What is the benefit of tubeless bicycle tires anyways?
Tubeless tires can be run at lower pressures without risk of pinch flats, also called snakebites because of the distinctive double hole in the tube. The wider working range of tire pressures allows riders to dial their tire pressure to the riding conditions, whereas clinchers (standard bicycle tires + tube) have much narrower pressure ranges. Varying the tire pressure has all kinds of benefits, especially with multi-surface tires, allowing the cornering blocks to bite into the surface earlier in turns. On gnarly chipseal pavement, the lower pressure means less fatigue, which quickly adds up over some miles. Failing to notice, or being unable to avoid, a pothole won’t cause a pinch flat. You can still dent your rim, but that’s mostly a non-issue with the ubiquity of disc brakes on bikes. On a clincher, you’re guaranteed a pinch flat if you hit something hard enough to dent the rim.
Tubeless tires provide the feel and higher traction of tubular tires (also called glue-ons, sew-ups) with greater durability, easier maintenance, and easier repairability.
For regions with goatheads and blackberries, tubeless is pretty much the only way to go farther afield. Tire strips can help, but they deaden the feel, mess with tire dynamics, increase rotational weight, and very rarely protect sidewalls. They are also (usually) horrible to install and can chafe tubes unless installed very carefully.
In regions without regular street-cleaning, with less frequent tire replacement, and with higher use of tire chains, it’s very common to encounter tire belting and fragments of tire chains. Tubeless bicycle tires are a day-saver. In my own experience, I can now ride those roads where it was previously common to get multiple flats. Before I switched to tubeless, one ride in particular in rural Oregon resulted in 8 flats in 40 miles. And then I was out of patches and spare tubes; day is over, call for a ride. All the flats were caused by tiny pieces of tire belting. I now check my tires once a week to pick out the tire belting I picked up, but I get zero flats.
Oh, I forgot to mention, it did not clog the valve at all, and it’s also tire sensor safe.
Our direct experiences are very different. And bicycles don’t have TPS.
If FaF was actually superlative for bicycles on any metric, we would all have switched long ago. At the very least, some pioneering shadetree bike mechanic would be singing its praises far and wide. I resisted the tubeless tire trend until late 2025 despite having worked on other’s bikes with tubeless, in part because I didn’t feel like building up new wheels. “Meh, everything I have is just fine.” I kick myself for having hesitated. It’s just so much better on all counts.
Oh, so tubeless is better for lower tire pressures? Okay, gotcha. My kevlar BMX bike tires are rated for 60psi, so of course when they’re brand new I pump them up to 90psi, so low pressure tires aren’t even on my radar.
Now of course as my tires age and wear out, I gradually reduce my max tire pressure accordingly, until they basically wear out bald and need to be replaced. I get that I shouldn’t overpressure my tires like that, but it makes BMX flatland tricks go way smoother.
Perhaps its just that there really isn’t any good viable sealant for such high pressures though, tube or tubeless tires. Patch/plug or replace is the only way to go for me, bicycle tire sealant is effectively useless in my experience. I’ve had patched tubes last more than 4 years without any leaks, until I manage to ride over something else to cause another puncture.
And no, our vehicle doesn’t have TPS sensors either, I just figured I’d mention the fact that modern FaF is advertised as sensor safe, and doesn’t clog the valve. Now I dunno about older formulas of FaF…
Tubeless tires can be run at lower pressures without risk of pinch flats, also called snakebites because of the distinctive double hole in the tube. The wider working range of tire pressures allows riders to dial their tire pressure to the riding conditions, whereas clinchers (standard bicycle tires + tube) have much narrower pressure ranges. Varying the tire pressure has all kinds of benefits, especially with multi-surface tires, allowing the cornering blocks to bite into the surface earlier in turns. On gnarly chipseal pavement, the lower pressure means less fatigue, which quickly adds up over some miles. Failing to notice, or being unable to avoid, a pothole won’t cause a pinch flat. You can still dent your rim, but that’s mostly a non-issue with the ubiquity of disc brakes on bikes. On a clincher, you’re guaranteed a pinch flat if you hit something hard enough to dent the rim.
Tubeless tires provide the feel and higher traction of tubular tires (also called glue-ons, sew-ups) with greater durability, easier maintenance, and easier repairability.
For regions with goatheads and blackberries, tubeless is pretty much the only way to go farther afield. Tire strips can help, but they deaden the feel, mess with tire dynamics, increase rotational weight, and very rarely protect sidewalls. They are also (usually) horrible to install and can chafe tubes unless installed very carefully.
In regions without regular street-cleaning, with less frequent tire replacement, and with higher use of tire chains, it’s very common to encounter tire belting and fragments of tire chains. Tubeless bicycle tires are a day-saver. In my own experience, I can now ride those roads where it was previously common to get multiple flats. Before I switched to tubeless, one ride in particular in rural Oregon resulted in 8 flats in 40 miles. And then I was out of patches and spare tubes; day is over, call for a ride. All the flats were caused by tiny pieces of tire belting. I now check my tires once a week to pick out the tire belting I picked up, but I get zero flats.
Our direct experiences are very different. And bicycles don’t have TPS.
If FaF was actually superlative for bicycles on any metric, we would all have switched long ago. At the very least, some pioneering shadetree bike mechanic would be singing its praises far and wide. I resisted the tubeless tire trend until late 2025 despite having worked on other’s bikes with tubeless, in part because I didn’t feel like building up new wheels. “Meh, everything I have is just fine.” I kick myself for having hesitated. It’s just so much better on all counts.
Oh, so tubeless is better for lower tire pressures? Okay, gotcha. My kevlar BMX bike tires are rated for 60psi, so of course when they’re brand new I pump them up to 90psi, so low pressure tires aren’t even on my radar.
Now of course as my tires age and wear out, I gradually reduce my max tire pressure accordingly, until they basically wear out bald and need to be replaced. I get that I shouldn’t overpressure my tires like that, but it makes BMX flatland tricks go way smoother.
Perhaps its just that there really isn’t any good viable sealant for such high pressures though, tube or tubeless tires. Patch/plug or replace is the only way to go for me, bicycle tire sealant is effectively useless in my experience. I’ve had patched tubes last more than 4 years without any leaks, until I manage to ride over something else to cause another puncture.
And no, our vehicle doesn’t have TPS sensors either, I just figured I’d mention the fact that modern FaF is advertised as sensor safe, and doesn’t clog the valve. Now I dunno about older formulas of FaF…