It is common to see riders running pressure that is far too high for their particular weight on tubeless rims. The truth with tubeless rims is, you can run lower pressure, get more grip on the trail, and gain serious confidence! If you are running too much pressure, you are not maximizing your bike or comfort. Your ride will be bumpy and you will bounce off of rocks unnecessarily. Lower pressure eases the bumps, makes your ride smoother and increases your grip around the corners.
For those of you new to the pressure game, the formula below is what I use as a starting point. You need to take into consideration your speed and riding style, riding skill, terrain, type of tire and type of rim to make further adjustments.
The Best Formula for Tubeless Tire Pressure
Rider Weight in pounds divided by 7 = x
x – 1 = Front tire pressure in PSI
x + 2 = Rear tire pressure in PSI
Example: 185 lb rider
185/7 = 26.4
Front tire pressure: 26 – 1 = 25 PSI
Rear tire pressure: 26 + 2 = 28 PSI
Example: 140 lb rider
140/7 = 20
Front tire pressure: 20 – 1 = 19 PSI
Rear tire pressure: 20 + 2 = 22 PSI
To reiterate, this formula is just a starting point, you have to ride your bike and test out different pressures in various situations!
For an example at the other end of the spectrum, take a look at the recommended tire pressure for fat bikes when they are being ridden on the snow, between 2-8 PSI!
Note, these are the opinions of the author. The formula stated above was originally created by an employee of Stan’s NoTubes. While they no longer use this formula, I still find it useful, as a starting point.