bobbycorno

Yet another vote for Primo Racers. If my bike had enuf room to run 26x1.25's with fenders (d**n those 650c highracers anyway), that'd be my tire of choice. Fast, smooth, good cornering, durable and cheap. Doesn't get much better in my book.

As it is I'm stuck with Conti Gatorskins (faster but not quite as smooth-riding) or Schwalbe Stelvios (harsher riding, slower and more expensive).

SP

Hank244

Schwalbe Marathon Plus (great tire for trikes)

megaman

Tried 'em. They roll well. Grip good on pavement. Soft ride when not at maximum preasure. However, they are not long lasting. Had a pair on the front of my trike. Got a small puncture flat on one. About 200 miles later the tire blew out in that area. Fortunately I wasn't riding at the time. Inspecting the tire I found the small puncture which had been fixed near the cord failure. Miles on that tire was about 1100. The cords simply failed and destoryed a good tube with it. The other tire lasted to about 1400 miles before I could see the cords. I didn't have a flat on the that one. Also it's one expensive tire at about $45.

rsbeach

Anybody know the Primo web address?

jeremyb_nz

I've been very pleased with mine so far on my commuter

cod.peace

My V-Rex came to me with mismatched tires, a Tioga in the front and a Specialized Nimbus in the rear, both with some life left. Once they're worn down I'm thinking of replacing both with the Vredestein Perfect Moiree. They're about $20 each, have a reflective sidewall, and are supposed to be pretty puncture proof. I don't know about their rolling resistance.

gmbat

Has anyone tried the Marathon Plus? I know they are very heavy, but seems like they don't flat. Opinions from anyone that uses them?

aenlaasu

My trike shipped with Kenda Kwest 20 x 1.5 all around and I had nothing but headaches with them. Constantly got flats which was a major pain 20 miles from home.

Last year I replaced them with Marathon Slicks. I'll probably be replacing those with the same next year. I've never tried the Marathon Plus.

megaman

I hope you can. These tires aren't made anymore.

Dchiefransom

I run a 26X1.5 Soecialized Armadillo on the back, with a 20X1.35 Marathon Plus on the front. If I go skinny on the back, it will be a Continental Ultra Gatorskin.

yayaman88

try Schwalbe Marathon Plus. kinda heavy, but almost bulletproof. Or get a BMX (110 psi) tire on the 20"

bkaapcke

I have a Conti Top Touring 2000 (26x 1.75) on the rear and a Schwalbe Big Apple (20x1.95) on the front of my EX Sport AX. Fatties for a more comfortable ride. bk

wologan

I've ranted about this on other postes, but oh well one last time. Everything below is in 406mm

Schwalbe Marathon: (Old ones HS308 with Kevlar). Never had any trouble, thousands of KM, few punctures.

Schwalbe Marathon: (New ones HS368 with Kevlar). Were such a disaster on my last expedition that I never want to use them again. Punctures, broken beads. grrrrrr. See my diary and Beijiingtoparis.com

Schwalbe Marathon Plus: Heavy, slow, but had only one puncture, and that was through the side.

Kenda Kwest 100psi: Using them at the moment. Fast, but a bit slippery. No special confidence in their puncture resistance. Exploded (really, there were bits of rubber 2m away) when used in combination with tyre liners. They are very cheap though, and fast.

Continental sport contact (New, with Kevlar): Have them in the shed right now. Look most intreaguing. Not confident about durability. Would really like continental travel contact, but they don't exist in 406mm. Had great success with 559mm version of travel contact.

Tioga comp pool. Loads of punctures, short life.

Vittoria Randoneur 40-406. Not available in Australia, but look like a potential rival to the marathon plus. (slow and robust).


So until something better comes along, I'm going to use the continental sport contacts, and carry a folding schwalbe stelvio as a spare. And use inner tube sealant.

shortboat

My recommendation is to buy smooth or slick tires. I hate the noise from tires with treads and there is no need to have a tire with treads unless you are off road or in deep snow.

BlazingPedals

Regarding the Continental Sport Contact:

I bought two when they came out, they seemed to work well at first, so I bought three more. So far, I've had sidewall blowouts on two and a third was becoming 'comfortably worn' when I got a blowout in the center of the tread. The rubber delaminated for about 6 inches and then I quickly (without me knowing it was happening) wore through the casing. The tire looked fine at the beginning of the 45 mile ride and was dead 30 miles later. I can't remember the last time I've needed a ride home, but I'll remember this one.

