Tubeless ready ST5 - Yes!

[Insider]

Not even the local dealer could tell me if the stock ST5 DT Swiss rims are tubeless ready.

Anyhow, fearing of getting a flat on the road, I wanted to better my chances.

Peeled back the tire and yes the rim is tubeless ready! I pull the tube, put in a tubeless stem add sealant and air up via hand pump!

Put plenty of sealant. Found air leaking from the side walls of the stock Pirelli tires. I lost track, but I used at least 100ml of sealant.
Kept pressure over night!

 

[bluecat]

Anyhow, fearing of getting a flat on the road, I wanted to better my chances.

Peeled back the tire and yes the rim is tubeless ready! I just have to pull the tube, put in a tubeless stem add sealant and air up via hand pump!

Yes, the they are "tubeless ready". As you can see, the rim tape does a perfect seal.

Now, can you please tell me against what kind of flat tires on a ST5 the tubeless concept shall help?

 

[Insider]

Yeah so if you get a puncture running an inner tube, your bike is disabled 100%.

If you run tubeless with sealant, there's a good chance the sealant can seal the puncture in time and your tire not completely flat.

This bike sealant video should inspire confidence.

 

[diabloo71]

I just got a used ST5, and just returned a new ST3 that wasn't right for me.
Here in NM there are lots of thorns to make riding difficult if you are not prepared for it...and changing the rear wheel on the Stromer is a nightmare (esp on the trails).

Note: My ST5 uses presta valves while the ST3 used shrader.

Last night I converted my ST5 to tubeless. The rims were already setup with the tape. The tires held up well. I'm using the orange sealant.
I'm so happy with this setup.

thanks

 

[Insider]

Keep in mind in the ST5 there is no locknut on the free hub shell. So if you are not careful with the rear wheel, the free hub + cassette can free fall out and spill all the little bits everyone where you will never find it
(Springs, paws...etc)

 

[diabloo71]

when i had the ST3, i was so happy to ride it to work. coming back home, i was on a paved trail that is isolated from roads...when i felt my rear wheel go flat.
it was a nightmare fixing that flat (on the tube). one of the hard to deal with items is the non-drive side tooth'ed cog to tooth'ed washer thing. the tooth'ed washer was held on by a micro screw that came off during this tire change and i could not find it. then, i realized my mini pump was only good for presta valves...so i used 2 16oz cartridges to try to inflate this new tube. never again.

i've converted my mountain bike to tubeless and LOVE it. this conversion on my st5 will help ensure more reliability.

something else i noticed when putting my rear wheel back on from the conversion..is that the rear drop outs (chain stay + seat stay) seem to be designed to flex...so that you can put the rear wheel on with those tooth'ed items and then when you tighten the T70 axel...it pulls the drop-outs up against the cassette to hold it tight in place.

i highly recommend going tubeless, especially if you have to deal with "goat-heads" (thorns) like i do in NM.

 

[bluecat]

Yeah so if you get a puncture running an inner tube, your bike is disabled 100%.

If you run tubeless with sealant, there's a good chance the sealant can seal the picture in time and your tire not completely flat.

Thanks for your opinion!

As this topic also rises from time to time @stromerforum.ch I'm curious to know, If there will be some evidence the tubeless concept is better than the a robust tire.

 

[JUGGY]

I just got a used ST5, and just returned a new ST3 that wasn't right for me.
Here in NM there are lots of thorns to make riding difficult if you are not prepared for it...and changing the rear wheel on the Stromer is a nightmare (esp on the trails).

Note: My ST5 uses presta valves while the ST3 used shrader.

Last night I converted my ST5 to tubeless. The rims were already setup with the tape. The tires held up well. I'm using the orange sealant.
I'm so happy with this setup.

thanks

HI, im interested in switching my wheels to tubeless, can I use the same tyres or must I buy new ones? Is there anything else I need to make this conversion a success?


thanks Juggy

 

[Insider]

HI, im interested in switching my wheels to tubeless, can I use the same tyres or must I buy new ones? Is there anything else I need to make this conversion a success?


thanks Juggy

The rim is the most important part of the tubeless equation... If the rim doesn't hold on to the bead, it is very hard to air up. (It is possible to build up the inner rim lip with additional tape)

Not all non-tubeless tire can be used in a tubeless setup. It may leak too much air from the bead or sidewalls.

Don't give up right away. If it holds air initially, you've got a good chance to seal it up for good. Use plenty of sealant as that is cheap. It may take a few days for sealant to cure and cover more leaks.

There's only one way to find out.

