Holy pinch flats, Batman!

Lee,
I got a 3 pinch flats running Azonic Outlaws, Kenda Kinetics 2.35 and Maxxis 1.5mm DH tubes at 40psi this weekend at bootleg canyon on my new vp free. Never had any problems running my singletracks with standard tubes on my Giant DH. Any idea what is going on?

BTW, I just switched the tires to Maxxis mobster 42Duros 2.7s…hopefully it was the thin sidewall on the Kendas…thanks!

Erich

The more you click, the more I can post. Lee Likes Groceries dot com!

Hey Erich,

Bootleg is SICK!!! That place … dang … what a mix of steep, rocky, loose, gnarly and flowy.

Pinch flats. That business could come from any or all of these factors:

Tires. Kenda Kinetics are an old design, and they aren’t exactly burly. They won’t give the same protection as modern Maxxis, Michelin, Kenda, Specialized, etc. DH tires. If you ride downhill, especially at a place as pointy as Bootleg, you need full-on downhill tires. End of story.

Tubes. You’re right to rock the DH tubes, but if a rock squashes a too-light tire all the way to your rim, 1.5mm of rubber won’t help you much. I’m a big fan of tubeless — when it works. Otherwise I roll DH tires, DH tubes and lots of air.

TIP: You can run a 21-inch heavy duty moto tube. Once you cram that inside your tire, you hardly need air!

Riding style. When you bash into things on the ground, you break things on your bike.

Conclusion: Real downhill tires. Downhill tubes. Consider tubeless. Ride smoothly. Be kind to puppies.

5 replies
  1. Scott says:

    I weigh 220 and have been running Outlaws with Kenda DH Nevegals and Maxxis DH tubes for the past 2 years. I’ve run them as low as 30 psi and have yet to pinch flat. I mainly ride in SoCal where the chunk isn’t up to Bootleg standards but there is some. I’ve hit the rim pretty hard before and kept on rolling. My buddy ran non-DH Nevegals with Maxxis DH tubes at Mammoth one year and got 3 pinch flats within a mile with around 40 PSI.

    Like Lee said, use real DH tires!

  2. MTB Strength Coach says:

    I second the tubeless thing. I actually use the “Ghetto Stan’s” technique with the 20 inch BMX tube for a tubeless conversion liner and Stan’s solution in the tire. I have actually dented my rim before and not flatted. I once went 3+ years without a flat (no lie) and it took a ripped sidewall in Whistler to break the streak. The only drawback I have heard is some guys who corner extremely hard have told me that the have “burped” the tires. However, if you are not going Mach 10 in corners I would run the tubeless conversion and forget that pinch flats even exist.

  3. Trevor says:

    Its all about the tire/rim combo, i run proper super tacky maxxis high rollers/minions all the time with pressures as low as 25psi!!

    I never really suffer from pinch flats, and spend my summer guiding in whistler, and get through about 2 rims in 5 months, which i have killed through dinging on rocks

    Dont even bother with DH tubes, to heavey for me,

    For trail riding where tyre weight matters, use tubless, stans rocks, DT and Schwable’s versions rock too.

  4. Chris says:

    I still religiously put talcum powder inside the tire and talc my tubes in a bag of talc before fitting. I can ‘spin’ the semi-inflated tubes inside the tire before I mount the two onto a wheel. Don’t know if this makes any difference (pretty hard to test), but it is supposed to let the tube slide away from the tire when it gets pinched. I haven’t had a pinch flat in years but my lightish weight, plush travel, DH tires (Minions) and magnificent “porpoising” in rocky terrain may also have much to do with it 😉

    I can’t bring myself to go… tubeless. I just… can’t… do it.

  5. mxnmtber says:

    Rolled the 2.7 42D mobsters at 35psi with DH tubes at So Mountain this weekend…no problems…must have been the Kinetics…

    Roll the Stan’s on the CC rig at 40psi…good set up…

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