Schwalbe quality....?

[Alan O]

A couple of pics i just took of the sidewall cracks in my Landcruisers.... They are like this on front & rear and pretty much all the way round on both sides. You can see by the tread they've done very little mileage.

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Ah, I see - I thought you'd been referring to the OP's tyre problem. Yes, those sidewall cracks would concern me too.

 

[glasgowcyclist]

In 18 years of using Schwalbe tyres I've had only one failure, when a sidewall spontaneously blew while the bike was parked. My request for a replacement was granted without question.

 

[mustang1]

Used schwalbe marathon supreme a few years ago. Lovely, if a bit heavy, tyres. 700x35. Probably 5000 miles from a not-exaclty-lightweight rider .

 

[MountainSide]

I switched from Specialized Crossroads (the originals not the redesign) to Schwalbe Land Cruisers a few years ago. The first two failed very early on. One was replaced under warranty. However I stuck with them and the current set are working well, although the sidewalls on the front have tiny little pin-prick like cracks all the way around the sidewalls. Not like the photos someone else has posted, smaller but lots of them. They are ok for the cheap price but I don't rate them too high. On road is good but grip on trails/mud is nowhere near the crossroads. I had a spate of punctures last autumn but then nothing since. I would go back to the original Specialized Crossroad in a flash but I haven't researched the redesign and don't like the look of the tread.

 

[Rockn Robin]

Schwalbe quality isn't what it used to be.

I ran 3 or 4 sets faultlessly but have stopped using them now after a couple of issues, including having to return badly misshapen new tyres and a tyre that developed an egg and then promptly failed. The failed tyre was well worn but not bald and seeing how previous sets wore down until the yellow was showing through it should not have had a casing failure at that point in it's life.

Your tyre has loads of tread left. If you look at the part that hasn't failed you can see good, even tread depth and that is clearly a premature failure of the casing. Might be worth contacting the supplier if you can be bothered.

Quality in much today has gone down, and I do agree that based on looking at the thread ware, there are plenty more miles left. Perhaps a bad batch got through in production. I certainly would contact the supplier and the company.

 

[Dave 123]

[QUOTE 5399326, member: 9609"]and what have they said ?[/QUOTE]

I am being sent a new tyre FOC from SJS.

SJS will be talking to Schwalbe.

 

[jowwy]

For a tyre for hybrids, i really like the Landcruisers. I have them on one of my bikes and i like the way they roll both on and off road. Also, even though they're just the standard K-Guard ones, not had a single puncture with them. Where i was plagued with them on the previous Kendas.
But, and its a big but...... there are small cracks all around the rim of each tyre, like they've been constantly run at too low a pressure. I only fitted them less than 2 years ago and do very low mileage.
There is the fact that i fitted them to my Carrera with an Ekit fitted, and they're not supposed to be Ebike compatible, but the kit is so lightweight and so low powered i didn't think it made a difference.

Ebike compatible???
Whats the difference between ebike compatible and standard tyre then??

 

[Smudge]

Ebike compatible???
Whats the difference between ebike compatible and standard tyre then??

Dunno, i guess they're just tougher like the Marathons.
Although with legal 250w motors, i cant see that they put that much strain on tyres.

 

[jowwy]

Dunno, i guess they're just tougher like the Marathons.
Although with legal 250w motors, i cant see that they put that much strain on tyres.

I have to be honest here, but thats utter nonsense......my cube ebike came with standard schwalbe mtb tyres. No different to what was on my cube 650b mtb

 

[Smudge]

I have to be honest here, but thats utter nonsense......my cube ebike came with standard schwalbe mtb tyres. No different to what was on my cube 650b mtb

I agree, thats why i had no qualms about putting standard Landcruisers on my Ebike.

 

[Smudge]

I dont believe the fact my bike is an Ebike, had any bearing on what has happened to the sidewalls of the Landcruisers i fitted. I just think the quality of these tyres isn't consistent.
Having a look on the net, i've found other reports of this cracking on LC's. So i'm not going to risk buying them again.

 

[gilespargiter]

I'am finding the quality of Scwalbe tyres is not very consistent.

I have an old type Marathon on the rear and city slick on the front of a trecking type bike which have done over 4000 miles a great deal of it loaded over various off road terrain and I should think I can expect at least another 2000 miles of this. I would expect front tyres to last about two rear tyres.

On the other hand I have had a Delta cruiser ( a cheaper lighter tyre I know) develop an egg after only 2000 miles or so and was probably about 3/4 through it's wearing life at the time. I have had a tread belt start detaching on one - it was replaced.

I now have two Delta cruisers with only about 1500 miles on and they are developing cracks round them similar to those round Smudges landcruisers.

Personally I think their are a couple issues going on. The one with cracks round like smudges, I rather suspect are caused by the tread belt being stretched round the tyre carcass a little to much and applied at slightly to low a temp - so a manufacturing issue.
The "eggs" from badly made carcasses.
However I also think that some of the bigger suppliers buy a lot at a time and store them in poor conditions for too long. The solvents can gradually evaporate, making them more brittle. Also sunlight is one of the few things that breaks down rubber. They need storing in dark cool slightly damp conditions ideally. In the olden days they were wound round with yellow celophane to help achieve this.
I'am not really sure if that is what is happening - just my suspicions.

 

[Alan O]

However I also think that some of the bigger suppliers buy a lot at a time and store them in poor conditions for too long. The solvents can gradually evaporate, making them more brittle. Also sunlight is one of the few things that breaks down rubber. They need storing in dark cool slightly damp conditions ideally. In the olden days they were wound round with yellow celophane to help achieve this.
I'am not really sure if that is what is happening - just my suspicions.

I think your suspicions are almost certainly correct - and I'd forgotten about the old practice of wrapping tyres in cellophane (just like Lucozade) until you mentioned it. In the old days when tyres were sold by local bike shops, stock could be very slow to turn over, and packaging and storage are probably more geared towards the high turnover online suppliers these days. And smaller suppliers can suffer, as I suspect a lot of them buy up surplus stock from the big ones.

The tyre failures we've seen in this thread do look very similar to the way very old tyres fail (and very much like the tyres I discarded when I rebuilt an old bike of mine a couple of years ago that hadn't been used for 20 years). It's a similar kind of failure that happens when the rubber "dries out" and loses flexibility.

Storing spare tyres in a cool, dark and slightly damp place is something I learned from my grandfather many years ago, and I still do it now. I think it's particularly important if you stock up on tyres when you find them going cheap, as I do, as they're more likely to be old stock tyres to start with. I have a stock of tyres I got from SJS Cycles, who often have tyres in sizes that nobody else has (for example, my Marathon Greenguards and Gatorskins in 27 x 1 1/4), and I have an outhouse kind of place to store the spares, with no sunlight and definitely cool and damp. I've also bought tyres on offer and found they have an older tread pattern than current, which again suggests older stock.

I have to add that all the tyres I've bought from SJS have been excellent (and I expect they've been well stored for the time the company has had them), and it's reassuring that SJS has come up with good customer service in this case.

Oh, just add... It was "accepted knowledge" when I was in my teens that tyres left standing in the sun to get too hot had a greater chance of failing and egging.

 

[MountainSide]

I do also wonder if the way they fold them up for posting (figure of 8) can sometimes contribute. I know it is supposed to be ok but if they don't do it quite right or in combination with other factors. (temperature/age of stock etc) I suspect it MIGHT have been a factor for the first 2 of mine that failed very early.

 

[DCBassman]

Was pleased to see the Luganos I've just fitted were in a full-size box, from Tredz.