Hermespan

Spelling for British cyclists.

By price I mean in both senses - money spent and trade-offs.

I noticed that the Taiwanese tires on my Flamingo (Bromoton knock off) look like cah-cah after just a few months - whitewall coming off, never came with much tread, etc. But my motivation to buy something better is not aesthetics or even safety. My reasons are laziness and stupidity. I *hate* changing tires. So, this means I take my bicycle to the closest shop. Weight, performance, even price - none of these are more important to me than the goal of never (?) repeating having to wheel my bicycle 10 kilometers in the Indonesian countryside during the heat of the day. At the equator!

The rear wheel on my Flamingo XN7 looks especially complicated due to its internal hub. So when at a local bike shop I saw a sales demo of thumbtacks in cutaway Schwalbe Marathon Pluses I had a bikegasm.

The price seemed high but what is avoiding being stranded in a foreign country followed by a repair by an untrained and ill-equipped bike shack and therefore temporary fix only worth? The GM said he could bring them in in a couple of days.

At another shop (specializing in folding bikes) I found them much cheaper so got a second one.

Only now am I reading in this forum that there are downsides to them I never thought of...

1. rough ride - But how rough is rough?
2. not good grip in rain - but in the tropics which is where I do most of my riding only mad dogs and Englishmen don't just sit out monsoon downpours.

I also noticed that the second one I purchased was warped. A senior cyclist told me that the shape before putting them on is irrelevant, or at least a little distortion is normal. I am suspicious be ause in at leadt two places areas are narrower by at least a centimeter. I am going to inspect the next tires I buy before I out my money down.Oddly, both shops would have sold me the wrong tires ('Marathon' not 'Marathon plus') if I hadn't caught the error.

I hesitated to buy because already my Taiwanese tires are awfully close to rubbing against the fender and sometimes (such as if there is dried mud) they actually do. One mechanic said that Bromotons in the parked semi-fold always have one end with less allowance so I was being a worry wart a out my original tires. Both salesmen told me that the Schwalbe width of 35 would be slightly narrower than my originals of 37. Is that a plus or a minus? We're talking 2 mm, right?

Anyone else use these tires on their Bromptons, Flamingos, MITs etc?

My purpose is to be able to cycle on bad roads in Bangladesh and Burma - with nuts and bolts, automobile windshield glass and assorted debris and laugh. These tires certainly *look* right for the job.

Identifying marks on original tires: Shining double wall 6061-T6-349 X 19 37-349 (16 X 1 3/8) C-1393-1 [pressure not noted and I am not going back outside in the rain because I am a *****]
Identifying marks on these 'protection level 6/6' tires: Schwalbe Marathon Plus Performance Line SmartGuard E4 88R -002020 35-349 (16 X 1.35) HS 348
[Rotation direction mark] Inflate to min. 4.0 Bar (55 PSI) - Max 6.5 Bar (95 PSI)

Neither feel or smell like latex rubber. One is marked 'nylon'.

Just had a horrifying thought - Chinese copycat frauds make pharmaceuticals. How much you want to bet they also make bicycle parts? Shiningcycle.com website reads that they make tire rims. No mention of tires. Hmmm

1nterceptor

The slick Kojaks roll fast. But more flat prone. I tried the Marathon and it was heavier for my legs to spin and for my arm to carry.
Currently trying out the slick Primo Comet. Similar in rolling resistance and weight to the folding Kojak at half the price.

Locker room parking by 1nterceptor, on Flickr

fietsbob

Above has different needs .. the Ti parts a clue ..

Schwalbe MFG website .. Marathon plus

[TABLE="class: views-table cols-13, width: 735"]
[TR="class: odd views-row-first, bgcolor: transparent"]
[TD="class: views-field views-field-model"]11100756[/TD]
[TD="class: views-field views-field-field-etrto-value"]35-349[/TD]
[TD="class: views-field views-field-field-size-value"]16 x 1.35
[/TD]
[TD="class: views-field views-field-field-performance-value"]SmartGuard[/TD]
[TD="class: views-field views-field-field-colour-value"]Black-Reflex[/TD]
[TD="class: views-field views-field-field-compound-value"]Endurance[/TD]
[TD="class: views-field views-field-field-psi-value"]65-110[/TD]
[TD="class: views-field views-field-field-gram-value"]480 g[/TD]
[TD="class: views-field views-field-field-epi-value"]67[/TD]
[TD="class: views-field views-field-field-load-value"]65 kg[/TD]
[TD="class: views-field views-field-field-tube-value"]4[/TD]
[TD="class: views-field views-field-list-price"]$52.55[/TD]
[TD="class: views-field views-field-buyitnowbutton"][/TD]
[/TR]
[/TABLE]

that's each

keyven

From what I heard Marathon Pluses' main downside is rolling resistance and extra weight. Your main concern - getting a flat - should be set at ease by these.

I couldn't find a ton of difference in ride quality after switching to Brompton Kevlar from Marathons, though I did appreciate the weight loss.

DoubleDiamonDog

Well, if you are willing to accept a heavier tire and a ride that will be a bit rougher, it is hard to beat industrial grade o-rings to fit directly on the 349mm rim, if puncture resistance is your primary concern. Your best bet would be HNBR for superior abrasion resistance, oil resistance, water resistance and strength.

blakcloud

And you can get them in great colours to match your Flamingo. Never have a flat again.

Tannus tire

Purpleorchid

Those Tannus tires would look awesome!!!!

Are Tannus tires HNBR (had to look that up to see what it stood for)?

Winfried

Elsewhere, someone mentioned the following tires:

• [Cheng Shin Tire] Brompton white label (37-349)
• Cheng Shin Tire Sensamo Firenze (37-349) (357 g)
• Panaracer CrossTown (35-349) (390 g)
• Raleigh Record (37-349) (319-338 g)
• Schwalbe Kojak (32-349) tringles souples (175 g) / tringles rigides (230 g)
• Schwalbe Marathon Original (35-349) (420 g)
• Schwalbe Marathon Plus (35-349) (475 g)
• Schwalbe Marathon Winter (30-349) [à clous]
• Schwalbe HS110 (37-349)
• Tannus Nymph (32-349) (310 g) [pneu plein]
• Tannus Thoroki (40-349) (450 g) [pneu plein]
• Velotto Fantome Mini (28-349) (215g [flancs beiges] / 175g [noirs])

Considering that removing the rear wheel on the Brompton is a bit of a PITA and the Marathon Plus are kind of heavy, are there lighter alternatives that are still somewhat puncture-proof?

Thank you.

stevnim

Easily my best read all week. Thanks for sharing this!

keyven

I was considering it but the downsides don't seem worth it unless you face glass and nails on the roads every day. Like the colors though.

Tannus | Unfold and Cycle

fietsbob

Quote:

... are there lighter alternatives that are still somewhat puncture-proof?

Emphasis on ' somewhat ' consider the Marathon K. no Greenguard, .. kevlar belt..

You feeling Lucky?

1nterceptor

Thanks for sharing this list, very informative. I don't see Primo Comet on this list.
If I recall correctly; it weighed just a tad more than a folding Kojak at half the price.
Haven't really had it for long to make an observation in regards to puncture resistance.
But so far so good. You can also try the original/standard Marathon; but for me it was
just too slow rolling.


Van Cortland Park, da Bronx by 1nterceptor, on Flickr

StephenH

There have been many debates on the viability of non-pneumatic tires. (Keep in mind that the invention of pneumatic tires was one of the great steps forward in the development of the bicycle.) Among other issues, the design of standard bicycle wheels assume that pneumatic tires will be used, which spreads a point load more around the rim instead of concentrating load at one point in the rim.