Don't worry about pressure as long as you fill them up race morning. Conventional ST wisdom mandates that you use Stan's yellow rim tape. Lots of variables to consider with pressure...do a search for it, as there was a recent thread with some good info. Some folks use sealant - Dan did a sealant shootout of sorts a few years ago and I think Orange Seal and Stan's were the clear favorites. That's about it though...nothing to stress about, so have a great race!

the pressure question probably has a lot to do with your tires. how wide are you running?

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700x23

I'm 175-180 lbs and i run 80 psi on my flo wheels with 23mm supersonics. Your tire pressure is way too high. Even on narrow rims i don't go above 90.

As for your question, I've found latex is literally the same, except you pump them up more often. No install issues or anything like that.

Pressure loss is 0.5-1% per hour typically.
I know that a double layer of Stans works well for several years.
You can reduce pressure to 90-100 psi for 23s and 80-90psi for 25s. Maybe even less.

Get some talc and liberally apply it to the inside of the tire, and the tube. Shake off excess.
Put just enough air in the tube so it takes shape. Install without folds or distortions.
Check to make sure no tube is visible after the last bead is installed.
Pull and press down on the valve so it's tight to the rim before and as you begin to inflate. You only need to do this when the pressure is very low. If you don't do this the tube will distort and fail at the valve.

The only other thing I can think of is, change them back to butyl at your earliest convenience.

I'm running the same set up without Stans tape, just what came from FLO. I am 195-200, and have been running 120, is that too much? I hd a flat on the rear last week, never could tell what happened.

Pardon my lack of knowledge, but what is the talc for?

It's a dry lubricant. Makes the tube and tire slide against each other and not stick.

Yes, that's too much. Take a look at the linked study. There are a bunch more if you want to get more in depth.

https://silca.cc/...stance-and-impedance

Also, you're pumping them above flo's recommended max. If i were you, I'd stick with 90-100 max, depending on the tire. Experiment with it a little.

Thanks, I'll try that.

Latex tubes work great, but they're more sensitive to installation problems. Make extra-sure that the inside of your rim doesn't have any sharp edges. Be extra-careful to not pinch the tube on installation.


Losing a few PSI isn't a big deal. Give the tires an extra quarter-pump or so if you're nervous.


That's probably okay for very silky-smooth roads, but I'd probably go lower for most purposes.


You should really be using cornstarch baby powder for maximizing the high-performance floral scent.

We strongly recommend using tubeless tape with latex tubes... it will eliminate any possible rim tape or spoke hole issues which can be common with latex tubes on plastic rim strips. Also tubeless tape will generally be wider than plastic rim strips and you do not want any exposed carbon inside the tire well as it can lead to heat flats under heavy braking.

The key to latex installs is getting the right amount of pre-inflate and rolling the tube into the tire well before seating the second bead. This will eliminate or nearly eliminate any pinching that may happen during the install. Lastly, no tire levers for installation of tubes.. ever. I prefer no talk as your fingers need the grip to get the bead over the rim, but that's just me. In some cases, some strategically placed talc can really help.

Here is a video that we shot on this exact topic that has some of the techniques we recommend.



Best
Josh

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If installation causes the most problems with latex tubes, then you should limit how much you are switching them out. Once I install my race tires and latex tubes for the race season, i keep them pumped above 50 psi in storage, and do NOT change them. The last thing you want to do before a race is leave stuff to installation mistakes.

Also, the talc powder is a myth. Stop worrying about that stuff.

This is timely for me. I just got a pair of carbon rims, Novatec r5, and was going to put my latex tubes in them for a race. They wells are EXTREMELY clean - no burs, spoke hole openings, nothing - so I figured I was good to put the tubes in without any tape. The labeling inside says there is some tape down, but I honestly couldn't see any seems and the coloration matched the rim so I am not positive if its there or I am misreading. So the carbon gets hotter than an aluminum wheel during normal braking and can lead to flats, or is it more dependent on technical courses requiring your hands to be constantly applying pressure?? I never realized the rims got that hot.

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A "myth" of what exactly?

I just installed latex last night with some new tires.

- GP4000'sII
- SIlca platinum rim tape
- Vittoria latex
- Orange seal sealant in the tubes

I'm 240 and will run 110psi in the back and 105psi in the front. Racing this weekend, so here's to hoping I did everything right. I did have to put a little air in and then depress the air from the tubes once or twice to get them to seat inside of the tire without a pinch. I would advise against blindly firing a ton of air in without being 110% you're not going to pinch. I skipped the talc, so hopefully no penalty there. I pulled this set-up right from Thomas Gerlach's blog, so we have someone to blame should shit hit the fan and you don't want to take the blame for a crappy home installation.

http://www.sheldonbrown.com/brandt/talcum.html

Nice video! To be fair though, that tire was a super loose fit on the rim. Now try a Michelin Comp on a first gen Pacenti SL23... ;). It inspired me to get out a bottle jack and couple pieces of wood to make a "tire stretcher".

I usually use levers (Pedros Milk) and in many installs (well over 100) I've never pinched a latex tube. Or is there another reason you recommend not using levers?

The talc wouldn't be so useful on the first install, but if it's a tube that has stretched a bit, the talc allows the tube to sit in the tire better without distortion, sticking, bunching up, etc. Seems like having the tube slide easily against the tire reduces installation issues with latex.

You definitely need tape to cover the holes for the spokes. There are two drawbacks to latex. A little harder to install and they will expand out into the holes for your spokes more than butyl.

The install is not that much harder. I've never once had an issue personally, but I could tell it takes more care. Never used powder or anything. Just took extra care. I would never recommend latex as a spare because of this. Would be annoying on the side of the road. But installing at the house.....maybe 5 extra minutes of care compared to butyl.

And for the second issue, if you run the right rim tape....no issues. Just use the tubeless tapes instead of some of the cloth tapes and you don't have anything to worry about.

I don't understand complaining about air loss. it's never enough to be a huge issue. Certainly not enough to affect the longest of races even when you set up transition at 5 am. And I check air pressure before every ride no matter if I'm butyl or latex. So there is literally no difference.

So the drawbacks are very minimal to get a noticeably better ride, better flat protection, and lower rolling resistance.

People used to believe (according to Jobst Brandt) that friction between the tire and tube slowed you down, and that was the main reason for using talc. That is a myth.

But talc helps with latex tube installation because it keep the super stretchy latex from getting caught on the tire casing.

Thanks, I have installed and ridden latex before, but on aluminum rims. Like you say, installation was no different and really didn't take me any longer, but the ride quality was noticeable. I was concerned about the heat, which I just wouldn't have thought would be any different than an aluminum considering one isn't typically breaking an absurd amount unless its a mountain bike or something. For a triathlon or TT, do you really think the rim heats up that much that it would cause the latex to melt?

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Why? Aside from changing flats on side of road, I never use butyl. Better ride quality in latex (and it’s a few W faster)

I ride HED wheels, so I have the aluminum rim. If I'm worried about the heat affecting the latex, I'd be worried about butyl as well. not to mention the lamination of the carbon rim. Tons of people ride carbon rims with latex. I wouldn't be too concerned unless I was constantly descending mountains at high speeds.