Road Cycling - Tufo tubular clinchers

I was wondering if anyone has experience with the Tufo tires? I Have rode tubulars before and really like the ride, but hated the mess. I saw the Tufo and thought that they might be the best of both worlds.
Thanks for any info
Dave

Dave,

I haven't used them, but there was one member
here who absolutely loved Tufo's.
I've heard nothing but good things about them.
If its the mess that you want to avoid, there is
always the Tufo Gluing tape. It was reviewed recently
(forget where) and again was favourable, if I recall the
reviewer said it was much better than the old Jantex
Gluing tapes.
Where in Hagerstown are you? I used to live off
Oak Hill Ave.

Marty

Thanks for the info. I have wanted to try for a while, but had to wait for my tire to wear out. I live off of Penn. Ave near the airport. I don't have the tubular rims any more. I went with clincher when I bought my Helium's.
Just what does it take to be a Moderate Parrothead. I have been to two show this year, and remember most of them. It is nice when you have an uncle that roadies for the band.
Thanks
Dave

tubular clinchres??
So what are they? Tubulars or clinchers?

oh yeah, the moderate thing.
I'm a moderator here, nothing moderate about being a
parrothead tho.
Missed the show this year due to having to teach (diving),
Your Uncle Roadies for Buffett? too cool.
Kind of miss Hagerstown and the whole area.

Marty

tubular clinchres??
So what are they? Tubulars or clinchers?

Yes.

I've used Tufo tubulars, and have found them to be more than satisfactory, and usually a good deal monetarily. The 2 strong points about Tufo tires are light weight, and (on some lines) incredibly long wear.

Having said that, I've heard from people who have used Tufo tubular clinchers that they are extremely hard to mount.

Yes what?
Are they tubular tyres or clincher tyres. There quite a big difference between the two. Help me here I'm dehydrating with the thirst for knowledge

Here's the Tufo website:

Tufo (http://www.tufonorthamerica.com/)

http://www.tufonorthamerica.com/tiretypes.php It is a clincher but has the best of what tubular have to offer with out the glue.
Marty, yes it is cool I have gotten pit passes at all the show. And I get good seats with the long lines.
When you where in Hagerstown did you ride with CVCC or AVC?

I ride a pair of the tubular clinchers on one of my bikes and have put enough miles on to give you some (or at least somewhat) objective opinions.

The good: 1. High quality, mine are something like 300tpi. 2. Can take insanely high pressures (160psi) if you like that. I have taken mine that high and find they still give a good ride. However, I was also a defensive lineman in college for a couple of years (in other words I'm no light weight). 3. Just like regular sew-ups there is no possibility of pinch fl@#s. 4. Their sealant is reputed to be effective but I haven't had to use it yet (I won't say more as I believe in jinxes). 5. Durable tread too and if you look on the net you can probably ind them for less than $40. 6. Finally, of course is that you can run them or regular clinchers on the same rim.

The bad: 1. This almost, but not quite, negates all of the above; they are an incredible bi#@h to mount. No 2 ways about it. They work on clincher rims b/c of a beaded rubber strip that catches the clincher rim. Thing is that this strip eliminates the regular sew-up practice of pre-stretching the tire before permanent mounting. You have to lever that sucker on by brute force. 2. That strip probably means the tire is not repairable if the sealant fails. 3. You can, w/o trying too hard find lighter tire/tube combos.

I have no plans to take mine off and will ride them until they're worn out but am still up in the air if I'll buy new ones when that happens. Of course with recent surgery and more on the horizon that may not happen anytime soon.

thanks for the website. Now i have much greater understanding of what these things are.
Yeah I can see that their disadvantages can outweigh the advantages on a bad day..

No Tufo tire is repairable. If the sealant doesn't work, it's trash.

Weight is not the reason I want to use them, the ride is. Walter, can you say if the ride is better than clinchers? Is the ride close to tubulars? I don't think they can be anymore of a pain than installing tubular.

