Author Topic: Tyre suggestions please  (Read 13065 times)

Matt2matt2002

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Tyre suggestions please
« on: October 11, 2013, 08:22:38 AM »
Running Schwelbe 1.75 front and rear on my 2 year old Raven.
Very happy with them but showing signs of wear. No punctures yet. Love them to bits.
I have a pair of 2.00 stored away for my planned long tour abroad as well as a folding one for back up.

My riding around Aberdeen Scotland consists of 95% Tarmac 5% bike path/ compact cinders/ dirt / unloaded.
My tours consist of weekends away in hostels with x2 front panniers on the the rear rack. Not a lot of weight.

Any suggestions for a lighter tyre with good milage?

Thanks folks.

Matt
Never drink and drive. You may hit a bump  and spill your drink

Paulson

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Re: Tyre suggestions please
« Reply #1 on: October 11, 2013, 08:28:24 AM »
Matt, I have been running 1.75" Marathon Plus on an RST and they are near indestructible, but just too heavy.  Previously I felt that 1.5" Panaracer Pasela/Hi Roads did a good job, being reasonably light but durable.  Thorn certainly used to fit them as standard equipment, and if you search back in this part of the forum there is a thread or two discussing their merits.  Some like them and some don't.
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Chris M

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Re: Tyre suggestions please
« Reply #2 on: October 11, 2013, 08:48:57 AM »
Like Paulson, I've been running Marathon Plus (700x32) for nearly a year without incident. For my new build I've been considering Marathon Supreme which are a lot lighter but still with good protection:

http://www.schwalbe.co.uk/tour/marathon-supreme/

Vintagetourer

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Re: Tyre suggestions please
« Reply #3 on: October 11, 2013, 11:33:51 AM »
Marathon Supremes are good all rounders, including loaded touring. I use 1.6". Example of what they can handle on tour is at

http://www.crazyguyonabike.com/doc/laketolake

and my review of the Supremes with quite a range of comments

http://www.crazyguyonabike.com/reviews/board/message/?thread_id=350687
« Last Edit: October 11, 2013, 11:36:01 AM by Vintagetourer »

il padrone

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Re: Tyre suggestions please
« Reply #4 on: October 11, 2013, 12:32:05 PM »
Best tyres I've ever used 26x1.75 Vittoria Randonneur Cross. first pair that I ran were retired uninjured - 14,000kms and zero punctures. That included routine commuting plus plenty of rough road touring, often fully loaded. And known riding thorugh puncture-prone thorn country and broken glass on roads.

Winners - no penetrations and ~700g compared to 1100g for the Marathon Plus in the same size.

FrogPrince

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Re: Tyre suggestions please
« Reply #5 on: October 11, 2013, 12:36:12 PM »
If you can get them folding 2" Marathon Duremes are the best general purpose tyres I have ever come across. One slight vice is that small chippings can get stuck in the tread but I've had no problems as a result of this apart from a ticking noise when getting back on to good roads. Stability on rough tracks and wet muddy roads is great and the rolling on good surfaces is as good as much narrower tyres.
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jags

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Re: Tyre suggestions please
« Reply #6 on: October 11, 2013, 05:00:13 PM »
i love the supreams great tyre but who am i to argue with il padrone  14000 sounds good to me. ;)

martinf

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Re: Tyre suggestions please
« Reply #7 on: October 11, 2013, 10:38:16 PM »
I used 2.0" folding bead Supremes for a loaded tour through France and Spain in 2011. Mostly tarmac and reasonably good cyclepaths, but some rougher bits.

Very light for such a wide tyre, and roll very well. I did wonder whether they would resist rough tracks with a month's load of luggage (all up weight was between 109 and 123 Kg depending on food stocks and rider's fat level, the later dropped during the tour). In the event the Supremes held up fine, just as well because I decided to risk it and not take a spare, reasoning that in civilised Europe I could probably get a 26" tyre fairly easily if necessary.

For off-road use, obviously not as much grip as a proper MTB tyre or even something like a Dureme. The Supreme's sidewalls are thin so probably more risk of failure if you hit a sharp rock.

So far, good puncture resistance and good durability - the moulding in the centre of the tread on the front tyre is still visible after 7,000 kms. And not too expensive at 32 euros from my local bike shop.

Dureme is a bit heavier, in my opinion slightly slower, but better protection on the sidewalls.

Subjective, but I reckon the 2.0 Supremes roll better than the 1.65 Marathons I have on my old commuter bike. The Supreme is certainly lighter at 565 g compared to 820 g. I'd rather go for a fat but light tyre rather than reduce the section to try and save weight.

For a more demanding tour, I would be tempted to keep the Supremes, but carry a spare just in case.

