Wildwood 

Have we done this in a while - list your favorite (tubular) tire - within a given category. Then state the tire brands you have owned.

You make up the categories.

My favorite:

Cheap tubular for a racy bike = Conti Giro

Tubular for mixed surface = Schwalbe ProOne 30mm (i think that was the model name)

Best all round rider = VeloFlex, either 25 or 28mm (Roubaix and Vlaanderan were the old names)


My tubular experience is Conti, Schwalbe, VeloFlex, Vittoria (only the cheapie Rally and a knobbed cyclocross tire), and several brands no longer produced.

I have Vittoria's new expensive clinchers with latex tubes, which I love, but have yet to buy the tubular version.


Finally, liquid latex tire sealant has reduced the number of tires I've bought in the last 3 or 4 years.

seedsbelize 

Do you use it prophylactically, or as needed?

Wildwood 

Both.
But never on the road.
Or in public view. (my workspace is private)

YMMV

candango

More than 20 years ago, I used a contact cement (came in a small tube which carried in my small repair kit), to adhere tubular tires to the rim when repairing them and mounting them. The cement had the advantage of remaining slightly tacky, so that if you had a flat during a ride, you could remove the tire from the rim using only your hands. And there was sufficient cement still on the rim so that you could stretch and mount a spare and inflate it and happily ride off. It was great for commuting and general touring. Alas, it appears to be no longer available in this country. The glues and cements available these days tend to turn rock hard, preventing the easy removal of the flatted tire from the rim. I realize this is to prevent the tire rolling off the rim, but it really hinders the ability to change the tire in the field. So what are you all using these days to glue the tires on? Is anyone using a cement which remains tacky?

Additionally, what are people using to adhere the base tape to the tire after making a repair? Some of the literature favors liquid latex and some sources recommend the orange sealant used to seal leaks in tubeless tires. I tried it and found it did not work at all, it was more water and too little latex. Some people suggested Barge contact cement, used by shoemakers. What do you all use? Thanks

Wildwood 

Try mastik. Vittoria was the last i used. And back in the day we didn't use so much glue, unless a racer.

And yeah, i carry a tube of glue with my spare tubular. But also a small bottle of liquid latex. Save the tire if possible. Only for tires with removable valve cores.

edit: even mastik will harden over time.

Andy Antipas 

Wildwood "Best all round rider = VeloFlex, either 25 or 28mm (Roubaix and Vlaanderan were the old names)"

Great tires. My favorites.

I have other tubular tire brands in the fleet, but Veloflex are the most consistent quality wise, and seem to ride and handle the best.

I have tried some of the newer clinchers and they are pretty good, but I don't think they can match the same ride quality for a given tire width.

jimmuller 

I've been staying out of BF most of the time because I haven't ridden since our tandem spill at beginning of the covid lockdowns. So this note may be off topic. Sorry.

Before I shut down the bikes I was riding Veloflex Criteriums 23mm on my sewup bikes and Veloflex Masters 23mm on my clincher bikes. I've been gluing the sewups with Vittoria mastic from a can I picked up a year or so ago. Before that I used the same glue stuff from tubes, but applying it with a brush from a can is so much easier. When I'm riding I carry a spare tire, sometimes two spares. I put Stan's in all my sewups. As I recall, the supposed instructions imply half a bottle in each tire, refreshed every 6 months. I've had one tire where it would hold air only if I didn't over-pump it. Otherwise it has worked well. Even then it would hold enough air to let me ride. I've patched a few but most of the time when I have too many punctures to trust the tire I hold into it until I have several needing fixin', then send them to TireAlert.

FWIW, I was commuting by bike most days, 35 miles round trip. It added up to about 8000 miles a year.. I had no qualms about commuting on sewups. In the event of a flat they are faster to swap out than patching or replacing a clincher tube. Though with a clincher and a patch kit you can fix a tires as many times as you have patches, if you can find the hole on the side of a noisy road.

Wildwood 

@jimmuller -
on the Stan's - I use much less than recommended in new tires.
but on old tires i acquire in 'NOS' condition = a bunch. Repeat is always possiblei want to try the high end Vittoria tubulars.
(edit: I like Conti Giro + Sprinter, i should try the 5000)
just need to pull some 'old but usable' tires to make room for better ones.
or buy more compatible tubular wheelsets?!?


