Fastest tire for Brompton ?
 

Blog - What is the fastest tire for your Brompton? - Freedom Folding Bikes

So , Marathon or Marathon Racer ?

Read your own post and figure out what you want..


I liked the Marathon Kevlar belt but they discontinued it.

Last 349 tires I bought were Primo Comet..

1st see if its even made: Marathon Racer it's No
Greenguard marathon 35-349 (16 x 1.35) is all they offer.

​​​​​​​Other than the Kojak.. tan wall just from Brompton Dealers.




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Kojak

Primo Comet

Scorchers

feisty bob , re-read my post and figure out what it says , and does not say .

Thing is that pro racers have dropped 23mm because 25+ is faster. But not according to that site... So we believe that site or the pro tour?

Also note that their tiny bumps on their drum would be larger on 406 wheels and the results wouldn't stand.

I'm not so worried about speed on a Brompton, more comfort of ride, and here, and I stress for me, the Kojak wins over both Marathons. In the end it's the cyclist who determines speed, anyway, just as it is with all bicycles.

The article was interesting, but mostly irrelevant. In the end, as seasoned Brompton riders know, speed is important, but more so in removing the rear wheel in the rain after a puncture!

I just had new Kojaks delivered for my Dahon. Since I mostly ride 700c clinchers and road tubulars, I appreciate supple tires. The Kojaks impressed me that they are definitely on a par with upper end clinchers and mid range tubulars. I'm looking forward to vacation rides on my folder. Thanks for confirmation that I made a wise purchase with the Schwalbe Kojaks.

The thread is called "fasted tire for Brompton" - which means EtRO-size 349. Your Dahon will probably use 406 tires. While the Kojak is still a good tire the 406 version differs somewhat from the 349 version in terms of properties (i,e, it is able to live with less pressure) and - more important - tire choice or tires is far bigger for 406. For 406 there are faster tires out there than the Kojak, i.e. the Schwalbe pro one or some Continentals. So while your choice is by no means bad it is a misunderstanding to get confirmation for your 406 choice from a dedicated 349 thread.

Ya know, you could just let the guy be happy with the tires he bought.

It is a philiosophical question if one prefers to be happy and unknowing (with the advantage not having to learn, to think or possibly to change as a consequence and the disadvantage not to achieve the best possible outcome) or rather to become knowing and aware that the current outcome may not be the best one possible - with the danger (but not the necessity) to become less happy by this finding but the possiblity to enhance and maybe (by having the choice between various possibilites and better knowledge) to not only achieve a better outcome but also a even higher amount of happyness than with nescience. ;) Your choice.

I am not telling any dirty secrets here: There are plenty of rolling tests of 20" tires and it is an easy find that even Schwalbe lists the Kojak withing their "Tour" category of tires https://www.schwalbetires.com/bike_tires/road_tires and not in their "Road" category https://www.schwalbetires.com/bike_tires/racing_tires which could be a slight hint....

Shooting the messenger is a common pattern but has never proven to actually be that useful. Only PastorBob can tell if he prefers the cushiness in combination with good speed that the Kojak offers or would rather have a faster, but possibly less comfortable tire (as was the question asked in the thread). A hint that his topic is - in opposite to his assumption - only to a small degree covered by the existing thread may be considered impolite or uncomfortable by you - if I was in that situation I would be thankful and would consider a hint like that to be very helpful.

Please accept my humble apologies for mentioning "406" and "Dahon" in a 349 and Brompton thread.

I'm not that well versed in the various wheel sizes of all the many different folding brands, let alone the differences in ride quality between sizes in the same model of tire from the same manufacturer. I just don't have enough real-world experience and thus should have kept my initial positive impression of the 406 Kojak to myself. I realize now that even trying to compare the 406 Kojak to higher end 700c clinchers or to upper mid range tubular tires, is neither helpful nor useful. Thus I have failed the BF community by introducing a wild card tire size and a different folding bike brand into the very specific thread, i.e. "Fastest tire for a Brompton ?"

If you would like, I'm more than willing to delete my post. However, you will need to delete your post as well. And finally I will need to delete this post in order to remove all traces of this misleading information about the ride quality of a 406mm Kojak on a Dahon. Just send me a PM and your wish will be fulfilled. :D

Sounds like an awful lot of deletions. I just wanted to be helpful. As you, I had assumed that the same tire model would show the same characteristics in different wheel sizes and was surprised to find out that at least for the Kojak that is not fully true, after having used the 349, the 406 and the 507 versions. Still I like all three and they deliver good bang for the buck.

