Timtruro

My Rant: I’m zipping along the canal rd this morning at maybe 18mph when a guy traveling about 5mph coming in the opposite direction (with fishing poles all over the place) decides this would be a great area to fish. cuts across the center line oblivious to oncoming traffic. I hit the brakes hard, fishtailed and avoided a collision. Upon inspecting the rear tire I find that I lost a bit of tire and rubber as a result. Time for new tires I guess. I was however able to ride the rest of the way back to the car. Specialized Armadillo tires are tough.

qcpmsame 

Glad that you made it past this one, Tim, and didn't get pranged. I have heard that the Armadillos are good tires, looks like you have proved that one. How many miles on the set?

Bill

B. Carfree

I used Armadillos for a while because it's tough to get anything to penetrate them. However, their poor ride qualities and their tendency to shed rubber sent me off in search of something that was more to my liking.

Wanderer

I've had several sets of Armadillos, and just bought a set of 30mm for my Sirrus, All Condition Armadillo Elites, early spring, on a good sale - to compare them against my Schwalbe Marathon Supremes. These don't roll as well as the All Condition Armadillo 28mm, nor as well as fatter Supremes.

I shouldn't have!

Buttttt, at least I tried them!

climberguy

Glad you're OK and the tire held up back to the car. But I have to ask: did all that damage come from one episode of braking? If so, I'd wonder how tough the tires actually are. If the tires were almost worn out already, it's more understandable. But then you might want to replace them sooner.

Timtruro

thanks Bill
Somewhere around 3000 miles on the tires, funny, I had just been inspecting them last week and thought it is about time to replace them. Now I have no decision to make, replacing them this week.

Timtruro

Close to being worn out, about 3k miles on them, had been thinking about replacing them anyway, but this certainly was not from one incident. These are a durable tire, but can be a bit pricey.

fietsbob

yup instant flat spot .. at least the pavement didn't grind into the casing fibers.

Biker395 

I'm not sure I'd have done so well with the panic stop.

I bought some Armadillos years and years ago, but gave them away. Suckers were nearly impossible to put on the rim, even in my garage with tire irons.

Maybe I should give them another go.

John_V 

Never used Armadillo's but Conti Gatorskins are also one hell of a tough tire. I've been running on them exclusively for almost 4 years and have only had one flat in over 25,000 miles. I have last years tires as spares and they still have life left in them. I change tires once a year, but since I retired, I haven't had a year with less than 8,000 miles.

tg16

Glad you came out ok.
I ride Vittoria Open Pave and also race them. The ride is smooth and very comfortable.