sorry...round rubber things again.

[cacique]

Hi all,

Tedious newbie question coming up.

Though I have dutifully searched through all previous tyre threads I can't find exactly the answers i'm seeking.

So, lucky me, i'm off on a ride from the UK to the Swiss Alps in a month or so mostly across NE france. I will be on my aging but trusty Cannodale MTB pulling my equally venerable bobYak.

My tyre question then:

Need to replace my 26" x 2.0" Nokian AMS tyres. As these are no longer made, what should I run instead?

I am no stranger to touring on fat 26" slicks though that is making life hard for myself in terms of rolling resistance I know. But I run em good and hard to be fast; they are comfortable: seem to puncture less: (though the logic of that escapes me) and they avoid that skeletal look MTB's take on with skinny slicks.

What do we think of this list of possible alternatives:-

Conti's:
city contact reflex 1.75" or 2.1" about 700g and about 20 quid
contact reflex 1.75 690g also about 20 quid

Shwalbe:
marathon supreme 2.0" 40 quid
marathon extreme 2.0" 40 quid
marathon XR 2.0" 40 quid

Nokian:
ultra tour 2 PCR 1.9 about 600g I think 15 quid

Any comments on these; what else should I be looking at; why do lots of touring tyres have a all over tread and so called city tyres only water channels, sometimes just on the edges; and what is so special about Shwalbes they need to be so pricey?

So many questions....look forward to any opinions.

 

[willem]

Schwalbe are just very well made tyres with a lot of recent technology in them. They also cost more in the UK than on the continent. My suggestion would be to choose the 50 mm Schwalbe Big Apples. I think they are the ideal tyre to turn an mtb into a (road) tourer. You want quite wide tyres because they do not look silly on an mtb, because they give comfort to a stiff frame on long rides on bad roads, and because they give you grip on the occasional gravel roads. You also want them fast. The Big Apples are the fastest in the wide and sturdy enough for a holiday category. The Supremes are more puncture resistant and lighter for a lot more money. The Extreme is for rough terrain, but slower, and the XR is for very extreme trips into China etc, but it is very slow.
For me, the choice would be between the fastest but most fragile (the Panaracer Pasela 26x1.75), the sturdiest with even some mild off road capability (the ordinary Schwalbe Marathon HS368 in 50 mm) or the perfect compromise, the 50 mm big Apple. I don;t like the 60 mm BA: too mushy. The Big Apple is the closest you can get for a decent price to the balloon tyres pioneered by the French long distance touring cyclists of the 1930's like Velocio. They knew what they were doing. Biig Apples are also more affordable than the high tech Supremes etc. (20 pounds?). Conti's have a reputation for failing sidewalls.
Willem

 

[cacique]

Great reply Willem, thanks,

I had discounted the Big Apples as their description seemed to imply a beach cruiser tyre, no weight given and same price as Marathons, all according to http://www.bonthronebikes.co.uk/95-240847 I shall have to reconsider the Big Apples. Do you know the weights of the Shwalbes on this site? they are all folders so perhaps that may account for the high price.

 

[belairman]

Hi Cacique

I may be going off the thread slightly here. As far as tyres go, I have recently fitted Marathon Plus tyres to my 5 year old Ridgeback MTB as I ride mostly on the road, with the occasional green lane.

Another thread has suggested the M+ is spongy and slows the bike down; so far (keeping them well pumped up) I haven't found a problem, although that may be just because they are such an improvement in any case over the knobblies I had before.

I would be very interested in your "findings" re tyres, and also to hear about your journey because I am planning a very similar ride next spring, across France to Lausanne, along the north shore of Lake Geneva and finishing in the Alps near Champery.

I may fit "ordinary" Marathons for the trip because the Pluses are very hard to get on and off the rim and I don't want to be doing it beside a French mountain road. I know they are supposed to be puncture resistant but that's no guarantee!

I have a rough route planned (avoiding main roads) and would love to compare notes with you on that and/or to hear about your experience afterwards especially re good places to camp etc.

