Wilsons Sandbox

For anyone who might be interested, I've converted my wheels to tubeless and installed a set of Shinko TRAIL MASTER E-705 dual sport tires onto them. Overall it took about 5 days (each siliconing was given 24 hours to 'cure'), then I mounted the tires and checked for leaks at the spoke holes. On the front (first one done) I saw several small leaks so I twice removed the tire and re-sealed about 4 spokes in each direction, cured for 24 hours then re-installed the tire, so when I did the rear I ONLY had 1 spoke to re-do. I then added 'Dyna Beads' for balancing. How well does it work...? I just rode 1,735 kms (1,076 miles) from last Monday to yesterday between home and the interior of B.C. at speeds as high as 140 kph (indicated) passing but usually more like 105 kph, and started out with 37 psi F, 44 psi R. Just checked pressures, and they showed 34 F, 41 R. Almost all riding was on pavement, except for about 50 kms where I tried to go over Gray Creek Pass to Kimberley (damp dirt, and a bit of wet mud) and got to about 20 yards from the summit (6800' ASL) only to be turned back by about 3 feet of snow. As I was alone, I didn't want to take a chance on dropping the bike by going thru the ditch and up a hill to bypass the snow. (I would have saved a couple to three hours IF I had got thru!) An observation on the tires: they rode quiet and smooth, and REALLY handled the corners, but I noticed the rear heated up more than I expected (almost HOT to the touch after hours of riding, the front merely warm). I had a chance to check with a lazer thermometer ONCE, after a short ride - OAT 74F, front tire 79F, rear 94F. I just put 18 pictures in a file called (are you ready for THIS...?) "converting KLR wheels to TUBELESS!" in the photos. Cheers, Ed

I failed to mention that I "trued" the wheels BEFORE I started the rest of the tubeless process so I wouldn't disturb the silicone after it had 'set'. I figure that at 71,000 kms (42,000 miles) the spokes are pretty much "set", so it's unlikely I'll have to perform that again...! Cheers, Ed