gkamieneski

I still have a nice Campagnolo tubular wheelset with Mavic GL330 and Reflex rims. Back in the day, I would use 22mm Continental Sprinters and Giros or Vittoria sewups on these narrow rims.

I've been thinking of putting these back into service with some new rubber but frankly the roads nowadays seem strewn with more threats to these tires than ever before. I am looking at the Conti Sprinter Gatorskins (used to use the regular Sprinters) for durability but wonder about size to be used with these old, narrow rims. I wonder if I go to a wider sewup, say a 25 or 28 (and if they will fit my frame), whether the increased width will afford more torque to the tire rolling off the rim?

Mad Honk 

I have started using the Vitoria Giro's and they seem to run just fine. They are measuring about 25mm HTH, MH

repechage

The Giro's I have measure 22-23. Maybe they evolved.
the rim width should be fine for 25 to even 28's.

i have spilt the difference, wider in back, narrower in front. More weight on the rear wheel anyway, and the narrower tire provides sharper steering response.
Besides that, you price tolerance...

dddd

Did you perhaps mean the Continental Giro?

I found these to be a fairly unreliable tire myself, I went through a couple of them and had blisters appear under the tread leading to blow outs.

I ran them at only 100psi for the 22mm size

Classtime 

I have used 25mm Sprinter Gatorskins on my GP4s which I think are the same width as our GL330s without problems. I'm pretty sure that I couldn't roll a Continental tire if I tried even without glue. What they say about the ride of Gatorskins is true but they are durable. I have them now and will likely replace with same for long epic mixed surface rides where I want sidewall protection. My GL330 wheelset has 22mm sprinters and they are so much nicer than the 25mm Gatorskins for normal road rides.

Classtime 

AND Reflex was a go-to rim for CX with 32mm tires at low pressures. Don't worry.
Competitive Cyclist has a sale on sprinters right now.

What bike are they going on? My Bikes look sooooo much better with 22s.

gkamieneski

GL330 front, Reflex rear with 8sp Campy Chorus on a Pinarello Gavia TSX. Racing days, mainly used 22mm Sprinters.

gkamieneski

You mention sidewall protection with the Gatorskin Sprinters. Is that what they are known for? How is the puncture resistance under the tread?

Classtime 

I believe that they have an extra layer under the tread. I think I have punctured just as often with Conti Competitions and Vittoria Corsa whatevers as I have with Gatorskins on the road. On rocky roads where there is no good line or you are in a crowd, sidewall protection is key in my mind and GS have extra. But you pay for that in harsh road rides while you wear them out which I am doing now. I hope to be done with them soon and set these wheels aside while I ride the Sprinters on another wheel set. And post pandemic I'll get a fresh pair of GS for an event or two.

geeteeiii

My HVZ Meteor track bike came with Tufo tubulars in 21 size. Front one is S3 Lite and rear is the cheaper S33 Pro. I have been using them on the street with no issues for about 6 months, knock on wood. One thing i would note is that the front tire makes a weird sound, rear is quiet.

gkamieneski

I have been reading quite a few negative reviews for the Continental Sprinter GS. Seems the ride on the road is harsh and they do not have much if any additional puncture resistance under the tread from the regular sprinters. Sounds like I would be disappointed from my recollections of riding Sprinters, Nuovo Pros, etc.

Maybe it's just my feeling of my local area, but I swear roads here are littered with much more junk and shrapnel than I remember when I used the sewups.

Wildwood 

The sticky thread Totally Tubular (recent posts) have any number of recommendations.

Generally speaking, the tires with high thread count (and higher $$$) offer more supple sidewalls for a more compliant ride at high pressure. The Giro should be a heavier (stiffer) sidewall which results in a stiffer ride.

Try the UK sites for prices. Have not been to them since Brexit, but www.merlincycles.com usually has the best product prices for my interests, also www.probikekit.com is good for specials

woodcraft

I haven't used the Sprinter Gatorskins, but have found regular Sprinters to be very resistant to cuts, relative to other tires.

