Tubeless leak at bead

C

cogs19

Likes Bikes
Hiya,

Bought a new Racing Ralph Evo MTB Tyre - SnakeSkin. Set it up tubeless on Mavic Crossmax XL. Noticed that it was slowly deflating. I did a soap and water test and found it was leaking on the bead. I removed the tyre and reseated the tyre and again it was leaking at the bead at the same spot (nb. I moved the tyre around the rim to rule out the rim being the cause).

When seating tubeless tyres I always pump up to 50ish PSI to make sure they pop into place etc. Then reduce back to riding pressure.

The tyre had new sealant in it but it seemed to have no effect on sealing this leak.

Is this a sign the tyre is defective?

Cogs
 
mtb101

mtb101

Likes Bikes and Dirt
so sealant in, pump up, lay wheel flat and shake between turning over to other side - checking for leaks with soap, this allows sealant to go into bead., need to do for about 30 minutes.
 
C

cogs19

Likes Bikes
mtb101 said:
so sealant in, pump up, lay wheel flat and shake between turning over to other side - checking for leaks with soap, this allows sealant to go into bead., need to do for about 30 minutes.
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Ok, cool. Thanks for the tip.
 
tkdbboy

tkdbboy

Likes Dirt
Mmark the spot on the tyre where the leak is, and also on the rim .. unseat tyre and give it half a rotation around the rim .. reseat and see whether the leak is next to the mark on rim or tyre. Might give you further clues.
 
BT180

BT180

Max Pfaff
As mentioned, make sure you roll the tyre around and also shake it and bounce the tyre on the ground a few times. Gives the sealant the best chance to work its way into any gaps. Unless you have a major hole in the tyre that needs a plug, sealant should have fixed that.
 
C

cogs19

Likes Bikes
BT180 said:
As mentioned, make sure you roll the tyre around and also shake it and bounce the tyre on the ground a few times. Gives the sealant the best chance to work its way into any gaps. Unless you have a major hole in the tyre that needs a plug, sealant should have fixed that.
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I agree that sealant should have fixed it. I did do all the normal procedures to spread the sealant upon installation. And additionally, the tyre went out on the trail so there was even more chance of the sealant to get spread to all parts. Not sure why the sealant wouldn't take effect in this particular leak.

I guess one concern I have is that it is a brand new tyre and I have not had any other new tyres that leaked from the bead. The replacement tyre I put on yesterday sealed completely without sealant.
 
mtb101

mtb101

Likes Bikes and Dirt
last option is run with tube for a day or 2 then remove tube not breaking seal on one side, put in sealant and do shake, turn again. tube forces tyre to shape to bead.
 
Flow-Rider

Flow-Rider

Burner
mtb101 said:
so sealant in, pump up, lay wheel flat and shake between turning over to other side - checking for leaks with soap, this allows sealant to go into bead., need to do for about 30 minutes.
Click to expand...
Do this before you ride on it and then do it again the following day if the tyre deflates. If there's a problem at the bead you can normally see the sealant foaming out of there.
 
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John U

John U

MTB Precision
Were you heavy handed with tyre levers when you mounted the tyre?

Some time ago it was recommended to not use tyre levers when mounting tubeless tyres to stop the tyre bead getting damaged. Can’t say I’ve ever heard of it happening though. You could be the first!
 
C

cogs19

Likes Bikes
John U said:
Were you heavy handed with tyre levers when you mounted the tyre?

Some time ago it was recommended to not use tyre levers when mounting tubeless tyres to stop the tyre bead getting damaged. Can’t say I’ve ever heard of it happening though. You could be the first!
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I wouldn't think I was. I've mainly used RR tubeless and don't find them too difficult to slip on - usually do it all by hand. I once mounted a Rock Razor that was an absolute bitch!

So, no - I don't reckon I was heavy-handed in this case.
 
John U

John U

MTB Precision
Did you use levers at all?
Either way, maybe check the tyre bead for damage. If you’ve rotated the tyre relative to the wheel and it’s still leaking in the same place on the tyre it sounds like a problem with the bead.
 
C

cogs19

Likes Bikes
John U said:
Did you use levers at all?
Either way, maybe check the tyre bead for damage. If you’ve rotated the tyre relative to the wheel and it’s still leaking in the same place on the tyre it sounds like a problem with the bead.
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I would have used a lever to remove the tyre. I set it up with a tube initially to get the shape right before I set it up tubeless. So I would have used a lever to get it off and get the tube out. As I said I wouldn't have thought I was heavy-handed - I've installed/removed many tyres over time without issue.

I've seated the tyre on the rim in different places to rule out the rim being the issue.
 
S

schred

Likes Bikes and Dirt
If u have been reasonable in your attempts and narrowed it down to the tyre, then don't hesitate to take it back if u have that option. Guaranteed to be good sealing and a perfect fit or some such.
 
9

99_FGT

Likes Bikes and Dirt
Check your rim for sealant boogers, I've had one where it was on the rim tape but still stopped the tyre from beading
 
stirk

stirk

Burner
I tried some orange seal and had a tyre leak at the bead bad enough that 20 minutes into a ride I'd need to break out the pump.

Switched back to Stans and now the tire stays inflated only losing a couple of psi a week.
 
C

cogs19

Likes Bikes
stirk said:
I tried some orange seal and had a tyre leak at the bead bad enough that 20 minutes into a ride I'd need to break out the pump.

Switched back to Stans and now the tire stays inflated only losing a couple of psi a week.
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Ha!

I normally use Stans and only just bought some Orange the other day. I used the Orange on the new tyre I used to replace the dodgy RR.
 
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