Tube or Tubeless? '78 KZ1000 Ltd. mags

Hey riders,

Quick question: Tube or tubeless tires on the stock mags on my '78 KZ1000 Ltd? I'm about to order them today, and my current tires are still rideable so don't want to deflate them to check and see. Thanks!

Tube type wheel, so you use a tube. You can mount either tubeless or tube type tires, but you still use your tube.

Perfect, I was thinking that but the Conti's mounted on it are Tubeless (with tubes I now know) and it made me rethink.

Well, yes tubes but you can also go tubeless if you want. I did and I put quite a few miles on mine last season, Sturgis, St. Louis and all around and I had no issues. My Rims were 79's but I don't think the 78 is any different. I bought my valve stems at the Kawasaki shop. Nice. I think they are better without tubes as if for some reason you need to use fix a flat it will actually work. And you don't have the extra cost of the tubes each time you change tires. My back tire actually spun once on the rim and ripped the valve stem. I have no idea how that happened.
Last year I was riding and got a flat in Timbuktu and I went to the gas station and bought some fix a flat and it squirted though the stem. If I had tubless setup I could have made it home and then taken the wheel off for repair. Instead I was stranded and had to call someone to come pick me up and leave my bike overnight to get it the next day.
So short story long, I prefer tubeless. Update your bike to the 21st century.:lol:

the 78 is a tube type rim it does not have a safety bead so it can come of the rim very easily. please do not try running it tubeless as it can be very dangerous. it's not worth your life. you only have two wheels it is very important that you do everything you can to keep rubber on them as much as possible.

timebomb33 wrote:

the 78 is a tube type rim it does not have a safety bead so it can come of the rim very easily. please do not try running it tubeless as it can be very dangerous. it's not worth your life. you only have two wheels it is very important that you do everything you can to keep rubber on them as much as possible.

Tim is right......78 mags have tubes....i had mine changed
out last year and the guy i had do it said the tube in mine hadnt been made in 20 years....:blink:

Should the rim/mag be stamped tubeless if it is desiged for that? With so many parts being swapped around, how would you know what is what?

The KZ550 wheels have the word Tubeless cast into them.
Here's a tubeless wheel from a 1980 KZ550-Ltd.

Here's a tube-type spoked wheel from an 81 KZ650-CSR (mine).
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Here's a photo of a tube-type cast alloy wheel that steell posted (I don't know what bike it's from).
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Here's an unknown tubeless cast alloy wheel - photo posted by steell along w the previous photo for comparison. This photo & the previous pic are from a topic he posted about tube-vs-tubeless wheels.
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What is the difference visually between tube and tube type? I've never been able to see it.

Also, wouldn't the tube put the same pressure on the tire and make it pop off the rim anyway? I've also heard to never run a tube-type rim without a tube, but how would that make the tire come off? Not questioning it, jut want to understand why.