Rim Strip
RIM STRIP GUIDE
INFORMATION ABOUT OUR DISCONTINUED RIM STRIP PRODUCTS
Since the advent of the pneumatic tire, inner tubes have been an integral component of the bicycle wheel. ETRTO (the European Tire and Rim Technical Organization) was established in 1964 and set design standards for bicycle rims to make sure that, even with the wide variance of tolerances in rim and tire manufacturing, a tire and rim marked the same size will go together safely. To accomplish this, a traditional bicycle rim will have a somewhat tall sidewall along which the tire bead will settle when inflated, held securely in place by the air pressure in the tube. We call this area along the rim wall between the rim bed and bead hook the "bead float gap." (Fig.1).
Now consider a tubeless set-up on that rim: if the bead has room to move by design, how do you create an airtight seal? Even if you can get it inflated, how does the bead stay in place while riding and not “burp”? These questions led Stan to design our conversion rim strips: molded, extruded rubber strips that effectively re-shape a traditional rim to eliminate the bead float gap and create a secure, airtight fit with the tire. The Stan’s NoTubes Tubeless System was born! (Fig. 2)
Compared to UST (the only tubeless system on the market for mountain bikes at the time) that used proprietary rims and tires, our “Shape, Tape, and Sealant” approach was lighter, better performing, and allowed riders choice. In 2004, we made our first BST (Bead Socket Technology) rims, building the “shape” part of our system into the rim itself and eliminating the need for the re-shaping strip (Fig. 3).
Since then, tubeless technology has evolved to become the standard for performance bicycles. While the full BST profile is covered by 6 separate patents and makes Stan’s rims the overall best-performing tubeless rims available, its core concept (elimination of the bead float gap) is the basis for the vast majority of tubeless and "tubeless-ready" rims and wheels on the market today.
In 2019 we made the decision to discontinue production on our conversion strips, as tubeless-ready rims and wheels can now be found stock on shop-quality bicycles at almost all price levels. Should you have an older bicycle that you wish to convert, there are still plenty of rim strips and kits out in the world: in fact there is a good chance that your local shop has what you might be looking for on their wall or in a drawer next to the workbench . To help you on your search here is some info on the different strips we made, what they should fit, and what each strip was called over the years they were produced. Most were sold in a complete kit (2 strips, 5yd of 12mm Yellow Tape, and a 16oz bottle of sealant) as well as individually.
Common Conversion Strips:
- 19mm extrusion, 65” loop, presta valve: “Red” Strip, Cyclocross Strip
- 26mm extrusion, 53” loop, presta valve: “Blue” Strip, Standard Strip
- 26mm extrusion, 57” loop, presta valve: “Yellow” Strip, XC 29er Strip, “Plus Four” Strip
- 26mm extrusion, 62” loop, presta valve:”Green” Strip, Enduro Strip, Rhino Lyte Strip
- 26mm extrusion, 65” loop, presta valve:”Purple” Strip, All-Mountain 29er Strip
- 32mm Extrusion, 54” loop, schrader valve: “Silver” Strip, Freeride Strip
Specialty Strips:
- Olympic Strip: 25mm extrusion, 47” loop, presta valve
- Alpha Cross Strip: 25mm extrusion, 47” loop, no valve
- Flow Strip: 25mm extrusion, 65” loop, presta valve
- Downhill Rim Strip: 38mm extrusion, 52” loop, schrader valve