Comments on: Edge Composites Rims/American Classic Hubs: A Western Review!

By: chichi

chichi — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 23:11:24 +0000

I’ve been running the Edge XC 29′ers all season and they’ve been tubeless from day one. I found that too many tires fit differently on the same rim, some loose, some tight. That’s a tire company thing.

Lately I’ve been using the Kenda Smallblock non-tubless version as they’re 570g, and I run these with Stan’s special edition “Edge” rimstrips – they’re a regular 29′er XC strip but with a long valve.

The key with mounting any fussy tubeless tire is a) wet the bead with soapy water and b) remove the valve core and hit the wheel with a compressor. Hold your finger over the valve hole until you put the valve core back in, and then you’ll be able to run your superlight non-tubeless tires on these wheels.

If you end up using a tubeless ready tire, you wouldn’t even need the rubber rim strip, just tape the holes and get a long valve from Stans. I run these two setups and can go to the low 20 psi’s and there’s no burping.

Like Sevo said, its not about weight (that’s a side note) its about stiffness and the responsive ride they give. I put my old aluminum wheels on for a ride and it reminded me of my 1997 sid with v-brakes.

By: grannygear

grannygear — Sun, 04 Oct 2009 18:32:53 +0000

@kevin

You are not sure what the issue is? How about from the third sentence in your paragraph till the end. I don’t accept all that monkey motion to go tubeless, not after seeing how well it can work with components engineered to work together, ie Stan’s Flows and the Captain tires. Effortless and repeatable.

Besides that, Edge themselves does not think it is a good idea. Glad it worked for you, though. I will wait for the improved version of the carbon rims before I spend that kind of money to dance.

grannygear

By: Kevin

Kevin — Sun, 04 Oct 2009 17:50:55 +0000

I run my Edge AM wheels tubeless all of the time so I am not sure what the issue is. It’s not that straight forward to get them to seal but once they’re sealed they work great. Just put in the wider of the stan’s rim tape and use a valve stem cut from an old road tube that is long enough to extend out of the deep rims. I use Specialized Captain tires and put them on with tubes first. After sitting overnight with high pressure to get any of the kinks out of the tires after being folded in the packaging, I remove the tube put in the valve stem some stan’s sealant and inflate. Sometimes I will have a problem getting them to seal so I will lay it down flat and pour some sealant on the outside of the tire and let it run down between the tire and the wheel around the entire bead. Let it sit for 10 minutes and then flip it over and do the same on the opposite side. I have never had it fail to inflate after that. I’ve raced VisionQuest and numerous other races without a flat or a burp.

By: KT

KT — Fri, 12 Jun 2009 17:33:53 +0000

When I mounted the tires I used presta to Schrader adaptors to inflate the tires with no problem. The valve stem shows just enough threads to get the adaptor on there, use any pump head that will go Schrader & you’re in business. Put an extra adaptor in your seat bag & store one on the valve stem & no worries about pricey extensions. Still waiting to see if anyone has tried tubeless? These wheels gone tubeless would justify selling your second car to make the purchase!!

By: SinnerSpinner

SinnerSpinner — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 15:05:11 +0000

I think that carbon tubulars make a lot more sense here, but I could probably get years out of this clincher pair as I’m a 35-40 psi, 145 lb. rider.
A note on valve extenders: The most common issue that people run into in dealing with valve extenders is the assumption that they should be removable and swappable from wheel to wheel. A valve extender should be “permanently” installed onto the valve, and additionally onto any spare tires/tubes. Prior to valve extender installation, the check-valve nut should be locked (forced) into the open postion as this will avoid most common problem #2; “the valve closes when I spin the valve extender on.” Just before installing the extender, apply a useful amount of teflon tape to the valve threads, being careful not to block the air path, and install the extender with two opposing wrenches. The bottom of the extender should just begin to mushroom outward as it reaches the end of the valve threads. This setup won’t leak, the check-valve won’t magically close, and you’ll be ready to go with your spare tube as well. After you get home from your ride you can analyze the condition of any used extenders for re-use.
To some, this will seem like kind of a big deal, but now you know how I feel about tubeless and sealant! Thanks for reviewing the fancy wheels GG!