# commute tires



## stingray (Mar 12, 2014)

I am cost conscious and flat intolerant. I've been looking at the Panaracer Ribmo 26x1.5". It comes in foldable and steel bead. I think they both have kevlar protection.


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## Andy_K (Mar 19, 2014)

Tires are always making a trade-off somewhere. The Ribmos generally take the "all things in moderation" approach. They're reasonably cheap, but not the cheapest; reasonably light, but not the lightest; reasonably flat resistent, but not the best. Generally they a good tire. I used the 700x28 version for about 2000 miles of commuting and didn't start getting flats until the end of that time (which is typical wear life for me). The 26x1.5 version should be even more flat resistant.

If you're really flat intolerant, the Schwalbe Marathon Plus is the way to go. They also last a really long time, so while the initial cost is comparable to the Ribmo in the long run they're cheaper. The trade-offs with the Marathon Plus are that they're really heavy, have more rolling resistance than a tire like the Ribmo, are fairly hard to mount and don't have the best grip. If you're willing to deal with that, their puncture resistance can't be beaten.


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## crazylemurboy (Dec 12, 2011)

Schwalbe Marathons come in a few flavors as well. Some are more beefed up, others a bit thinner and more flexible. I like the regular HS 420 profile Schwalbe Marathon in 1.5 - 1.75". I haven't had any puncture flats and the tires have roughly 7000 miles on them. The rear is wearing down but still showing some tread. Impressive.


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## car bone (Apr 15, 2011)

stingray said:


> I am cost conscious and flat intolerant. I've been looking at the Panaracer Ribmo 26x1.5". It comes in foldable and steel bead. I think they both have kevlar protection.


I have schwalbe marathon supreme i think. well its the no2 best marathon tire. Really good grip and puncture protection.
Its not a plus tire with gel inside but its still very good. [







Marathon Supreme HS 382 | Schwalbe North America

I also run continetal contact 2 Continental Bicycle -CONTACT II
also veeery good grip and no punctures.

I could'nt find top contact2's Continental Bicycle -Top CONTACT II
otherwise i would have gotten those. they are probably better than the contact 2s.

I'm running these on dt rims and ihave experienced no problems whatsoever getting them off or on.

before i ran speed disc rims and Continental Bicycle -Touring Plus
They were called contact before and they have the plus gel inside. really fast tires but slightly heavy. totally indestructable and really good grip. used them for 4 years and they will run for about 2-3 more i guess.

get ones that are smooth in the middle!!
Continental Bicycle -Overview City / Trekking / ATB
City / Touring | Schwalbe North America

for winter time i use these nokian w240 SUOMI TYRES
much better than schwalbe ice spikers! (which i also used to a couple of years)


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## sunvalleylaw (Jun 21, 2010)

I have used Ritchy Tom Slicks and have had good luck. I did have one thorn flat though. I don't think any tire other than a goo filled one would have resisted the thorn puncture though.

Ritchey Tom Slick Comp Tire at BikeTiresDirect


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## crank1979 (Feb 3, 2006)

I haven't found anything that can ward off the dreaded truck tyre belt wire from puncturing my tyres. I've flatted with Marathon Plus and Durano Plus tyres, as well as IRC Formula Pro X-guard tubeless, Hutchinson Fusion 3 tubeless and Maxxis Refuse with Mr Tuffy tyre liners.

My next attempt will be setting up the Durano Plus tyres tubeless.


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## sunvalleylaw (Jun 21, 2010)

I am pretty lucky my commute is on a relatively rural bike path (rails to trails) between two small towns. Lots less of that kind of highway/freeway garbage hazard than some of you deal with. Maybe a thorn here or there, or a construction staple (took one of those through the tread of my rear Maxxis Ignitor and out the sidewall once) or nail now and again, but generally a lot less stuff.


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## mtbxplorer (Dec 25, 2009)

crank1979 said:


> I haven't found anything that can ward off the dreaded truck tyre belt wire from puncturing my tyres.


I don't think anything will work for that. Having visited places that chip up old tires, I know that exposed steel belts from tires can go right through pickup truck tires.


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## leeboh (Aug 5, 2011)

^^^ Tubeless would work well.


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## crank1979 (Feb 3, 2006)

leeboh said:


> ^^^ Tubeless would work well.


That's what I'm hoping when I try to convert the Duranos and Marathons to tubeless.

The road tubeless tyres have worked okay, but not great on my commute. For general road riding they are brilliant though.


