Tubular tyre
 

Hello all, hope everyone is having a good start of spring. I wanted to ask if anyone has any suggestions on lightweight durable comfortable tubulars. Under 300 grams 25-28c will work. Something with most minimal rolling resistance. Is my best bet Conti 4000 ii? Any great values, or are tubulars just expensive relative to clinchers? I had vittoria Corsa speed 23c Punctured the rear at 100psi I’m about 180lbs too low? Any suggestions appreciated thanks

I'm guessing you'll have better luck here: https://www.bikeforums.net/road-cycling/

Generally more concerned with longevity and flat protection than lightweight here. Conversation here often derail into how little comfort is acceptable for extra flat protection, and such.

No specific tubular suggestions from me. I have often thought how much I'd enjoy the ride feel of a nice tubular, but am not willing to deal with them in goat head thorn country. Since most of my tours are at least partially in thorn country I am not likely to go tubular.

On the other hand I have been considering touring on tubeless tires after having wonderful results with them on my MTB.

BTW, there are tires that are reportedly to ride almost like tubeless. I have no experience with them but some folks swear by some of the models from Compass Tires. They reportedly have a super supple sidewall.

You want to tour on a 25 mm 300 gm tire? Good luck with that. Fixing a flat on the side of the road?

This is the touring forum, the riders here often carry their camping gear on their bikes, tubulars are avoided for that sort of thing. As Jefnvk noted, there is a more appropriate place to ask.

I’m looking to tour... okay say my weight limit is 2000 grams why tire would be fast and fit inside my frame 28c and under. Or do I need a frame that accepts wider tires? Thanks

Yellow Jersey in Madison Wisconsin has , as i read here, some decent low cost cotton Tubs..... get a dozen ..

then, when they puncture , devote a day to patching and sewing 10 of the 12...



...

I do not think anyone here tours on tubular tires, clincher is the norm. A few might tour on a tire as narrow as 28s, probably a few more on 32s. But because flat tires are something that you do not want to spend a lot of time and effort fixing, I do not think you will find anyone else that chooses to tour on tubulars. Also a couple tubes and a patch kit is a lot lighter and more compact than carrying spare tubular tires and the adhesive you need to mount them.

But if you really want to tour on a tubular, go for it. Just don't expect a lot of advice since very few people have teh knowledge that you seek.

I have two pairs of wheels in storage for tubulars, they have not been out of storage for over two decades and I am not sure why I still keep them.


Yellow Jersey moved out of Madison over five years ago, but I think they are still in business in Wisconsin. I used to buy my spokes for wheel building from them before they moved.

Oh well another death by Amazon?

Actually no. His rent went up more than he wanted to pay and he was doing more and more internet business, so he decided to drop the retail side of things since he could do internet sales from a low rent location. I do not know if he went internet only or if he still has a retail store and/or mechanic shop.

Another bike shop in madison that does a lot of internet sales moved about 15 miles west to a small town with low rent, but that shop still has a retail floor and mechanic shop. I plan to drop in there in a week or two to buy some stuff from him.

thanx

Have a look at Tufo Elite Ride. They're something like a tubeless tubular. That is punctures are plugged with a "latex" like liquid, similar to tubless clinchers. The 25mm measures out at 27+mm on my wife's tri bike. Claimed weight is 290 gr. Unlike many tubies they really hold air for a long, long time. I got them at a steep discount at at Western Bike Works/Bike Tires Direct.

For the record I toured on sewups (tubulars) half a century ago. They've improved a lot over the decades.

Yes, that is pretty much true. You may see someone touring on sew-ups now and then, but definitely not often.
I did half of my Southern Tier trip on 23mm clinchers and when they wore out at the mid point I put on 25mm. I was camping and cooking, but packing VERY light and found that they were okay. I have to admit that the 25mm were nicer than the 23mm on the Texas chip seal.

I did a 500 mile road tour on Clement Campionato del Mondo seta tubulars. Not one problem or flat.
I had one extra tire and a sewup repair kit.

Maybe look into some light weight, supple road tires and run them tubeless with sealant? It's common in the MTB world, so maybe it would work for a road bike? I'd do lots of research first, though. That would give you a really nice ride and save you the trouble of flats associated with tubular tires on poor condition streets.

See above. They were in a prime location on the highest rent street in the city, which is already known for high rent(could have probably just moved a couple streets over and saved a Lot), and they probably had more internet business than in store business because it was a crap store. Poor customer service and not very good. One of the mechanics was going to try to cram a course threaded bolt into my fine thread Dura-Ace brake caliper that had lost a bolt. Thank god I was standing there and stopped him! I also had the owner try to lecture me on why my shifters(which I didn't ask him about) sucked and how I should upgrade. They worked great, didn't have the problem he claimed "all of those shifters had" and were cool vintage shifters. I only went there because I had heard they were a shop into vintage bikes. I love bikes, and love local bike shops, but after two visits and two bad experiences, good riddance to that one. /rant

I spent 2 months fully loaded touring through Europe on tubulars in the 1970s. I did it because I couldn't afford a second set of wheels. That tour dramatically increased my skills at rapidly repairing flat tires and sewing them back up again. It also increased my resolve to NEVER TO DO THAT AGAIN! Tubulars are a completely crazy choice for touring.

I’d hope that technology has made tubulars more durable from 40+ years ago. Like you at the time I cannot afford new wheels.

You might be able to pick up a set of wheels on craigslist for ~$100. That’s not too much more to save before your tour.