Singlespeed & Fixed Gear - Tubular wheels for fixed gear?

Hi, I found a great deal of hed jet tubular wheelset for 350. I was wondering if it's a good idea to use on a fixed gear. I'm using front brakes so i won't be skidding. Two more questions, how long does the air last on tubular tires, and can i use regular wheel
(700x23c) tires and tube on tubular wheels instead of those expensive ($40+each) tubular tires? ThAnks guys

You have to use tubular tires. Sorry, that's why they are called tubulars. Regular tire and tube wheels are called "clinchers".

Tubulars are used on the track usually.

Tubulars are streetable, but a pain. The air lasts way less than 24hrs and you need to cary a spare tire.

$40 tubulars are CHEAP. Most would consider them junk. A good tubular is 70+ and most are around $100 (and can be $200+)

Stick with clinchers.

If you are riding city streets, I wouldn't bother with tubulars unless you plan to ride them on the track only.

Hell, I can't stand most clinchers that cost under $50. Good tires are so underrated... its the best bang for the buck impovement you can make on a bike under $1000.

Tubulars are streetable, but a pain. The air lasts way less than 24hrs and you need to cary a spare tire.

$40 tubulars are CHEAP. Most would consider them junk. A good tubular is 70+ and most are around $100 (and can be $200+)

Stick with clinchers.

the air last less then 24hrs? then i'll need to pump air again!?

http://ereview.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/YUP-e1272582480141.jpg

only the expensive tubulars have latex tubes which don't hold air for long, the cheaper ones hold air like every other tire.
but it's still not the best city setup

Ive ridden on tubular without pumping them up everyday. They are not as bad as everyone says.

They're not necessarily bad, I just don't think they're very practical for general, everyday riding.

It is stupid to ride tubulars on the street.

only the expensive tubulars have latex tubes which don't hold air for long, the cheaper ones hold air like every other tire.
but it's still not the best city setup

I put air in my clinchers daily (you should too)


It is stupid to ride tubulars on the street.

Not true. tubulars have been ridden on the street for decades. They are just harder to repair and therefore not as practical.

The amount of tubulars I change due to flats on a monthly basis around here because a bunch of 'elite' weekend warriors insist on using them is stupid.

[QUOTE=thirdgenbird;11473486]I put air in my clinchers daily (you should too)

why? they loose air really slowly, repumping them every few weeks is more then enough. don't care about 10psi more or less...

Every few weeks???

yes, pump them up to 11bar and when they are down to 7 or 8 i pump them up again. try to clean my bike once a month and do all the pumping. normally i just oil the chain once a week and that's it.

^how often do you ride? I don't ride as much as I used to because now I'm living outside of town but when I was riding regularly I was topping them off every few days max.

every day 30 to 80 miles. really don't think it's necessary to pump them up so often. when it feels spongy during turns i do something about it but otherwise...
i ride a track bike and sealed bearings because i don't like to pay attention to my bike

So you ride 400+ miles without adding air to your tires? I smell a rat...

Don't mess with him. He rides 160 PSI tires... clearly a pro.

Ive ridden on tubular without pumping them up everyday. They are not as bad as everyone says.
well, you can ride flat tubulars

I didn't see that. 11bar clinchers? Are they dedas? Veloflex? How often do you flat?

I may get veloflex tubulars soon (for a geared road bike)

Hairnet, you mis quoted me. Please fix it.

ha
yeah I caught that

2 bars more than written on the tire is not a problem, normally get the cheap vittoria - they sit pretty tight on my rims and never had a problem.

wow... 5 days is the max for me to go without refilling.

