Those Marathons - !

[simongt]

As many of us are aware, one of the 'pleasures' of having Schwalbe Marathons is getting them off and on again after a puncture.
By odd coincidence, I and the GLW both had punctures this weekend in our Marathons; both 26x1.3. Here we go I thought, two free fights with the tyres. However, much to my surprise, the Marathon on the GLWs wheel came off & went on again very easily. Mine as usual was an effort both ways. I am assuming it must have been to do with the type of rims on the respective bikes. Hers are Araya TM-820 double wall, 26x1.50, Ertro 559 with a 'square' profile. Mine are Mavic XM 317, 559x17c with a more raised 'Westwood' type profile.
As far as I can see, the problem with mine is getting the tyre levers under the bead enough to grip and thus pull the tyre wall over the rim. With the GLWs, it was a breeze.

Anyone with similar experience - ?

 

[Banjo]

I think some wheels are just bigger circumference than others. With the same tyres I struggled a lot with the crap Maddux wheels that came with my Synapse. Same tyres go on/off the new wheels with Mavic rims a lot easier.

 

[DaveReading]

Tyres that have some miles in then tend to be easier to get off/on than factory-fresh ones.

 

[Ajax Bay]

Anyway, it's surely Marathon Pluses that have the hard on/hard off reputation; not the simple and excellent Marathon.

 

[mjr]

Anyway, it's surely Marathon Pluses that have the hard on/hard off reputation; not the simple and excellent Marathon.

^^ This. Pluses have harder sidewalls. I don't remember marathons being as troublesome. Also, wider tyres are easier generally.

A common problem seems to be people using levers as if they were fixed where they pivot on the rim. Despite the name, they're not and you can slide the pivot point into the rim well a bit to make it easier to put the tyre on. Similarly, you can pull a bit as you lever a tyre off and reduce the risk of snapping levers. They should almost be called tyre hooks or tyre spoons or something.

 

[shouldbeinbed]

700x38 on the Ute bike and I've never had the sort of problems other people report with several sets of M+ and a set of winters.

The 18 inch green guards on my Birdy are something of a chore to manhandle tho.

 

[TheDoctor]

Getting Marathons onto the Brompton was all sorts of fun.
For somewhat sweay values of 'fun'.

 

[simongt]

As my Marathons are on their way out; hundreds of tiny stone cuts in the tread surface, I'm going to go back to 26 x 1.3 Conti Sport contact 2s.