Tubeless

Tubeless

I'll say it again: Tubeless ;)

I have had very good luck with Bontrager Race Lite Hardcase tires. They are a completely slick dual compound tire, a little racier than the marathons i have on another bike. With the hardcases I have flatted once in four months of commuting .

Bullet-proof tyres? What kind of neighbourhood do you live in?

Just get some run flat tires. I do not jest. There are such things. Last week the 20" front tire on our tandem went flat and I had left the pump at home. The wife waited near the MUP and I rode 5 miles back to the truck on a totally flat tire. Only had to replace the tube. Did that once before as a teen. Went 10 miles on a flat. Fat, heavy tires both times. Would not try it on a skinny rim/tire combo.

goat head proof tires
 

I pulled a goat head out of my Specialized Armadillo 700 x 23 before my commute last week. It is still holding air. I have been riding the Armadillo's for the last 2 years. I went from flats 1-4x/month to 3 flats in 2 years. I highly recommend them.

You had 3 flats with the Armidilllo ?... What happened ?... I don't even carry an air pump etc any more since I put min on... Nice as I don't have to worry about the stuff getting stolen anymore... I have had them on my Cypress and MTN bike now for 4 or 5 months and so far nothing has punctured them.. Even the Goatheads... Nasty little devils that they are :-)

Bad idea! I ran a pair of 23mm Armadillos on my C'Dale and I got a couple of flats with them. They're very flat resistant but they're certainly not flat-proof!

OK, after taking my first flat on glass with my new bike - I'm interested in the thorn proof tubes - what's the name? (any name?) --- and how bout the slime tubes --- harder to replace than a regular tube?

I'm changing out the tires (or getting another wheelset) for a better mtb tire as that's what I originally got the bike for and then the commuter was stolen) - and could always put on an armadillo but I have in mind a different tire (werewolf)

Schwalbe Marathon Plus--you won't get flats.

So is the general consensus that the Marathon Plus is ultimately less likely to go flat than Specialized Armadillos? I just purchased a bike about two weeks ago with ordinary road tires and tubes. I've been tracking my mileage pretty precisely (GPS on bike) and in my whole 110 miles of riding I have already flattened both the stock tubes and managed to puncture one of the "heavy duty" tubes as well. Each time I've pulled out tiny thorns maybe 4 to 6mm long, but that's all it took each time.

I have slime in the tubes currently, so the latest flat managed to self-seal after losing about 20psi (which is nice) but this is ridiculous. I don't even ride offroad, I ride on paved paths along the canals here in Arizona. The thorns must just be general weeds/debris that is all over the place here. I purchased this bike to have fun and getting 3 punctures in 2 weeks is no fun at all. Worse still is that although the slime seemed to work well on today's puncture, it already seem to be gumming up the tube valve and I'm worried it will gum up my tire pressure gage and inflator(s) as well.

Dang slime did that to my pump... Gave up the slime and bought a new pump.. I think you find also that with time the slime plugging todays holes will harden and work loose and the tube will start leaking again until it replugs itself... Not the best solution IMHO..
We have the same thorn problem here... The tires are like magnets to them... They call them "goathead" thorns around here cause that is what they look like... I can't speak to Marathon's as I have never had them but I can say in 1500 miles now I have never had another flat with the Armidillos... I still pick up the thorns and listen to them click on the road as the wheel turns but have yet to have one pucturetire... I am a happy rider again...

I don't know if its a testament to the Gatorskins, but mine are riddled with holes. And I mean hundreds. If I re-inflate the tire while wet it foams with escaping air from the hundreds of holes. Hunks of glass, granite, all sorts of crap are imbedded in them. I've barely got a year on 'em maybe 1800 miles. I've popped 5 tubes, 1 was a pinch, all on the back. Is this good?


jim

I have Specialized Nimbus Armadillos and Specialized Thorn Resistant Tubes. Heavy and expensive but they seem pretty bullet proof. I crunched a big hunk of broken beer bottle at about 17mph with them a week or so ago (it was early morning and I just didn't see or react to it until it was too late). I heard the solid crunch and expected at least one flat but they took it in stride.

I am sure they are not bullet proof but I don't expect to get too many flats with them. I am prepared with spare tube, patch kit, pump , etc anyway, though.

I think you will find that Marathon Plus tires are the toughest tires available. Also Specialized Armadillos describes a family of puncture resistant tires. Some are tougher than other though all are at least decent at puncture resistance.

Craig

I've been running the Conti Gators with Bontrager Slime tubes. Has anyone tried the SpinSkins? Are they any better than your typical Tuffy Liner? I don't mind filling my kids' tubes with Slime, but I wouldn't mind an alternative to Slime in my tubes.

So, it looks like nobody has experienced a puncture flat with the Marathon Plus. I'll need to give it a try.

Today, something punctured my Conti Gatorskins. Probably glass (left a little slit in the tire), but I can't be positive since the offending object was not in the tire when I patched the tube. I seem to experience flats with the same amount of frequency with the supposedly flat resistant tires than ordinary tires, so I'm getting a little skeptical about the whole pitch. (BTW, I only get flats in wet weather, where even the best tires will have stuff stick to them more easily and have a greater opportunity to work their way to the tube.)

Bontrager Race Lite Hardcase. 3 layers with Kevlar. No flats since I put them on.

I placed my order for the Marathon Plus today and received the "your order has shipped!" email. I couldn't find the size I wanted (700x45) from any discounters so I ended up ordering from schwalbetires.com. Ordered 3 spare tubes at the same time so I can compare theirs to the ones my LBS sells. That reminds me I need to pick up some patches too next time I'm at my LBS.

Looking forward to your impressions of them... Keep us appraised :-)

"As for slime. IMHO that stuff sucks... It will fill a small hole but then it hardens, lossens up and leaks again.. It will also plug your valve stem with time and work back up into your air pump if you aren't careful"

+1 My pump hasn't been the same since!

try airless tires
 

I commute to work and ride all year in detroit. I see a lot of glass on the road and try to avoid it. My worst year was 7 flats. So far with about 3000 miles ridden this year I have gotten 5 flats, despite trying kevlar hard case tires. In past years I have tried the plastic liners. I still got flats with them.
I am now considering getting airless tires for both of my bikes.
I saw 4 web sites:
www.airfreetires.com
www.amerityre.com
www.greentyre.co.uk
www.nu-teck.com
If you buy them let me know how the install and ride are.

Thinking.

Running Specialized Armadillo Elites. Currently 336 miles on them.

No flats so far. My last tires had a blowout, they were Hutchinson Carbon Comps.

I had two sets of those and did about 2000 miles the first set and I think 1750
the second.

My commuter (MTB hardtail with Specialized Nimbus EX semi-slicks) has
had no flats despite about 500 commuting miles or so.

5,000 miles and only one debris induced flat. Was running Conti Top Touring 2000's till they quit making them. Now on Armadillo's [1,500 miles no flats].

120psi slicks and no flats... gotta love it.

+1 on the VELOX rim tape. Had a series of spoke hole flats unil I installed the Velox.

gotta ask, what are goatheads?

Plants taking revenge on bicycles
http://www.socorro.com/fattire/goatheads.html
http://www.socorro.com/fattire/Image...eads-5-C24.jpg