I use my Tufo tubular clinchers for racing purposes only and I love the way they perform. I run the 700 x 20 version of the road tire and even with super high air pressure these things carve through the corners like they are on rails. I would use them for everyday training however I dont like to have to carry an extra tire and tube in case of a flat. The ride of them is very similar to a standard tubular tire and they are very fast. Mounting them IS A BREEZE provided you follow the instructions provided. I can change from my standard clinchers to my tubular clinchers in about 6 minutes - and that is taking my time. Let me know if anyone needs tips on mounting these things, I would be glad to help. Another tire choice I recommend are the Vittoria Open Corsa tires. They have a 290 tpi casing which rides every bit as good as a tubular - they are amazing and they are clincher - however they are mad expensive.

-Ryan

dwatson:

I'm satisified with the ride. I switched over from Michelin Axials and find the ride comparable and I consider that praise. As noted above I'm heavier than many roadies (235-240) so I have no problems with the high pressure. In fact I find the Tufos at 150psi and higher ride as well as most clinchers I've tried with 40-50 less psi. Do keep in mind my bodyweight.

They are actually harder than regular sew-ups to install but they're not impossible. I've mentioned before elsewhere that a motorcycle accident cost me most of the ability to use my left arm and hand so no doubt mounting is harder for me than others but everyone I've talked to about Tufos agree that mounting and cursing go together.:)

The best thing to do is bite the bullet and try them. They're about middle of the road price wise so you're not risking more than you would be with many tires. Even if you don't become a lifetime user I doubt you'll be so disappointed that you'll peel them right off. Any tire with 300tpi casing is a quality product.

You'll stand out when the group starts talking gear too.:)

Let me know how it goes.

:beer:

All right Ryan talk to me about mounting b/c you're the first to use "breeze" and "mounting" and "Tufo" in the same sentence. At least a sentence that wasn't intended to be sarcastic.

I don't doubt you, but I want to hear it!

We posted at pretty much the same time there on page1.

:beer:

I'm curious about prestretching the tires, wouldn't you be
able to mount them on a spare rim and partially
pump them up to prestretch?

Dwatson, I didn't ride with any group while I was in
Hagerstown, that was kind of an off period for me.
I still say the gluing tape is pretty easy to use.
I think every cyclist should at least once in their
life stretch, glue and mount tubulars.

Marty

I've found that stretching Tufos overnight in the same manner in which one would stretch a tubular makes mounting them much easier. This also depends somewhat on the rim in question, of course. Their directions work pretty well from there.

They are indeed easier after stretching. Remounting a tire is much easier than a new tire. I use them for training and all I carry is a bit of sealant and co2. I've had holes as big as a penny nail in a tufo and sealed up. Anything bigger and you couldn't save a clincher in such a case either.
Tufos also have much more tire area and smaller sidewall so sidewall blowouts are much more rare, besides the fact they corner better.

I think the ride is better than any clincher. The Michelin axpro are ok but they are about 120tpi. My Hi-TPI tufos are 440tpi! You want to talk about supple comfort/control and cornering!!

They ride like tubulars because they are tubulars. No clincher can match it. It's just simple physics. The tufos are a perfect tube (or circular). A clincher is is U shaped.

Thanks for all the info. I will be ordering a set of the Elites tomorrow. I will post back after I get a few miles on them.
Dave

Originally posted by Walter
All right Ryan talk to me about mounting b/c you're the first to use "breeze" and "mounting" and "Tufo" in the same sentence. At least a sentence that wasn't intended to be sarcastic.

I don't doubt you, but I want to hear it!

We posted at pretty much the same time there on page1.

:beer:

I will admit that the first time you mount them it is harder to do than the second, third, fourth etc. They stretch a bit which makes it easier. If you start with the valve hole close to your chest and your hands on each side of it holding the tire, then just rest the wheel on the floor and put the tire onto the rim while pulling it towards the floor at the same time, the last section will go right on. Then just go around the tire and snap in the bead section on both sides, then inflate. 3 minutes tops. The pulling it towards the floor is the real key here as it allows you to "stretch" the tire around the rim - like a tubular.

-Ryan