And I forgot to mention I have Spesh Turbos from ~4yrs ago in the only size then, 24mm = GREAT tire, shortest life on outer rubber layer. It was sold as a race tire so not upset.

Who is going to try the Wolfpack tire?
supposedly very, very cut resistant without a heavy hard compound!

79pmooney

For glue that does not set up hard, getting tires off isn't ridiculous and dry mounted spares are safe to ride (keeping cornering within reason).Tubast. Velox stil lists it on its website and I've seen recent postings of people using it. I haven't ridden tubulars in 20 years but am going back as soon as my rims wear out and I'll go back to the Tubasti I used for 16 years, Most of those years I did not own clinchers. The first 9, I did not own a car. (And yeah, I loved the 5 minute tire change - in the rain, in the snow, inebriated, in bad neighborhoods .... Bad neighborhoods - faster; I didn't need to get the tire on straight to ride it!)

WGB 

Brand new set of Gatorskins. Glued two nights ago. Test drive yesterday. Forget JRA, these are JFA for just floating along.

Up today early to beat heat. 35km along and rough paving. Realize front wheel is in grove in paving. Little unsure what happened next but I braked hard and locked up, just not a full stop. Grove narrows and tire catches. Tire pulled off rim. Unsure if I go fully over bars or just up and sideways. Laying on side of road thinking "Guess I needed more glue". Good hard hit, trashed helmet. Tire put back on rim but doesn't hold air.

Walked two miles and got a ride. Expensive day. Helmet gone, Brooks seat has side seriously chewed up. Now tire. Did water test and air escaping beside valve (on either side).

Q: Can the area around a valve be patched in any way??





Sorry if post doesn't make sense, kind of punch drunk

obrentharris 

My consolations for your bad day!
Air will often come out around the valve even if the hole is elsewhere, path of least resistance. Although a tire that pulls off the rim while riding can cause the tube to rip at the base of the valve. Tube replacement is usually called for at that point; a slow and tedious job. At that point I would send it to Tire Alert for re-tubing.
Brent

seedsbelize 

Consolations from here as well. Last time I broke a helmet, I came home talking gibberish. At which point my wife got me to the doctor.

79pmooney

Longitudinal grooves - the bad guys! I did the same thing starting up a small bridge. Shade from the sidewalk raining hid the crack. My Peter Mooney was 2 years old. Not much happened, I got tossed but wasn't going fast enough for real damage, wheel and tire were OK. I may have tweaked DT and TT very slightly and taken a mm or two out of the wheelbase. I don't remember the tires but probably training level Vittoria sewups.

I am a fan of enough glue and ribbed tread tires. I used to train on ribbed tread Vittorias 40+ years ago, Completely took them for granted - until rib tread disappeared, 3 years ago I started riding the Vittoria G+ tires. That wonderful tread! Got reminded, it is the best for climbing out of ruts and back onto pavement. (Three months on those tires and I was on a two lane open rural road, Line of cars coming toward me, Last car, a hot Camaro type, pulls out to pass. At the moment he passes, the pavement widened for a dirt farm lane so I could move over two feet. Car goes by. "Whew!" Then "Oh s***! the ditch!" Cut back toward the road hard because I had no choice. On a pile of gravel. Tires made the cut like it was easy.

Those tires are the other end of the spectrum from Gatoskins. Expensive, grippy, good rolling resistance, no armor. Decent on flats because they don't pick up a lot of glass, but not Continentals by a long shot. I ride them (only clincher so far but I will make the sewup switch as soon as my rims wear out) for their ability to keep me out of crashes. My body has seen so many that I'll happily patch 50 tires to save myself one more crash.

Ben

gaucho777 

@WGB Sorry about the spill. Hope you heal well. Fixing a leak at the stem can be very tricky. I've tried several times and am usually not successful. Some old patch kits used to come with replacement valves all the way down to the base with a small circle of rubber (about the size of a nickel). You could cut out the valve and re-glue the replacement valve on top of where the original was. It can get lumpy because of the thickness of the extra rubber. It's possible to use another old tire's valve as a donor. I have a high level of frugality and sometimes spare time on my hands, so tubular repair is something I'm willing to do. As @obrentharris notes, air often comes out near the valve even if that's not where the hole is, so make sure before you co through that trouble.

