Touring tire ... recommendation

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In article said:

I ride a Cannondale touring bike. A bike shop said I should look into new
tires. The ones I have on are 700c x 38

Any thoughts?

_ Where are you riding and how much are you carrying? What
problem are you trying to solve?

_ Booker C. Bense

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"Booker C. Bense"
<[email hidden]> wrote in
message news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

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In article <[email hidden]>, TomCAt <[email hidden]>

Quoted message said:

I ride a Cannondale touring bike. A bike shop said I should look into new
tires. The ones I have on are 700c x 38

Any thoughts?

_ Where are you riding and how much are you carrying? What
problem are you trying to solve?

_ Booker C. Bense

=================================================================================

No problem. Just asking for a recommendation. I tour and when I am on the
road I am carrying quite a bit of weight. As for where I tour +=+==+=
Everywhere. On road, off road, up road down road.

Mostly, on the pavement though.

Thanks, TomCAt

There's many durable, but not overly heavy tires now available.
The selection is far better than it was a few years ago. Most people
who go out on long trips don't want to be dealing with frequent flats
and tire failure, just for the sake of a bit more speed.

I recently went through many choices of tires and picked the
Bontrager Race Lite Hardcase in the 700 X 32 size. This is a large
32mm, that looks more like 35mm. You can also get them in 28mm. Don't
let the name "Race Lite" mislead you. They are Kevlar belted, weigh 440
gms (in 32mm size) and feel very sturdy. They take 110 lbs. psi and
feel fast for their type. I've used them for 10 days and no flats yet.
I think they have a very good combination of features for touring and
other times when you're carrying some extra weight. There's also a
lighter and faster tire by Bontrager called the Race Lite, without the
"hardcase" designation, that is more suitable for training at higher
speeds.

If you're looking for the best in solid resistance to punctures and
cuts and won't be going at more than moderate speeds, the Specialized
Infinity Armadillo is said to be good.

Steve McDonald

TomCAt said:

I ride a Cannondale touring bike. A bike shop said I should look into new
tires. The ones I have on are 700c x 38

What did the bike shop say was wrong with your current tires?
(Are they worn out?)
--
Ben Pfaff
email: [email hidden]
web: http://benpfaff.org

"TomCAt" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I ride a Cannondale touring bike. A bike shop said I should look into new
tires. The ones I have on are 700c x 38

I can only repeat my usual recommendation of the Continental Top Touring
2000. I have had many thousands of puncture-free miles on them, and they are
very durable. No one I know who uses them has been sorry.

I wonder if your shop thinks you'd be happier on narrower tires? I use
700x32, and they seem to me to be an excellent combination of robustness
(most of my miles are on poorly maintained, debris-strewn urban streets),
comfort, and speed. When loaded down I add as much as 240lb to the weight of
my bike, and I'd be uncomfortable with anything narrower.

IIRC, the TT2k comes in 28, 32, and 37 widths.

RichC

In article <[email hidden]>, TomCAt <[email hidden]>

Quoted message said:

I ride a Cannondale touring bike. A bike shop said I should look into new
tires. The ones I have on are 700c x 38

Panaracer Pasela 700 x 37
http://www.rivbike.com/webalog/tires_tubes/10050.html
http://harriscyclery.net/site/itemdetails.cfm?ID=1730&Catalog=39

Continental Top Touring 2000

Make that 2 votes for the TT2000. I just put 'em on this summer (going
from 25mm Michellins), and I'm a lot more confortable, no flats yet -on
dirt roads now as well, and the rolling resistance seems to be lower,
as I'm 2-5MPH faster downhill.

And they seem to be much quieter too.

Eric

Quoted message said:

No problem. Just asking for a recommendation. I tour and when I am on the
road I am carrying quite a bit of weight. As for where I tour +=+==+=
Everywhere. On road, off road, up road down road.

Mostly, on the pavement though.

Thanks, TomCAt

Heh TomCat,

What kind of rims are you running with currently?

This will have some bearing as to how easily one can mount a tire to a
rim, since not all rims are made alike and neither do all tires.

But having said that, I love my Schawlbe Marathon tires -- smooth
riding and puncture and sidewall cut resistant. This was not the case
with both my ex- Conti Touring 2000 as well as my now almost worn down
Conti Ultragator Skin which showed exactly the same sidewall wear as
the TT2000.

David.

"David" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Heh TomCat,

What kind of rims are you running with currently?

This will have some bearing as to how easily one can mount a tire to a
rim, since not all rims are made alike and neither do all tires.

But having said that, I love my Schawlbe Marathon tires -- smooth
riding and puncture and sidewall cut resistant. This was not the case
with both my ex- Conti Touring 2000 as well as my now almost worn down
Conti Ultragator Skin which showed exactly the same sidewall wear as
the TT2000.

David, I'm interested in this TT2k's sidewall thing, since there seem to be
two schools: those few who report it, and the majority who get many
thousands of miles with no problems. What I wonder about is tire pressure:
Continental recommends what seems to me to be unusually low pressures on
these tires, and I wonder if following those recommendations leads to a
softer tire with more sidewall flex.

What size were your TT2k's, and to what pressure did you inflate them? (For
the record, I use 700x32, with recommended PSI of 75. I inflate them to 95.
I got over 6000 miles from my last pair, which are actually still
serviceable and still installed on my spare wheels.)