This is all total bs. Fact is that tubulars vary all over the place in regards to air retention. I have some very light weight track racing tubulars with thin latex tubes that will lose significant air pressure within a few hours, so I have to top them off one or more times during a day long event. OTOH, I have some Tufos, which are actually tubeless and seamless (no stitched seam) that will hold air literally for months. It is also not true that expensive racing tubulars all use latex tubes that lose air quickly; I have several Conti Sonderklasse track racing tubulars that cost over $100 each that have butyl tubes that retain air pressure for weeks. Also, tubulars can be safely run a lower pressures on the road because they are not vulnerable to pinch flats the way clinchers are. I run tubulars on my road bike's training wheels as well as all my racing wheels, and the last time I had a flat on the road was over 4 years ago, however, I have had several clincher flats on other bikes. I just finished changing out the tubular on my rear road training wheel after putting 4000 miles on it and wearing it down to the cords without getting a flat. The roads I ride on are not super clean and there's significant amounts of glass and sharp debris, especially at intersections. As to price, I don't pay any more for decent tubulars than for clinchers, typically less than $50. I just don't buy them at an lbs, where you're likely to pay way inflated prices and only once in my life have I ever paid more than $100 for a tire.

I'm not advocating the use of tubulars over clinchers for general casual road use, just trying to debunk some of the nonsensical myths that seem to emerge whenever this subject comes up.

I dunno about where you guys ride but the streets of NY can be pretty bad and considering I ride on 700x23 tires, I usually pump every day or every other day. Also, I ride on the max psi only cuz I worry about flats.

I don't wanna hear about how I should be pumping up to a specific psi according to my weight and tire sz.

I dunno about where you guys ride but the streets of NY can be pretty bad and considering I ride on 700x23 tires, I usually pump every day or every other day. Also, I ride on the max psi only cuz I worry about flats.

I don't wanna hear about how I should be pumping up to a specific psi according to my weight and tire sz.


plenty of roads are pretty crappy here too but I don't go pumping to 140 and I havent had a pinch flat in forever

Whatever...I once rode 800 miles in one day without putting air in my tires at all.

You have to use tubular tires. Sorry, that's why they are called tubulars. Regular tire and tube wheels are called "clinchers".

Tubulars are used on the track usually.

There's he Super Champion "Mixte" (http://www.velobase.com/ViewComponent.aspx?ID=337CA674-7F3F-4825-904D-3A03F98AEDC3&Enum=107&AbsPos=6) rim that claims to accommodate both clinchers and tubulars.

and now there are the tubular clinchers


There's he Super Champion "Mixte" (http://www.velobase.com/ViewComponent.aspx?ID=337CA674-7F3F-4825-904D-3A03F98AEDC3&Enum=107&AbsPos=6) rim that claims to accommodate both clinchers and tubulars.
weird
http://www.velobase.com/CompImages/Rims/D097A3A6-415F-4158-B731-7B4E35CE5E4D.jpeg

This is all total bs. Fact is that tubulars vary all over the place in regards to air retention. I have some very light weight track racing tubulars with thin latex tubes that will lose significant air pressure within a few hours, so I have to top them off one or more times during a day long event. OTOH, I have some Tufos, which are actually tubeless and seamless (no stitched seam) that will hold air literally for months. It is also not true that expensive racing tubulars all use latex tubes that lose air quickly; I have several Conti Sonderklasse track racing tubulars that cost over $100 each that have butyl tubes that retain air pressure for weeks. Also, tubulars can be safely run a lower pressures on the road because they are not vulnerable to pinch flats the way clinchers are. I run tubulars on my road bike's training wheels as well as all my racing wheels, and the last time I had a flat on the road was over 4 years ago, however, I have had several clincher flats on other bikes. I just finished changing out the tubular on my rear road training wheel after putting 4000 miles on it and wearing it down to the cords without getting a flat. The roads I ride on are not super clean and there's significant amounts of glass and sharp debris, especially at intersections. As to price, I don't pay any more for decent tubulars than for clinchers, typically less than $50. I just don't buy them at an lbs, where you're likely to pay way inflated prices and only once in my life have I ever paid more than $100 for a tire.

I'm not advocating the use of tubulars over clinchers for general casual road use, just trying to debunk some of the nonsensical myths that seem to emerge whenever this subject comes up.