WGB 

obrentharris seedsbelize gaucho777

Thank you all.

I ignored good advise to get checked out at Emerg and went home where I posted then promptly fell asleep. Got up and now can hardly walk. Headaches gone so assume it was just shock.

First should say I'm touched by how people will stop to help complete strangers. Lady gave me (a complete stranger) a ride of about 20 miles (would have to get the bike later) then another person is bringing the bike to my house! Does make you feel at least hopeful about people.

Obrentharris advised to send to Tire Alert. I'd never even heard of them so good to know. I emailed asking for a quote. The valve is loose enough in the tube to turn part way, each way. I used a CO2 pump on the side of the road and filled the tire and could see gas coming back out so assumed it was a bad valve. At home I tried the floor pump and tire kept going flat. This was while still mounted. I put that tire in water and pumped. Air rapidly exiting the tire at the base of the valve. While tire in rim it was exiting slower, probably due to compression.

Gaucho777 suggested repairing and if quote too high might go that route

Problem is that in Canada tires, especially Tubular tires, are very expensive and if I buy the three for $50 deal from Yellow Jersey shipping is another $35 so for that money I might as well buy quality which means $100+ a tire. Might post on the for sale thread and see if someone has some they no longer want. Not to mention a new helmet and a new Brooks. #%(@#$!!!!!!!

pastorbobnlnh 

Quite the day WGB !!! I do hope you have a speedy recuperation with no ill effects.

L134 

Then why not ditch the clincher rims now rather than wait until they wear out? How many more miles do you have to risk another crash before you wear out those rims?

Classtime 

WGB fold or pinch the tire on either side of the valve and put some air in the tire to find the leak. Keep moving the fold/pinch till you find the problem. i HATE seams in the road.

WGB 

@Classtime I found the leak. On either side of the valve. Probably tore tube when the wheel twisted but the valve stayed still in the hole.

I'm seeing bertinjim to see if he can magically repair it. Got a quote from Tire Alert for $30 to repair. If we can't fix it here I'll hold until the border re-opens and mail it there. In the meantime I'll have to bite the bullet and order new. Hoping someone will post Tubulars on the sale page but that never happens when we need something.

pastorbobnlnh Thank you for the kind words. I suspect it's more of a case of humiliation (and inability to ride for a few days) than serious injury, and also a reminder that I am 57 not 27.

tcpasley

I’m thinking of building a tubular wheel set for my freehub bikes, and I have a line on some “modern” (i.e. 1990 and newer) somewhat stout and aero Mavic CXP rims that weigh ~525 grams. Since I weigh in around 230# these days, the stoutness appeals to me, but I wonder if I would be giving up on the “magic carpet ride” qualities of the older, lighter rims (Ambrosio Montreals, Mavic GL330s). I also am looking at some Velocity Escapes which may be more like the rims from the golden age of tubs.

Any thoughts on the matter? Am I overthinking the the matter of rim weight?

pastorbobnlnh 

I don't know how rim weight effects the ride qualities of tubular tires, so I can't speak to that part of your question.

However, I'm a big guy, while currently a reasonable 210 for my 6' 1" height, I've weighed at times as much as 300+. The bike with tubulars I ride the most is my '71 Schwinn Paramount P13 which runs Fiamme Ergal red label tubular rims on HiE hubs. Fiamme are known as lightweight rims (not certain of the weight) which can be a bit touchy about keeping true. In my experience, I've not had any trouble with these rims going out of true and the roads here in the NH mountains are notoriously rough (plus I ride a good bit of dirt and gravel roads). Of course YMMV.

IMO you are safe to use lighter rims as long as the wheels are built and tensioned correctly. I'd err on the side of the more spokes and crosses of the spokes the better, in order to achieve a very sturdy and durable wheel. Best of luck on your decision.

Wileyone 

Buy from the UK sites (except wiggle). Shipping is free over $100. Just make sure they ship via post and chances are you may avoid customs fees.

SurferRosa

Hey tubular lovers! A set of tubed clinchers just won its first TDF stage.

squirtdad

begone satan

what were they?

SurferRosa

Specialized Turbo Cotton (I think).