Commuting - Tire woes

I had some flats on my previous hutchinson tires so about 500 miles ago I decided to get the panaracer pasela TGs(700X28). They where flat free until yesterday on my way home a sharp rock or something riped a 2-3mm oval hole in the sidewall. As I slowed down the tire nearly came of the rim. I attribute this to the fact that these tires are a very loose fit on my rims. I was wondering if this is just something I should live with(flats) and just buy another tire or should I try another brand of "flat resistant" tire. Also the safety factor of having such a loose fitting tire makes me want to try another brand. Does anyone have experience with the Performance GT2/K, they are pretty inexpensive. And the dollar bill trick to fix a ripped sidewall worked like a charm for the 10 miles I had left of my commute. I will always keep one in my patch kit from now on. Thanks.

I was running the 700x28 TGs during June and July and managed to get 5 flates. I went and got some Armadillos 700x25. The new dillos roll a little better than some I had a couple of years back. I've been flat free for 800mi. The TGs felt nicer though. In my parts bin I've got another new TG but I will likely stick to the dillos for commuting.

No tire is flat proof. Some have kevlar lines sidewalls and other preventative measures. I happen to use Specialized Aramadillo brand tires and they work well. You can also add tire liners inside the tire for more protection, and also use tubes with slime inside to help stop small leaks. All this adds weight, but not enough to notice on a commuter.

I recently started using 700x28 Pasela TGs. I only have about 300 mi on them, but so far they have handled run of the mill road debris just fine. I haven't run over anything too nasty yet.

I think I have read about tires coming off (or nearly off) because of sidewall damage before (since it deflates so rapidly), so it might not be because of the beads being loose on your rims. I don't know if you should be concerned about the "loosness" of your tires. They are fairly tight on my rims, I had to use some muscle when I first mounted them. I don't know if they have loosened up any because I haven't had to change a tube yet.

Out of cusiousity, are there any tires that don't weigh five pounds each and aren't stiff as boards that are highly resistant to sidewall punctures?

A sidewall puncture should be a fairly uncommon event. Personally, I wouldn't switch to different tires because of that, but you have other concerns as well.

I don't have any experience with those Performance tires.

where can I get some armadillo tires? I cant find them on nashbar or supergo. Thanks.

No tire is flat proof.

Not quite true:
http://www.amerityre.com/index.cfm

A more accurate statement is no air filled tire can be completely flat proof.

I've had pretty good luck with the Marathon series tires from Schwalbe. In the last 2 years of commuting every day on some bad city streets (including the ever common broken bottle) I've had one flat on the bike with Marathon Slicks, none on the bike with Marathons, and a friend who also commutes has had none on his Marathon Plus tires. The Marathon Pluses especially seem bullet proof but they weigh a ton and dont' come in anything reasonable narrow.
Craig

I fitted a pair of 28mm Paselas. After about 1 week of use the rear sidewall suffered a 1cm tear. The front worked fine for about 2 years.
Schwalbe Marathons are a lot larger and heavier duty than Paselas.

I've had pretty good luck with the Marathon series tires from Schwalbe. In the last 2 years of commuting every day on some bad city streets (including the ever common broken bottle) I've had one flat on the bike with Marathon Slicks, none on the bike with Marathons, and a friend who also commutes has had none on his Marathon Plus tires. The Marathon Pluses especially seem bullet proof but they weigh a ton and dont' come in anything reasonable narrow.
Craig

Not so. The Marathon Plus tire comes in 700x25 as the smallest size.

http://www.schwalbetires.com/on_tour_touring.php?Nickname=MARATHON%20PLUS&Image=TireImages/marathon_plus.gif#

I mean the Marathon 28 is a lot fatter than Pasela 28, it is more akin to a typical 32mm width.

where can I get some armadillo tires? I cant find them on nashbar or supergo. Thanks.

LBS or direct from Specialized.com.