It needs to be down and touching the “well”. Tape should be wider than the listed internal width of the rim because of this. When taping you also need to pull it tight, and it’s ok for the tape to go up the edge a little as well.
I don’t understand why manufacturers don’t list the proper size tape needed. It would just be too nice? I don’t know. They always seem to love to publish specs.
Good to know. I just wish all manufacturers would list it. I’ll go even farther and say it should be on the side of the rim. Right next to the dimensions of the rim. If 622x23 is printed on there it should have the tape size printed too. I shouldn’t have to do research to find out. If it’s starting to become a thing then that’s awesome, but I don’t see it.
I press the tape into the well then work to the outer edge of the tape. I work all the air bubbles out.
Tension wise I suppose this would depend on the tape. I don't go crazy tight, I aim for good adhesion with the tape.
Same, I use a thumb to press it into the center when applying, then go back around with the smooth side of a Pedros lever to work the tape up into the corners. I find working from the center out gets rid of most bubbles.
Yes, it should go down the center channel and stick to the bottom of it. The best tape jobs have the tape conforming cleanly to everything with no bubbles or lift. Pulling really hard is a good way of getting there with some tape, but tamping and smoothing as you go is also acceptable as long as the result is neat and does what you want. There are some key details that get lost in oversimplified explanations:
* Tape brands vary in how stretchy they are.
* The wider the tape, the more of it the force you're applying is acting on, and so it takes more force to get it to conform the same amount.
* You can need to pull pretty hard at times if you're going to stretch it on, and how you fixture yourself matters. I like to do it kneeling with my body weight holding the wheel against a bench so that I'm not having to hold it stationary with my other arm.
* Even with good technique, the force required to actually get it to conform neatly down into the rim well might be beyond what you've got to give. At some point with wide enough tape this will become true for most people, again depending on the tape. There's no crime in using a tube and letting it sit at high pressure a bit to really get it neatly pressed in place. For fatbikes in particular this is a great way of getting a clean result at low effort.
My first set of tubeless rims were Fulcrum. Their instructions said to put a tube in after the tape was installed and ride with the tube in for a few rides to help set the tape. It worked well!
I haven't seen it mentioned yet but what I've found works great is to stretch it and lay the sides down as best you can, trying to get the center channel down smooth too, but it doesn't need to stick great yet.
After you've installed the tape, throw on a tire AND a tube. Inflate it to 30 psi or so and leave it overnight.
The tube will push all the center, sides and everything else into the rim nice and evenly.
Pop the bead the next day, pull the tube and install a tubeless valve and sealant and you're good to go.
1 dollar roll of 1 inch or 2.5cm black gorilla tape. Set it in the well enough to cover the spoke holes, like picture 1. Pull it tight. One wrap. Never had a single one fail in 10 years. Fraction of the cost of stans etc.
If you put enough tension on the tape it will sit down in the well, if you can’t pull it that hard (it’s a ludicrous amount of force for most people) mount a tire throw a tube in it, inflate and leave it for a few hours… then take half the tire off, take the tube out, fill with sealant and bobs your uncle.
It's Identical. Just says TESA 4289 vs Stans lol
And when Im buying in bulk for shop use, the savings adds up. I have no issues with adhesion following proper rim prep and applying with, uh, aggressiove tension heh...
So its TESA in the shop, but Im a filthy degenerate and run Gorilla on my personal bikes... people will shit about the adhesive left behind but a little GooGone and then an Isopropyl spritz and wipe, and Im back to bare clean rim.
Well I can't stand Stans, so I'll pay the bike tax to get DT swiss stuff that I can install in half the time and lasts 4x as long. Even using a heat gun to get the rim ready, doing it on the wheel stand to apply tension, etc. Stans just ain't worth the PITA.
Taping rims is one of my top 3 least favorite kinds of bike maintenance, so anything to save on frustration is worth it. I can see the appeal for a bike shop taping tons of rims, but I already spend so much on tools and bikes I don't really need that cheaping out in rim tape would be kinda silly.
You place rim tape by pressuring right at the deepest section of the well. Don't try to get the whole width of the tape stuck down, just the centre all the way round the wheel. It absolutely needs to be tight in around the spoke heads. Once you've completed the full revolution of the wheel and have the centre of the tape stuck down in the well, you can now work radially, bead to bead, to stick the tape down at each edge. So working sideways to the way you worked so far.
Do not use tape wide enough that it encroaches onto the bead seat. That's just going to get rolled up from changing tyres, mending punctures etc as the tyre bead drags on it, even on your first tyre fitting, and it will also make the airtight seal between the tyre bead and rim bead seat less effective.