TT, i am not debating you, i just want to ask you questions as i am in the market for tubular tires (all lugged italian frames need proper tires right?)

1. do the tufos hold air or do they hold pressure for months? i was just home for lunch and just checked my road bikes air pressure and as expected, in about 36 hours they have lost about 23psi. they are mid level michelin tubes and tires that had 120psi in them originally. this is pretty consistent with every road tube/tire i have ever owned. will a tufo really hold adequate riding pressure for weeks? (i understand you can ride them with less air than clinchers but im not a fly weight, 120-125psi in a 700x23 is my preference. (road riding)

2. what tubulars are you buying for less that $50? i have done a lot of reasearch and every tire i have found in that prce range has garbage reviews. they are all either non round, lumpy, or flat prone.

i am looking for a set of reasonably priced tubulars that will ride well and hold up. tan sidewalls is a must :) this is a neo vintage ride we are dealing with ;)


Whatever...I once rode 800 miles in one day without putting air in my tires at all.

dirty cheater (http://www.airfreetires.com/)

"Whatever...I once rode 800 miles in one day without putting air in my tires at all. "
+1

1. do the tufos hold air or do they hold pressure for months? i was just home for lunch and just checked my road bikes air pressure and as expected, in about 36 hours they have lost about 23psi. they are mid level michelin tubes and tires that had 120psi in them originally. this is pretty consistent with every road tube/tire i have ever owned. will a tufo really hold adequate riding pressure for weeks? (i understand you can ride them with less air than clinchers but im not a fly weight, 120-125psi in a 700x23 is my preference. (road riding)

2. what tubulars are you buying for less that $50? i have done a lot of reasearch and every tire i have found in that prce range has garbage reviews. they are all either non round, lumpy, or flat prone.

i am looking for a set of reasonably priced tubulars that will ride well and hold up. tan sidewalls is a must :) this is a neo vintage ride we are dealing with ;)

1) It's one and the same. If they do not leak any air, then the air pressure remains constant. When used on the road and inflated initially to 120 psi (max rated is 170 psi), a month later they have lost only about 10 psi and are still rideable. When used on the track and inflated to 150 psi, then two weeks later they have lost about 20 psi, so the more pressure you inflate them to, the faster the pressure will drop. Sometimes, presta valves will leak at higher pressures if the seal isn't very good or if they are the removable type and aren't tight enough.

2) Most of my tires I have bought in eBay auctions for about half retail price. I have bought a lot of Conti Sprinters for $25 to $40, Competitions for $40 to $50 and Vittoria EVO CX for $35 to $45. I've also found Veloflex tires for under $50, but it's pretty hard. If, however, you want high quality old school natural sidewall tires like the old Clements or Vittorias, then Veloflex does make some gum wall tires, and you can buy them for under $100 here >>> http://www.worldclasscycles.com/tubular_tires_only.htm

Wow....I ride hi-pressure clinchers on all of my roadbikes, ss and fg...and after reading this thread, I feel compelled to say the following: How hard is it for any of you to check/pump your tires on a daily basis before each initial roll-out? And if you commute to work and park your bike for 8~10 hours, how hard is it to check it again before the roll-out to home? Of course, having a good floor pump(s) at the ready helps a lot (they don't have to be expensive fancy ones, either), whether commuting or at the track. Hard-chargers such as yourselves would expend waaaaaay more time and energy climbing the next 3%~5% hill than the 5~15 strokes it takes to get each tire back up to max pressure assuming they were at max before your initial roll-out....and for me max pressure has for the most part eliminated on-road flats. Your results may vary, but I'm going to guess that max pressures will help mitigate your on-road flats, too.

There's he Super Champion "Mixte" (http://www.velobase.com/ViewComponent.aspx?ID=337CA674-7F3F-4825-904D-3A03F98AEDC3&Enum=107&AbsPos=6) rim that claims to accommodate both clinchers and tubulars.

That is truly scary! :eek: