Yet Another Puncture - Tyre Recommendations Needed

[delb0y]

I seem to get a puncture every time I go out recently. I must be in to double figures this year and recently I've punctured every ride. So I need a recommendation for some tyres with serious puncture resistance. I've been using Continental Gatorskins - I think they might be actually be Ultra Gator Skins and in fact I've just bought a new one as the sidewall on the last one let go. The front one needs replacing now - not done that many miles but again the sidewalls look a little worn - so I wondering if there's anything that has reasonable rolling resistance but superior puncture resistance. I ride a Tricross, mostly on the road, and have been using 28mm tyres. Another factor is that the Gatorskins are so tight on the wheel (Shimano Tiagra wheels - although I've put the original Specialized set back on for now) that trying to take the tyre off is a Herculean task. In fact I snapped a Park tyre lever today and bent another, so if the recommendation is for a "less tight" tyre that would be good too. Oh, and if anyone can recommend a decent set of tyre levers that are a bit tougher than the Park ones that would be good, too.

Many thanks
Derek

 

[cyberknight]

Marathon plus, nuff said .

 

[ianrauk]

If you are continually having punctures on most rides then it tells me that you are not looking after your tyres enough. You really need to check your tyres before and after every ride. Dig out any little bit of grit, flint, stone, glass, whatever that is embedded in the tyre. Failure to do so and anything sticking to the tyre will work it's way in and cause a puncture. This is especially important after wet weather rides and if you have been riding off road, cycle paths etc. Get into the habit. Takes a few minutes but those few minutes will save you some grief later.

Another good tip is to keep out of the gutters, that's where all the crap thrown by car tyres go. Avoid. Also make sure they are pumped up to the recommended PSI. Vittoria have an app where you can tap in your tyre info and weight and will give you the recommended pressure. Not sure if Continental have one.

I have had 5 punctures this year, 2 of those due to potholes. Which looking at my mileage is a very good return.

As to Park Tools levers, if you mean the blue ones, they are the dogs danglies, never failed not to get a tyre off a rim with them.

 

[cyberknight]

If you are continually having punctures on most rides then it tells me that you are not looking after your tyres enough. You really need to check your tyres before and after every ride. Dig out any little bit of grit, flint, stone, glass, whatever that is embedded in the tyre. Failure to do so and anything sticking to the tyre will work it's way in and cause a puncture. This is especially important after wet weather rides and if you have been riding off road, cycle paths etc. Get into the habit. Takes a few minutes but those few minutes will save you some grief later.

Another good tip is to keep out of the gutters, that's where all the crap thrown by car tyres go. Avoid.

I have had 5 punctures this year, 2 of those due to potholes. Which looking at my mileage is a very good return.

As to Park Tools levers, if you mean the blue ones, they are the dogs danglies, never failed not to get a tyre off a rim with them.

I have to agree with the above bacause today was a bit of a doozy, 3 punctures in less than 3 miles and ended up walking 6 miles home thnkfully in MTB type spd rather than spd- l .
On the 1st flat i checked the inside of the tyre, found a splinter which i removed, the second flat i found nothing and on the 3rd i thought "Feck it " and continued walking as i had used up my spare tubes and obviously patching was not going to make any difference.
In the comfort of my home i was able to check the tyre properly and found an embedded shard of glass i could not see or feel by streetlight.

 

[Wolfy]

Marathon Plus's for me.

 

[Paul.G.]

+1 for marathon plus

 

[delb0y]

Cheers guys. Marathon Plus are sounding good! Yep, the Park tyre levers were the blues ones. Perhaps it's me - but I've always struggled with them and the tips on two of the three have straightened under pressure recently and today one snapped. But the tyre was on rather tight. I shall start taking much more care of my tyres henceforth!

 

[markharry66]

Hi sounds to me as though its not going to matter what you add to your bike in terms of tyres. Sounds as though your break pads maybe rubbing against your tyres. Which will cause the sidewall to rub. Causing punctures.
Personally if it was me I would check your breaks before buying new tyres.

