Stan's No-Tubes

[AlanS]

With the advent of Tubless tires and rims, the use of Stan's has become 'outdated' for some.  But for me, it is still relavant.  I love the stuff.  I have used Stan's No-Tubes for more than 10 years...and it has saved me much grief. 
I have never had any set-up difficulties, and never had a tire that did not inflate and seal properly...thus I speak from a skewed pointed of view.
It's a lovely sight to hear a tire leak, look down and see the hole and the latex bubble.  Within a minute, the hole seals itself...fill the tire up to proper PSI, and roll away...never taking the tire off, hands clean.
Every few months I inject 2 oz. of goo into the tire and feel confident that any holes are ready to be sealed. 
It should be noted that I do not do freeride stuff.  I am strickly XC...So, no major drops that might effect the bead to rim relationship.
I have taken off many a tire (when I need to change tires) to find thorns poking inside the tire. 
The only time I had a problem was a sidewall blowout...For this I removed the rimstrip, put in a tube and energy gel wrapper...went on my way.
I give Stan's No-Tubes two thumbs up.

[The Llama]

do you have issues with tires deflating over time with stans?  My 29er is ALWAYS flat when i go to take it out...  it'll hold air for a day or so.. fine for rides. But can get annoying to have to pump it up before each ride. If I can "stan's" it and not have to deal... would be happy!!!

[AlanS]

do you have issues with tires deflating over time with stans?  My 29er is ALWAYS flat when i go to take it out...  it'll hold air for a day or so.. fine for rides. But can get annoying to have to pump it up before each ride. If I can "stan's" it and not have to deal... would be happy!!!

Are you saying that you DO use Stan's and it leaks, or you DON'T and your tires/ tube/ tubeless rims leak?
If it's WITH Stan's, NO, I have never had leakage beyond normal (some p.s.i. over extended time).  In fact, with Stan's, my tires retain their pressures longer.  I have several bikes and one that I don't use that often...the tires remain inflated ALMOST to the orig. pressure over weeks (4-5)...
If you are NOT using Stan's, I have friends who throw an ounce or two in their tubeless systems just for insurance.   They also use the tubeless rims with 'tube' tires (conventional, non-tubeless tires) and use the Stan's to seal the tire.  This is an ideal situation because you save the weight on the Tubeless tire, and add the insurance of thorn proof tires.   

[The Llama]

no.. never tried stans.. I just have heard that over time it leaks air a little.. my bike might sit a week, then i have to pump it up.. annoying when time is limited this part of the yr.  might have to try stans on my 29er 

[mudnuts]

no.. never tried stans.. I just have heard that over time it leaks air a little.. my bike might sit a week, then i have to pump it up.. annoying when time is limited this part of the yr.  might have to try stans on my 29er 

Last November I put new tires on one of my wheel sets,  (that is set up with the stans). 

I knew I had a thorn in my front tire, not because I was loosing air but, because I could see the big end of the thorn in my tire.

 I knew I was going to change the tire soon so I just let it go till then.  It ended up being in my tire almost 5 months.  When I pulled it out I found it to be about half as long and about as wide as a toothpick..  The one that I found in the rear tire was twice as big.

I have a lot of confidence in stans now

[The Llama]

I actually have used Stans since that statement on my 26er with tubeless  had a briar branch suck up and around the tire.. like 6 or 7 holes.. My local shop charged me  5 bucks and put "two Scoops" in and off I went... haven't lost any air since

[mudnuts]

YEP!  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C_BsT8D9JYY

[The Llama]

YEP!  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C_BsT8D9JYY

ya, seen that.  Always wanted to see the guy miss and jam one of nails into his hand!!   
       

[The Llama]

well, have gone and got the kit for my 29er wheels.. not working so well..  heres a vid..
http://www.ectrr.com/junkimages/notubes/notubefail.mov

I have check over everything .. no hole in the rim strip or valve stem.. strip is nicely tucked under wheels edge all the way around.... everything else sealed in seconds.. very nicely.. just pouring out around the valve stem..   soo what did I do wrong?

UPDATE!!
First off.. WOW what a quick response!! as long as you catch them during the day time it's like a 5 minute return answer!!  I LIKE THAT!!  I did end up calling them and we discussed the issue and we both agreed that the center line indent where the spokes mount is a bit deep and when enough pressure is applied the rim strips (both Stans and stock) get sucked down in separating them from the tire and rim. So  off I went to True Value hardware and got some self sticking Foam insulation strip 1/4 inch wide ( ya know that stuff you use in the winter to seal an old crappy door on your house?)  I was told to put it over the stock strip but seeing how stiff it is, and how narrow the slot it's sucking into is I decided to slide the stock rim strip off, put the insolation strip under it then reinstall everything.. Well.. IT WORKED!! (at least so far)  she's sitting on her side right now but after the first few minutes of shaking and turning almost all the bubbling stopped everywhere...  Vid and more info later 

Update 2

Well the rear tire seems to be holding!!! just did a little more shack and bake and installed the front... the rim is a bit different and I have to leave the stock strip out after putting the foam in..  I did have a hole in the tire already (they are used) and it was to big for the stans to fix... (though from their vids it should have covered it..) but I cleaned it, stuck a self glue patch over it on the inside and it seems to be working  ...morning will tell...