 

[JUGGY]

HEY, thanks for replying..the lbs said I could purchase new tyres & they would be suitable for tubeless. I'm getting to understand this better, I may wear these current Pirelli tyres out before I spend more money on going tubeless....I bought the bike from nycewheels here in Nyc & they went out of business directly after purchasing..that was a real problem as the closest shop doesn't want to work on it bc we never bought it from them..I love the bike but if something goes wrong its a real problem...anyway-thanks for getting back to me

 

[Insider]

HEY, thanks for replying..the lbs said I could purchase new tyres & they would be suitable for tubeless. I'm getting to understand this better, I may wear these current Pirelli tyres out before I spend more money on going tubeless....I bought the bike from nycewheels here in Nyc & they went out of business directly after purchasing..that was a real problem as the closest shop doesn't want to work on it bc we never bought it from them..I love the bike but if something goes wrong its a real problem...anyway-thanks for getting back to me

There's no need to remove the wheels if you are willing to sacrifice the inner tubes. ( labor cost for wheel removal vs cut the inner tubes off)

It's not hard to go tubeless on the ST5.
You need tubeless valve stems.
Bike tire sealant. ( Use 120ml in each wheel)
The Pirelli e-cycle tires are tubeless friendly. Mine leaked at the sidewalls initially, but sealed up after 1 day.

Tools needed:
Bike pump.
Plastic tire iron.
Bike stand would be nice, but 2 chairs higher than 28" inches + broom stick will prop the rear wheel off the ground.

No need to remove the wheel just cut the inner tube off.

You will regret not going tubeless the first time you get a flat out on the road.

 

[Leon Washington]

I just got my first flat on my ST5 (767 total miles). My Stromer dealer refuses to do tubeless on my bike. He indicated that Stromer says the rims are not tubeless ready.

Indeed flat tires are the only downside of the bike. It would be nice if Stromer dealers read this forum.

UPDATE:
I went to the Stromer Dealer to get my flat fixed. . . . Two things: The axle on the newer ST5 bikes is a 10mm Allen Wrench; it's no longer the T70 star. When we peeled the tire back, the rims said tubeless ready. So my dealer said, no problem and went to work doing a tubeless setup.

 

[The duke]

Let's not forget people, that sealant only lasts for 5 or 6 months I side your tires. After that, it's pretty much useless. You'll need to top it off with another heavy gob twice a year or you'll be SOL with your next flat.

 

[Insider]

I just got my first flat on my ST5 (767 total miles). My Stromer dealer refuses to do tubeless on my bike. He indicated that Stromer says the rims are not tubeless ready.

Indeed flat tires are the only downside of the bike. It would be nice if Stromer dealers read this forum.

UPDATE:
I went to the Stromer Dealer to get my flat fixed. . . . Two things: The axle on the newer ST5 bikes is a 10mm Allen Wrench; it's no longer the T70 star. When we peeled the tire back, the rims said tubeless ready. So my dealer said, no problem and went to work doing a tubeless setup.

Glad you were able to convince them to look. Did you show them this thread with picts?

BTW here's the T70 Torx bit I use for $5.55 on Amazon. I guess the 10MM axle is nice, but it's hard for someone to steal your wheel with a T70 axle. (Or they have a 11mm allen wrench)

What did they charge to remove / install the wheel? Was it more than 2 inner tubes? Frankly, once you go tubeless, you will never put a tube back in on that bike

@The duke Yes, sealant needs to be refreshed, but it takes 5 minutes with a sealant syringe to pump some in. Just set a reminder on your phone.

 

[Insider]

Let's not forget people, that sealant only lasts for 5 or 6 months I side your tires. After that, it's pretty much useless. You'll need to top it off with another heavy gob twice a year or you'll be SOL with your next flat.

This finally happened to me at ~2000 miles. 5mm gash and proofed too much for the Stand's sealant. Blew all the sealant out (You can see the puddle)
I was on the road and has no access. Found a patch kit for radial car tires at a hardware store, it was able to get me home.

Should always bring a patch kit! I got too confident with tubeless

https://imgur.com/a/IZ30Vwu

 

[Insider]

Thanks for your opinion!

As this topic also rises from time to time @stromerforum.ch I'm curious to know, If there will be some evidence the tubeless concept is better than the a robust tire.

Just coming back to this thread as I finally got a flat that tubeless sealant could not seal! It was about a 5mm cut. (Maybe a piece of glass)

Not all tires are designed to be tubeless. Tubeless tire will have enough thickness on the side walls to keep it air tight.
Where as tubed tires does not needs to be air tight on the side walls.

Best of both worlds would be having a robust tire that is setup to be tubeless.

Watch the video and you can see how many times you can puncture the same tire. Is that enough evidence?
Multiple punctures on a tubeless setup.

 

[Insider]

A patch kit, a tire boot, and a spare tube, just in case. I carry a light weight Tubolito for my tubeless setup, because you never know. Don't forget to bring something to remove the valve. Can't install a tube if you can't remove the valve.

Well, with a back up tube I'd also have to bring tools to remove the axles(s). (T70 Torx) Not looking forward to that.

 

[bluecat]

Don't try to be a mountain biker. A Stromer is the perfect bike for paved roads - so use it appropriate - with max. pressure in the tires.