boomerangride

Hello,

I just got a wheelset (ZTR Grail rims),

• with rims that are tubeless compatible
• I did put on a properly sized dedicated rim strip
• I did use a tubeless compatible tyre (S-One, 700x30)
• I mounted it, inflated it to 5 bar and it seemed to seat in pretty well

Now I did this on both wheels and overnight, one of the wheels completely deflated.

Now:

• I admit I did not put a tube in for a whole night and inflate it to put pressure on the rim strip to ensure it sticks fully.
• I did not put any sealant in; as my goal was to try out how tough it was to get the tyres seated on the rim
• I did not use any soapy water nor any mounting aid thingy

So as much as I admit I should do all of these things. What should be my protocol to find out whether there is something already wrong with my setup (rim strip not fully hermetic?)

dvdslw

The new line of Schwalbe "Tubeless Easy" tires require the use of sealant to complete their installation unlike the earlier One's (Not Pro One's). They are designed with a porous "MicroSkin" sidewall that make installing the tire easy along with less weight but also leaks air without sealant. I also find that upon removing a tubeless tire after months of use that there's always sealant that clumps up or accumulates around the circumference of the bead which would indicate a leak that's been sealed so there's two possible sources of air escaping. That said, something else could be at fault like the strip or stem so maybe air it up and dunk the whole tire in a tub of water or spray it down with a mixture of dish soap and water to look for bubbles.

This is from Schwalb's website; The MicroSkin still requires sealant to be airtight and at least 10ml is required to set them up, so Schwable calls the tire Tubeless Easy, not Tubeless ready. 30ml of sealant is the recommended amount and while this will up the system weight a bit, it has no affect on rolling resistance.

If it were me, after ruling out any installation errors or faulty components I'd add between 40-50ml of sealant to your 700x30 tire, spin it around for a bit, re-check the air, and see what you have after that. Sometimes it takes a few days for the tires and sealant to get settled in. The 10-30ml of sealant they recommend above is for a 700x23 tire and not enough for your larger casing.

redfooj

You could have small leaks in any number of places...Throughout the casing, along the bead, through the valve hole.... That's what sealant is for.

My Schwalbe had I think a 20-30psi drop the first overnight. It's 'automatically' flatted once in a period of months. Outside of those 2 events, it's held air with about a 2psi drop per day....Which is to say very solid

hsuehhwa

You'll need sealant and doing a quick 10-15 min ride in your neighborhood immediately after installation helps.

DXchulo

Yeah, I'm guessing the bead wasn't fully set if it deflated completely.

OP, did you hear it pop?

RNAV

I have found tubeless rim tape to be far superior to rim strips. If there is ANY manufacturing anomalies with the inner surface of the rim where the rim strip and tire bead meet, rim strips exacerbate that and it can take a decent amount of sealant to seal that up.

My experience (so, sample size of one) is that I've never been able to get a tubeless system using a rim strip to be airtight without the use of sealant. Rim tape, however, is more pliable, and I've been able to get airtight without the use of sealant.

boomerangride

Good points there. Overlooked the fact that the tire was just "easy" not full-tubeless.

I did... Though I heard only one pop whereas the other wheel I heard two, for the two sides possibly...
Good point too.


Sorry ... I wrote strip; but I have tape.


Anyway, thanks guys. I really was not worried. I just had mounted it quickly last night because I was concerned whether my track pump would be strong enough and it confirmed it was.
And it being deflated this morning while I had not done any of the proper mounting measures concerned me very little... still preferred to open this up here to gather some input for when I get home tonight.

redfooj

and even if it seats properly, theres still miniature leaks that needs to be filled by sealant

Kopsis

Schwalbe tubeless wants sealant, but the tires should hold a good percentage of pressure overnight without. Complete pressure loss overnight says you probably have a leak under your rim tape or at the valve. You can troubleshoot by submerging a section at a time in a large shallow pan of water (a small kiddie pool or clean cat litter box works well). A leak that big should produce an obvious stream of bubbles. You may not be able to pinpoint exactly, but can probably narrow down enough to find it with a visual inspection.

gsa103

Pump it back up. If it inflates easily, then the beads are still seated and there's probably a micro leak somewhere.

Tip for adding sealant initial:
Add sealant, inflate, then spin the around a lot to slosh it around.
Set the wheel on it's side over a waste-basket, let it sit for ~30 min or so.
Slosh everything around again, and flip the wheel over letting it sit on the opposite side over-night.

Letting the tire sit on it's side helps seal leaks along the bead and in the casing.

boomerangride

ok there were two sources of leak: valve was not tight enough - there was a bubble every ~10 seconds; and there was a leak on a sidewall - sealant helped; you all did too.