Tired Tyre - Schwalbe Marathon Plus
 

Been rolling with stock Schwalbe Road Cruisers on my hybrid for over a year and have had a couple punctures in the last 30 days (pulled out a 1" nail last night). Thinking of upgrading to something with more protection as there is plenty of glass and shards on my route.

Currently have 700x35c Schwalbe Road Cruisers. Thinking 700x35c Schwalbe Marathon Plus Tyre.

Anyone care to comment on sticking with the same size and/or the tyre choice?

I've got 700x32 Marathon Plus on my Specialized Tricross.

They seem to be all but indestructible - I used them on my Rockhopper until one wore out and I replaced it with a Marathon Extreme to get a better tread pattern for use in the mud, and put them on the Tricross after getting a puncture using the stock Borough CX tyres.

They are an absolute pig to put on, and they will make a ride more bumpy as they won't absorb bumps in the road as well as a less protected tyre. That said I shudder to think what it would take to puncture them. I've pulled inch-long thorns out of the MTB tyres that didn't get through and on both bikes feel no need to dodge patches of broken glass in the road (if it's easy enough to avoid I will but if there's traffic about I'm confident the glass won't cause punctures).

If you only ride on tarmac or other mostly smooth surfaces they should be fine, although if a bumpy ride is an issue for you then you might want to look for something with a little less protection from flats. If you want something with a slightly more aggressive tread pattern you could look at the Plus Tour or the Extreme. The Extreme doesn't have the same slug of plastic to protect it, it uses what I think they call a ceramic layer. I've put probably 2000 miles on my Extreme tyre without any problems.

An 1 inch nail could puncture even a car tyre.

Thanks, just reading a bunch of old threads and some people did comment negatively on the ride quality of the marathon plus. Got me looking at the Supremes but that's €100 for a pair! Not saying no, but I'd want to be damned sure of my choice before spending that much.

So just to clarify I only ride on the road. It's Ireland, so it's wet a lot of the year so grip is important. I'm a big dude (225lb) and ride 65psi on my road cruisers. Comfort is important as I currently get crazy vibration on a few badly paved streches. But speed and durability is the greater priority as I think anything other than a fat mtb with front suspension will have issues with that.

You might also consider Schwalbe Big Apples. They give a cushy ride, offer good puncture protection and are surprisingly fast. Never tried them in 700 though.

do your tyres have a liner in them of kevlar?
anyway if you go to sheldon browns former bycycle store on the net you will see panaracer tyres with kevlar lining. i am satisfied with them after trying a few other tire brands.
kevlar is the material, i believe used in bullet-proof vests.

I've been using the Schwalbe Marathon Racer and have had 7 punctures in 81 commutes (1,215 miles), all on the rear of course, and am probably going to go for the Marathon Plus next time I buy tires (tyres to you). Not all 7 were caused by failure of the tire, 2 for sure were caused by Mr.Tuffy's, so overall I'm okay with the performace of the Marathon Racer.

My tires are 16" though, since I ride a DaHon folder, so your results may vary. Oh, and they are quite slippery when wet, esp. on white painted cross-walk stripes and similar roadway markings.

Rick / OCRR

I have the same tires, and haven't had a flat in the year since I got them (about 2,500 miles of riding). Previously, I'd get flats every month or so with my stock tires.

Hey guys, I've been doing a lot of reading and am leaning towards the Marathon Supremes. Seems about as close as you can get to slicks w/ good durability and w/o sacrificing traction.

Two questions:
1. is there much difference between rigid and folding if you don't care keeping a spare with you?
2. i currently have 700x35. should i stick with that width or go 700x32?

Sorry, I only have experience with the folding so I can't comment on your first question. On the second question, note that the ETRTO width of the listed 35 is actually 37 on both the MS and the road cruiser whereas the 32 is a true 32 so keep that in mind.

Been using SMPs for almost 4 years. Since May/2008. Better than 25,000 commuter/utility miles now w/2 flats and 1 slow leak. Replaced the rear tire @ 10,000 miles. My main 'loaded' commuter is a CX bike. 700x28mm w/Forte extra thick tubes. My other commuter is a 80s Fuji Del-Rey converted to fg. I run SMPs on it as well. 700x25mm also w/Fortes. Around 6,500 miles in the same time span. No flats or leaks. Just replaced the rear tire. The combo is heavy, but when the object is to 'get there' I'll take the extra effort for the peace of mind in knowing I've got, arguably the best flat protection on the market. Even still I always leave my self an extra ten minutes, timewise...just in case. Usually, the bike is so weighted a few etra grams or rolling resistance doesn't make that much difference, anyway.

Btw, the SMPs are a ***** to mount, so a Kool Stop tire lever is a good tool to have around. They're only around 10-15.00USD...worth it! And the Fortes don't accept a patch very well, so it's a good idea to carry a standard tube or two one size smaller than your tires call for in emergencies. Along w/a patch kit,of course.

Given your size I'd stick w/35mm or maybe jump up to 40s. Whether you go w/t MPs or the Supremes they both offer great flat protection w/t Supremes having a little less, but having better wet traction. And having done the 'Grand Tour' of Ireland a few years ago I know all about riding on wet roads. :p

Vittoria Rando Hypers, or Rando regular/plus if ya want more flat protection. They're much less expensive, and IMO better than Marathon tires.

I have Marathon Plus 38cm mounted on my hybrid (Univega Via Carisma that has 700c wheels.) I got 38cm because i found a guy selling them on a closeout sale (he had a failed business.) They seem indestructible and I have never had a flat though on my road bike with cheap CST 25cm tires i get flats all the time and i hate those tires.

On other bikes i have one with Specialized Armadillo 25cm and one with Panasonic Panaracer Pasela 1.25" with Kevlar (that bike has 27" wheels and options are limited for 27" wheels.) I have had absolutely no problems with these tires. THe only ones i have that I hate are the cheap CST tires.

From my limited personal experience i am on the fence whether i want to get more Marathon Plus tires because they seem resistant and heavier than the Specialized Armadillo and Panasonic Pasella tires with Kevlar. I feel any good tire with Kevlar is probably sufficient for my local commuting / biking needs, i dont really need the extreme nature of the Marathon Plus. But I will never buy tires without Kevlar/flat protection again,. The only reason i got these cheap CST $20 tires on one bike is at the time i was only going to use that bike on a vacation for 2 weeks, but then i decided to keep it.

I have The the Marathon Supremes on my folder (20") and on my Velomobile (26") and really like them. They do make a humming sound at higher speed. I have actually come to enjoy it, sort of like " lets see how long I can keep the tires humming on this stretch.

Biggest difference between the rigid and the folding version is that the bead wire is made of kevlar in the folders, so that makes the tire and your wallet a bit lighter.

I have been riding on my Supremes (700x35) for about 7500 km including a trip from Vienna to Zurich. They are definitely more comfortable than the other Schwalbe tires I have used. They are holding up very nice, mostly I think because of the good road conditions here in Holland. The softer rubber picks up a lot of debris so they might not be the best choice for lousy roads with lots of glas and other debris: I could imagine you get less miles for your money compared to other tires in those conditions.

I have the folding type, makes it really easy to change tires. The guys at the LBS don´t like the rigid version of this tire so they don´t sell them. 700x35 seems more comfortable than 700x32 for big guys. The 700x35 have little rolling resistance at the 5-5,5 bar I keep them at.