Originally Posted by
nickw
I wasn't speaking in absolutes like that - just offering a different opinion and the experience of a few who use them. This is a touring forum after all, some folks tour around the world and in extreme conditions, you may differ...it's your call.
Sure. And agree.
Originally Posted by
nickw
You went from multiple flats to minimal for a number of reason, none of which likely have anything do with using tubulars. If you went with a high end / expensive tubular, something like a cotton casing handmade FMB with latex tube, you'd be flatting often. Your essentially running a tubuless tire with the tubular you picked.
Actually, it did have a lot to do with tubulars for two reasons: First, no pinch flats on tubulars. Secondly, I was using tubeless tubulars from Tufo and then from Clement. These have no tubes and you run them with sealant. The first case takes care of one class of punctures which is an issue around here with potholes and pavement defects on the road and gravel/road defects on back roads. The second case is really the precursor to why tubeless tires are becoming popular on the road now and have been popular in mountain biking for a long time. With no tube, any puncture is more directly sealed by the sealant in the tire than with a tube.
Originally Posted by
nickw
And if your carrying an extra tire, any offset of weight using lighter tubeless tires is largely a moot point. I'd consider it a moot point regardless since you and your load are going to be varying by more than a couple hundred grams a day anyway...
Disagree here. There is a
major difference between heavy weight rotating and the same weight carried statically. and is roughly a factor of two different. Definitely not moot - taking a quarter of a pound (~100g) out of a tire makes them noticeably easier to accelerate. Taking ~200g out of a wheel set is not at all insignificant. Not to mention, of course, that the location of that rotating weight was in the worst possible place at the outer edge of wheel.
But, be that as it may, I already said I carry an extra tire as a matter of course while touring regardless of whether is tubeless, clincher or tubular. So it is moot with respect to the tire type since I have one either way. So you'd be wrong again here.
I also gain the fact that a puncture can be fixed with a tubeless tire repair kit such as from Blackburn, Dynaplug or Bontrager without having to remove the tire. That is fast and simple and cannot be be done with a tubed clincher.
J.