If you just wanted confirmation of what you believed anyway and under no circumstances additional, conflicting information that could endanger your believes I feel sorry. And am absolutely willing to delete my post if that makes you feel better again!

Last Saturday I took my wife's 2 speed Ti Brompton out for a change. I forgot that it doesn't have a pump and got a flat on the Kojacks. Lucky I was near the end of the ride but I was out for more than 3 hours and could have had a real problem. I don't like the Kojacks and want to replace them. I have the 305mm Primo Comets on my Mibo Mastr scooter and like them a lot.
Question will the 37mm x 349mm fit on the Brompton. Will the bike fold down with 37mm tires?

Fixed it for you. :D
I didn't want confirmation. I was expressing that @avole 's post about his impressions of the comfortable ride characteristics of the Kojak (albeit on a 349mm wheeled Brompton) confirmed my initial reaction to examining a 406mm Kojak just out of a box and mounted on my Dahon's rear wheel. I've never ridden a 406mm Kojak, nor any sized Kojak.

I said I was looking forward to riding them on my next vacation. While not going into detail initially--- currently safe riding conditions for a small wheeled bike (IMO) do not exist here in the snowy mountains and icy roads of New Hampshire where the high temperature was about 20F this past week. My next vacation, where I can head to a warmer climate, might not occur until March. In the mean time, I might be able to take my Dahon equipped with 406mm Kojaks to the church fellowship hall and test ride them on a smooth interior concrete floor overlaid with industrial carpeting, and then come back and post my ride impressions. But would that be helpful (sic)? Probably not.

Therefore, no "beliefs" were expressed, implied, changed, altered, confirmed nor "endangered", by my original post and my subsequent replies to your quoting me--- even this one.

Personally, I thought I was adding to the conversation by expressing my initial positive impression of a Kojak after reading avole's post. But I guess not.

Yes, I would like to hear your impressions after riding around in the church. There aren't enough test rides done in churches, in my opinion, and the world is all the poorer for it. I look forward to the results, Pastor!

Oh wow, spellflames are considered bad taste on the internet for more than 20 years now. The more if they are targeting a non-native speaker. Thanks anyway, I'll try to get better.

Studded tires do exist for small wheels - they are made for this conditions.

In that aspect it is a shame that you do not ride a Brompton, as - following the initial topic of this thread - one of the fastest tires for the Brompton is the Strozzapreti which namewise connects perfectly to your forum-name and profession. :p I think it is unfortunately not available in 406, so possibly not for your Dahon.

Edit: Good news: There seems to be a 406-version of the Strozzapreti - perfect for a pastor on a Dahon.

Will fit ,no problems with folded size. The Primos were a common choice for the Brompton back in the 90ies of last century as they were the first high-pressure tires available in Brompton size. Things changed when in 2000 the Brompton yellow and Brompton green became avaialble and even more selection since then. In Europe the Primos used to be hard to get hold of during the last years but recently became availble cheaply. Availability has not been an issue in the US (apart from the pretty tan-wall version which afaik is no longer produced). However: In terms of puncture protection the Primos are probably worse than the Kojak.

What ever tire the guy who won the last Brompton World Championship Race was riding, had to be the fastest tire..

349 Marathon Racer IS made - it is the new factory standard tire for Bromptons since Jan 2018. And it is sold exclusively via Brompton, that's why it is not listed on Schwalbe's website. Same as with the folding Kojak in 349 (used to be freely available a couple of years ago but since a couple of years though Bromton only, same as the tan-wall Kojak).

I just went to & read the (Schwalbe) company website.. you got them in stock in Germany, fine.. tell the OP where to send their money..








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What company website are you talking about? And what is "them"? If you are talking about the Marathon Racer: Just contact your Brompton dealer - as they are the Brompton standard tires they should have them in stock as has any other Brompton-dealer: https://brilliantbikes.co.uk/brompto...re-35-349.html

Are these the Marathon Racer: https://www.schwalbetires.com/produc..._to_one=349-35

No. As their name says: One is the Marathon HS420 (often called Marathon green), the other one is the Marathon + (HS440). The HS429 is the Marathon Racer, but as said before: It is not listed on the Schwalbe page in 349 as it is exclusively sold to and via Brompton: https://www.schwalbetires.com/produc...any_to_one=All