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CCE is 15years old!
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not resolvedI know this has been discussed a few times and various makes/types get mentioned.
Just wondering if there is anything 'new' or people are still happy with what they use.
Basic requirement - general use (roads and tracks), not too puncture prone but not extreme 'proof' and therefore heavier.
Not too difficult to get on/off.
I have used Continentals a fair amount and generally been satisfied with them.
Armadilloes of that size are easy to mount/remove. I've been slightly dissatisfied with their durability recently but they do get heavy use whilst resisting almost everything on local streets and paths and woodland.
No change really - gator skins for lighter requirement
Scwalbe marathon plus if puncture not an option (already played the puncture card the last time you were late for a meeting etc)
@chdot those on my touring bike are Continental "Top Touring", bt it seems they've been superceded with something more expensive in the "Contact" range.
I had x28 Gatorskins on prior to these, however the Pencaitland railway path surface completely shredded the rear one when it was fairly new on - I wouldn't trust them over less smooth surfaces.
They may be a bit heavier but I can't recommend Schwalbe Marathon Pluses highly enough. As the slogan says "punctures are a memory". A distant one, at that...
Continental Contact a bit heavier that armadilloes but seem sturdy enough.
I've got Schwalbe Durano S on my audaxy type bike, the others (apart from the MTB) have Marathon Plus, to my mind the marathons seemed to roll better than the equivalent Armadillo's, but that is subjective, and for 26" tyres...
I use 700 x 28 gatorskins daily - very good so far. I did consider marathon plus, but they are 740g against 332g gatorskins - big difference, but I guess thats the price for almost guaranteed puncture proof.
I have Gatorskins from 23c to 28c across all bikes apart from the one with 32c tyres where I reckon if you've accepted the weight and rolling resistance of the bigger tyre you might as well go all in and make it puncture proof too.
I use 23c gatorskins on the single speed. On the bike I use for audax I've opted for 32c Marathon Pluses: bit more comfort, and no stopping by the side of the road to fix punctures so far...
I'm not too worried about weight savings on a 501 steel framed bike. Better to lose the weight from myself (four kilos since the spring).
@Kaputnik, I went on the pencaitland cinder path once on marathon plus but it is a big ask for skinnier/ thinner tyres?
I use Marathons on my MTB and wee blue floofy. I've only ridden a Marathon Plus bike a couple of times so I'm not sure how big the weight saving is in practise, but I'm yet to have a puncture on either. Especially impressive for the MTB since it's exposed to broken glass and other pointy gubbins every week doing the recycling/shopping run.
Oh, wait. Neither are 28mm. Is 32mm on wee blue floofy close enough? They make default Marathon in 28 too, I believe.
I have Schwabe marathons and marathon plus on my two road bikes. I'm not fussed about the weight and I like the puncture resitance but as others have said, I run over rocky routes and cinder paths out to Haddington on that line and the marathons are very robust. I find with Marathons they don't really wear and the walls loose some over time showing as cracks. They start to loose punture resistance as the cracks develops and I think the walls cracking maybe allows stuff to penitrate them causing punctures.
I have Conti cyclocross tyres which came with my cyclocross bike and they are paper thin and don't stop the slightest think penetrating nd causing puntures.
I use Michelin Krylion Carbon. They are highly rated by many, being good for speed, durability and puncture resistance. Easy to fit too. I only seem to get punctures when they are at the end of their lives. Apparently they are now been replaced by the Pro4 endurance. The bad news - the largest width is 25 mm. I find 25mm fine for commuting, but my commute only includes 10m of Cobbled.
Always gatorskins for me, 23mm on road bike, and 28mm on commuter.
Tyres went on the commuter at new, so I know the millage exactly on them, so far 2500 miles and only 1 glass indiscretion so far. They still look as if they have a few miles left in them too.
My commuterskins (25) are beginning to wear a bit thin and the front has a lot of small glass/flint tears in it, although currently is still holding strong.
I fancied replacing it with something with a little less slick for the winter and a reflective sidewall, seems there's very few options in this size beyond Vittoria Randonneur and Schwalbe "Green" Marathons. I'm tempted by the former when it comes to replacement time.
@kaputnik Instead of reflective tyres, you could get something like these spoke reflectives ,
freeing up your choice of tyres.
I'm now running Schwabe marathon plus on my badboy, decided to go with them after my Schwabe Kojaks suffered a blow out on the way home one evening (in the rain of course).
Initially, I hated them, due to the extra weight, but now I just view it as extra leg training, which saves me a workout at the gym!
@Amir good idea. £3-ish for a set and just stick with tried and tested Gatorskins.
Generally I've not changed tyres for winter, with a couple of exceptions:
- fitted 700x28 Marathon Plus for one winter out to Fife. Highly puncture proof but I couldn't wait to take them off - subsequently given away on CCE!
- fitted 700x45/35 Marathon Winter last winter for the town. Again, I tolerated rather than rejoiced in them (these I have written about, although they're not suitable for the OP).
I'd go for the non-plus Marathons in 700x28 as a great all-round tyre if you require tread for dirt. Otherwise I'm not sure - have had many Gatorskins but they've never really inspired me.
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