Send me a PM if you want to talk away from the thread

Cheers - Tim

 

[willem]

This is the one I would recommend: http://www.schwalbe.de/gbl/en/bicyc...ruppe=37&ID_Produkt=140&ID_Artikel=910&info=1 There is now also a lightweight folding version of the BA, but I would advise against it, as it will have more fragile sidewalls. The BA will be miles faster and much more comfortable than the Marathon Plus. It is sturdy and puncture proof enough for what you want to do. In various tests it has been shown to be one of the fastest rolling touring tyres. The 50 mm Schwalbe Kojak is faster, and so is the 45 mm Pasela, but both are more fragile, and imply a real choice for speed over reliability. Unless you want to do a lot of off road riding, there is no reason to choose anything other than a 50 mm BA (if you do, get the ordinary Marathon, or the Marathon Extreme for even further off the road). I have a shed full of touring and commuter bikes for my family, and I think I know what I like. Meilenweit in Germany sell them for 23.50 euro, or less than 20 quid: http://www.meilenweit.net/shop/product_info.php?cPath=105014_2629&products_id=26230
Willem

 

[cacique]

Leaning as now am towards the much revered Shwalbe I must decide either the BA or the Marathon Supreme: http://www.schwalbe.de/gbl/en/bicyc...=2&tn_mainPoint=Fahrrad&tn_subPoint=Tour/City

Do I need a high volume tyre like the BA for the contemplated use?

 

[willem]

No you do not need a wide tyre, but there is no harm, and it gives extra comfort and grip on gravel etc. But as I said before, stay away from the 60 mm BA, as I feel it is too much of a good thing. I did discuss the differences between the 50 mm Supreme and the 50 mm BA with a Schwalbe technical representative. The biggest difference is the price, and for that you get better grip on whet roads, a lower weight and better puncture resistance. Rolling resistance is similar, with some tests suggesting the BA has the lead. As for puncture resistance, I think from our experiences (so far no punctures on two bikes) the BA is good enough. I think that is an experience shared by others. Also BA longevity (up to 10000kms) is better than the Supreme (6000kms?). So altogether the Supreme is a rather more expensive technologial tour the force that brings some advances, but at a pretty high cost. Schwalbe obviously rate the improvements highly, and technically the tyre is indeed an achievement. I have decided that for our use the BA is fine, however.
Willem

 

[Kirstie]

My touring bike has been transformed by schwalbe marathon racers, although they are expensive. They are superlight, and roll really fast. I have just done a bit of off road on them, fully loaded, and they coped OK (eg forest road). I would recommend these tyres without reservation. You can get them up to 35mm.

 

[cacique]

If only the marathon racers came in 40mm size...s'pose that would defeat their purpose though.

 

[willem]

In 26 inch the Marathon Racers do come in 40 mm: http://www.schwalbe.de/ger/de/produ...ruppe=36&ID_Produkt=137&ID_Artikel=893&info=1
Personally I still prefer the 50 mm Big Apples as an alround tyre, but the 40 mm Marathon Racers or the 26x1.75 Panaracer Pasela's are indeed faster but also more fragile alternatives. Either of them will puncture more easily, and neither will last more than a few thousand kilometres, but yes, they are faster.
Willem

 

[cacique]

ok sorry i meant 50mm of course, all this mixing of metric and imperial is confusing!

 

[willem]

The 50 mm Big Appel Liteskin are as close as you can get to the Marathon Racer, I guess. But as I said, they are more fragile. The 50 mm Schwalbe Kojak is even faster, but also even more fragile. You take your pick.
Alternatively, the 26x1.75 Panaracer Pasela is also very fast, and more refined than the Marathon Racer. This is what I ride with light loads , and I am very happy with it. But I know from experience that I may puncture, and that the sidewalls are easily damaged.
Willem

 

[BalkanExpress]

My Cannondale MTB is fitted with Conti travel contacts for touring which I have found to be fast on the tarmac (comparison is with my trail MTB tyres not other slicks) and grippy on on-tarmac cycle trails. However I did puncture within my first 200km of using them. a large arrrowhead shaped piece of flint went straight through the Kevlar layer: unlucky perhaps but a reminder that 100% puncture proof is not to be guranteed.

One of the other participants in my recent tour had Big Apples on his Cadenza and they seemed to work well (the rider was 80 and always in front of me on the route!).