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## crank1979 (Feb 3, 2006)

I've got the Durano tyre on the rear sealed up on Mavic XM719 rims using Gorilla tape, Stans sealant and tubeless valves. So far they are holding air nicely except for one of the two puncture the tyre had. It's slowly sealing up though. The sealant hasn't come through the tyre at any other point.


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## car bone (Apr 15, 2011)

I question the necessity of tubeless commuter tires. When I was running the Contact 1 with gel inside I had zero punctures in 4 years. glass, sharp gravel, dope needles, heavy industrial sites and bombing into curbs doesn't break these. I've had similar experience with the contact2 and marathon supreme. Also I change tires for the winter and then its a hassle with tubeless and gunk.


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## crank1979 (Feb 3, 2006)

I'm just looking for the best solution to my commuting puncture issue. 

When I moved further from work (from 15km to 55km) I rode my first two commutes on my road bike with Conti GP4000S tyres because that's what I used on the short commute. Those two days destroyed the tyres. My fault, woring tyres for the job.

Then I went to Maxxis Re-fuse tyres, which I found punctured less at 130psi than the recommended maximum of 120psi. However I was still getting at least one puncture over 3 days of commuting a week. I chucked some Mr Tuffy tyre liners in and had it down to about one puncture a fortnight. But the road feel was horrible.

I bought a 6700 Ultegra wheelset for the roadie and some Hutchinson Fusion 3 tyres. This felt much nicer and while the truck tyre belt wire punctures sealed up without any problems, the F3s got cut up a bit and some of these didn't seal well. 

I bought a cross bike specifically for commuting and set it up with 35C Schwalbe Marathon Plus tyres. These felt nice on anything slightly downhill and flat. Uphill sucked and the truck tyre belt wire still punctured them.

I was given a nice Scott Scale with a Rohloff hub that I set up for commuting as well and put Durano Plus tyres on it. They are the nicest feeling set up by far. Now that I've set them up tubeless I'll hopefully have found what I'm after. If not I'll just have to deal with it and fix the punctures as they happen.

But it doesn't hurt to try different options.


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## KentheKona (Jul 6, 2013)

the bontrager aw1 hard case tires I got stock on my trek have been surprising good. 2 serious years of commuting and 1 not so serious year and I have yet to get a flat with them. Probably jinxed myself saying that. 

Now I'm not bike expert so I can't speak of the quickness or feel of the tire, but for flat protection they're great.


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## djork (Nov 8, 2004)

I like Michelin City tires. They come in 26 and 700. Puncture protection and sidewall reflectors. There's also the Maxxis overdrive as well.


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## stingray (Mar 12, 2014)

Thanks for all the good suggestions, especially Schwalbe. I've completely overlooked them in the past. I ended up buying the 26x1.5 Marathon Deluxe HS 420 | Schwalbe North America . It was quite a wrestling match to get the tires on the rim because they are very sturdy tires. One feature that attracted me is the reflective sidewall. I commute in the early morning and want to make it easy for drivers to avoid killing me.


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## CommuterBoy (Oct 4, 2007)

Late to the party, sorry. I've had good luck with Schwalbe also. Loved the reflective sidewalls on my Big Apples.

I'm approaching the 5k mark on my Serfas Drifters... they have been an awesome tire. I set them up tubeless from day 1 and I have had 1 flat (in two years), and that was from not re-charging the tubeless sealant and pushing my luck. I rotated them at about the 3k mark. they have tons of life left in them. The 'negative tread' design gives them tons of rubber to wear through before they're anywhere close to worn out.

Also, they make fun suction cup sounds when you lean into corners in the rain.


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## sunvalleylaw (Jun 21, 2010)

Has anyone used the cyclocross/commuter hybrid tires?


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## rogbie (Jun 20, 2011)

^Yes. I use the Kenda Happy Medium 700x40c. Great tire. I get about a year out of a rear tire, and 1.5 years for the front. These tires see dirt, road, and singletrack.

Remember: no amount of flat protection will prevent flats if there is not adequate inflation.


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## SlowJoeCrow (Mar 16, 2009)

My commuter has 26" wheels so I started with Specialized Nimbus tires and put a Michelin City on the back when the Nimbus got a sidewall bubble. The Specialized Flak Jacket is pretty tough since I one went a full day with glass in my tire before it went flat. The Michelin City is even more bulletproof.
I also use my cross bike in nice weather and I have been running Forte 700x25c road tires with kevlar belts but I am thinking of getting some 700x32 Panaracers. I must be pretty lucky with flats because I have also commuted on the cross bike with Hutchinson Bulldog knobbies and have avoided flats so far.


