tubular tire help

afryska said:

I caught a great deal recently and picked up a set of Zipp 303 tubular wheels, now I have some questions about the safety of my setup. I've never used tubulars before, so I did a little research and bought some Tufo gluing tape and a set of Conti Sprinter tires. After mounting everything, I couldn't for the life of me get the tires to sit completely "true" to the rims.... they're not bad, but you can see some wobble when you give them a spin, and some spots have a little more base tape showing than others. I've literally sat around for hours trying to center them, moving back and forth, and it never completely goes away. Is it dangerous to have slightly out-of-round tires? I've taken the tires for some easy rides without noticing any problems, but I'm hesitant to race on them.

This brings me to my second question... even with the tires pumped up to 160psi, the bond to the tire seems slightly loose. In other words, if I push on the tire I can hear the glue "stretch" and the tire rises up a bit. It's a tiny movement, I can't actually make it come off or anything, but I'm worried if taking a hard corner would be enough to roll the tire. I imagine Tufo wouldn't still be in business if it's glueing tape wasn't safe, but I'm still nervous. Anyone have experience with this tape? Thanks for any help,

-AF

I've heard varying reports on the Tufo glue strips - can't really help there. Slightly crooked tread is no big deal but dead on straight is better for smooth riding.

As far as being secure, try this. Pump them up to 100 psi and try your GOD DAMNDEST to roll them off with your hands - no way you could do it if the tire is glued on well.

meh....not a big fan of tape. I'd stick to glue. The instructions are on cyclingnews.com here.

http://www.cyclingnews.com/tech/fix/?id=tubular

The greater the pressure on the tape, the tighter its get. I would take a short and straight ride on the wheels and retest. I don't like the tape, it is much cleaner than the gule, but I am old school.

How is it riding so far with glue taped tires? Do you feel safe on corners? Do you think if you got a flat on the street you could change the tire with another piece of tape and another tire?

I'm thinking about getting Zipp 404 tubulars with Tufo tires and glue tape. And I would ride this on my race bike for everday use.

very hard to get them stuck on straight - just down to practice I'm afraid.

I prefer glue too but it is rare to hear of tape giving way. A lot of it is in the mind though - if its worrying you, then you will be nervous to push hard on fast corners.

Cheers

bicyclerubber.com