I've only had 'em on two months, but the 26x2.00 kevlar Cheng-Shins that came with the Electra Townie have been impervious to glass and other road debris. I have some Conti Gatorskinz in 27" on my old Raleigh, and they went the whole summer with only one flat, and that one was my fault for keeping the tire underinflated.

Also, it's worthwhile to go over the tires once every other week to pry out glass and metal shards that get stuck in the rubber - over time, they may wear through the kevlar, which is very good at puncture resistance, but mediocre at resisting abrasion.

[QUOTE=Zero_Enigma;9877435]Just feedbacking on this. I've got Continential Travel Contacts 26x1.75" . My bike computer registers (off memory now) ~7500km on it but I have about I think 500km of that with my IRC Methos 26x2.1".

The IRC Methos did give me pinch flats but that was because of ~8yrs of basement storage. Ever since I put my Travel Contacts on I've been riding since I joined BikeForums and ~7000km no flats using Continential (I think on the measurement range) 26x1.5-2.1" presta tubes that are found at www.mec.ca . I think I used the 'light' version for less weight.

I've purposely ran over glass, broken sharp curbs, potholes, and broken beer bottles (as I rolled over the bottle jagged edge I broke the rest of the half of the bottle with no tire leak or damage).

They arn't kidding when they said it's uber puncture resistant. I think the only way I'll puncture them is it I rolled over a holllow spike strip with break off spikes. The make up of the thread is semi-slick tho and while you'll get good smooth riding and low rolling resistance it's not really something to climb a grass hill with especially with someone behind you (trust me on this, :o).

On road/asphalt/sidewalks/paved roads/hardpack it's good. BTW I don't work for Continential. Just love thier quality.[/QUOT

I don't work for Continental but I also love their tires. I use Top Contacts, I can't get Marathons over here in New Zealand, but I can get the Top Contacts and they have given me 3 flats in 7000km. That completely p*sses on any other tire, even the great Geax Evolution, (not the new one but the great old one, (cthulhu?).

It's never mentioned very often on the commute forum, but if you can't get the Legendary Schwalbe Marathons, but you need MAJOR PUNCTURE resistance then go for the Top Contacts.

Reply due to weird quote thing:


I don't work for Continental but I also love their tires. I use Top Contacts, I can't get Marathons over here in New Zealand, but I can get the Top Contacts and they have given me 3 flats in 7000km. That completely p*sses on any other tire, even the great Geax Evolution, (not the new one but the great old one, (cthulhu?).

It's never mentioned very often on the commute forum, but if you can't get the Legendary Schwalbe Marathons, but you need MAJOR PUNCTURE resistance then go for the Top Contacts.
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Commuter Bike: Riding on a Continental Travel Contact in the Rear, Panaracer T-serv Protex in the front. Put in a set of thorn - proof Q-tube inner tubes.

The Travel Contact went flat in week one due to straight punture as it dropped two inches directly on a sharp nail. (Before the Q-tube) Since then, about 2000 miles, no flats. Rides great. The front tire I bought for Fall/Spring weather to control direction and it does that, but at about a 2 mph cost. The T-serv is not a fast tire.

Ive ridden 12,000 miles on crossroads armadillos on my MTB. They have flats but few and far between, very fast tire for a MTB, plus last forever.

All you gotta do is edit your previous reply, put the "E]" back on the end of the [/QUOTE] tag and it will work out properly.

What size tyre are you looking for. I've been able to get 700C Marathon Plus' and I'm sure I could get 26" ones as well. 20" ones I've had to import though.

Club ride yesterday took up much of the day.. One member, kept having flats.. Four flats. Last couple miles he kept pumping up the tires without changing the tube in an attempt to make it home.. He ruined two tubes before analyzing the problem.. Steel was beginning to show thru the inside of the tire eventually rubbing raw the tube.. Luckily it was a slow leak so somehow he made it home..
. One thing we don't do enough. Check out our bikes various parts before problems occur.. Not taking perfect riding condition for granted might save us from grief every once in awhile.

Like several others here, I am running kevlar tires with thicker thorn-resistant tubes. No flats since switching (several hundred miles).

For an e-bike, I might also consider solid tires as some have mentioned........

much success from the ubiquitous conti ultragatorskins, but i've also recently fallen in love with vittoria's randonneur tires - mostly because the largest gatorskins you can get are 700X28C and the randonneurs exceed 40C

i just rode for the first time on Schwalbe Marathon Plus, my first pair of high pressure kevlar tires...in comparison to my 45 psi they ride a lot faster, but they sure are bumpy!

they are regarded as bomb prove...but ill keep you gys posted on experience...i feel pretty confident...but i still carry a pump and some patches.

Check with these guys:

De Grandi Cycle and Sport NZ, Ltd.
Christchurch

info@degrandi.co.nz

They are the Schwalbe Distributors for NZ

Another fan of the Schwalbe Marathon Plus here. I've never had a flat with them. They're not the smoothest riding tire but they seem to be nearly flat-proof. They were a little difficult to mount on the rims but it's really not an issue since I probably won't have to remove them until they're worn-out. If you're willing to sacrifice some ride quality (and they don't ride that bad) for the assurance that you're not going to flat, these are the way to go in my opinion. I've also run Specialized Armadillos and Panaracer Pasela TourGuards but I've flatted with both of them.

ThATS SO TRUE! i spent a lot of time trying to get the tire set on the rim! wth man! all the vids i saw about tire changing were done almost entirely by hand...for the marathon plus's i had to use the little plastic tools from the patch kit.

I've had pretty good luck with my Bontrager Hardcase tires.

I used to run Schwables on my older bike, and have a pair on my "lazy neighborhood" bike now.

My commuter I use Soma Everwears. I am just now replacing the tire set that is 1.5 yrs old and I do about 4M per year. I have had only one flat (pinch flat) due to a nasty pothole hit and have dug out large glass pieces and other bits of sharp stuff that get embedded in the tire but don't make it past the liner to the tube. Really like them.

4000++ KM on my Panaracer pasela tourguards and not a single flat, I am impressed especially because I got them for very cheap compared to other tires.

armadillos! a year in the city with no flats.

+1

I have over 6000 flat free miles on the SMP rear tire on my commute bike.

+1 on the tourguards. Not a single flat for me so far. (Of course, it could be that they are still New in Box)

i got to add that you can simply add mr. tuffy to your tires....it should work pretty well...maybe not as bomb prove as a marathon plus, but still very effective...

Marathon Plus and Mr. Tuffy liners
 

[QUOTE=PaulH;9546792]I've put over 15,000 flat-free miles on my Marathon Plus tires with Mr. Tuffy liners.

Paul,

I've used Schwalbe Marathon Pluses for a couple of years now. They are great tires. As they age though, they tend to be more susceptible to flats. Recently, my wife's tire had a sliver of glass that went past the Smart Guard layer (5 mm thick, Schwalbe claims) and just barely nicked the Schwalbe AV17 tube, causing a slow leak. I've ordered Mr. Tuffy liners, but was wondering if you used any talcum powder on the inside of the tires, as I've heard some people suggest? Also, have you checked for any abrasion on the inner tube where the Tuffy liner ends meet? Any problems there? Thanks.

Live been running the supreme version of this tire on my mtb commuter with zero flats all winter.

Gator skins are not that puncture resistant, they're good but no where other tires I have tried.

Three years later, it's still SMP's for pure puncture protection.

You use liners with Marathon Plus... Have you had flats with "just" a Marathon Plus?