rensho3

Pista Evo CS,

rensho3

My rear training wheel has a Tempo, and I like it, although it does ride rougher than the Vittoria pista evo cs on my disk; go figure.

I used to only use Sonderclasse, but about 3 or 4 years ago I had a run of tires that blew the sidewalls out for no reason while the bike was sitting in a room that had fairly even temperatures throughout the day. This happened even though I de-aired them to about 80 psi after each ride. Then the Sonderclass started coming with uneven treads, and the base tape would tear away. I gave up and started using Stehers, which, as noted in a previous post, I have now replaced with the Vittorias because 1) they ride nicer; and 2) they are much, much easier to mount.

queerpunk

i'd have expected their durability to be a bit more respectable than the sonderklasse, which are pretty fragile, no? unless we're talking about the revised sonderklasse, which is a bit more protected than the older one. i can't keep track of all of conti's model changes. i wish they'd just keep their recipe stable.

derekfulmer

Any opinions on the Clement Strada LGG for training?

Specialized has ton of tire offerings, does anyone have experience with any of those?

nspace

Still can't decide on new track tubulars, and I am running out of time.

Criteria:
Fairly Lightweight but not delicate race-day tire
Indoor only, relatively new wood surface in Milton
Mostly for training on the track but fit enough for weekly racing (can't afford 2 wheelsets at this point in time)
Gumwalls would be an added bonus so satisfy aesthetic desires (lugged steel Marinoni with low profile Ambrosio box sections)

I can't find much info on those Challenge Pista 320's, and from the images I can find online (which are primarily low-res product photos) I'm seeing some which have a fine tread, and others which are completely slick. I think I would be leaning towards a fine tread, but can't find any real world reviews. I was ready to just buy some road tires (Vittoria Corsa SC's) until i realized they are dual compound. It looks like their higher end Pista EVO CS tires are race day tires. So here is where I am at now:

Eliminated:
Vittoria Evo Corsa SC
Veloflex Record (not a good experience with these, bad luck maybe!)
Vittoria Pista EVO

Considering:
Challenge Pista 320, or 260 (tho they seem to be discontinued)
Vittoria Pista CS Elite
Dugast Pista (non-latex)

Any suggestions or advice is welcome!

queerpunk

Challenge tires tend to be a little bit lumpy.
Most tires will be sufficiently light.
If you don't want a delicate race-day tire then you shouldn't be looking at gumwalls.
Get the Pista CS Elite, or look at Continental Stehers.

nspace

I don't necessarily associate gumwalls with lack of durability, unless you are speaking specifically to what is available in gumwalls in track tires? My Veloflex Master clinchers on the road were awesome and lasted a long time. The tread wore out before I had any sidewall damage. Even toured on those suckers on badly maintained roads!

I would think sidewall durability isn't that important for a bike that is indoors 100% of the time. It doesn't even leave the track and lives in a locker, but maybe thats why my experience with Veloflex Record was so unbelievably sh**ty.

I will consider those Vittoria Pista CS Elite's and look into the Stehers! Thanks!

queerpunk

oh yeah, i forgot part of my comment, which was, "...but if you're going to be racing indoors, is durability going to be an issue?"

re: durability - when it comes to track racing, tires with unprotected sidewalls that are just the cotton, silk, or polyester (or whatever?) casing are definitely less durable than ones that are fully rubber. These tend to be race-day only tires, and that goes double if you're racing outdoors. (or, avoid 'em alltogether. at Nats in Rock Hill, I saw a lot of exposed sidewalls that had gotten shredded over the course of the week). Most gunwall clinchers that I've seen don't have just bare casing - they have colored rubber of some type or another.

gtrob

The wear will be very slow at Milton, however you can always get a flat. I flatted a CS Elite maybe 6 rides in, just got unlucky.

