watt loss for an 80psi inflation vs optimal 100psi. It's easy to imagine that those 2 watts (which I daresay nobody could naturally notice anyway), could easily be overcome by having a slightly more comfortable ride and less fatigue, and/or psychologically (dependent on the tire itself and riding conditions) a rider might feel more confident in higher speed handling/cornering scenarios with a less jittery setup -- ie. less propensity to hit the brakes as much.
I'd suggest starting with the calculator.. and then try lowering gradually til you get somewhere you're happy.. but don't go higher.
