clones2

I'm in the middle of an internal personal debate of the whole tubular/clincher decision... If I go tubular, I'll end up with a ~240g tire (Vittoria, Tufo etc...) But with a clincher, I could end up at 200g with the Supersonice Tire and a latex tube. That's 80g of total weight savings almost making up for the weight difference between the two different rims.

If the overall weight is going to be almost identical between the two setups...Im almost tempted to stick with a clinchers.

Just curious if anyone has ridden the Supersonic Tires and how they perform.

nhluhr

Supersonics have almost no flat protection. Hope you're only riding on a velodrome.

Re-assess the importance of weight.

rpeterson

Weight is irrelevant in tires, get the best ones for the race you're doing. If you're doing time trials on decent roads then you can't beat the Supersonics.

clones2

Curious if there is any difference of rubber on the Supersonic or GP4000s. Havent had the slightest mark on my 4000s. I know there is some flat protection removed to lighten the tire.

And - would an Evo Corsa CX tubular offer that much better flat protection?

These will be for crits and road races... Thanks for the insight.

mattm

Supsersonics are nice for crits, but as others have noted they won't last long for road riding.

Gp4000s rolls just as good, and will last a ton longer.

Also, aren't tubular wheels/rims usually way lighter than clinchers?

clones2

Between a 46mm and 58mm depth... I'm usually seeing ~160 to ~180grams lighter for tubulars. The gap for me would get 80 grams closer tho with Supersonic clinchers, and the Evo Corsa CX tubular.

I would like 600 - 800 miles out of the set of tires.

I'm really leaning towards going tubular... but since I like the Continental rubber, thought maybe going with a lightweight Supersonic setup may give me a reason to stick with the ease of clinchers. But pinch flats do suck...

topflightpro

I have SuperSonics on some Mavic Cosmic Carbone SLRs.

They are very lightweight because they are very thin tires. It is quite noticeable how thin the tread/casing is. I use them for racing only and would not encourage anyone to use them for regular use.

And I have Evo Corsa CX on my tubular set up. Other than leaking a ton of air overnight, they work well.

I have not had any issues with flats on either set up. But they are both reserved for races only.

popeye

I have them on my track wheels but like others have said they are paper thin.

Paul Y.

The air just seems to expel through the supersonic tire in no time.
It must be because of the thin rubber. Anybody else notice that?

rpeterson

What would the tire have to do with air leaking out of the tube?

popeye

If you're using this tire you are probably using a light weight or latex tube. Well I hope you are.

R578645

Yes, I've been riding these tires on the street. Got 1800 miles so far. Don't worry about having flat protection. Most of that is just marketing. Glass and thorns go through most any tire. Just watch your line and don't ride in groups where you can't see whats coming. I run latex tubes also.

Now for reality: I do have a couple of boots installed that I made from sidewalls from spare tires. They are working fine. I also do my own rubber re-tread patching using ground up rubber. If I see a low spot or a glass cut and the threads are exposed, I glue some more rubber on. I might get 3000 miles out of these.

Hiro11

To me, durability and cut resistance take absolute presidence over weight in training tires. 80g is nothing, don't believe the hype. Note that cut resistance is different than puncture resistance. No tire is truly puncture resistant given a sharp enough piece of debris, IMO. However, thicker belted tires are genuinely more cut resistant. Happily, while a cut can easily kill a ride, a puncture is no big deal. Supersonics, as a cut-prone, low durability tire are probably for competitive TT or track use only, IMO.

R578645

Here's my rubber snuff.

vwchad

I have not tried the supersonic tires. Not a high enough speed rating. I require the light speed rated tires.

kleng

A tubular wheelset will save about 300gms over a comparable clincher wheelset e.g compare Reynolds 32 tubular and clincher wheelsets.

If you stick with Continental Competition tubulars at 230gms for the 19mm width, you'll still be ahead of the supersonics with much better puncture protection and durability, if you want to go lighter still with vectran puncture protection then the the Podium TT tubular is 195gms.

R578645

Here is Vectran compared to regular sewing thread:

R578645

I'm at 2004 miles on the tires now. Did 35 miles today. Railroad tracks, bad pavement, raised cracks, etc...................................I carried a spare tire though just in case!

rangerdavid

I have 3 pairs of clinchers. I'm thinking tubies will be the next wheel purchase. Probably Boyd Tubies. If not tubies, then Zipp 303 clinchers.

R578645

Made it to 2400 street miles.

brawlo

I have run SuSos on my track bike since Feb this year. We race/train on an asphalt track, so use is pertinent to road racing. I'm not happy with them. I just had the rear give up around a month ago and the front is not confidence inspiring with how badly it is cut up. Over winter I raced on an indoor velodrome 5 times and trained on our outdoor about once every 2 weeks, so not many miles over winter.

When I got my original track bike, it came with Vittoria Diamante Pro Lights. Those suckers are 170g vs 200g for SuSos and the rear lasted me 1 1/2 years and the front lasted 2 1/2 years. Add to that whatever miles were put on them before I got the bike. Give the Vittorias a serious look if you want a clincher race tyre IMO.