[The Llama]

Update 3

Well, it seems to be working... little or no lose of air over night.. remounted wheels to bike and I think I'm going to do a quick hit over at rocky neck and check them out.. Little cold and windy but.. i'll get over it.

FINAL

Well, I got to say that the No Tubes system does work!!  It can be a bit annoying the first time you set it up for your rims but once everything is set right and you get them rolling you'll be glad you did. I'm think'n I have lost just short of a pound of rolling weight over using the Slime tubes when all is said and done.  That's a lot and is noticeable especially with 29er size tires.  Unless something bad happens I'm thinking you wont hear another word from me about them unless it's to praise the product!!

I will say that if you have the option go with UST style wheels/rims and any tire then add the Stans liquid.  will be much less frustrating. but if you need to go on the cheap and have a bit of time to fiddle with it.. the whole system works great!!

[Coreman]

I give Stan's No-Tubes two thumbs up.

Me 2.
This is my very first experience with tubeless. Ultimately went with NoTubes ZTR's...beautiful wheels ready for tubeless operations.
Being new to this system, I was totally frustrated at first with all the shaking, lying 'em down, shaking again, losing air, pumping 'em up again, finding more sidewall leaks, ..on and on...FOR DAYS!!
However, after emailing "Stan" (at NoTubes, who responded fast), I was reassured that if I stuck with it and followed procedures, all would be fine. My bike tech told me to go ride, hard, on a dry/dusty/gravelly trail and the tires would be "cured" of all remaining tiny ills.
A good substantial trail ride fixed all the "ghosts"/tiny leaks.
Running lower pressures is a treat. I feel more connected to the wheels. I'm very very happy with this system.
Stan's The Man !!

[steveeldr]

no.. never tried stans.. I just have heard that over time it leaks air a little.. my bike might sit a week, then i have to pump it up.. annoying when time is limited this part of the yr.  might have to try stans on my 29er 

When does your bike sit for a week without love?  How'd the stans treatment go? Hopefully I'll be able to see on Saturday!!

[The Llama]

When does your bike sit for a week without love? 

When I brake something and I'm waiting for some back ordered parts!!! 
 

Sat looks like rain     ride EARLY sunday?   

[The Llama]

UPDATE!! FAILED MISERABLY!!! (read below!!!!)

WAAAAA, well I'm now a little disappointed in the Stan's system. Was in the middle of NO WHERE!! when the tire just went BOOM. and was flat during a Trail Ambassadors training ride!!   I would have been reeeeeaaally pissed but Cycle Snack had a spare 29er tube that he gave me..(got to remember to replace it for him so the next guy can have one  )  stuff is a big mess on the side of the trail.

I still think stan's Is ok, just more as a saving grace than as a converting system.  if your Rims/wheels are in their list of products on the web site, you are golden, if not.. forget it. Just WAY too much of a pain to get set up and isn't 100% reliable.  It's funny how I was going over little jumps and beating on it before with out an issue... I didn't hit anything, wasn't doing anything to stress the tire much ( was climbing a medium grade but that's it) and that's when it decides to go...

My thought to Stan's... use it with Tubeless wheels only! tubeless or non-tubeless tires are fine, but the rim strip is annoying, not reliable and weak. It's WAY to easy to tear the valve stem, you can't use the "presta" style push on pumps because you'll rip the stem right out of the strip. 

[The Llama]

well, ok now,  I went today to clean up the rear tire that blew...(the new tube was flat also so I figured I'd clean it up nice and put the slime tubes back in) got some soap and water and a scrubby brush and started going at it, stan's fluid was everywhere!!! and I wasn't to happy about it. until I came to a BIG goober of it on the side wall... started scrubbing from the inside and out when I saw this...



Now I hadn't seen it before on the trail or even after I got home.. I went over the tire twice and there was no big bubble where the tube was sticking out.. only thing I can think of.. the stan's held the sidewall basically together.. I did a 4 mile ride the other day on that tire with a tube with no issues.

So now I'm 50/50 with the stans... it holds well.. seals but if you get a side wall cut are you better off, worse off, or the same?  well it's messy for sure.. but it held the sidewall for the tube.. ahhhh not sure what to think... all I know is I need a new tire