 

mickeg

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Re: Tyre suggestions please
« Reply #8 on: October 12, 2013, 04:04:38 PM »
The plain Marathon (with GreenGuard) in 40mm width (26X1.5) worked very well for me on pavement with a heavy load, for your light load should also work very well.  Thinner than you are used to and likely higher pressure so could be a rougher ride.  I used the wired bead.

jags

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Re: Tyre suggestions please
« Reply #9 on: October 12, 2013, 04:27:07 PM »
what about the grand bios touring tyre  ;)

Danneaux

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Re: Tyre suggestions please
« Reply #10 on: October 12, 2013, 05:54:57 PM »
Quote
what about the grand bios touring tyre
Full pics and descriptions of Grand Bois tires on the Compass Bicycles parent site here: http://www.compasscycle.com/tires.html

Grand Bois tires are essentially Panaracer Paselas made with a great deal of love and care. They enjoy an excellent reputation among the 650B randonneur crowd, and are very nice indeed (the Hertres I saw recently were in a class by themselves, works of red-treaded art). It would be nice to try a pair of Grand Bois' in 26" size, but unlike Schwalbe's offerings, they really aren't aimed at the Expedition Touring audience. They might well be the ideal all-'round to go-fast tire, however. Can't wait to read more user reports on the 26" models.

Grand Bois tires are currently sold in the UK by Planet-X Bikes ( www.planet-x-bikes.co.uk ), and Cyclotouriste ( http://cyclotouriste.co.uk ). It might pay to keep an eye on them, as Compass are a sister brand by the same mfr/distributor, so these two stockists would be likely to pick up Compass tires (tyres) when they become available.

Related threads on this Forum:
http://www.thorncycles.co.uk/forums/index.php?topic=4206.msg19302#msg19302
http://www.thorncycles.co.uk/forums/index.php?topic=5181.msg27183#msg27183
Related threads on other Fora (these comments apply directly to the 700C versions but might prove helpful for 26in as well):
http://www.bikeforums.net/archive/index.php/t-831158.html
http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php/730178-Any-experience-with-the-Grand-Bois-quot-Cerf-quot-26mm-tire
http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php/814633-Grand-bois-Cerf-700x29-versus-Challenge-Parigi-Roubaix-700x29-opinions

Italian Challenge Parigi (Paris)-Roubaix clincher tires are coming on strong as challengers for the 700C crowd. See:
Company site: http://www.challengetech.it/products/en (mostly tubulars listed)
Review: http://velonews.competitor.com/2011/08/bikes-and-tech/reviews/review-challenge-parigi-roubaix-clinchers_188346
Review: http://blog.wiggle.com/2013/06/13/taming-the-pave-with-the-challenge-paris-roubaix-tyres/

Bicycle Quarterly tire review here: http://www.bikequarterly.com/images/BQ64TireTest.pdf

Best,

Dan.

Vintagetourer

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Re: Tyre suggestions please
« Reply #11 on: October 14, 2013, 08:22:57 AM »
"My riding around Aberdeen Scotland consists of 95% Tarmac 5% bike path/ compact cinders/ dirt / unloaded.
My tours consist of weekends away in hostels with x2 front panniers on the the rear rack. Not a lot of weight."


I am also looking around for tyres for very light touring on my Thorn Sherpa when I get a lightweight second wheel set for it.

In contention are the 1.6" Schwalbe Supremes which I know are good.

I'm also looking at 1.35" Schwalbe Duranos or Kojaks. Unknown to me but they look OK on paper for light work.

geocycle

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Re: Tyre suggestions please
« Reply #12 on: October 14, 2013, 08:50:18 AM »
I would have thought 1.35" tyres will be too narrow for a Sherpa.  Its a heavy bike for touring and probably would not work well on skinny rubber.  You also want to check the minimum width for the rims.  Go for the 1.6 supremes they are a good compromise for this type of riding.
 

Vintagetourer

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Re: Tyre suggestions please
« Reply #13 on: October 14, 2013, 01:06:19 PM »
The 1.35" tyres would be a bit narrow on my current heavy wheels, but they will be worth a try on the DT Swiss XR 425 rims which I'm using to make a second light wheel set for use on light and unloaded tours with the Sherpa.

A fair bit of the weight of the Sherpa is in the expedition weight wheels. It's actually not such a heavy bike without the big Rigida CSS wheels.

The 1.6" Supreme tyres run nicely even on the heavy weight rims. They are what I usually use for touring on mixed surfaces with medium weight loads.

The Thorn brochure mentions the 1.5" Panracer Paselas as another option for good roads. Personally I think their sidewalls are a bit frail for touring. Schwalbe Marathon Racers are another candidate for light and unloaded tours. Bike24 have a good selection of tyres.

wildrover

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Re: Tyre suggestions please
« Reply #14 on: October 14, 2013, 04:29:17 PM »
Sherpa drivers,

I have a RT with Rigida Grizzly rims, and I do have a comment about the 1.35 Kojaks.  They were actually a pretty cool tire, but I had 2 issues with them.  First, and it may not apply to Sherpas, but I've always thought the handling on my RT was rather 'twitchy', or light.  I ride the bike unloaded on paved Rail-Trails and roads.  Dan wrote a great little article on the effect of higher pressure tires on trail, and I then understood why Thorn suggested a wider, lower pressure tire.  For me, the handling felt much safer and more stable with the 1.5 Paselas.  Second, with the hot, hot, hot roads here in Florida, the Kojaks just ATE glass.  Wow, what a cut.  I don't think that would have happened with the Paselas, but of course I couldn't know.

If you lived near me, I would say 'come over and try them out'.   :)

I've been reading about the Compass tires too,  just not in the mood for buying tires right now.