My inspection has shown that the reflective tape around the sidewalls (which I hate anyway) stiffens the sidewall in the middle, so it concentrates the flexing onto a spot between the tape and the bead. This flexing actually breaks the cord. all of my new tires were already cracked to the cord, even before they were mounted for the first time. If you use these tires, I recommend pulling the reflective tape off immediately and running them *above* stated pressure to minimize sidewall flex; maybe that way you'll get a relatively normal life out of the tires. It's what I've done, and probably why my third failure wasn't another sidewall blowout. Is it just me or do all Continentals die of sidewall failure before they wear out?

I have one Sport Contact mounted and one more brand new one. I'll use them up; and if they fail prematurely, I may try a Kenda Kwest next. Sport Contacts seem to last better than Stelvios for me, but I'm still not happy with them.

JTBiker

I have four JTB (side-by-side bent bikes) with 16 wheels in total... riding for 12 years and tried many different tires. Like the Primo V-Monster best but they no longer make a 1.5X26, only the 1.5X20.

Tried the Kenda Quest... ride like rocks and very difficult to mount. Switched to Primo Comets... like them a lot. Now have a set of Maxxis Detonators on one bike... like them too.

wologan

Thanks Blazing Pedals for the comment re the sport contacts. I usually carry a pressure guage, so will be keeping them at 85psi (the rated maximum). You and I seem to have slightly different version "sport contacts". Mine were made in India, and have no reflective tape.

I've just noticed Schwalbe have put out a fancy new tyre called a "duro plus". Looks interesting, they claim it lasts for ages, and there is none of that pointless tread of the marathon plus. But as usual not available in 406mm though

beaverstuff

I use a Primo Comet on the rear - 26 x 1.5 - great tire.
Would recommend to anyone. 100 PSI max.

I have a Kenda Kwest on the front (less stress) 20 x 1.5 - still rolling.

gnome

My favourite tyre on my commuting bent is the Marathon Plus. It's slow heavy and virtually bombproof (Just like the rest of the bike). I don't even bother to carry a pump.

On my RANS I had Primo Comets in the 1.5x20 size and will get them again. I like the wider tyre for the shock absorption on our horrible chip sealed roads. I got about 4000km out of the rear and over 5000km out of the front before they got too worn and cut and were puncturing all the time.

iconoclast

The forum favorites seem to be Schwalbe, Continental, Primo.
However, when my Kenda Kwest blew out big time, I went to all the bike shops and picked their brains.
The best bike shops recommended Specialized Armadillos.
I compared the Specialized construction to the Schwalbe, Continental, Primo.
I was very impressed.
If you want a solid, well constructed tire, it's worth a look.
And compared to my Kenda Kwest, the ride on the Armadillo is very smooth and solid feeling.
Also, if you get a flat, you get a free tube replacement.

djwid

I am a schwalbe fan. I am using Schwalbe Durano's on my raptobike.


I used Schwalbe marathons on my Trike for years and love that Schwalbe makes it so easy to find the tire you want, they carry tires for every size I have ever wanted (406, 451, 520, 559, 571, 622). When dealing with more common tires (571,622) there are other options but I still love Schwalbe.

LWB_guy

Here, durability and comfort seem to be the two highest considerations in evaluating tires.

I am planning for a 100 mile trip on my bent. If that goes well, I will plan for a 225 mile trip. If that goes well, I may consider longer trips. So I am also interested in durability and comfort. I will have to replace the tires I'm using now. So I have carefully noted the tires with which posters seem to be pleased.

I understand Schwalbe tires are designed in Germany and made in Indonesia. (world's 3rd largest democracy). If you know the country(ies) of origin of the other tire brands, I'd be interested in knowing.

BlazingPedals

Hah! Another resurrected thread! Thanks Iconoclast.

I expect reasonable durability, but I want a fast tire that doesn't fall apart in a thousand miles. I generally get 3000-3500 miles to a tire, which is OK for a racing tire; but would be considered short-lived to some of you. Comfort? OK, a distant third on my priority list.

oddball

I use Primo Comet Kevlars. 1.5" wide front and rear (26-20 wheeled 'bent). In the winter I switch the rear to a Bontrager Satellite Hardcase. I like the Comets but they are little more susceptible to flats when riding in the rainy winters here. Once those little glass shards on the road get wet they will eventually slice their way through the Comets. When I check the Bontrager after a winter ride there will be many little pieces of glass stuck in them but no flats. I leave the Comet on the front all winter, since it is fairly loaded and I only run it at 70 psi.

cod.peace

I've just switched to a Kojak (26x1.35) on the rear of my V-Rex. So far so good - it rides smoother and with more comfort at 95 psi than the old Specialized Nimbus did at 80.