repechage

there was a guy in the club decades back, he just pumped them up good and hard.
another shop employee measured the pressure. 11 atm on a Clement tire gauge.
now That is High pressure.

Bad Lag

I understood your suggestion. Thanks for it. Truly, I am just concerned they may not come out uniform in their absorption of the stain.

jamesdak 

Yep, that has been my experience too and I live in an area when I can do thousands of miles on other tires and never see a flat.

SJX426 

I would say the Challenge is not very puncture resistant.
2022-09-15_07-58-26 on Flickr

Bad Lag

As long as I stay properly inflated, I don't get flats. In never got goat head flats in ABQ and the only thing that gets me here is broken beer bottles (glass) + under inflation.

Which version of the Challenge tires were you guys using? The ones I just mounted have "PPS", which I believe stands for puncture protection system or some such. Not all versions have had that.

My 28 mm tire lists 90 psi as the minimum inflation. Were you guys keeping up with the proper inflation levels or running them soft?

Also, what tires are you running that are so different in their resistance to flats?

Oh well, doesn't matter. It's just my idle curiosity. I have these tires on the bike. I'll find out for myself soon enough.

squirtdad

one note to add, weight makes a big difference. Until recently i was pretty stead at 245 am now down to 225, but even the rene herse charts have at higher pressure than 160 lb rider

Have no idea where the OP is weight wise

bottom line is pressure depends on lots of variables tire, tire type, tube type, rider weight, rider preference

FWIW and apropos to nothing the best ride magic feeling i have was on an 84 team miyata with 25mm challenge eltite tubular at 130psi (and lightish rims Mavic Gel 330)

Bad Lag

We have drifted far, far away from my original question but here goes one more.

This graphic addresses the weight/tire pressure issue, as mentioned by squirtdad.

I have no idea what either my bicycle or I weigh or the distribution of that weight front and rear. Because of that, I left the indicators as blobs that get me into the approximate range.

Also, I don't pump before every ride, so tire pressure varies from day-to-day.

masi61

Hey Bad Lag - sorry to suggest you were being (unnecessarily) stubborn in your choice of tire pressures. I guess I was thinking of myself and also my riding buddies who have all come up with the high tire pressure urban myth.

I am sorry though that your experience with the latex tubes was not positive. Your experience is not uncommon from what I have heard. My weekend riding buddies that tried latex have all abandoned the latex and migrated back to the butyl tubes. Call me the outlier if you will, because I forged ahead with some early latex failures and have now gotten to a place where I truly feel that they are indispensable for me. In my opinion, a lot of the flatting that people get comes from inside the tire, from issues with rim tape that is less than optimal or minor issues with bead pinches. I have heard fans of latex say that latex tubes are less vulnerable to flats from glass shards compared to butyl and I tend to believe this.

It is interesting that you did comment on the sound the tires make being different, and also that the feel is slightly different. Maybe you are right that the actual rolling resistance isn't much different but that quieter rolling sound is very reassuring to me I know that. Also, you didn't say what type of classic road bike you are riding but I am wondering if it is a steel road bike that is already supremely compliant then you really are already riding a steed that can tolerate high pressure tires and still give a great ride. My aluminum bike that I pictured earlier in this thread is unfortunately overbuilt in a budget way. The ride on that bike is not compliant, the frame geometry was a neat fit experiment that I did on a budget and I learned a lot. Unfortunately it is a budget aluminum frame and they never optimized the compliance.

Bad Lag

So, I finally mounted the front tire. I've been riding the rear for over a week now but now I have WHITE WALL TIRES front and rear.

Honestly, they are not as bad as I thought but I would prefer to have not made this stupid mistake.

The new tires ride differently than the old tires, despite the same labeling, especially in the front. I will have to measure that front tire, too. It seems wider than the old one, which might explain the different ride.

Thanks, everyone.

smd4

Just use the appropriately colored enamel paint on the sidewall. It won’t take that long to paint them.

Chombi1 

Whitewalls might not be so bad......
I remember the Michelin foldable "Bib TS20" tires that Peugeot supplied with some of their mid level and higher end bikes in the early 80's actually had white sidewalls and they looked pretty good. The sidewalls did not stay so white after just a little time and a few miles because of brake pad residue and and tire rubber dust from the roads. I assume the same will happen to these tires.

Bad Lag

I've been riding these tires every day for well over a month now. I no longer care about the white color, as it has darkened a little with use.

They are great tires, performance-wise, as good as tubulars. I love the way they corner. I go out of my way to find fast, downhill turns. I added yet another to my route just a couple weeks ago.

Great tires!

Fahrenheit531 

I can't be the only one sitting here waiting for a pic of the tires on the bike.