The 25mm ones would be a good choice, IMO.

I've never paid any attention to rim width for tubulars, including for 32mm CX tires. Nobody thought about it when those rims were new,

and there were big tires then e.g. Del Mundo.

squirtdad

I have challenge elite pro 25 mm on mavic gl330's no problems but not a lot of miles yet

Chombi1 

An excellent tubular tire to try out is Vittoria Corsa G's.
Great supple ride and very low rolling resistance even in the narrow 23mm width.
I have them on four of my C&V bikes now and cannot imagine ever considering any lesser tubs than the Corsa G's.

gaucho777 

You’ll be fine with wider tubulars on those rims. I’m riding mainly 25-28mm on narrow, vintage tubular rims, including one bike with 28mm Veloflex Vlaanderen tubs on GL330s.

Chubby715

+1 on the regular Conti Sprinters. I used them (22mm) for several years on my Campy Chrono tubulars. Very light, durable and affordable.

woodcraft

Yes, excellent ride quality, but I've ended up choosing 20% harsher ride & 3X better durability with the Sprinters.

Wildwood 

Merlincycles had some models of Veloflex on sale in the $55 price range a couple weeks ago.

Highly recommend VeloFlex.
I've got a set of Schwalbe 30mm tough as nails.


Has anyone mentioned liquid latex - i use a very minimal amount - to prevent/stop leaks?

tiger1964 

Yeah, (recent posts) should read (RECENT POSTS)! I'll be needing tires soon, and reading the entire topic means I'll be 80 years old by the time I decide on tires.

Wildwood 

Yeah, maybe the thread is overdue for an overhaul. Of some sort


Anyway, price range is a big factor.
I wait for specials and buy several, rather than buy them 2 or 3 at a time settling on affordable low-end.
VeloFlex and top end Vittoria have been better than good.
The top end Specialized from a few years ago was great but with short tread wear life.
My Schwalbe Pro-1 (?), 30mm has been perfect for my light gravelly needs.
Conti Giro's, at least the older 22mm, have been stiff and predictable, if harsh at 100+psi
Conti Sprinters, mine are 22mm, are a step up from Giro but still firm.

I have even used Vittoria Rallys on vintage touring type frames that love a thick cotton casing.
No experience with Michelin, and many others.

jamesdak 

Well I'm no tubular expert but here in these later years I have been using the various Veloflex tubulars, just switching up the models to get the width I need. I like how they feel, the mount easy enough for me, and I've yet to flatten one even though I don't run any sealant in them.

I usually find them at Merlin or PBK the cheapest.

Latest set I just got in a couple of weeks ago for the Opus.

Road Fan

Similarly, I've had Challenge Parigi-Roubaix 27 mm (actual) on my Mavic GP4 rims with zero concerns related to rim width, and rode them for several years. The GL330s MIGHT be a bit narrower, but not enough to convince me the difference has any effect. Now I have Gommitalia Espresso 21 mm on the same rims. Except for having to pump up the latex daily, there is no problem with the GP4 rims and those tires, or the wider P-Rs. On one of my bikes a 30 mm might be a little to the frame/fork crown, but that would not stop me from buying a pair if it popped up in front of me.

Road Fan

I'd like to see some sort of quality indexing or sub-foruming, on the Tubular thread, the For the Love of 3-speeds, and for the Retro Frame with Modern Shifting threads. Visually scanning through any of those looking for something is an exercise in frustration, and when BF searches give you 5 pages of hits, that isn't any better.

Road Fan

My brief and frustrating experience with Sprinters was about 35 years ago. At prices then I fought with $80 wirth of tires to install them, got in one ride, and was stopped when about 40 goatheads attacked each tire. I was going to try to split the seam along the whole length of the carcass and put in a 700x18 tube, but I could not even remove the base tape! God know what Conti used on that.

For about a mile they were a lively, resilient ride, 35 years ago. I can't say what to think about them today, but I would not buy any, there are better options out there.