Seating Dunlop Vintage Tires

I am getting air leaks around the rim once my dunlop L series vintage tires are mounted. Is this common? Am I better off using tubes or a rim sealing compound?

Thanks, Dave

Dave usually rim/bead leaks are caused by dirty or rough rim to tire bead mating surface. Try cleaning & smoothing the rims in this area, sealing compound should not be needed. (Unless by vintage tires you mean old & dried out!)

I had a set, an sometimes they are just bad tires. I had a sidewall leak that made the tire unusable.. Check for clean rims and no bends. If that is all good, maybe there is something up with the tire.

These are real racing tires, so have very light construction and relatively little rubber in the sidewalls, so sidewall leaks are somewhat common. Bead leaks are less common, and some sealing compound may be appropriate, particularly on older alloy wheels that may have crud and corrosion in there. Most L series tires are fine with tubes, I wouldn't hesitate to put tubes in, I use tubes myself. Often the bead seats up the first time the tire is run, and the problem gets a lot better.

These tires have a tendency to seep air through the sidewalls as well as the bead. Start by cleaning and repainting the rim bead seat. Then prior to mounting, not only wipe the bead area with the soap lube, but coat the entire interior of the tire with the soap, then mount right a way and put 40 PSI in the tires overnight. The soap will seal up the pores in the side wall and the leakage will be much less. Even then they often will not hold pressure more than a week or so.

Agreed. But I had one that leaked so bad in the side wall I could not even last a race. Just a defective tire, but not all 4.