Schwalbe Supreme v Marathon Plus

[Kingy]

I commute in on a 'standard' roadbike in the Peaks, so all road and no tracks/ paths (but plenty of hills! ). I used Schwalbe Durano Plus 23's on my Fondriest 'commute' bike. It is an old racing frame so only had clearance for 23's. They have the 'smartguard' protection of the Marathons, but in a lighter tyre with more conventional 'cut slick' tread. My Fondriest died just before Christmas and I've replaced it with a Cannondale Synapse. That came with Schwalbe Lugano 25's which saw two punctures in the first week commuting, so I fitted the Durano Plus again (but 25's this time) and two weeks on, just under 300 miles ridden and I've had no punctures. I like the Duranos and tend to run them at +/- 90psi. I know I could go lower for better comfort (I find them fine as they are), but I'd rather run the slightly higher pressure to ensure best puncture protection.

 

[EasyPeez]

I have 35mm Marathon Deluxe on my CX (mainly used for commuting on bad roads and glass-strewn cycle paths). Only done 600 miles on them so too early for a proper assessment, but no punctures so far, including when I found a pin badge fully embedded in one of them.
The grip is good in all weathers and they give a comfy ride, they're significantly lighter than standard Marathons (and even more so than M+) with the same 5/6 Green Guard protection.
I daresay they don't roll as well as the Supremes, which I came close to buying, and they are a bit heavier than them, but in the end I just didn't want to be faffed changing tubes on dark, wet commutes so I'm happy to make that performance sacrifice.

 

[Blurb]

Just to confuse matters further, Schwalbe have updated the Supreme:

http://www.schwalbe.com/gb/tour-reader/marathon-supreme.html

http://www.bicyclerollingresistance.com/tour-reviews/schwalbe-marathon-supreme-2016

 

[RoubaixCube]

I commute in on a 'standard' roadbike in the Peaks, so all road and no tracks/ paths (but plenty of hills! ). I used Schwalbe Durano Plus 23's on my Fondriest 'commute' bike. It is an old racing frame so only had clearance for 23's. They have the 'smartguard' protection of the Marathons, but in a lighter tyre with more conventional 'cut slick' tread. My Fondriest died just before Christmas and I've replaced it with a Cannondale Synapse. That came with Schwalbe Lugano 25's which saw two punctures in the first week commuting, so I fitted the Durano Plus again (but 25's this time) and two weeks on, just under 300 miles ridden and I've had no punctures. I like the Duranos and tend to run them at +/- 90psi. I know I could go lower for better comfort (I find them fine as they are), but I'd rather run the slightly higher pressure to ensure best puncture protection.

I run my duranos at 110psi - if its wet outside then i might drop to 100psi

 

[Kingy]

I run my duranos at 110psi - if its wet outside then i might drop to 100psi

I used to run the 23's a min of 100psi, but I run the 25's a little less.
No issues so far (but only about 400 miles on the new 25's) ... which included running over a car wheel cover whilst being 'squeezed' in traffic this morning and not spotting glass from a bump last night at a junction (pitch black and lights only picked up at last minute). The 'smartguard' protection really is impressive. My Conti GP4000 II (on my other bike) would have been shredded!

 

[mustang1]

With the schwalbe brand, I've only used marathon supreme 700x35, typically run at 80psi and inflated every 2 to 4 weeks. Rider+bike+luggage =105kg app.

Never had a puncture thru year-round Commutes in any weather, always used on road with occasional off road.

Grip is good (I like taking tight corners), ride comfort is fine. Forget about accelerating before the lights go red: they are heavy tires.

 

[BEHMOTH66]

I have had Marathon pluses on my Hybrid from day 1 700x28 and have nothing but praise for them hit a couple of broken glass bottles while cycling through central Manchester and never had a puncture whether I haven't noticed any lack of grip but maybe because its all I'm used to. Bike+rider about 115kgs and have my tyres at 90PSI all the time. again I still hit a fair old whack of speed but I don't know how fast I could go on different tyres.

 

[potsy]

they are heavy tires.

You've obviously never ridden M+ or you wouldn't be saying that about the Supremes

 

[mjr]

Was just reminded of this last night: when it gets below zero, M+ feel like solid tyres

 

[Rohloff Boy]

Just bought a pair of Schwalbe Marathon Plus 26" x 1.5" from Spa Cycles, at £24 each I thought the price was good as there was no delivery charge.

But I notice that they are January 2014 tyre's, and Protection Level is given as Level 6, and have since learned that the latest model is Level 7, also there is a weight difference, the tyre's I got weigh in at 919gm whilst the 2017 listed model is 870gm.

To be fair, I am not that bothered, the tyre's ride well at 95 psi, although I have not been able to work out how the protection has gone from 6 to 7, as there is no difference in the 5mm Blue protection insert, I can only think that maybe Side Wall protection is better on the 2017 versions.

Any thoughts greatly appreciated.

 

[Moodyman]

I wouldn't fret over the puncture protection level (6 or 7). They are the toughest 'normal' tyre you can get.

However, 1.5 inch width is decent and I would not have thought they need be 95 PSI. I'd be more 75-80 psi range for comfort and grip.

 

[Rohloff Boy]

Yep, will put the 6/7 thing out of my mind, the bike rides real well, and I can see these tyre's lasting a good few years before I need to replace them.

No doubt by then, new Schwalbe marathon plus tyre's will be offering protection rated at 11!