RIDING WITHOUT INNER TUBES: MR.-KNOW-IT-ALL

Dear Mr. Know-It-All,
I run a Tubliss system on my Husky dual-sport bike on both ends. My main reasoning is that I can change tire pressures to improve traction, and if I puncture the tire, the bead will (or should) stay on so I can ride back with some chance of not eating it when the tire rolls and sends me skidding on my head. Well, last weekend I was in the middle of nowhere with my other trail buddies, and I cut the sidewall on my rear tire on a sharp, wet rock. All of the air bled out instantly, and in order to get home, I had to ride 35 miles of road. My question is not about the Tubliss system, which kept the tire beaded up and felt like it was running 2–3 pounds of air pressure, but I want to know if the system is wrecked, because it still holds the 120 psi. It looks roached.

Tim Stackhouse
Via [email protected]

Although I’d like to tell you to quit being parsimonious and to belly up and purchase a new system, we contacted Jeff at Tubliss, and he replied that while extensive damage was done via the heat and friction generated from the long road section, the Tubliss kit is still functional since it is holding air. Your tire, on the other hand, is toast, as I’m sure you know. Don’t even dream of trying to use an automotive patch from the inside. Even if it did not have sidewall damage, it is important to use a new tire with the Tubliss system, or one that has not been previously mounted with stock rim locks as they leave impressions inside the tire’s bead where the Tubliss seals against and will cause leaks.

For those who do not know of the Tubliss system, it is a clever means of turning any standard motocross tire into a tubeless tire without leakage or rim slip. Check it out at tubliss.com/tubliss.