Vittoria Rubino Pro Graphene 2.0 experience
 

Have been running these in 700cx28mm on the Frankenstein Paramount. They are great feeling tires that handle and ride great. Better feel and ride than tires I have tried with extra puncture protection belts etc.and they are not particularly puncture resistant I found out the hard way, so will keep them on clean pavement as much as possible in the future. To me they are pricey tires, not as much as gp5000 Contis but not too far behind them in price. They are supposed to be exceptional in the wet, and they have a lot of tread to move water out from beneath them. The flat I had was a puncture from a tiny sharp piece of metal that looked like it was left from someone drilling a hole in steel, and it was not rusty so stainless steel. I have noticed nothing else stuck in the surface of the tires or in the tires so hoping it was a fluke as it is the only puncture flat I have had over thousands of miles since spring.


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Noted.

I've been using Rubino Pros exclusively for as long as I can remember, and the last couple of sets have been Graphene 2.0 25mm. I really like them - reasonably light, reasonably priced - I'd say good rolling resistance, but I really have nothing to compare them to :foo:. Either they're reasonably puncture-resistant or I've been very lucky - in any case, I might get 1 flat per season. I use only black/yellow tires (go with the bike's color scheme), so these can take a bit longer to track down. I usually start looking as soon as I put my last tire on the bike. I get ~3000 mi/6 mo out of a rear tire - as soon as the rear starts showing significant thread, I move the front tire to the rear wheel and put a fresh tire one on the front wheel. I can't see any reason to change as long as I can still get them.

You should be careful where you leave your bike. While you were in McDs someone flipped your seatpost backwards, stole your bar tape and deranged your brake levers. Bet you had to wrench awhile before you could ride back to your bunker.

Once you see it, you can't unsee it.

The rolling resistance on these is not bad, according to Rollingresistance dot com they are about five watts behind a Continental gp5000. I got mine really, really cheap from a cycling acquaintance so I had to try them out.

This bike was originally a 66cm frame size(now down to 64cm), so it has a freakishly long top tube, and the way it is set up now is the only way I could get the reach to the bars suitable for myself. I have plans to swap bars onto this bike that are more original to it's year and model, so did not go to the trouble of bar tape. No experience with Vittoria Rubino tires though ??? Well make something up then..........

No experience with Rubinos, but since Bike Closet was/is selling Corsa G2.0s for cheap I put a pair on my Battaglin, which is built from Columbus MAX tubing and this has a firm ride that generally has me searching for the smoothest line in the bike lane. They make a HUGE difference. It's still a firm ride, but they reduce road chatter to what I'd call "information", rather than discomfort.

I bought a bunch of these a while ago when they were on sale. I like 'em!
My main comparisons are Conti gp4000 and Michelin pro4 service course, and I feel like they are about as good.

The Corsa is a much higher quality tire than the Rubino, probably a direct competitor to the gp5000 Conti. I rode a lot of cheap tires for a lot of years, so trying out better brand tires when they are available cheaply is something I have been trying to do. I have gp5000s on another bike but in 25mm instead of the 28mm the Rubinos are, so if they have a similar ride for me I could see why. I can see myself moving towards bigger tires too since it has been shown that given the same air pressure bigger tires roll better, and do not affect aerodynamics unless they are wider than the downtube of the bicycle frame. Also looking at BRR dot come I see that Vittoria has a LOT of Corsa tire models with the 2.0 material, so not sure of the exact ones you may have.

matching rim width to tire width is also very important to aerodynamics. can't speak to tire vs downtube, but I assume that is only an issue with classic/archaic metal frames. it's a moot point with most modern aluminum or carbon bicycles that have very large downtube profiles.

I'm a huge fan of the Corsa Gs. (Both the earlier G+ and the G2.0.) Used one tubular Rubino 2.0 but flatted it very early on. (Seems I angered the tire god.)

I love that graphene tread. I find it better in all respects than the best of the earlier treads. Yes, some of the earlier treads did one thing better than the well-rounded Gs. But I have yet to find an area there the Gs are poor. (Haven't ridden the Speeds yet. I'm guessing less flat protection, lower tread mileage.) From the OP's post, it sounds like the benefits of the graphene have translated nicely to the Rubinos. I'll probably stick to the Corsas because tire money is no longer tight, I love the ride, I love the grip and security and the flat rate is entirely reasonable in my eyes.

