Hi all!

I just got my hands on an old Slovenian (eastern europe) vintage racing bicycle Rog Sprint. It's in really good condition apart from the tubular tyres. I'd like to replace them, but I'm having some trouble figuring out the size of the tubulars. The tyres are different makes. The only measurments I can recognise as such on the front are 600x24, and on the rear it says diameter 27". Both rims appear to be the same diameter.

So, any ideas?

Fronty tyre:


The bike:

Hi there,

Welcome to the forums!

Lesson nr 1: Drive side pics please (so we can see the drivetrain )

That's a neat bike! Is the brand a Slovenian one? That would be very interesting, especially if you know who made the frame.

The wheels appear to be a normal size, 28 inch. If it were a kids bike the wheels could be 26 or even 24 inch. For tubulars, it is normal that their size is called 27 for a 28 inch wheel. You need to stretch the tubular before actually glueing them on the rim. Best is to put them on the rim for a couple of days without glue (no riding them yet!), then they will stretch a little so mounting after glueing will be easier.

Thanks Rog is a Slovenian manufacturer, that doesn't exist anymore. It went down with the breakup of Yugoslavia. The frame is their own product. I'll post a new photo asap

So could you point me to an exact dimension which I should go and buy. It'd be great if its a beefier tyre.

700c tubulars will all fit. The difference is in the width and application type, road, race, training, cross, etc. do a search here for "totally tubular"

Thank you for enlightening me

So it's a Yugoslavian bike, that sounds very interesting considering the history of Yugoslavia and of course its riders.

For the tyre, there are two choices: cheap and not cheap. Cheap will be the Continental Giro or Vittoria Rally. Not cheap: all the other ones. If you prefer beefier tyre, because the roads are not too good it could be a tough choice. Since it is hard to fix a flat tubular (it can be done though) I mostly just throw on a new one. I have had a couple of flats, but these were either vintage ones and once a Conti Giro (which was brand new). The more expensive types have latex inner tubes and because of the better quality threading, rubber and what not will be more puncture-resistent.

So it's a choice between cheaper and frequent replacement or more expensive and more quality. Riding tubular is comfortable like riding on a cloud but with 8-12 bar to make the bike superfast. The wheels are lighter as well. Is has its burdens but it is absolutely worth it.

Welcome to the Bike Forums.

If you are unexperienced with vintage bicycles and, in particular, the sew-up or tubular tires, often times associated with such bikes, you might want to consider NOT using tubulars. Rather, have a set of 700c clincher rims installed, then start using clincher tires. Much cheaper and incredibly easier to mount and use.

Just an old man's opinion. However...

If top level performance, for the bike, is the goal - go tubular and hope you don't flat out too often.

Where are you located? Love to see a photo from the other side.

Get Tufo tubulars, keep it geographically cohesive. (Czech Republic)