RichC

David said:

Quoted message said:

No problem. Just asking for a recommendation. I tour and when I am on the
road I am carrying quite a bit of weight. As for where I tour +=+==+=
Everywhere. On road, off road, up road down road.

Mostly, on the pavement though.

Thanks, TomCAt

Heh TomCat,

What kind of rims are you running with currently?

This will have some bearing as to how easily one can mount a tire to a
rim, since not all rims are made alike and neither do all tires.

But having said that, I love my Schawlbe Marathon tires -- smooth
riding and puncture and sidewall cut resistant. This was not the case
with both my ex- Conti Touring 2000 as well as my now almost worn down
Conti Ultragator Skin which showed exactly the same sidewall wear as
the TT2000.

David.

Were those blackwalls?

Quoted message said:

David, I'm interested in this TT2k's sidewall thing, since there seem to be
two schools: those few who report it, and the majority who get many
thousands of miles with no problems. What I wonder about is tire pressure:
Continental recommends what seems to me to be unusually low pressures on
these tires, and I wonder if following those recommendations leads to a
softer tire with more sidewall flex.

What size were your TT2k's, and to what pressure did you inflate them? (For
the record, I use 700x32, with recommended PSI of 75. I inflate them to 95.
I got over 6000 miles from my last pair, which are actually still
serviceable and still installed on my spare wheels.)

RichC

Rich,

Mine were a pair of 700x32c pumped up to the recommended pressure. I
usually add another 10% more air if I carry a heavy load on the rear.

I seemed to have more problems on the rear than on the front, but
always related to flats due to a sidewall cut -- you know this cause
you'll hear a pop and then a sudden quick deflation. Had 2 in the
first wet month, fixed them with tire boots, and the last deflation
pretty much wrote the tire off. My commute to work is the worst,
especially during wet winter months. So, I have give the TT2K some
credit for its rather short lifespan.

I had a bit better luck, however, with the Ultragator skin tires, but
they puncture too easily compared to the TT2K. Out of frustration of
constantly repairing flats, I went and gotten a pair of Marathon which
came highly recommended by a number of German and Austrian cycle
tourists I met. They say they don't ride with anything else. The
initial experience so far with the Marathons is quite good. Only 1
flat caused by a couple of industrial staples (one got through the
lining where a few others didn't), and the sidewall still stay tough.
Very impressed.

David.

The correct spelling of these tires is "Schwalbe".
Their website says the Marathon XR tire costs 37 Euros, which is close
to $50. U.S. They look sturdy and heavy, from the pictures and
descriptions they have there:
http://www.schwalbetires.com/marathon_xr.html
They speak of using "aramid" fiber, which is the generic equivalent of
Kevlar. Perhaps the patent on Kevlar has expired, as it was developed
by DuPont in the 1960s. There are several sizes of them, including one
not seen often for this type tire, of 700 X 30, about the same as 1 1/8"
width. Does anyone have some remarks about their performance, based on
first-hand experience, more detailed than to just say that they're good
and durable?

Steve McDonald

Rich Clark said:

"TomCAt" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I ride a Cannondale touring bike. A bike shop said I should look into new
tires. The ones I have on are 700c x 38

I can only repeat my usual recommendation of the Continental Top Touring
2000. I have had many thousands of puncture-free miles on them, and they are
very durable. No one I know who uses them has been sorry.

I wonder if your shop thinks you'd be happier on narrower tires? I use
700x32, and they seem to me to be an excellent combination of robustness
(most of my miles are on poorly maintained, debris-strewn urban streets),
comfort, and speed.

I usually have 32-25 on my tourer, but I was surprised at how much
cushier my daughter's (Cannondale touring bike) was with the 38s. She
claims it's as comfortable as the 26 x 2-1/4 or so on her old mountain
bike when riding some of our outstanding pavement jobs
(indistinguishable from out standing in the field when you ride over
them), and it seems to roll about as well as mine.

I still get more gravity assist going down hills, though. :/

Pat

David said:

Quoted message said:

No problem. Just asking for a recommendation. I tour and when I am on the
road I am carrying quite a bit of weight. As for where I tour +=+==+=
Everywhere. On road, off road, up road down road.

Mostly, on the pavement though.

Thanks, TomCAt

Heh TomCat,

What kind of rims are you running with currently?

This will have some bearing as to how easily one can mount a tire to a
rim, since not all rims are made alike and neither do all tires.

But having said that, I love my Schawlbe Marathon tires -- smooth
riding and puncture and sidewall cut resistant. This was not the case
with both my ex- Conti Touring 2000 as well as my now almost worn down
Conti Ultragator Skin which showed exactly the same sidewall wear as
the TT2000.

Have not tried the Schwalbe tires yet; thought about it but the
TT2000's have been so rock solid for me that there has been no need.
Never seen any issue with the sidewalls. I run 700cx37 700cx32 and
700cx28 on different bikes. Been getting ~6000miles on rear tires, all
inflated to Conti's recommended max. The one's on the commuter in my
office at the moment are the 'newest' I have; just under 5000 miles on
those 700cx28. We have them on 4 bikes and let's just say flats are a
rarity.

- rick