Another aspect that Vittoria brought back after years of hibernation. Ribbed tread. The tread on so many $15 cotton Vittoria training tubulars BITD. I took it completely for granted ... until it disappeared in the mid '80s. There is one task ribbed tread does better than all others that I've used. Climbing back to the pavement level after dropping into a crack, rut or off the side of the road. I once had to climb an inch or two from a cobbled surface back onto the road at race speed in pouring rain and riding orange threaded tires. When I swerved into the pavement edge to climb back it was "this better work!". And the tires just climbed up like it was no bid deal.

And way off topic - genejockey, you do know that that bike discomfort ("... Battaglin, which is built from Columbus MAX tubing and this has a firm ride that generally has me searching for the smoothest line in the bike lane. ...") is all in your head. There's a thread going around where a certain poster has posted pages of proof. All road transmissions are dictated by tires, yes, wheelbase and the components that flex - seatpost, bars, stem. PX-10 531, your Columbus MAX and the early Kleins - they all feel the same. (I'm also living my life in a fantasy world where I can feel those differences. And I spent my early miles on my two ti bikes seeking out the worst pavement because it was fun. Both bikes has shortish wheelbases and the same components and tires I'd been using for years.)

LOL it's still a 66 unless you whipped out the torch. I've ridden a pair of the earlier Corsa graphene iterations but found them prone to flats and went back to GP5000. Lots of folks like them and I assume the Rubinos are sturdier. Your set up reminds me of those ridden by our departed friend beng1 aka benjaminhuffy, etc. :beer:
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It's not that bigger tires roll better at the same air pressure, I believe. It's that you can run bigger tires at lower air pressure without pinch-flatting, which makes them suppler and less prone to vertical displacement on rough pavement.

It's the Corsa G+2.0 Open. They give up a bit to GP5Ks in rolling resistance, as well as puncture resistance, but I've been buying them for $35 each, so, about $15 cheaper than the cheapest GP5Ks I've seen.

I read that, and I thought it was horsehockey. I remember way back when I got my SECOND road bike, a Ritchey Road Logic (back in the days of 23mm tires pumped to 120 psi) the difference between that and my FIRST road bike (Cannondale R500). For one thing, I remember distinctly hitting a choppy patch on a hairpin turn, the Cannondale would hop its rear wheel, just a little bit, navigating it. The Ritchey, on the same patch, rolled right through it with no loss of traction and no hopping. Another thing is whether I find myself constantly seeking out the smoothest line in the bike lane or not. Yeah, tires make a big difference, but riding the same tires at the same pressure, on the Battaglin I found myself seeking, but on the Ritchey I don't.

That thought occurred to me as well.

how did you make a 66cm frame into a 64cm frame?

That is exactly what took place, thread is here; https://www.bikeforums.net/framebuil...rame-work.html

As for your references to the fit of other people's bike fit, everyone has different proportions and riding style so it is a waste of time judging how their bike is set up unless you are sleeping with them.


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Nevertheless, needing to install the seatpost backwards shows you still have work to do. :beer:

On old Paramounts like this, Schwinn changed the bend of the fork blades in the early 70s which could substantially alter how the forks absorb the road shocks, also different seat tube angles alter the feel of a bike as can where the top of the seat-stays are attached to the seat-tube as well as the bend some seat stays have in them and the weight of a rider, just like two pickup trucks ride differently if one has a half-ton in the back.

I will agree that top-quality tires, and different size tires, can make a bigger difference in the way a bike feels than most frame details.

Looks to me like the OP could just turn the post around and reinstall the seat.

Sure, then the reach to the bars is too far. Notice I have a short stem on this bike too. I could not find an alloy seat-post that would get the seat up far enough, so I got a new steel post at the local Schwinn shop for $5 and put the Brooks pro on with an original Brooks "made in England" clamp that let me put the seat on much further forward than before. Top tube is over two-feet long. Luckily I am a pretty tall rider and the bike works great as-is. I measured my height in the lats month and it was about the same as it was 40 years ago, which I attribute to having bicycle riding keep me in shape. I have known people to lose a lot of inches as they march through their 60s and beyond....

By the way, sorry you lost your friend, I lost a cycling buddy a month ago too, RIP......

There isn't room for the clamp now? To my eyes, it looks like the clamp would fit in the rail behind the seat without changing the fore and aft position at all. If I am wrong, I take back my comment above. I'm not suggesting that you change the seat position. I just thought there were two ways to get that position with that post and clamp.