Peak Cycles – BikeParts.com Blog

If you are ready to go tubeless, there are a few things to check off before saying goodbye to tubes forever. Running a tubeless system requires specific wheels, tires, and valve stems. These all work together to form a good seal and prevent the tire from slipping off the wheel. Installing tubeless tires with the help of a tire lever and an air compressor will help speed up the process, but fear not, it is still possible with a floor pump! This article will cover everything you need to go tubeless, so keep reading and you will be riding tube-free before you know it!

Necessary Items

• Tubeless Ready Wheels
• Tubeless Ready Tires
• Tubeless Valve Stems
• Sealant
• Tire Levers
• Air Compressor (ideal) or Floor Pump (not ideal)

Tubeless Ready Wheels

Tubeless-ready wheels are a must-have for going tubeless. These are standard on most mountain bikes these days, and even some road and gravel bikes. If you have a newer bike you should be ok, but here is how you can identify a tubeless-ready wheel just in case.

“The most reliable tubeless systems are those marked UST (Uniform System Tubeless standard). Rims and tires must meet a certified standard to use the UST label. UST rims will have either no nipple holes in the rim tire bead or these holes will be completely sealed. The UST rim bead seat is designed to accept and hold the beads of the UST tires. UST tires can be used on a UST rim without tire sealants.

Another option is commonly known as “tubeless ready” or “tubeless compatible”. There is no set standard that a product must meet in order to use these labels. Each company decides what it considers to be “TR” or “TC”. The various “tubeless ready” components may or may not match between manufacturers.” – Park Tool

Another way to tell if your wheels are tubeless ready is if they came stock with rim tape. If for some reason the wheel wasn’t sealed with rim tape, it can need to be done using Guerilla Tape or a tubeless specific rim tape.

Tubeless-Ready Tires

Similar to tubeless-ready wheels, tires will be marked with UST, TR, or TC labels. Tubeless-ready tires are designed to hook into the wheel and form a good seal. In addition to forming a good seal, tubeless tires are constructed with different materials. They are made with a thicker, nonpermeable casing whereas non-tubeless tires are made with different materials that will actually seep air and sealant over time. If your bike has tubeless-ready wheels, it almost certainly has tubeless-ready tires. If you are upgrading to a tubeless system, make sure the tires and wheels are both tubeless-ready!

Tubeless Valve Stems

Tubeless valve stems form an airtight seal around the valve hole. Airtight is the name of the game when it comes to a tubeless system. Valve stems come in a variety of colors and sizes. 35-44mm is the standard range for mountain biking, and road bike valve stems come even longer for those deep carbon wheels. Valve stems can be a creative way to match your bike’s color scheme, too! 

Sealant

There are plenty of options when it comes to sealant and there is no right or wrong answer. The most popular sealants we use and sell at Peak Cycles are Orange Seal Endurance and Stans Race. Both of these sealants work very well and are designed to last longer than most. It is still recommended that you refresh your sealant every 6 months or so! 

Tire Levers

For the installation process, having tire levers will make it easier to get the tires on. Tire levers can also be used to set the bead, making it easier to inflate the tires if you are using a floor pump!

Air Compressor or Pump

This is the final piece of the puzzle and will determine how easy the installation goes for you! An air compressor will fill the tire with air rapidly and snap the bead into place before air can escape. With a floor pump, this isn’t the case. It’s still possible to make it happen though! Check out this great hack for setting the bead with a tire lever.

Final Checklist

• Tubeless Ready Wheels
• Tubeless Ready Tires
• Tubeless Valve Stems
• Sealant
• Tire Levers
• Air Compressor or Floor Pump

There are plenty of videos on YouTube that will walk you through a tubeless tire installation, but here are a few tips from us. When adding sealant, we recommend pouring sealant directly into the tire. We find this works better than going in through the valve stem because it makes less of a mess and prevents clogging. When inflating the tire, we recommend removing the valve core and positioning the valve stem at either 3 o’clock or 9 o’clock. This will give you a better shot at setting the bead quickly and keep sealant from trying to escape through the valve stem! Give the tires a good spin after and you should be good to go! 

Congratulations to Mitch Westall for bringing home the trophy on day four of the 2021 USA Cycling Mountain Bike National Championships. This year’s National Championship took place at Trestle Bike Park in Winter Park, Colorado with men’s masters category taking to the course in the late afternoon of the final day of cross-country races . “After sitting in third on the first lap, Mitch Westall (Littleton, Colo.; BikeParts.com) cranked out a solid second, third, and fourth lap to go on to be crowned the Master Men 50-54 XC national champion,” Tom Mahoney from USA Cycling reported. 

Congrats again, Mitch!

Original Article: https://usacycling.org/article/cross-country-riders-duke-it-out-for-the-stars-and-stripes

If you want to put a dropper post on your bike, we don’t blame you. The seamless transitions between the ups and downs completely change the experience of mountain biking. Dropper posts mean never having to drop your seat post before a big downhill again. As it goes with pretty much anything bike-related, finding a dropper post that will work is sort of complicated. From the diameter of the seat post to insertion length, amount of drop, and the type of routing, there is plenty to consider when purchasing a dropper post. Let’s walk through all the steps to selecting the right dropper post that will work for your bike.

Internal or External Dropper

It’s becoming common practice for mountain bikes to have internal routing. This means the cables go inside the frame of the bike and lead to the derailer, brake caliper, and seat post. If your bike has internal routing and then go with an internally routed dropper post. This is the most common post out there. An internally routed dropper post will keep things looking clean. If your bike doesn’t have internal routing then you’ll need an externally routed dropper post. This will likely be the case if you have an older bike.

Dropper Length

Figuring out how much drop you need/want is the next step. Ideally, you want to be able to drop the seat all the way down to the seat post collar. You can figure out this length by measuring the distance from the seat post collar to the saddle rails when your seat is set to the correct height. Most dropper posts will come in lengths of 125, 150, 175, and even 210 mm. The number you measured should be somewhere in that range.  PNW and other dropper post brands make it easy to find the perfect length with adjustable shims of 5 to 10 mm increments.

Insert Length

In some cases, you might not be able to stick the dropper post all the way into the seat post. If the seat tube bends or curves, it limits how far the post can be inserted. Figure out the maximum insert length on your bike by seeing how far you can push your current seat post in or using a measuring tape. If the seat tube is 450mm long, and the dropper post insertion length is 500mm long, the post will stick out 50mm. If your ideal seat post height is 150mm from the collar, you’ll need a 100mm dropper since the post is sticking out by 50mm. Most manufacturers will list what the minimum insert length is. OneUp has one of the shortest insertion lengths, making it compatible with a lot of bikes. Posts like the RockShox Reverb run longer making it more difficult for a perfect fit. 

Seat Post Diameter

The next piece of the puzzle is finding a post with the right diameter. The three most common sizes are 30.9, 31.6, and 34.9. You can put a smaller post in a wider diameter seat tube by using a shim that fills the empty space. You can’t put a bigger post in a smaller tube.

Final check list

Do you need an internal or external post?

Does the dropper post length match your current setup?

Can the dropper be inserted all the way into the seat post?

Is the seat post diameter the right size?