Schwalbe marathon (green) vs Schwalbe marathon Plus. Commuting.
 

Good afternoon. share your experience, who used green marathons and marathons plus for commuting? Is there a noticeable difference in terms of punctures? I read in the forum that there is not much difference, but few people used both tires. Only the fact that marathons plus are absolutely impenetrable, and green marathons can be pierced in exceptional cases, such as a huge nail or a piece of sharp insole, apparently planted by someone). I would be grateful if you share.

I've never ridden Marathon Plus tires. I have Marathons on my bike. I would have gotten Marathon Plus tires, but they don't come in the size I need (I commute on a folding bike).

What I can say is that in the more or less 18 months I've been riding on the Marathons, I haven't gotten a puncture. And that's commuting regularly on NYC streets, strewn with broken glass and bits of metal and who knows what. And before the Marathons, flats were a regular occurrence.

Hi, thanks for the reply! in our country, marathons plus are difficult to get in the size I need, and they are quite expensive. I have been riding Vittoria randonera for quite a long time, good tires, but they are pierced even by small spikes of goats. At the moment, I replaced the back with a green marathon. I feel that the roll has become better. And the tread is more pronounced.

You can get flats on the marathon plus's not a lot but still. maybe two flats or so a year with 5000 miles. maybe a few more. sharp wire a big nail glass if I remember right.

I used the regular (HS 270 , HS 308 and whatever they are now designated) Marathon 47-622 tires to commute daily year round from 1998 to 2012, when I retired. I averaged 5000 miles a year and occasionally (once or twice a year) I did get up in the morning or leave work at the end of the work day and find the tire flat from a slow leak, but NEVER had an on the road flat while commuting. I still ride with regular Marathon tires about 2500 miles/year around town and still have had the same great almost flat free service. The front tires are good for about 15,000 miles, the rear about 5,000.

Uncertain if you can get the Continental bike tires easily, in your country. But one of these two tires might be an option for you.

Continental Ride Tour -- For a few years, I had a set of Continental Ride Tour (in 700c). Came with their "level 5" protection (of 7 levels). Never got a flat. Urban streets 95% of the time, with the usual junk on the streets ... broken glass, occasional nails, and other similar sharp objects. I would highly recommend them. In the U.S., at least, they're available for about US $30 each (or US $60 for the pair).

https://www.continental-tires.com/bi...tour/ride-tour

Continental Contact Plus -- For a bit more protection, Continental has their Contact Plus tires. Haven't ever used these, but they're somewhat similar to the Ride Tour, with a bit less-aggressive tread pattern and additional protection against flats. These offer a bit more protection (their highest, at "level 7"). In the U.S., these are priced about US $50 each (or US $100 for the pair).

https://www.continental-tires.com/bi...r/contact-plus

If your bike's tire size matches one of these, I would think these could be a good alternative to the Schwalbe Marathon Plus tires.

Any tire can be punctured, as we all know. But these types of tires seem to be very good at eliminating most flats in situations where most other tires cannot.

I've been commuting on a pair of Schwalbe Marathon Almotion 40-622 tires for somewhere between 3-4k miles, and no flats so far. My main threats in this area are thorns and, to a lesser extent, glass, and I've been really happy with these tires' performance.

Thank you, your answer is very convincing! what bike did you use during this period of commuting? (1998-2012)

Unfortunately, the situation is sad with Conti, these tires are not available (

I used a Vaterland equipped with a Sachs 3 speed IGH w/ coaster brake to commute in Germany until 2002

https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...c1752ad051.jpg
https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...af3d9328a5.jpg


From 2002 until 2012 commuted in the U.S. on a Ragazzi (inexpensive German bicycle) equipped with a Sachs 7 speed IGH w/coaster brake.

https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...f0ade9bb95.jpg
https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...f980290623.jpg

oh cool bikes! the tires had an old design then, I wonder if the tread has changed a lot since then?

does this bike have apparently single wall steel rims?

Yes, single wall rims, steel on the 3 speed, aluminum on the 7 speed. Single wall rims have served me well for decades with zero issues.

If the tread changed I didn't notice it, nor notice any change in the ride or handling. The more recent tires had an arrow indicating that they should be mounted to rotate in a specific direction.

cool! it's probably a misconception that single wall rims (especially steel) are more brittle than double allu. Although this is not the first time I hear that users of steel single wheels did not have problems with them during use. And also note a softer and smoother ride. It's interesting...

The Marathon Plus Tour tire is supposedly flat proof, not sure if I believe that, but I do know that the Marathon Greenguards that I had never got a flat, and the Plus Tour is better than the Green so they might be flat proof? I don't know. But the Green lasted me about 5,800 miles, and the Plus Tour I understand will last 8,000 miles from what I've read. Regardless, if your commuting and you want to be pretty sure you'll never get a flat to mess with on the side of road then arrive late to work, I would go with the Plus Tour, but keep in mind, these tires weigh around 800 or so grams each, a bit heavy, they will feel a bit sluggish, and they will feel a bit harsher riding, there is a tradeoff to get a flat proof long mileage tire, vs getting a comfy riding tire that doesn't feel sluggish that will give you a lot of flats and last 2,500 miles or so. As far as the harsher ride goes, depending on the size of the tires you need and your total body+bike weight you might only need 50 or so PSI instead of 80, that will soften the ride up.

I commute to work myself, but I only have to go 4.5 miles one way, so I use Specialized Roubaix tires, and then I use a RhinoDillos tire liner on the rear tire only, so that's another option, is to get a lighter tire that won't be as sluggish, and install a RhinoDillos tire liner, while that option probably won't be flat proof but I can fix a flat in 5 to 10 minutes at the most. Having said that, you should always give yourself 15 extra minutes in case of a problem like a flat to get to work, you don't want to lose your job because of a flat, or be told you can't ride the bike in anymore because you had a flat and you were late getting in. I only use the Schwalbe Almotion tires now, but those are on by touring bike not the commuter.

thank you for the experience. Yes, it seems that the green marathon is a classic of the genre. I saw a marathon tour live, a rather aggressive tread, as it seemed to me

It is a slightly aggressive tread, but it is a true touring tire, designed for virtually any type of surface that a road tourer might run into, like gravel roads. If you want a smooth tread tire for touring instead then look at the Schwalbe Marathon Supreme, but that tire is not as flat-resistant, nor will it last as long. You have to decide what you want a tire to do, do you want the ultimate in flat protection or a lighter weight smooth tread tire that isn't as flat resistant?

I've run the Schwalbe Marathon plus for years, starting with what I think was their trekking version maybe 12 years ago. I've had a few flats, but far less than any other tire I used to ride. One was a 1" plus long construction staple, another sheet metal fender screw. I don't remember what caused the last flat this summer, but I managed, after maybe half an hour of using brute force and ignorance to to destroy the casing around the tire bead (for whatever reason, my brain just couldn't function that evening to allow me to work smartly to remove the tire without damage). I was able to ride home with it, but stopped at a local bike shop for a replacement that ended up being a Schwalbe Big Apple, due to supply issues,- after 1,000 miles it has held up well.

I have Marathon Mondial Plus on my Giant Tourer very rugged, puncture resistant and reliable tires under any conditions.