MaxSta

Just wondering if anyone uses puncture resistant tires on their fixed gear. I read Sheldon's site and a few blogs that recommend Continental Gator Skin, I heard Armadillo's are good too. I recently got a flat and it sucks, hoping my rim isn't messed up. I've seen people say they ride 1,000 miles a month on here as messengers, must get flats pretty often, anyone know of good puncture resistant tires?

LupinIII

my randos have been pretty good so far.

i found out though that most of my flats were coming from my velox tape shifting and exposing a couple mm of spoke hole. i got some fat vinyl strip though that works much better and covers the spoke holes completely.

mcerr

vittoria randos are great if you have the clearance, they are heavy but last forever even if you skidz

Surfindixon

Schwalbe Marathon Plus. I've tried a few 'puncture resistant' tyres and this is the one that works for me in the glass ridden city in which I live. They are a heavy tyre but the definately do what they are designed to do

I see the Randos comin up in various threads again an again so i'll be checking them out for myself and I've got a pal who swears by gators although I've had issue with the manuacturing quality of other conti's in the past.

The marathons may not be cool enough for the single/fixed crew though. A pal at work reckons they're 'the flared trousers' of the tyre world and have 'dad-cyclist' written all over them. I wear flares and I'm a dad so maybe he's right. All i know the M+ can take a beating.

hairnet

it depends on where you ride. How often do you get flats?

shubonker

You don't have to give up weight savings for flat tire resistance.... rubinos and the maxxis refuse are quite good and light too.

AModernDrunkard

I will second this. In berlin there is glass everywhere and the M+ rock on through it all.

LoRoK

I should be getting my Schwalbe Ultremo DDs pretty soon. I'll let you know what I think of them. In the meantime, Gatorskins are alright. Not the best ride quality, and they've gotten more expensive. I have had about the same luck with flats using the GP4000s which ride better than the Gatorskins and aren't that much more expensive. I've also had more sidewall puntures with Gatorskins than any other tire, but that's probably because I've ridden them so much more.

filtersweep

Armadillos ride like garden hoses. I would rather deal with flats. Actually Armadillos completely suck, because I have still flatted on them, and they are a ***** to change on the road--- sidewalls are hard as rocks. They are very slippery-- especially in the rain. I have nothing good to say about them.

Life is too short to be ridden on crap tires. Learn how to change them quickly, and ride on. In my experience, most tires are find when they are new. They start to acquire flats when they reach the end of their life---- unless you encounter bad luck.

wroomwroomoops

Umm... that's kinda an obvious statement, isn't it? The question is: WHEN is EOL for a particular tire? None of my Schwalbe tires had ever flattened on me. The ones I've ridden the most are the Big Apple - I have almost 3000 miles on them by now. The Marathon Plus mentioned above, have much, much, much better puncture protection than the Big Apples.

evilcryalotmore

soma super everwear. Made of kevlar

kato7997

i heard they're made of diamonds

spcialzdspksman

This is lies.

MaxSta

well I had my new bike for a month, and just got a flat. Could be just bad luck but wow some of the roads here have piles of glass/rocks / potholes

my LBS recomended maxxis refuse, i'll look into them and let u guys know how they work out

nikita_r

I respectfully disagree Among those that I tried (some contis, michelins, maxxis's detonators, hutchinsons, and vittoria randos) armadillos are the best. It is, I believe, the matter of taste. I am quite heavy (214 lb) so I do not like tires with soft sidewalls. Also I think that armadillos are not that bad in the rain -- they are definitely better than hutchinsons and maxxis. One thing about the armadillos that I don't like is the price.

filtersweep

I don't believe it is that obvious at SSFG-- judging by some of the posts here. The OP was looking for "puncture resistant" tires--- not tires with a long life.

Many people seem to have magical thinking when it comes to tires.

icyclist 

I'm a fan of Armadillos - I have the All Weather Elite's on my fixie.

tFUnK

sometimes you just have bad luck


gatorskins wouldn't have helped.

AModernDrunkard

^^ Ouch.
From what im reading, it seems that the most schwalbe models are not that available in the us. Wierd. Next time i fly home i will have to bring a bunch.

bbattle

When you notice your tire has a broad, flat patch where it contacts the road, it's getting old. Or if you see separation of the outer layer from the inside(near the bead), it's time to get new tires. If you're just cruising around town you could probably just keep the tires until they die completely. But think about it if you're flying down a hill; would you want to have a blowout?

There are liners for tires that'll help prevent flats. Spinskins is one. Cheaper than buying new tires.

filtersweep

And they make your tires ride like rocks.

filtersweep

And they make your tires ride like rocks.

kato7997

Honestly I think people put too much into trying to find puncture-resistance tires. In my experience all I've needed is to keep my pressures up, keep my eyes on the road, and ride on a tire with a decent kevlar or compund tread. One of my bikes are on Schwalbe Luganos and I've been waiting for flats so I can have an excuse to get some Vittorias or Veloflexs...but just hasn't happened yet...

Surfindixon

You're lucky kato7997. Puncture protection is at the top of my Agenda and when i don't have tyres that are up to the task commuting is a miserable experience. When I moved to the lighter 'puncture resistant' conti travel contacts it was about two days before the M+ proved their superiority in this area.

Think green tarmac cycle lanes covered with smashed green glass, clear glass, wood screws, glass, wall tacs (riding by primary schools is good for that one! Unbelievable), more glass.

Here in the UK Nick Lowe's, 'I Love the Sound of Breaking Glass', must've settled very deeply into the nations conscious because it's everywhere here and it's fecking awful.

I like to keep my tyre pressure high but riding a bike with my nose to the front tyre is not my idea of fun. I like to take in some of the scenery and the M+'s make me forget about the worst of the glass. I swear, they're the only solution for where I live.

PS I don't work for Schwalbe

AModernDrunkard

^^ Haha sounds like the equivalent of berlin. They always break the glass right in the bike lane.