tubeless tires

steve said:

I was at the local bike shop last Saturday and after spending some
time discussing bike computers we moved onto tires. The guy told me he
had just the tire for me but I'm going to put my thumb over the price
($79) while I talk about it. It was a tubeless tire. I have to admit I
was intrigued but the only way it would make sense for me is to buy a
new set of wheels for faster rides using these tires. I use the bike
for commuting and "training" - for what I don't know. Looking on the
web I see that a few teams are using these tires and that they are
relatively new. Anybody tried them? What do you think?

Steve G

As for me personally. I will not use tubeless tires. Why??? We seem
to have an overabundance of "goathead" thorns around here that will,
inevitably, wreak havoc with tubeless tires.

I am definitely not knocking them as they do have their uses. But, I
feel, for the average rider they wouldn't be a good choice. Unless of
course you actually enjoy stopping and patching tires.
__o | Every time I see an adult on a bicycle....
_`\(,_ | I no longer despair for the human race.
(_)/ (_) | ---H.G. Wells---

Dans le message de
news:[email hidden],
steve <[email hidden]> a réfléchi, et puis a déclaré :

Quoted message said:

I was at the local bike shop last Saturday and after spending some
time discussing bike computers we moved onto tires. The guy told me he
had just the tire for me but I'm going to put my thumb over the price
($79) while I talk about it. It was a tubeless tire. I have to admit I
was intrigued but the only way it would make sense for me is to buy a
new set of wheels for faster rides using these tires. I use the bike
for commuting and "training" - for what I don't know. Looking on the
web I see that a few teams are using these tires and that they are
relatively new. Anybody tried them? What do you think?

Steve G

What worries me is that you want to "make sense" in buying new wheels and
tires. In the short and long run, putting work into how well and
efficiently you move a bicycle forward (at very little cost, if any) will be
a greater benefit, unless your current wheels are actually in a bad state of
repair. The teams you adverted to are made up of fantastic riders, and they
will go very fast on a big red clunker with whitewall tires.

On the other hand, if you need to find your motivation again, pretty much
anything will move you faster - my favorite is clean bar tape.
--
Sandy

The above is guaranteed 100% free of sarcasm,
denigration, snotty remarks, indifference, platitudes, fuming demands that
"you do the math", conceited visions of a better world on wheels according
to [insert NAME here].

steve said:

I was at the local bike shop last Saturday and after spending some
time discussing bike computers we moved onto tires. The guy told me he
had just the tire for me but I'm going to put my thumb over the price
($79) while I talk about it. It was a tubeless tire. I have to admit I
was intrigued but the only way it would make sense for me is to buy a
new set of wheels for faster rides using these tires. I use the bike
for commuting and "training" - for what I don't know. Looking on the
web I see that a few teams are using these tires and that they are
relatively new. Anybody tried them? What do you think?

They're race tyres. If you don't race, you don't need them. They're a
bugger to repair out on the road, so you need a support car with spare
wheels. Actually, they're a bugger to repair, period. You probably
need sponsorship from a tyre company to use them. Their advantages on
a road bike are small to non-existent over good tubed tyres, and far
outweighed by the fact that the best (fastest) wheels are not tubeless
compatible.

This comment brought to you by a happy long term (since 2002) user of
UST tyres off road

Kinky Cowboy*

*Batteries not included
May contain traces of nuts
Your milage may vary

steve said:

I was at the local bike shop last Saturday and after spending some
time discussing bike computers we moved onto tires. The guy told me he
had just the tire for me but I'm going to put my thumb over the price
($79) while I talk about it. It was a tubeless tire. I have to admit I
was intrigued but the only way it would make sense for me is to buy a
new set of wheels for faster rides using these tires. I use the bike
for commuting and "training" - for what I don't know. Looking on the
web I see that a few teams are using these tires and that they are
relatively new. Anybody tried them? What do you think?

Steve G

I am currently running Kevlar tires. That's on the outside. On the
inside I am using "thorn proof" tubes and Mr. Tuffy tire liners. When
I found that I seemed to be getting too many flats for my liking. I
put Duct Tape around the inside of the tire. Those damn Goathead
thorns have a tendency of managing to work their way into the
sidewall. After doing all of this I have had no flats to date.
((KNOCK WOOD))

I have to agree with the comment that they seem to be geared toward
the racers. Or even possibly the casual rider. They might, MIGHT, be
all right if all you are planning on doing is riding to the store and
back on flat, clean streets or sidewalks. But I don't know where
anyone would find that!!!!!
__o | Every time I see an adult on a bicycle....
_`\(,_ | I no longer despair for the human race.
(_)/ (_) | ---H.G. Wells---

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

Quoted message said:

I was at the local bike shop last Saturday and after spending some
time discussing bike computers we moved onto tires. The guy told me he
had just the tire for me but I'm going to put my thumb over the price
($79) while I talk about it. It was a tubeless tire. I have to admit I
was intrigued but the only way it would make sense for me is to buy a
new set of wheels for faster rides using these tires. I use the bike
for commuting and "training" - for what I don't know. Looking on the
web I see that a few teams are using these tires and that they are
relatively new. Anybody tried them? What do you think?

Steve G

I am taking an entirely different approach for my commuting and "training"
bike tires. I have very thick and heavy Schwalbe Marathon Plus tires and
tubes filled Specialized Airlock sealant. I do not ever want to have flats
while commuting to and from work. It doesn't matter to me if it takes 31.4
minutes to get to work rather than 30.8 minutes. I expect these tires to
last thousands of miles. They have an excellent "training" benefit as well.
Because they weigh so much, I get more exercise on my daily commute. I
guess this is sort of like running with ankle weights. Your mileage may
vary.

BobT