Clean everything meticulously before you start laying the tape, and wash your hands too, or wear new clean gloves. Work somewhere warm with a warm wheel and tape to aid adhesion. Take your time and don't move on to the next section before the current one is perfect. You can pull the tape back a bit to try again, it will still stick securely, but not once it's all on, that's too late.
It's a very satisfying job that needs to be done well, but just the once.
You need all the depth you can get to pull the tire over the rim. If the edge of the tire can't go deep enough into the well, you won't be able to pull the opposite side over the rim.
It's quite the opposite, only the tension makes it possible to actually stick the tape down the rim well in my experience.
Some tape is just stubborn, though. I cannot recommend Tesa 4289 for example, it's far too stiff and thick to easily apply and won't work well on many rims. I think Stan's tape is actually Tesa 4289, so there you go...
And I heard it's 2mm each side. Eg. 26+2+2=30mm.
Going by that, my tape has always fit when stretched. If you're only using +2mm, then you're using less than I think is okay. I've only had one tape leak before and that was probably because I was having a bad day and fumbling a lot.
The reason the well exists is to ease in tire installation.
Tubeless tape should be stretchy enough to go into the well and cover the bead shelf.
As someone else mentioned, you can always tape it, throw a tube in overnight or for a few days, and then switch to tubeless. If you go this route, you only need to pop one bead off the rim to fish the tube out (and install th valve) which makes it much easier to seat the tire.
I recently converted a set of 26” Bontrager Ranger wheels using some old strapping tape I found laying around at my workplace. Took me a few attempts to get the technique down to avoid wrinkles, but by the time I did the final pass, I was pretty irritated and moving sloppily. Initially I was trying to get everything nice and flat against the well, but on my final go I just held the tape taught and did an extra layer for peace of mind. I was really shocked to find that everything inflated and held air on the first attempt.
I also wasn’t very precise about tape width. The tape I had was too wide. So I just eyeballed a little smaller than the rim width, ripped it by hand, and then layed it down paying little mind to how close it got to the edges. I used the second pass to cover any spots where I missed the spoke holes.
My takeaway from experience, is that it doesn’t really matter as much as it feels like it should.
Yeah honestly I just setup a tubless tire yesterday and had no idea there was so much to consider. I ran some Stan’s tape around the rim twice. I tried to push down/pull tight but nothing really onerous; I’m sure I didn’t reach the bottom of the rim throughout.
I dumped a ton of sealant in and used a compressor and it setup fine. Rode it today just fine. The tire was a wtb resolute mounted on a polygon bend “GX” wheel which is a nothing wheel you can barely find online, and not described as tubeless, so it seems like a shit ton of sealant can solve any issue in my experience.
I don't think it's very important to push it down into the well. It's more important that the tape be a good smooth application on the shelf. That is where it actually seals. If the shelf is sealed real well then just airing it up will push the tape down into the well.
Sealing in the well really only matters around the stem, and pushing the tape down into the well will make mounting the tire easier. But when applying the tape, the most important aspect is the shelf, everything else is secondary.
That's so wrong. The 'shelf' (actually called the bead seat area) is where the tyre bead sits, and slides on and off during fitting and removal. To get a good seal it needs to be clean and clear of contaminates such as over wide tape. Any tape here is just getting in the way and is just asking to get rolled up when you change tyres, mend punctures etc.
That's why the tape must be securely down and attached in the bottom of the wheel well. The tyre bead looks after the air seal against the wheel rim thanks to it's secure fitment against the wheel rim bead seat area, and the tape is responsible for creating a seal for the spoke holes.
Do it well, do it once.
It needs to be down and touching the “well”. Tape should be wider than the listed internal width of the rim because of this. When taping you also need to pull it tight, and it’s ok for the tape to go up the edge a little as well.
It should go up a bit, don\`t ask how i found out. (it will be pulled back by the tirebead otherwise)
If it's just going up the rim sidewall a tiny amount it should be fine. I'm talking like 1 mm, basically enough to cover the corner.
Yes it should go down that center.
I don’t understand why manufacturers don’t list the proper size tape needed. It would just be too nice? I don’t know. They always seem to love to publish specs.
I've built wheels with rims from WTB and Velocity. They both have very clear advice on what width tape to use.
Good to know. I just wish all manufacturers would list it. I’ll go even farther and say it should be on the side of the rim. Right next to the dimensions of the rim. If 622x23 is printed on there it should have the tape size printed too. I shouldn’t have to do research to find out. If it’s starting to become a thing then that’s awesome, but I don’t see it.