That said, I like the tires and would recommend them. The CS is garbage, the EVO will wear fast but to be honest I see guys get a lot of miles out of them at milton, its the stock tire on the Fuji. The elite cs is a good compromise. They are also pretty easy to mount.

dunderhi

I've been racing on a set of Challenge Pista Seta Extra at Ttown for the past month and I'm liking them. They appear to have decent combination of lightness and durability. Unfortunately, they cost more than most other tires.

nspace

Thanks! I thought I was going to get a lot of mileage out of the Veloflex Record's but I got unlucky twice, I guess

I am sort of leaning towards the CS Elite. Other than the one that flatted, has the other been ok? Any idea how many km's people are getting out of the EVO's?

Baby Puke

What about Tufo's? Does anyone use them? They seem generally very inexpensive.

carleton

I used the Tufo Tubular Clinchers this year on my clincher training and race wheels (when I actually made it to the track...rare this year) and they were great. The only clincher that I could pump to 150+ PSI. They are noticeably heavy, though.

I've never used normal tubulars from Tufo.

Baby Puke

They have some that are pretty light, and a track tire that's around $40. Curious.

gtrob

There would be less splinters if people would stop falling off their bikes

I remember a few people doing drop ins twice a week on the EVO. If you keep the pressure up and take it easy on the rollers, I could see getting a full oct-march season of riding 2-3 times a week.

But, its worth considering the cost of a flat. If the CS elite is $50 less, then I would recommend going that way as they are nearly as fast. The EVO feels very nice on wood and you can get spoiled, but it is a race tire and ideally is saved for that. If they are the same price or you find a deal on EVOs, then maybe.

nspace

Thanks! This is all good to know. Earlier this year I was doing 4-5 times a week at some points, so I reckon I may wear through the nicer tires faster than I would like. The cost of replacement is definitely worth considering. And the hassle of gluing with no backup wheelset.

Sounds like Elite CS may be the way to go. Fingers crossed!

queerpunk

my sweetheart uses the strada lgg on her track training wheels. no complaints.

Spec: I had the S-Works Turbo a few seasons ago on road wheels. Super nice tire. One of the best clinchers I'd ever used, actually... just so soft and grippy. Very thin and very much NOT durable. but quite nice.

taras0000

I've used quite a few of them. Great, underrated tire. I get by with about 5 Eastern European languages so the US rep told me to call the factory in the Czech Republic. So I did. Got a bunch of their World Cup competition level tubs for about $300. Those were great tires. One pair came in at 85g per tire with painted on treads. Their regular tubs available through retail channels are pretty good. I preferred them to the Conti Sonderklasse at the time. The S3 was on my all around wheels, and the Elite Jet was what I typically raced on.

Not as nice as the really high end tubs, but I liked them a lot.

taras0000

I liked the Specialized clinchers but also found them flimsy. Panaracer made a nice Stradius clincher that was reasonably light a few years ago, and that became my go-to clincher for racing and training. Super grippy and rarely flatted.

Baby Puke

Thanks for this. Is this the S3 you speak of?
Tufo S3 Pro Track Tubular, TUBULARS ROAD/TRACK

taras0000

Looks to be. Mine had Burgundy sidewalls like this - https://sdeals.com/media/com_hikashop..._s3pro_tub.jpg

Tufos are interesting in the fact that they don't have a traditional tube inside the casing. It's like a flexible coating that's possibly vulcanized/baked into the casing.

https://revomag.hu/wp-content/uploads...ingo_02_05.jpg

gtrob

My LBS puts those tufos on their builds and Ive ridden on them a few times (not raced) with positive feedback. For the midrange, cheaper, track specific tire, I think they're great, and are about as cheap as it gets for pista tires. Nice high pressure, ok grip on wood. They are heavier than say a vittora, but so am I...


I've also seen the track clincher they make that carl mentioned, which has a very high PSI rating for a clincher....if you feel you must.

nspace

2 x Pista CS Elite's ordered. Shipped out already from UK. Fingers crossed these work out well. Thanks all for the input and thanks gtrob for Milton specific advice

gtrob

If they are from veloshop, last time I bought CS Elite from them they sent me CS EVO instead haha. Be patient, they will come, just not in a hurry.

nspace

I've yet to order from them. This time it is from Ribble. Had pretty good experiences with them thus far. Usually they take a few days to process the order but they have already shipped this order out which was a nice surprise. With any luck I might have some tires by end of next week or early the following.