Tu be or not Tube. That is the question.

[TheNose]

I just orderder new tires for my bike. When I took the old tires off the rims, there were tubes in them. The new tires are the tubeless type. Should I put tubes in them, or should I go tubeless? The rims are tubeless type.

Terry

[earlfor]

Re: Tu be or not Tube. That is the question.

My 1150 has tubeless rims and tubless tires. Adding tubes would only make the tires retain more heat.

Earl

I just orderder new tires for my bike. When I took the old tires off the rims, there were tubes in them. The new tires are the tubeless type. Should I put tubes in them, or should I go tubeless? The rims are tubeless type.

Terry

[sharpy]

Tyres

Tubeless tyres are the go as they give you a lighter wheel (no tube), safer( no sudden lose of air pressure, most of the time) and run cooler.(no tube rubbing against the tyre) Always run new rubber valve stems or change over to the metal type ones if you want to. Hint #1 Run short rubber valve stems as the long ones flex over when the wheel speeds up. Hint #2 Use good metal valve caps with the rubber insert inside as the valve will lose air when you ride at a good pace. Hint #3 Carry different size self tapping screws to use when you have a puncture, remove nail or what-ever and screw suitable self tapping screw back into tyre to get you home or a garage SLOWLY. (Doesn't always work but worth a try most of the time)

[TheNose]

Both of you gave me the answer I wanted to hear. Thank you very much!

I love this site!

Terry

[Jethro]

My 1150 has tubeless rims and tubless tires. Adding tubes would only make the tires retain more heat.

I always thought that getting your tires hot was a good thing, like for traction and all?

[crag antler]

When I had a flat on the rear of my 83 1100E a couple of months ago, my mechanic told me I had tube rims. He did pull a tube out of the tire.
And they are the original rims for the 83 :? :?

[Anonymous]

Hey Crag, "83" 1100 E's came with tubeless rims. Beware of your mechanic.

[earlfor]

Tubeless rims have "TUBELESS" cast in raised letters on the rim. Unless that is cast on your rim, it is not a tubeless rim.

Earl

When I had a flat on the rear of my 83 1100E a couple of months ago, my mechanic told me I had tube rims. He did pull a tube out of the tire.
And they are the original rims for the 83 :? :?

[AOD]

what kinda tire setup does a 79 GS have? tubed?

...i find this interesting.

~Adam

[wrench]

I have to get new tires front and rear for my 80gs1000g can i put tubeless tires on?
John.

[SqDancerLynn1]

LOOK on the rim if it says tubeless that tells you NO tubes.
All spoke type wheels require a tube

[Anonymous]

We've been through all this before, but I guess it's been a while, and some folks have joined this forum since. So, here it goes again. I can speak mostly for the big shafties, although these generalizations may well apply to 750's, 650's, 550's, etc.

Lynn and others are correct. If the wheel says it's made for tubeless application, then by all means install the tire without a tube. You should have no problem at all with this, unless the wheel is damaged in some way that it won't allow the tire to hold air. This seldom happens.

If your GS is an 82, 83, 84, or 85 model, then it's equipped with tubeless wheels, front and rear, and you should install both tires without a tube. This is what the factory, (and common sense), recommends. I had two 1982 GS850G's, and both of them had wheels that were clearly stamped as tubeless.

Now go to the Gallery in this website, go to 1982 models, and look at the wheels off a typical GS850. Now go to 1981 and see the same model bike, a GS850, and look at the wheels. Different look, eh? The earlier wheel has that "pentagram" look. Not only did they look different; the 82 and more recent model front wheel is one size larger in width than the earlier one.

On the earlier bikes (81 and older) the rear wheel was clearly stamped "tubeless", while the front was not. So, the owner of, say, a 1980 GS1000G will be able to install a tire without a tube in the rear; however, the front wheel should include a tube, since it isn't stamped "tubeless". Weird setup, tubeless in one, tube in the other -- but that's the way it is.

Owners of, say at 1982 GS1100G don't have to worry about that, since both tires are clearly marked for tubeless installation. Should these tires be installed with a tube? Frankly, it would be dumb to do so, for the reasons stated elsewhere in these messages.

I have a 1984 GS1100GK. When I bought it in late 1999, I did not notice that the front wheel was damaged, but not enough to leak air. I noticed this when my mechanic was removing the tire it came with. Surprise! So, I started using the front wheels (one at a time!) off my parted-out 1979 and 1980 GS850's -- the old-style tubed wheels. They fit perfectly. Even today, I still use those tubed wheels on my GK, and I always have a brand new tube installed in them. These front wheels are interchangeable; different, but interchangeable.

I hope I didn't confuse anyone with this lengthy post, but I thought I'd better share what I do know.

Nick

[Bert Patterson]

I can only speak to non-shafties and not with much authority. My mechanic says 1982 was the transition from tube to tubeless on the GS1100E. Mine does not say tubeless and sadly requires tubes. Some later production '82s are stamped tubeless and don't require tubes. As far as I know, all '83s are tubeless, but it could have been a less than smooth transition.

So much easier to plug a hole with a tubeless.

[TheNose]

Nick hit the nail on the head. The rear is stamped "tubeless" and the rear is not. It's a 1980 GS850L (shaftie).

Thanks,

Terry

[Jeff Tate]

I'm in the same boat as Bert. My '82 1100E rims do not say "tubeless" so I run tubes in'em.