Touring - 26 inch tires

The WTB slickasaurus tires on my LHT are about spent after about 1400 miles. Seems pretty weak to me, but alot of those are Katy miles.

Thinking about these:

http://www.biketiresdirect.com/pscmp6/schwalbe_marathon_plus_26_inch/pp.htm

1.75 seems wide. The regular marathon is 1.5 should I just go with that? Or are the puncture resistant strips worth the extra width?

Serfas Drifters
http://www.bikebling.com/ProductDetails.asp?ProductCode=Serfas08-Drifter-Tire1.5

I've used the 2.0 version a bunch on my Surly Big Dummy.
these tyres are awesome!

really

today i was talking with the rep, and he mentioned that its by far their best selling tire.

i believe it

1.75 seems wide. The regular marathon is 1.5 should I just go with that? Or are the puncture resistant strips worth the extra width?

Very much worth it in my opinion. I've had them for over a year on my city commuter. Only time I got a flat was because of a stem break. I've pulled tacs, glass, and staples out of them. None of which actually reached the tube.

The WTB slickasaurus tires on my LHT are about spent after about 1400 miles. Seems pretty weak to me, but alot of those are Katy miles.

Thinking about these:

http://www.biketiresdirect.com/pscmp6/schwalbe_marathon_plus_26_inch/pp.htm

1.75 seems wide. The regular marathon is 1.5 should I just go with that? Or are the puncture resistant strips worth the extra width?

oh man those tires are over 2lbs EACH. If you don't need stupid thick tires for puncture resistance get something normal. What are Katy miles, is that off road? The normal Marathons should last a long time. Contintental Sport Contact is a good slick touring tire. The Marathon Supremes are good durable road tires. The Marathon XR are tough. The ONLY reason to get those Plus Marathons is that you are in a flat prone environment or you don't care about wasting energy.

I had a pair of Marathon Plus tires, but much too heavy. The regular Marathon tires were fine, and I may eventually go back to them, especially if I do a long tour. But I commute mostly, and am running Continental Sport Contact in the 26x1.6 size. These are slicks, but much lighter than the Marathons. Schwalbe also has a Marathon Racer, but I've not tried them yet.

The WTB slickasaurus tires on my LHT are about spent after about 1400 miles. Seems pretty weak to me, but alot of those are Katy miles.

Thinking about these:

http://www.biketiresdirect.com/pscmp6/schwalbe_marathon_plus_26_inch/pp.htm

1.75 seems wide. The regular marathon is 1.5 should I just go with that? Or are the puncture resistant strips worth the extra width?

If all you care about is flat resistance, ignore the following, but if you care at all about weight or a lively feeling ride read on.

At well over two pounds each and a really dead feeling ride I would not run the Marathon Plus in any normal conditions. I have never ridden on them in that size, but the 700X32 Marathon Pluses that I ran for a while were like dragging an anchor. The weight was very noticeable, the grip on wet roads was so so at best, and they definitely had whatever is the opposite of a lively feel.

They are probably about as puncture resistant as they come, but can still be punctured. I know that my daughter, who is a careful rider and seldom gets flats, managed to puncture one the first week commuting with them on relatively clean glass free roads.

I would maybe consider them for commuting in a very hostile environment, but would not for touring. A situation where the roads are glass strewn and a flat means being late to work is the only time I would consider them and even then I might go with something else.

A light lively tire is a joy to ride on and a flat every once in a while just isn't a big deal when on tour.

Yeah, the WTBs were crap on my LHT too. I'm trying Panaracer Pasela Tourguards (1.25) on my mine and my wifes- so far I REALLY like them. Ran Specialized Aramdillos before- the Tourguards are much lighter, and so far, just as flat resistant. We've ridden them on gravel, they're fine, but I would not go any narrower.

I am using 26x1.75 Continental Travel Contacts on my LHT. So far, I love them. I really love the wider tire which is much better on the dirt roads.

-Sue

I am using 26x1.75 Continental Travel Contacts on my LHT. So far, I love them. I really love the wider tire which is much better on the dirt roads.

-Sue

+1 for the travel contacts.The extra width means more comfort.

I have a pair of 1.75 MP's on my LHT right now and I have to say they are great tires. Most of my riding is in the city and I runn into the usual crap (glass, metal, trash ) that you find on the streets and I've never had a problem with them. I have just about 600 miles on these and they would get my vote. Now if I were racing? that would be another story.

I couldn't agree more with what "staehpj1" said. At times I run with the regular Marathons in a 26 x 1.5" and those things are heavy enough and the MP's are 60% heavier yet, ugh : (
I've got a three state tour coming up in a few weeks and since we'll be using decent roads, I'll be using a lighter more compliant tire.

I don't really get why everyone complains about the weight. Are ounces going to turn your LHT into a Pinerello? Face it, the bike is a school bus (and I love my school bus) but it's not a make or break thing really. A head wind on any given day will completely negate any effects of the Marathon Plus tires.

I use the 26x2.0 Marathon Supremes and think they are the best touring tire for all on-road conditions that I've ever used. They also work fine on flat to gently sloping forest service roads. They do great in rain and also do well on icy roads. The price of them is crazy though.

+1 for the travel contacts.the extra width means more comfort.
+1

I don't really get why everyone complains about the weight. Are ounces going to turn your LHT into a Pinerello? Face it, the bike is a school bus (and I love my school bus) but it's not a make or break thing really. A head wind on any given day will completely negate any effects of the Marathon Plus tires.

Weight on the edges of wheels (from rims, tires, nipples and to a lesser extent spokes) "counts" alot more than weight elsewhere on the bike because of rotational inertia. Once you're up to speed there's no additonal effect, but getting to speed is more difficult


I use the 26x2.0 Marathon Supremes and think they are the best touring tire for all on-road conditions that I've ever used. They also work fine on flat to gently sloping forest service roads. They do great in rain and also do well on icy roads. The price of them is crazy though.

A great front tire because it really sticks to wet pavement and is relatively light. But it's not particularly durable and is prone to flatting when compared to the Marathon XR.

A head wind on any given day will completely negate any effects of the Marathon Plus tiresCorrection. A tailwind will negate the effects. A headwind will exacerbate them.

Correction. A tailwind will negate the effects. A headwind will exacerbate them.

or a downhill and an uphill. So as long as you're going downwind and down hill everything is cool

The major reason for using Marathon Plus is because punctures cost time and time costs money. They are great for a commuter who doesn't want be late for work or for a bike where wheel removal is difficult.
For tourists, the occasional puncture is no big deal and with plain Marathon you are looking at "mean distance between p*nctures" of about 2000 miles.
Marathon Plus are notoriously difficult to remove and remount with most rims.