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greyhundguy

While I'm doing the Chip Foose detailing on my TdF, can y'all advise on good tyres to replace the old ones? I would like to keep it in the $100/pair range if there is a better than acceptable Brand. Also, the best place to buy them.

Thanx for the input,
Jay
Virginia

verktyg

What kind of tires - clinchers or sewups?

If clinchers what size - 700c or 27"? What width?

What do you want to use them for?

There's lots of good tires available and every knowledgeable rider has their own opinion.

Chas.[/i]

greyhundguy

OK...Tires...700c Sewups. Cycling around Town and quiet country roads.

Jay

Gtane

Jay, I used the Wolber Invulnerable tub years ago for training and general cycling but I doubt they are still available, perhaps on Ebay. They had a gauze running around the tyre underneath the tread to prevent punctures. They were excellent and I would often run the tyre very bald before it had to be changed. I prefer the gauze to today's equivalent - Kevlar.

Today, the Continental Giro is a pretty good tub that I use regularly but has no puncture protection like the Invulnerable. The Giros are cheap as tubs go so this keeps the cost down and one can buy a few so they are maturing in the event of a flat. The other thing is that they have the canvas walls in keeping with the era of the machine. Another advantage is that the Giros hold air fairly well.

Tim

citternmaker

I'm really interested in this thread too -- I recently bought my first set of cheap-ish tubulars in 20 years (Vittoria Rally Tubulars) and am pretty disappointed in their build quality. It has taken about 6 months for the hump around the valve stem to settle down so that the tires will finally become (somewhat) concentric to the rim.

Back in the 1980's, I replaced a rotted set of silk Clements with the same model of Vittoria (due to being a poor college student), and they were actually round. I don't know if the "hump" problem came about when they switched from cotton to kevlar on that model, but it's apparently a pretty common problem with that tire.

I guess supply and demand has reared its ugly head again... Needless to say, I'll get a better set of tires next time....

greyhundguy

Ron,
I find it very confusing, that's why I asked for input from the Forum members. My Googling returned not so great reviews on the Vittorias. A large NC Dealer was recommended as having expertise in sewups. When I called them they recommended Vittorias and Hutchinsons. Hummmmmmm?

I'm proudly detailing and tuning my College TdF and want a respectable tire that does not cost me as much as a Bridgestone on my car.

Jay
Virginia

verktyg

Jay,

I have some Japanese made Panaracer Practice Dual TG sewups and they're very well made. I was able to get them for ~$35 USD each. I looked at some of the standard Panaracer Practice tires the other day and they looked pretty good too.

http://www.panaracer.com/eng/products/road/tubular.html#b

Last summer I bought some Servizio Corsa tubulars from Yellow Jersey. They were "inexpensive" - $19.95 USD each, 3 for $50. They were made in Thailand like a lot of the other sewups with Italian names that are on the market today.

http://www.yellowjersey.org/ttn.html

I hadn't ridden on sewups for 20 some years so I didn't want to invest too much at first. Two of the three tires are fairly round but the last one resembles a snake that swallowed a small mouse! But.... you get what you pay for. Laughing

Clinchers have come a long way but they still don't come close to the ride you get from sewups. Very Happy

Chas.

Gtane

Ron, I recently got hold of a couple of those Vittoria Rally tubs with Kevlar puncture protection, to try out. They are indeed cheap and I have no idea what they are like to ride but they're not buldging or look as though they've eaten a mouse! (Love that description Chas) They seem to be behaving while maturing. I'll keep my eyes out for around the valve. Thanks for the information.

I've used Vittoria's CX tubs a number of times and they're outstanding but Vittoria have moved away from the canvas sides for the product. However, the CX is always a winner.

Jay, The Rally tubs have the canvas sides which are getting harder to find nowadays if one wants to maintain the look of the period.

Below is the Vittoria link but it's as far as I can get because the site is written in Flash. The easy nav features at the top will guide you to the road tubs:

http://www.vittoria.com/index3.asp?lingua=en

I've never used Schwalbe tyres or tubs but hear they're excellent. This model, the Milano, may well be worth a try:

http://www.schwalbetires.com/node/1393

Overall, my personal current preferred manufacturer for tubs and high pressures is Continental (excepting CX tubs on occasion).

Tim

citternmaker

Jay,

FWIW, I took my first decent-length ride on my 72-ish TdF with the Vittoria's today. Since the humps have started to settle down, they actually don't ride too badly -- still a little rough when riding on my rollers, but they're much smoother out on the street. They still have a bit of breaking in to do before the hump fully seats, so I'll probably not push them too hard or ride through sand/gravel/water for a while yet.

Chas,

I completely agree with you on the way tubulars ride. After 20 years of being away from tubulars and riding some pretty decent mid-priced clinchers lately, I still have to say that I like the way the ride the cheap tubulars ride better. It took me a few minutes to re-learn how to mount them without making a mess, but they' re still easier for me to mount than a recalcitrant folding clincher. Smile

Tim,

I'd bet the hump issue is mostly a quality control thing -- too many overlaps in the same area...I've been wondering if it's an every-now-and-then issue.

verktyg

Ron,

My favorite sewups were always Clement Paris-Roubaix red label cotton tires. They were slightly bigger in diameter than Clement Campionato del Mundo setas and weighed 310g vs 290g. The del Mundos were my second choice.

I averaged at least 5000 miles per tire and got very few flats even though I lived in New Mexico, the goathead capital of the world (puncture vine, torredos, and other cursed names). We ran 85 to 90 Lbs. air pressure and used "sticker flickers" to scrape debris off of our tires.

Last year I bought a pair of discontinued Challenge Paris-Roubaix tires. I was told that they were a little wider than the original Clement P-R sewups. The originals were about 26mm-27mm wide. These newer tires are listed at 27mm wide but they are closer to 32mm.

http://www.yellowjersey.org/tt.html

I've been riding Continental Gran Prix 700x23C and Panaracer Pasela TG 700x25C and 700x28C clinchers which are all smaller than the Challenge Paris-Roubaix sewups. Confused

I'll have to find a use for these.

Chas.