Fat Frank and wheel

Scimitar

Esteemed Pedelecer
Jul 31, 2010
1,772
40
Ireland
Fitted the Fat Frank to the drive wheel today and took it out for a blast. What a difference - with 40psi the bumps are soaked up and it's like the Council have been along and resurfaced the road. A bonus is the indicated max speed has gone up by 2mph on the flat - now at the giddy heights of 25mph :)
Only fly in the ointment is the FF clearance - the tyre just kisses the left chainstay and is clear of the right one by 4mm. Ho-hum, looks like I'll have to dish the wheel tomorrow. I've never had to do that before, but armed with a read of Sheldon Brown's site, it looks perfectly achievable.
 
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kitchenman

Esteemed Pedelecer
Jul 9, 2010
1,309
7
Aberaeron, West Wales
good luck with that!
 

Scimitar

Esteemed Pedelecer
Jul 31, 2010
1,772
40
Ireland
Successfully dished the wheel and took it out again, but a puncture just as I arrived home put the mockers on it. Turned out the tube I used was a bit on the small side and was stretched too thin - a pinhole opened up at the base of the valve stem.
Today I opted for the ghetto tubeless treatment, as mentioned earlier...
Tubeless Wheels : Tubeless Bicycle Wheels Conversion Gallery
So far it's holding air, with a homebrew mix of 50% latex, 25% PVA, 25% soapy water and a couple of teaspoons of glitter.
I'll see how it is tomorrow and go for a ride.
 

Scimitar

Esteemed Pedelecer
Jul 31, 2010
1,772
40
Ireland
Update:
Yesterday morning it had lost 20psi overnight, so I re-inflated it, and took it out for a short jaunt. By crackey, it rides like a dream on this.
Today, I needed to air it up again, but it had only lost a few psi, so the action of using it had distributed the latex mix all over the inside properly. Today's trip was a quick 7 miles to the village and back, with no problems - save the chain skipping off on a vicious bump.
I'm definitely doing the front wheel next week.
 

Mussels

Esteemed Pedelecer
Jun 17, 2008
3,207
8
Crowborough
I'm with you on the benefits of the Fat Franks but not sure on the tubeless conversion, if you get pinch flats with 40psi in the tyres then I'd expect much more serious problems than punctures.
What are the tyre sizes and which bike are they on?
 

Scimitar

Esteemed Pedelecer
Jul 31, 2010
1,772
40
Ireland
Yesterday I didn't even bother to put the pressure gauge on, as the tyre was still as firm as it needed to be. Another trip down to the village and back, with no problems.
Today it's holding pressure fine and dandy.
Mussels: it's 26x2.35 and on a Claude Butler Oracle mtb, c.1990.