Yes, you can use inner tubes on hookless rims but you cannot use tubes on every crappy bike tire, there are specific tires for these hookless rims on which tubes work 100% fine, but compatibility matters, this is the reason you have to find a compatible tire for hookless rims for the installation of the inner tubes. it depends on you if you have decided to use tubeless tires then it is the perfect setup for these rims but if you have decided to use inner tubes then you do not have to use tubeless tires with hookless rims, this difference is because of the compatibility that’s why you can go in a single direction(hookless rims+ tubeless tire OR Hookless rims +non tubeless tires with inner tubes).
Tube tires on hookless rims have many advantages, these tires won’t blow up on the trails, and tubeless tires are common for blowing and burping issues. mountain bike and gravel bike trails are aggressive, using inner tubes on the rims would be a better option but if you are a road biker then the tubeless setup would be an appreciatable setup on hookless rims. but using tubes on hookless rims totally depends on the design of the tire, find a good compatible tire so that the tire has beads on the inner edges which would hole the inner tube in the same place for exerting the smooth and normal inner tube pressure on the tire and rims. mostly it happens for inner tubes these can wobble on hookless rims if these are not well localized within the tire, due to which these can exert pressure on the sidewalls of the tire and in the downward direction, this is a big disadvantage of hookless rims with inner tubes.
New branded tube tires would seat hardly on hookless rim beads, for inner tubes you can use an old compatible tire that can seat tightly on rim beads and adjusts the inner tube. and the other major problem is that using inner tubes avoids sealant insertion within the tire which is not a good setup for the mountain biking world and for aggressive trails, the inner tube will puncture at any time on any place, and you have to umount the whole wheel and the tube to repair the tube puncture.
using inner tubes on hookless rims while pumping the inner tube with a floor pump or compressor sometimes causes the blowing of the tire from any side, as a result, the inner tube comes outward from that place like a small balloon, and the situation further moves towards the unpleasant and irritating, because the tire and tubes are on the hookless rim which means the rim does not have side hooks and it does not tolerate a little bit of higher internal pressure within the tube tire, as a result, you have to do tire and rim maintenance with tools, and if you are on the trails, it takes a lot of time more than 1 or 2 hours, but for the tubeless setup, you don’t have to face all these things for hookless rims.
Inner Tubes With Hookless Rims For Downhill Trails?
Inner tubes are not recommended for downhill trails, and tubeless tires are recommended on hookless rims for DH trails. specific inner tubes are recommended with specific tires so that the compatibility will match with each other, but this setup is for all kinds of trails for mountain biking, you have to keep the internal air pressure of tubes and tires at the minimum level for smooth running and avoiding bursts but minimum air pressure does not work with inner tubes on DH trails.
Combination Of tubeless Tires And Hookless Rims?
Specific tubeless tires are used to mount on hookless rims and lower internal air pressure maintains this compatibility on aggressive and rough terrains, but for road biking, you can run hookless rims at higher pressures around 70psi to 80psi, it is normal for these rims.
Tubeless tires would lock their beads within the edges of the hookless rims at lower air pressures, and the tubeless setup is far better than that of tube tires for these rims.
Why Riders Are Using Hookless Rims For Mountain Biking And Road Biking?
Hookless rims are cheaper than aluminum and expensive carbon rims and make the best compatibility with specific tubeless tires, that’s why most riders use them for mountain biking and road biking.
Are Hookless Rims Good For Clinchers?
Yes, this is a compatible setup for road bikes, but make sure specific brands of clincher are used to mount on these rims with greater durability and long-lasting lasting so that the beads of this clincher would not become loose and start stretching, which results in bursting and burping of the tire, keep the air pressure minimum for clinchers and these will run smoothly on hookless rims.
Can You run inner Tubes On Studded Tires With Hookless Rims?
Studded tires are the recommended tires for inner tubes but if you want to run this setup on hookless rims, it is possible and it is compatible but you just need to keep the tire air pressure on the lower level, this is a most reliable and long-lasting setup for hookless rims.
Can I Use Inner Tubes With Tubeless Tires On Hookless Rims?
Yes, this setup would work fine, but you will feel a little bit of difficulty in handling a bike and it increases the weight of the bike, it works for both road bikes and for mountain bikes. it also has an advantage if you have got a puncture on your tubeless tire you can use the inner tube within the tubeless tire to reach safely home.
What Is The Difference Between Hookless And Versatile?
Hookless rims are limited for choosing the specific tube tires+tubeless tires setup and you would not be able to run all the brands of mountain bike and road bike tires on these rims due to non-compatibility.
Versatile rims are those rims on which you can do any setup, you can shift from tubeless to tube setup and vice versa, these are versatile rims which means these are not limited to a specific compatibility setup, you can run any brand of tire on versatile rims.
Tube And Tubeless Tires On Hooked And Hookless Rims Recommendations?
Tube tires are not recommended for hookless rims, the reason is that this setup requires lower internal air pressure for riding, but if you keep the lower pressure of inner tubes on aggressive trails, then the result becomes irritating and unpleasant and you will be amazed of getting many punctures in inner tubes at lower pressure. including the air pressure the inner tubes exert a large force on the sidewalls of the tire and beads, which results in slipping and popping of the tire on any side and the tube comes out because of the lack of hooks on the rim.
Tube Tires are recommended for hooked rims, as the name suggests hooked means these rims have sided hooks which will hold the tube or studded tire tightly adjusted within its hooks and prevents the inner tube from getting punctured or popping from the tire, and you can also run higher internal pressure with this setup on road trails and mountain biking trails.
Tubeless tires are recommended for hookless rims and you can use this setup for aggressive trails by keeping the internal air pressure lower or minimum level.
Tubeless tires are also recommended for road bikes with hookless rims and you can run this setup on road with higher internal pressure as compared to mountain biking trails.
Are Inner Tubes A Future Recommended Option For Hookless Rims?
Nope, the reason is that the geometry of bike frames is changing from year to year and now the geometry of mountain biking is almost higher-end frame bikes and the other natural thing is that 90% of mountain bikers are using tubeless tires for their bikes, this clearly shows that inner tubes are not a future option for mountain biking especially on hookless rims and with tubeless tires.
Which Setup Inner tube Or Tubeless With Hookless Rims Avoid Punctures and Flats?
The main thing is that looking at the recommended internal pressure for hookless rims, it becomes clear that for aggressive and rough terrains, you need lower internal pressure for hookless rims, and if inner tubes are installed, then there are more chances of punctures and flats but on the other side tubeless tires also need lower internal pressure but at least these are without inner tubes and fewer chances of flats and punctures, this shows that tubeless tires are far better for mountain biking and also for road biking.
Are Inner Tubes With Hookless Rims Better For Cornering?
Nope, when cornering on the single trails, one side of the tire skid and slips with the trail, and the pressure is also lower, as a result, the inner tube pops out from this flipping side, that’s why tubeless tires are recommended for cornering on single and rough terrains.