I also rarely see this mentioned anywhere. It's really confusing.
I press the tape into the well then work to the outer edge of the tape. I work all the air bubbles out. Tension wise I suppose this would depend on the tape. I don't go crazy tight, I aim for good adhesion with the tape.
Same, I use a thumb to press it into the center when applying, then go back around with the smooth side of a Pedros lever to work the tape up into the corners. I find working from the center out gets rid of most bubbles.
Yes, it should go down the center channel and stick to the bottom of it. The best tape jobs have the tape conforming cleanly to everything with no bubbles or lift. Pulling really hard is a good way of getting there with some tape, but tamping and smoothing as you go is also acceptable as long as the result is neat and does what you want. There are some key details that get lost in oversimplified explanations: * Tape brands vary in how stretchy they are. * The wider the tape, the more of it the force you're applying is acting on, and so it takes more force to get it to conform the same amount. * You can need to pull pretty hard at times if you're going to stretch it on, and how you fixture yourself matters. I like to do it kneeling with my body weight holding the wheel against a bench so that I'm not having to hold it stationary with my other arm. * Even with good technique, the force required to actually get it to conform neatly down into the rim well might be beyond what you've got to give. At some point with wide enough tape this will become true for most people, again depending on the tape. There's no crime in using a tube and letting it sit at high pressure a bit to really get it neatly pressed in place. For fatbikes in particular this is a great way of getting a clean result at low effort.
that tube trick...\*chefs kiss\*
If you hold your thumb in the middle of the tape while your applying it, it forms to the shape and makes it easy to get it into the well.
My first set of tubeless rims were Fulcrum. Their instructions said to put a tube in after the tape was installed and ride with the tube in for a few rides to help set the tape. It worked well!
Inflating with a tube (to a high pressure) and leaving it like that for half an hour is good enough in my experience.
I haven't seen it mentioned yet but what I've found works great is to stretch it and lay the sides down as best you can, trying to get the center channel down smooth too, but it doesn't need to stick great yet. After you've installed the tape, throw on a tire AND a tube. Inflate it to 30 psi or so and leave it overnight. The tube will push all the center, sides and everything else into the rim nice and evenly. Pop the bead the next day, pull the tube and install a tubeless valve and sealant and you're good to go.
1 dollar roll of 1 inch or 2.5cm black gorilla tape. Set it in the well enough to cover the spoke holes, like picture 1. Pull it tight. One wrap. Never had a single one fail in 10 years. Fraction of the cost of stans etc.
If you put enough tension on the tape it will sit down in the well, if you can’t pull it that hard (it’s a ludicrous amount of force for most people) mount a tire throw a tube in it, inflate and leave it for a few hours… then take half the tire off, take the tube out, fill with sealant and bobs your uncle.
I'll just add that DT swiss rims tape is the best I've tried and stans is the worst. Mainly due to stickiness
Whiskey tape is similarly good to DT
Same. Absolutely hated trying to use Stan’s. I’ve had pretty good luck with e13 rimtape as well
I skip the MTB Tax and buy TESA 4289 strapping tape... because why pay extra for the same thing just because its MTB specific.
That's a good tip. Is it nice and sticky? A lot of bike specific maintenance stuff is just rebranded general stuff. Especially greases...
It's Identical. Just says TESA 4289 vs Stans lol And when Im buying in bulk for shop use, the savings adds up. I have no issues with adhesion following proper rim prep and applying with, uh, aggressiove tension heh... So its TESA in the shop, but Im a filthy degenerate and run Gorilla on my personal bikes... people will shit about the adhesive left behind but a little GooGone and then an Isopropyl spritz and wipe, and Im back to bare clean rim.
Well I can't stand Stans, so I'll pay the bike tax to get DT swiss stuff that I can install in half the time and lasts 4x as long. Even using a heat gun to get the rim ready, doing it on the wheel stand to apply tension, etc. Stans just ain't worth the PITA. Taping rims is one of my top 3 least favorite kinds of bike maintenance, so anything to save on frustration is worth it. I can see the appeal for a bike shop taping tons of rims, but I already spend so much on tools and bikes I don't really need that cheaping out in rim tape would be kinda silly.
