Mitas E-07 dakar with tubes? Opinions required

[moose]

I have been preparing for a ride to central Australia in August, went to a tyre retailer yesterday about an hour and a half from my house (I live in a regional area). I got them to fit some nice Mitas E-07 dakars to my '14 model Super Tenere. Problem is, while they were fitting them the guy read the part on the sidewall that said "on tube type rim fit a tube", he convinced me that meant they weren't a tubeless tyre, so he would have to fit tubes. I should have backed myself there, but I didn't, so tubes were fitted.

It wasn't till I got all the way home that I looked and saw the "tubeless" stamp on they sidewall. I have also read several people have have leaks with tubeless on the E-07's

So, my options
1: Leave it as is, run tubes for my trip. Not my preference, but at least they shouldn't leak.
2: Take them back and get the tubes pulled out, make sure they aren't leaking.

Any thoughts from those in the know?

 

[EricV]

Do you carry the tools and a pump to fix tubeless flats? If so, take it back to the shop and get the tubes removed.

Are you amazingly lucky and never, ever get flats? If so, crap shoot, leave the tubes in and expect to hate life if you get a flat. Buy tire irons and be prepared to fully remove the wheel from the bike to enjoy hours of fun separating the bead and pulling the tube out to patch it if you get a flat.

Take a rolled up newspaper with you to the shop. Point out to the tech that the Super Ten is a tubeless wheel bike. I.E. It's only necessary to run tubes with tubeless tires if you are mounting them on tube type wheels. Then smack him with the paper in the back of the head. Twice.

 

[RCinNC]

No doubt your mechanic saw the spokes on the wheel and thought "duh, spokes=tube". Why he continued to think that after he demounted your old tire and didn't see any perforations in the rim for spokes (and that there was a tubeless style valve stem installed) is a mystery.

Tubes in a bike tire are always going to complicate your life on the road if you get a flat. The wheel has to come off the bike and the tire has to come off the wheel just to fix a puncture, which means you have to carry tire irons (and you have to know how to demount and remount a tire). I change my own tires in my garage using tire irons, and it's always a hot sweaty task; I shudder to think about doing it in the midday sun in Central Australia just because I ran over a nail. If I was going to some remote location I might carry a tube and some boot material as a backup emergency fix in case I got tire damage that couldn't be fixed with a tire string, but I'd never start out on a trip with tubes in my tires. A simple puncture that would take ten minutes to fix with a tubeless tire repair kit turns into an hour or two slog with a tube.

I'd take the tires back and have the tubes removed. I always carry a small 12 volt compressor and a tire repair kit, just so something as simple as a nail puncture doesn't ruin a trip.

As for the E07's leaking, I've read those same sporadic accounts, but I've read a lot more accounts from guys whose tires haven't leaked. I wouldn't let that be my deciding factor in leaving the tubes in.

 

[magic]

I would have those tubes removed. Tubeless tires on these bikes is a huge advantage. Most punctures can be plugged quite easily. Putting a tube in a tire on a Super Tenere might be a last resort if you cut a tire and can't plug it. As others have mentioned, dismounting a tire and replacing a tube out in the bush would be a real pain. Have those tubes removed and keep them for an emergency.

 

[Don in Lodi]

And just to add to the fun, the Dakar are just that extra bit more fun to get off the rim with that reinforced sidewall. ::012::

 

[worncog]

As previously stated, I would take them back and have the tubes removed. You are making your road repairs much more difficult with the tubes installed.

I spooned on a set of Dakar E07's in my son's garage with my road tools and it was no fun. No fun at all. You will have no joy in removing them in a remote area with bugs gnawing at you. Suggest carrying a spare tube on your journey though, as a Dakar is tough to remount the bead with a portable compressor.

 

[moose]

Thanks for the replies everyone, looks like I'm off back to the bike shop.

Also good to know the leaking dakar's should not be a thing to worry about.

For those who asked, I do carry a puncture repair kit and a compressor.

 

[EricV]

For those who asked, I do carry a puncture repair kit and a compressor.

Excellent. Buy some fresh sticky strings and make sure you can find your reamer before you take off on your trip.

 

[tomatocity]

Get rid of the Tubes. More problems than you need. I had a rear flat (nail) that was easily repaired on a dirt road. It would have been a nightmare to repair a tube flat.

 

[Blind Squirrel]

Let us know how the trip goes!