Surly Moonlander update; New skins!; Schwalbe Jumbo Jim 4.8 first impressions

Wee update on the big Surly Moonlander...
At 3 years old now the tyres on the big beastie have seen better days, but i had not planned to replace them quite yet as spent some money building the Surly ECR. but a tyre fail that may have been a blessing-and a long push off the coast pushed for some new tyres...

Going Ghetto tubeless on the Moonlander;
I have been real keen to see if i can run Ghetto tubeless at real low pressures on rocks  with the Moonlander`s big 5" tyres on 100mm rims after the success of 4" tyres, So i thought maybe it better to first try using the old stock tyres- a pair of well worn Surly `Big Fat Larry`s` (BFL`s) just in case they burp off the rims at low pressure and damage the tyre- that would be a disaster on a new tyre...

So out with the vinyl foam underlay and cut some strips to double wrap the rim to get a tighter fit on the tyre to allow to be inflated with a track pump.  or Co2 bottles out on the trail if needed...

Then it was time to add the tube- a Maxxis Schrader valve 24" x 2.7" DH tube...

Inflated it was squeezed on then cut with scissors and washed with soapy water and ready...

Tyre fitted and it went up using the track pump with the tight fit of the foam...

However the tyre was leaking from a cut, you can see it here circled with a red pen...

How to repair a sidewall cut?;
Here is how i repair side wall cuts, i have an old Surly Larry tyre repaired like this and it has held fine for a few years,
The tyre was propped up away from the rim and split tube using some clothes pegs so i could get some sand paper  inside the tyre wall at the rip to get a rough surface.  then i applied some adhesive glue for patches...

Then to secure the 2" motorcycle patch once applied after the glue had dried,  i sewed it with some Dental floss, really it is what to use!...

I then sealed the repair with more rubber cement and it was good to go...

Good repair, then at 20 psi-BOOM!
However, it appeared the old BFL tyres had had enough of 3 years salt water exposure as when inflated up to 20 psi on the track pump the tyre blew off the rim!, turned out the rim bead had bust, looking at it you can see how the tyre bead is rusted through...

Time for some ISA outlay;
So i bought these at £20 each cheaper than Surly Bud and Lou tyres;  Schwalbe `Big Jim` 4.8"....

A very well made tyre, real light too!, no ideal what weight as i don`t do all that bike part weighing stuff, but they are lighter than the worn BFL`s they are replacing...

Tubeless ready;
The Jumbo Jim`s come tubeless ready so with the foam still on the rim it was a simple case of fitting the tyre over the split tube and it went up on the floor pump after a load of pumping seating perfectly, result!...

One will get lonely... get a pair!;
So i bought another this week for the rear as after seeing the front BFL tyre blowing i bet the rear tyre bead is the same.  Again the tyre came from Charlie Bike Monger

Tube on it was split then after inflating the tyre i added some tyre sealant; a mix of `Joe`s No Juice` and OKO sealant that has Linseed particles through it...

Inner tube trimmed and job done...

Quick ride and first impressions;
pis from last Sundays`s ride already blogged 

Tarmac and hard dirt;
Sunday affy`s short ride at Yellowcraig proved these tyres improve the handling on tarmac and hard trails on the Moonlander,
fast and nice handling these tyres have already proved to be a great purchase in the ride transformation...
Gone is the self steer and flip flop steering of before, i can only alike this to when i swapped out the original Surly `Endomorph` fatbike tyre that was the only thing available for the new at the time `Larry` tyre which transformed steering...

Soft Sand;
As expected being 5" tyres on 100mm rims these tyres were great even at a hard (for a Moonlander) 7 psi!

Rocks; wet and dry;
Down on the rocks and the extra flex in the centre of the tyre running (split tube) tubeless gives a lot more comfortable ride on rocks...

Seaweed approved too!
They provide good grip even on the slippery seaweed,  though the rocks were dry underneath, but still impressive grip...

Only some mud to try out the tyres on , but for around here for a 5" Fatbike these tyres are ideal,

More soon...