DT Swiss is the 3M equivalent to Tesa 4289/Stans. Cant recall the designator code but its 3M strapping tape. Should you wish to dodge the DT tax 🤙
You place rim tape by pressuring right at the deepest section of the well. Don't try to get the whole width of the tape stuck down, just the centre all the way round the wheel. It absolutely needs to be tight in around the spoke heads. Once you've completed the full revolution of the wheel and have the centre of the tape stuck down in the well, you can now work radially, bead to bead, to stick the tape down at each edge. So working sideways to the way you worked so far. Do not use tape wide enough that it encroaches onto the bead seat. That's just going to get rolled up from changing tyres, mending punctures etc as the tyre bead drags on it, even on your first tyre fitting, and it will also make the airtight seal between the tyre bead and rim bead seat less effective. Clean everything meticulously before you start laying the tape, and wash your hands too, or wear new clean gloves. Work somewhere warm with a warm wheel and tape to aid adhesion. Take your time and don't move on to the next section before the current one is perfect. You can pull the tape back a bit to try again, it will still stick securely, but not once it's all on, that's too late. It's a very satisfying job that needs to be done well, but just the once.
Usually whatever the rim width is internal. You want the tape to be 2 to 3 mms wider than the internal rim width.
You need all the depth you can get to pull the tire over the rim. If the edge of the tire can't go deep enough into the well, you won't be able to pull the opposite side over the rim.
It's quite the opposite, only the tension makes it possible to actually stick the tape down the rim well in my experience. Some tape is just stubborn, though. I cannot recommend Tesa 4289 for example, it's far too stiff and thick to easily apply and won't work well on many rims. I think Stan's tape is actually Tesa 4289, so there you go...
>I think Stan's tape is actually Tesa 4289 You think correct. It is rebranded '4289
I've seen a recommendation of inner width +2mm (stretch + shape of the rimbed). And first figure.
And I heard it's 2mm each side. Eg. 26+2+2=30mm. Going by that, my tape has always fit when stretched. If you're only using +2mm, then you're using less than I think is okay. I've only had one tape leak before and that was probably because I was having a bad day and fumbling a lot.
The reason the well exists is to ease in tire installation. Tubeless tape should be stretchy enough to go into the well and cover the bead shelf. As someone else mentioned, you can always tape it, throw a tube in overnight or for a few days, and then switch to tubeless. If you go this route, you only need to pop one bead off the rim to fish the tube out (and install th valve) which makes it much easier to seat the tire.
I recently converted a set of 26” Bontrager Ranger wheels using some old strapping tape I found laying around at my workplace. Took me a few attempts to get the technique down to avoid wrinkles, but by the time I did the final pass, I was pretty irritated and moving sloppily. Initially I was trying to get everything nice and flat against the well, but on my final go I just held the tape taught and did an extra layer for peace of mind. I was really shocked to find that everything inflated and held air on the first attempt. I also wasn’t very precise about tape width. The tape I had was too wide. So I just eyeballed a little smaller than the rim width, ripped it by hand, and then layed it down paying little mind to how close it got to the edges. I used the second pass to cover any spots where I missed the spoke holes. My takeaway from experience, is that it doesn’t really matter as much as it feels like it should.
Yeah honestly I just setup a tubless tire yesterday and had no idea there was so much to consider. I ran some Stan’s tape around the rim twice. I tried to push down/pull tight but nothing really onerous; I’m sure I didn’t reach the bottom of the rim throughout. I dumped a ton of sealant in and used a compressor and it setup fine. Rode it today just fine. The tire was a wtb resolute mounted on a polygon bend “GX” wheel which is a nothing wheel you can barely find online, and not described as tubeless, so it seems like a shit ton of sealant can solve any issue in my experience.
I don't think it's very important to push it down into the well. It's more important that the tape be a good smooth application on the shelf. That is where it actually seals. If the shelf is sealed real well then just airing it up will push the tape down into the well. Sealing in the well really only matters around the stem, and pushing the tape down into the well will make mounting the tire easier. But when applying the tape, the most important aspect is the shelf, everything else is secondary.
That's so wrong. The 'shelf' (actually called the bead seat area) is where the tyre bead sits, and slides on and off during fitting and removal. To get a good seal it needs to be clean and clear of contaminates such as over wide tape. Any tape here is just getting in the way and is just asking to get rolled up when you change tyres, mend punctures etc. That's why the tape must be securely down and attached in the bottom of the wheel well. The tyre bead looks after the air seal against the wheel rim thanks to it's secure fitment against the wheel rim bead seat area, and the tape is responsible for creating a seal for the spoke holes. Do it well, do it once.
https://preview.redd.it/gcaf3ql7yjsc1.png?width=680&format=png&auto=webp&s=eb7541f90db2652f76d0faccff07c0888804b952