captsven

A goat head is a thorn of some type that punctures tires. You have to feel the inside of your tire before you put a new tube in because the thorn usually stays in the tire.

We do not have goat heads in Michigan.

pazzmore

goatheads are the worst.


funny, we used to call BMXers 'goatheads' back in the day.

fetch

i dont know. i used to run my rear at 120psi i used to get a ton of pinch flats, cause i ride a lot at night and the roads here are really ****ty atm.

so i dropped it down to 110. and i haven't had a flat in about 3 months on the same tire. the road conditions/potholes have been getting worst too. *shrug*

though my experiences with bontrager tubes are hell. i used to have to pump the tire up every few days. now i run conti tubes and i havent pumped them in atLEAST a week.

El-ahrairah

you got more pinch flats with a higher psi?

I put ultras on my roadbike about a month ago, no flats. Im hoping they will stay in good enough shape for the transcontinental this summer-- SF to Richmond--well vaguely...I want to start with my back tire in the water and end with my front tire in the water.

fetch

i know, its weird. but i think it might have been the tubes, thats the only thing thats changed in my tires. other than the 120 to 110/115 psi.

anomaly

I'm 170 + bike weight and ride them at 90-100 psi. If you run much over that the tires can't deform to small rocks etc in the road. The rolling force gets messed up as instead of the tire deforming for the rock it forces the entire bike to be moved up and over the rock.

I have 500 or so miles on my pair and have not had a flat, though I'm not sure I would buy them again.

bonechilling

I'll just add my voice to the choir and say that I've been using the same two Gatorskins for two years, probably over 5000 miles, and I've only flatted a handful of times. And, in at least two of those instances, it was something stuck in the hardwood in my floor that caused the flat, not the road.

vantassell

I was flat free in '07. About 1700 miles. I'll probably get new gatoskins come spring, because I hate flats.

furiousbob

No flats in two months since I corrected the rim tape issue. As long as I keep em 120/130psi, pinch flats are non-existent.

LoRoK

I've had my gatorskins on all day, no flats!

Gyeswho

I've had two flats so far with only 200 on them from glass on them and they were small pieces as well. I know I should have checked to see if there was glass already but as far I'm concerned their not as legendary in flat protection. They do seem great on the skid wear though

clipped

practice your bunnyhops.

anomaly

I run about 80-90 in my rear (I am in the if you pump a tire up over 100 you cause it to have to move the entire bike up and over a small rock as opposed to letting the tire deform over it group) and have had no flats in about 500 miles. I ride in a city with horrible streets and have hit some huge potholes. That being said if I know something is coming I'm very good at quickly shifting my weight to pull pressure off the back wheel

chrism32205

I use armadillo's on my bikes, I've haven't had a flat since using them, thats been about 2000 miles of use.

CliftonGK1

Same diff in the naming.
The non-folder has a wire bead, the folding has a kevlar bead and costs a lot more.

passerby

No, I think it's just that it's portable unlike the steel bead version. But I learned the tire folding trick from mr. Sheldon brown so I have no need to spend that extra money.

soul05

https://sheldonbrown.com/video/tire-folding.html

this is how i got my tires from performance bike last time i bought tires.

adriano 

i just get the folding bead gatorskin without spending extra money.

mustang1

I first started using them 9 months ago and got my first flat 2 months ago. But that was due to a damaged sidewall (I must have scrapped a kerb or something).

I use 700x23, inflated once/per week to 120psi (I guess it's down to around 100psi by end of week), weigh 200lbs, ride 90 miles per week)

Although they're more difficult to install, I'm gonna stick with them as it gives me more riding time.

captsven

You have a bead and a belt.

The bead is what hooks into the notch in the rim. This is usually either wire (non folding) or Kevlar (folding).

Belted tires will have a Kevlar belt around the circumference for punture resistance.

ZiP0082

I used an Armadillo on my rear wheel for a while, and it was great. However, knowing it was twice the weight of a folding Gatorskin, I tried the Gatorskin route. The ride quality felt better, but a few months into it, a huge shard of glass in Harlem cut through the belt and into the sidewall even, forcing me to use the dollar bill trick until I could get a new armadillo. I wonder if Gatorskins are over-hyped as the end-all wheel.

PedallingATX

I have had gatorskins for like 1000 miles now and not a single flat. I used to flat about twice a month. Now, never. Great tires. Fast, too...I use them on my roadie and my FG.

Dion Rides

+1.

I have 25's on my FG and have a set of 28's ready for my roadie. Great tires, little flex and I also haven't been plagued with flats. It seemed all you had to do with Continental Ultras to get a flat was look at them.

I have WTB Slickasaurus 35's on my 29'er and they are brute tough and totally plush, but get no fashion points.

CliftonGK1

And the Armadillo would have sustained any less damage? Not to rain on your parade, but "huge shards of glass" will slice through any tire (kind of like steel belting wire scraps will puncture any tire) if you hit 'em right.