Tyre suggestions please

[Danneaux]

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.

A little treatise on how tire profile and pneumatic trail affect bicycle design and handling:
http://www.thorncycles.co.uk/forums/index.php?topic=4245.0

Best,

Dan.

[Matt2matt2002]

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

Thanks for that
I have looked on the SJS site and they are listed as folding.
Do they come in any other form? And if so, which one is best?

And the price is equal to the tyres I run on my car!
How come?

Matt

[il padrone]

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.

I'm currently running the 1.5" Vittoria Randonneur Pro folding tyres. They seem to roll pretty quick and have a nce slick tread with the awesome Vittoria puncture protection.

[StuntPilot]

I would agree with Vintagetourer. I recently used the Panaracer Pasela 26"x1.75 on a long tour and they worked well with a heavily loaded bike. However they gave up after about 6000km of mixed road and track mainly due to sidewall problems. There was still plenty tread on them. Tread puncture protection was good but I suspect I had a couple of punctures due to the thinner sidewalls.

I replaced them with Schwalbe Marathon Plus which has a stronger side wall. They run a bit heavier than the Paselas but are better built for more loaded touring.

I miss the comfort of the Paseals and would not hesitate to buy 1.5 or 1.75 Paselas for a light touring or commuting bike. For heavy and off-road the Marathon Plus is better and more stable at low speed.

[il padrone]

I miss the comfort of the Paseals and would not hesitate to buy 1.5 or 1.75 Paselas for a light touring or commuting bike. For heavy and off-road the Marathon Plus is better and more stable at low speed.

For heavy touring consider the Vittoria Randonneur 1.5" or Randonneur Cross 1.75". Both have the puncture protection like the Marathon Plus, but 2/3 the weight. They are heavier than the Pasela, but seemingly much tougher and longer wearing. I routinely get 12,000 - 14,000kms from these tyres with zero punctures. The 26x1.75 Randonneur Cross weighs ~780g compared to 1100g for the Marathon Plus and about 480g for the Pasela.

In my opinion the Marathon Plus is a suitable tyre for commuting in particularly bad areas with severe glass/debris on the roads. For routine commuting and rough road touring the lower weight and virtually equivalent puncture protection of the Randonneur series is much better.

They are tough

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_06q5UyjMxxw/RpV_qb4biAI/AAAAAAAAACc/eldv7xMf7VU/s1600/screw07.jpg

[geocycle]

Yes, I'm with Il Padrone  on Marathon plus.  Great for glass strewn commuting but I'd prefer standard marathons, supremes or duremes depending on your taste and wallet.  I can't comment in Vittorias.  The Panaracer TG were very comfortable for the first 150 miles before the side wall split.

[StuntPilot]

The Randonneur Cross 1.75" look good! I have read a few long-distance touring blogs and this tyre looks good. I do like the Marathon Plus but yes, a bit heavier. Happy with them for the moment and no punctures. Some kids smashed a bottle on a cycle path in front of me on the summer tour. I turned round and smiled - you should have seen their faces when I continued on puncture free! 

[Andre Jute]

I too admire the sturdiness and serious cut and puncture resistance of the Marathon Plus, but it is a really harsh-rding tyre even at 37mm and the lowest permissible pressure. I wouldn't want to do a high daily mileage on the Marathon Plus (especially now that I'm accustomed to the cushy ride and low rolling resistance of Big Apple low pressure balloons).

That said, more of my bikes have Marathon Plus, or the workalike Satellite Elite from Bontrager, than any other kind of tyre; it's probably the most economical tyre I've ever owned!

[StuntPilot]

Andre

You are correct. The Marathon Plus is built rugged and for heavy loads and does that very well over rough and glass strew paths. 'Slow and steady as she goes' is fine. After changing from the Paselas to the Marathon Plus in London, I did feel more 'bullet proof' with regards to getting a puncture. I may have just lost confidence in sturdiness of the Paselas.

It is difficult to describe but the Marathon Plus seemed a bit more sluggish at speed with more stability while slowly negotiating rough path or round obstacles. Or maybe it was just the constant up-hill back up to Scotland from London.  

A fine tyre all the same.

[Andre Jute]

Or maybe it was just the constant up-hill back up to Scotland from London.  

Or maybe we're just spoilt for choice because manufacturers have launched so many new and (sometimes) better tires. When I first fitted Marathon Plus, there weren't all these other Marathon types, Duremes and Supremes and whatnot, available. Back then you took the plain Marathon or the Marathon Plus, or you rode on Pasela, and later Conti and Vittoria, and that was it in puncture-resistant tyres, except for some Vredestein that were a special import from Germany or maybe The Netherlands.

[John Saxby]

The Randonneur Cross 1.75" look good!

Richard, Padrone, where do you find the Vittoria Rando Cross 26 X1.75's?  Vittoria's current N American catalogue doesn't list those tires.  I've had very good experience with my Vittoria Rando Pro 700 x 32 foldables & for that reason would look at the Rando Cross 26 x 1.75 for my New Raven next spring -- but can't seem to find them in Canada at least.  Any advice from further east?

[il padrone]

A quick check seems to indicate they are getting harder to find in 26", often available in 700C. I get mine from a local shop here in Australia.

REI have them, and so do every bicycle tire as well as Bike Tires Direct. There are also some listed on ebay.

[John Saxby]

Thanks!  I'll check REI & e-Bay.  Had pencilled in 26 x 1.6 Supremes, with 1.75 Marathon racers as Plan B, but I'll see if I can find some Rando Cross as well. - J.

[Vintagetourer]

"I have looked on the SJS site and they are listed as folding"

If you looking for the Supremes, or any other of the tyres mentioned on this thread, I'd suggest you shop around on more than one site. For example, Bike24, Wiggle, Chain Reaction, Evans and many others offer a wide range of products and prices. Looking at only the SJSC site for tyres will narrow your options considerably.

Folding tyres will save you a bit of weight over wire bead clinchers.

[bikerwaser]

I´ve been running the ones recommended by Thorn when i bought my Sherpa which are the 1.75 panaracer Tourguards.
they´re very light and i´ve been puncture free(touch wood) for the last 1500 miles (1200 of that has been loaded touring through France and into Spain on 90% tarmac , the other 300 miles was mostly day rides of 60% tarmac lightly loaded but gravel/bumpy forest tracks)