Fast commute tyre

[Russdee]

Hi There,

Just built my first commuter bike. Plan on cummuting to work (5miles) and have a 15 - 20 mile training loop home.

The bike is essentially a race frame (carbon/alloy) with flat bars and 700 x 23c tyre rear and 700 x 22c front (as I had them in the spares box) The frame is very "tight" with limited clearance, especially at the rear.

Part of the commute will be on off road paths mud and that granite/shale type stuff so tyres need puncture risistance but also would like a tyre with low rolling resistace for the fast road training bit.

Can anybody recommend a good tyre that will be suitable for both the off and on road bit. Maybe asking the impossible, just keen to maximise my training/commute time.

Thanks in advance

Russ

 

[upsidedown]

My Bontrager Racelite Hardcases are tough as old boots and do ok on gravelly surfaces. Being slick they're not brilliant but if your journey is mostly on the road they'll be good. Marathon plusses have a decent tread and have the legendary puncture protection.

 

[afl2]

Schwalbe Marathon plus You just can not go wrong.

 

[chugsy]

All agreed except you can't get MPs under 28mm...

I guess this is the road equiv?

http://www.wiggle.co.uk/schwalbe-durano-plus-performance-road-tyre/

 

[BlackPanther]

All agreed except you can't get MPs under 28mm...

I guess this is the road equiv?

http://www.wiggle.co...ance-road-tyre/

I have the Marathon plus in 25mm on the hybrid, and the Durano plus in 23mm on the road bike. It's not just the width though, the duranos are far far lighter at 340g compared to the Marathons at 580g. I've done 5,000 puncture free miles on the Marathons and they've still got loads of life in them. Only fitted the Duranos last week, so under 50 miles.....hopefully they'll prove just as puncture resistant! It's also worth mentioning that the Duranos are much better at ironing out the bumps than the tyres that came on my Specialised Allez, but they're primarily road tyres. The Marathons are the ones to go for if you're towpathing it, and the Marathon Plus tours if you're hitting off road often.


Regarding rolling restsiance Schwalbe state;


Marathon Plus
Punctures are a memory. The SmartGuard‚ layer made from a flexible, special rubber offers particular resistance to shards of glass and flints. Even a thumbtack cannot penetrate this protective layer. The SmartGuard belt does not increase rolling resistance. The MARATHON PLUS rolls as easily as a tire without protection.

 

[davehann]

halo twin rails

 

[Moodyman]

The Marathon Plus are a tough commuter tyre, but they're not fast. You'll feel the weight on long climbs and when setting off from the lights.

The Bonty Racelite Hardcase are very good and will be fine for towpath use if you use them in 28mm or wider.

I use M+ on the wish-to-avoid-puncture at all costs winter commuter bike, and the Bonty's on the nice weather commuter.

 

[vorsprung]

I just bought some Bontrager Race Lite Hardcases, 25mm from Bike+

They were extraordinarily cheap, £19.99 for two + P&P

 

[johnr]

halo twin rails

I had some of those. Liked them a lot, felt very stable, but started getting punctures after about 3 months.

 

[slowmotion]

M+ are excellent. They are not available at less than 25s however. For 23s, look at this brief thread....

http://www.cyclechat.net/topic/79760-road-bike-tyres/page__p__1604544__hl__armadillo__fromsearch__1#entry1604544

Ian was singing the praises of Armadillo All Conditions to me recently, but I have not tried them myself yet.

Good luck.

 

[Fab Foodie]

In 23mm - Bonty Racelight Hardcases (fat for a 23mm), fast, lightish, durable and amazingly P-resistant.

 

[buggi]

All agreed except you can't get MPs under 28mm...

I guess this is the road equiv?

http://www.wiggle.co...ance-road-tyre/

yes, you can, because i fitted 25mm MPs to my brothers road bike. i got them from Wiggle.

also, the rolling resistance is minimal, as i tried them out. the peace of mind that they are puncture resistant far outwiegh the distance in weight of the tyre (which i don't think is really noticeable). go for them.

 

[Russdee]

Thanks guys,

Lots of food for thought.

Cheers

Russ

 

[nickb]

I stuck with 23s for a good while before manning-up and trying-out 25s. The difference in comfort with almost no loss of zip was surprising. My current tyres are Schwalbe Ultremo DD and, although they cut-up quite badly, they've been remarkably puncture-proof. Having said that, they have punctured and I have a pair of Gatorskins ready to mount, but haven't the heart to ditch the Schwalbes yet.

Taking a good secondary or primary position on the road helps avoid gettings flats from the crap swept into the gutter and keeping a keen eye out for potholes will keep those snakebites at bay. So it is possible to do a daily commute on decent lightweight tyres but don't make my mistake of thinking you could get any sort of mileage from a pair of Michelin Pro Race

 

[marcw]

halo twin rails

I found twin rails tended to skid quite easily, not useful when you want to stop quickly. The sidewall also blew on my front tyre. Changed to 25mm Gatorskins which gripped much better but the ride was much harsher.