 

[buggi]

i use schwalbe marathons too (not the plus) for the last two years. I've only changed the tubes once and that was coz i thought the rubber might be deteriorating after 18 months (I've never gone that long before!!) so decided I'd rather do it in comfort than on the road.
they too are a bugger to get off. One trick is to push the tyre deep into the rim with the palm of your hand, and then lever it off on the opposite side where there now should be a little give. I didn't go for the marathon plus bcoz the marathons were hard enough to get off at the time and i thought the plus would be worse, but this little trick I've since picked up helps, so next time i replace i may upgrade but I'll see how much money I've got as I've not had any unplanned deflations in 2 years on the normal marathons so they are doing the job fine.
its worth noting that you should carry a spare tube in case your valve breaks.

 

[Aperitif]

Hi sounds to me as though its not going to matter what you add to your bike in terms of tyres. Sounds as though your break pads maybe rubbing against your tyres. Which will cause the sidewall to rub. Causing punctures.
Personally if it was me I would check your breaks before buying new tyres.

My immediate suspicions too. It is surprising just how many people don't realign brake pads but just keep on squeezing... Chain 'slack' correction on a single speed bicycle is the classic way to accelerate a sidewall problem and it is such a pity as the tyres are awkward to 'repair' as a 'get you there' measure.
My fixed commuter is always loaded with 25mm Marathon +. Always dependable. Keep the pressure up to 7-8 bar (8 for me because I am 'buy one get one free size) and, as Ian says earlier - clean them out regularly - although M+ are "quite resilient" (And they have a nice reflective sidewall, which helps at this time of year).
Spa Cycles is a nice friendly place to get them.
They made a video on how to fit them too!

Tyre levers? Whatever you need. The Park blue ones are ok, but for the past few years I have preferred the Bontrager 'Reds' as the most subtle of the prisers - just the way it 'feels' to me, I guess.

Evans etc flog these.
And, finally, my commute is one bumpy, pothole ridden nasty ride, and my Marathon + tend to 'square off' rather than need repairing! There is another photo lurking somewhere, but I can't find it...I have, however, been wasting an hour looking through various albums! Good luck.

 

[youngoldbloke]

+1 for the Bontrager tyre levers - they show up in the grass too. I use Gatorskins (folding). Just 1 unplanned deflation this year (club meets for rides in a layby much frequented by local yoofs who enjoy nothing more than smashing bottles as an end to their evenings fun). Can refit the tyres with thumbs only no problem - Aksium rims. However chap I ride with has had problems with Gatorskin sidewalls - bad batch maybe? Think his were wire bead.

 

[Biscuit]

Also worth checking your rim tape is still good. You could be getting flats from the spoke or spoke hole in the rim rubbing against the inside of the tube.

 

[Cyclopathic]

Cheers guys. Marathon Plus are sounding good! Yep, the Park tyre levers were the blues ones. Perhaps it's me - but I've always struggled with them and the tips on two of the three have straightened under pressure recently and today one snapped. But the tyre was on rather tight. I shall start taking much more care of my tyres henceforth!

Personally I'm a fan of the robust metal tyre levers. In some cases I have altered them a bit, bent them a bit more to make for better purchase and I have given them a once over with a fine file and some emery paper to make sure that they don't p' my tube. That said I did grow up using spoons to get tyres off.

 

[delb0y]

Yes, the Gatorskins I had were wire beaded ones - the one I just bought was a folding tyre and went on much easier (although I put it on a different wheel so it may just have been an "easier" wheel tyre combination"). Just checked my brake block alignment and, if anything, the alignment was too far the other way. I must have been losing some braking power because one of the blocks was too low.

Thanks for the video link - next time I'm struggling I shall have a go at that! ;-)

 

[4F]

Having used Marathon + before whilst they do the job, they weigh a ton, not good on rolling resistance and are a ******* to get on and off. My tyre of choice at the moment are Bontrager race lite hardcase's