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## solarplex (Apr 11, 2014)

I just put halo twin rails on my 99 moab, wholly hell they are fast. Have them at 70 psi, can go to 80psi on road. Says to run max 50 psi on dirt.

They have two small ribs you run on, then have side tread and Center tread that recessed below the ribs.

Really want them for my 29er now but can find them for less than $166 usd where i got my 26s for $86cnd


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## GoldenDragoon (Apr 21, 2013)

I will 2nd the Serfas drifters. I have 2.0's on my MTB converted to commuter setup tubeless and so far no issues with punctures ir even losing pressure. I also have some thinner tires which would be more logical for commuting but the drifters just have so much grip so it is more fun to "attack" my commute and generally ride like a maniac.

+1 to the cool sound they make when you lean em over.


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## stingray (Mar 12, 2014)

GoldenDragoon said:


> I converted to commuter setup tubeless ...


Tubeless? How do you do that?


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## crank1979 (Feb 3, 2006)

stingray said:


> Tubeless? How do you do that?


Gorilla tape around the inside of the rim after taking the rim tape off. Fit a tubeless valve. A bit of sealant and pray to whichever god you favour that it works and doesn't spray the whole garage!


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## stingray (Mar 12, 2014)

I bet tubeless flats are exciting events. It seems unlikely that they could be easily serviced in the field and would likely require a walk home too :-(


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## TenSpeed (Feb 14, 2012)

Most commuters carry the proper supplies to repair/fix a flat. I personally like the Specialized Armadillo tires, have them on both of my bikes, and knock on wood, nothing but good luck so far. Roll fairly fast and smooth on the road. The CX bike has the Borrough version, which could go off road if needed. Not much to the tread design, so I would be wary of it.


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## crank1979 (Feb 3, 2006)

stingray said:


> I bet tubeless flats are exciting events. It seems unlikely that they could be easily serviced in the field and would likely require a walk home too :-(


Fit a tube, pump it up and off you go. No harder than when puncturing a tube, unless it's a proper road tubeless set up. Then it's a bit harder to take the tyre off but still not a problem. It can be a bit messier but it all washes off.


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## CommuterBoy (Oct 4, 2007)

GoldenDragoon said:


> +1 to the cool sound they make when you lean em over.


It's like commuting in the Jetson's car.



stingray said:


> I bet tubeless flats are exciting events. It seems unlikely that they could be easily serviced in the field and would likely require a walk home too :-(


Typically you hear a hssssssssss....then it stops on its own and you don't even slow down. Occasionally it doesn't stop for a few seconds, so you stop and put your finger on the wet spot where the goo is getting out, rotate that down to the bottom so more goo gets on it from the inside, hold for a few seconds, then when you move your finger it's magically fixed. Just keep the sealant topped up and the idea of carrying tire levers becomes a silly thing to think about. I've been carrying a spare tube for 5 years and never used it. It's probably starting to rot at the bottom of my backpack.

This weekend I took off one of my Serfas Drifters to replace a ghetto valve stem with a nice Stans one, and I found a nail sticking down into the tire...been there so long the head was completely gone so you couldn't see it...so there was a 1.5" dagger sticking down into the tire for...weeks? months? Never lost any pressure.


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## steinercat (Apr 25, 2014)

car bone said:


> I have schwalbe marathon supreme i think. well its the no2 best marathon tire. Really good grip and puncture protection.
> Its not a plus tire with gel inside but its still very good. [
> View attachment 881001
> 
> ...


The TOP Contact are available at Amazon.

I got the Contact II from eBay at $32 each. Can't wait to try them out.


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## AlexCuse (Nov 27, 2011)

oops didn't see other replies


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## car bone (Apr 15, 2011)

steinercat said:


> The TOP Contact are available at Amazon.
> 
> I got the Contact II from eBay at $32 each. Can't wait to try them out.


Hehe now when its drying up I had a chance to test thye limits of my rear 2.0 marathon supreme and front 47 contact 2. And the limit of the grip is definitely a psychological barrier not a physical one (so far.) Its fuking scary sometimes. Hope you enjoy your tires. I pump mine up to like 75% of the rated tire/rim max, whichever comes first.


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## stingray (Mar 12, 2014)

stingray said:


> I ended up buying the 26x1.5 Marathon Deluxe ...
> View attachment 888346


I just got back from Paris where my wife and I rented bikes from the city-wide network of Velib bikes. Interestingly, those bikes have these tires too. I've been as impressed with these tires here in the US as in France on the cobblestones.


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