schwalbe marathon +

[HLaB]

didn't realise they were harder than other tyres to put on, although the bloke in the video made it look easy! dont fancy struggling at the side of the road to repair a flat, or are they as puncture proof as my LBS said. has anyone suffered a flat with these?

Nothing is p'ture proof (unless you have a solid tyre but I prefer air) but they are highly p'ture resistant

 

[Davidc]

Ordinary marathons go on and off very easily. Brand new the on time for mine was about 5 minutes each tyre including taking the wheels on and off. (700 x 32). M+ take a bit longer but done properly they're no problem.

For an LBS supply and fit though that sounds very good value.

 

[MacB]

If you haven't fitted M+ before then I'd be tempted to pay the bike shop price and get them to let you fit them under supervision/instruction. Or buy them online and fit remove a couple of times in the garage before you go out on them.

Having practiced with them, and Marathon winters, I can fit without levers or straps on all my wheels. If, or when, I do actually get a puncture in them then I expect the 'real' experience to be tougher, no doubt dark and possibly raining. Having had the practice I fancy I'll manage, without it I think I would fail.

 

[rusky]

Marathon winters are also a complete b*llocks to fit....especially as your hands are already cold. I favour multiple expletives at high volume, especially when I missed the square staple in the tyre (2miles from work, 13 miles from home)

Winter punctures.......!!!!!!!!!!!!!!........roll on spring

I snapped 2 tyre levers getting mine on. The bloke in the LBS said one should never use tyre levers to fit tyres. I was tempted to buy another & get him to fit it just to prove a point
This is the cheapest I have found for M+ including tubes http://www.discountcyclesdirect.co.uk/product_info.php?products_id=8227

 

[mattsr]

I've had Marathon + for the last couple of years without any punctures at all, however having watched the video above I thought I would have a go at removing and re-fitting them just to see how I got on. All I've ever heard is that they're an absolute B***ger!! What can I say- a couple of cable ties and twenty minutes later, the tyres are off and on again. I really found it no more difficult than standard tyres.

Thankyou slowmotion for posting the video!!

 

[chugsy]

I would say 20 minutes for regular tyres is a long time but for M+ I would say a good time! The last time I refitted my 700x32s it took about that but my 700x25 were a real bugger and I pinch flatted my tube and had to do it all over all in all over a hour.

I use a piece of velcro instead of a cable tie these days too - less likely to slip and easier to remove. I read a trick somewhere (probably here!) about heating tyres up in an airing cupboard to make them more compliant and chilling the wheels to cause the metal to contract - can't say it worked for me as it took so long to mount the 25s the temperature of both equalized...

Either way I would say everyone should mount their own M+ tyres for the experience. That way they'd know what they're up against in the field. If I flat on the commute I would probably walk the rest of the way or home depending which was closer. On regular tyres a tube swap would be 5 minutes tops but I bought M+ to avoid all that and so far I have (jinxed now!).

 

[Mad at urage]

I snapped 2 tyre levers getting mine on. The bloke in the LBS said one should never use tyre levers to fit tyres. I was tempted to buy another & get him to fit it just to prove a point
This is the cheapest I have found for M+ including tubes http://www.discountcyclesdirect.co.uk/product_info.php?products_id=8227

You shouldn't need more than one tyre lever to remove most tyres (I carry two, 'cos the roadside is always harder) and shouldn't need any to fit them; If you do, then something is wrong because the bead fits just inside the rim and you have a depth of wheel in which to displace the bead so that it will fit over the rim (see vid on page 1). If having trouble getting the bead over the rim, go back and correct what is wrong (or something will break, as you found). Unlike the Master in the vid, I always end up putting the bead by the valve in last, as then you can get maximum depth on the opposite side (the valve obstructs this otherwise).

The other day I put Marathon Winters (the ones with studs) on my wheels, removing city slickers. The slickers had been on a few years and the Winters had stood in a cold garage all year. Admittedly they were 26" but no pre-warming or tyre levers used for the job (note, you push the side-wall in to the middle of the wheel, don't try pushing the tread).

Price sounds about right to me, if you want someone else to do the grubby-hands bits!