I've got an almost new but very old "Vittoria Corsa CX Squadre Prof". The tread is perfect - perhaps never ridden - but the basetape is shot. It's been glued once, poorly, and is torn in a dozen places from bead-to-bead, so to speak. Here's my question: can I glue it up without the basetape in place? Is this unsafe or stupid in any way? Pardon me if this is a stupid question - I'm a tubie novice.

I don't care about ever repairing the tire if it punctures, and I don't have the time or patience right now (new semester, theses, grants, scholarships, etc.) to glue up a new basetape (though I'm aware it can be done). Thanks!

send it to tire alert in fl and have them just replace the base tape, it will cost about $5 plus shipping


I've got an almost new but very old "Vittoria Corsa CX Squadre Prof". The tread is perfect - perhaps never ridden - but the basetape is shot. It's been glued once, poorly, and is torn in a dozen places from bead-to-bead, so to speak. Here's my question: can I glue it up without the basetape in place? Is this unsafe or stupid in any way? Pardon me if this is a stupid question - I'm a tubie novice.

I don't care about ever repairing the tire if it punctures, and I don't have the time or patience right now (new semester, theses, grants, scholarships, etc.) to glue up a new basetape (though I'm aware it can be done). Thanks!

Depending on the rim, riding without a base tape could result in the threads that sew up the tire being cut by either 1) the ferrule or 2) the sharp edge of the spoke hole. Result = KABLOOEY. Riding with a shredded base tape is a likely path to the ultimate tubular faux pas - a roll off.

Gotcha. Thanks - I think I'll send the whole dizzle back to have it repaired.

Depending on the rim, riding without a base tape could result in the threads that sew up the tire being cut by either 1) the ferrule or 2) the sharp edge of the spoke hole. Result = KABLOOEY. Riding with a shredded base tape is a likely path to the ultimate tubular faux pas - a roll off.