I ran sew-ups back in the day (1970's) and although the ride was exceptional, the routine maintenance with them was a PITA for sure. Yes, I used to repair my own tubes too...pull back tape, cut thread stitches, pull out tube, patch, re-stitch the thread, check for leak....pain in the neck. The glue can be temperamental also. Be careful there. Swapping a pre-used tire for a flat is ok as long as the glue is still tacky on both rim and tire. If the glues has hardened, you'll probably need to strip the glue off the rim and scrape as much of the tire as possible and re-glue.
Unless you are die-hard wanting to run sew-ups, the new generation of clinchers ride almost as well, and, the new "Open Tubulars" made by Challenge Tire and Velo Tire ride almost identical to tubulars...even down to the swiff-swiff sound they make on the pavement. I ride Challenge Paris Roubaix's on one Wabi and the Challenge Strada Bianca's on the other. The only caveat is that those tires are murder to install the first time before they stretch a little. On the road repairs are fine once they stretch.
To get mine on I pre-stretch them on a separate rim for a few weeks then use a pair of toe straps to hold the bead as I work the whole bead onto the rim. Works fine for me.
Last edited by drlogik; 11-29-22 at 01:07 PM.