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forum
Puncture resistant tyres
I'm currently running 25mm Vittoria Zaffiro tyres on my Boardman SLR, but after a spate of punctures (four punctures in as many weeks), I am beginning to question their resistance.
I am also seriously considering an investment in some 'puncture proof' tyres. I know nothing is fully puncture proof, but anything to prevent the frustration of constant punctures would be massively appreciated right now. My question is, are they worth the investment? And, if so, which tyres have you found to be the best?
If you're new please join in and if you have questions pop them below and the forum regulars will answer as best we can.
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22 comments
I've come off way too many times on Gatorskins and I didn't even find them all that good at stopping puntures.
For commuting I couldn't reccomend the Specialized Armadillo tyres more,. Lots of grip and I think I've had one punture since I fitted them on my commuter bike 3 years ago (approx 3500 miles a year).
That being said, I wouldn't put them on my nice bike. Like others have said, I'd probably use Conti GP5000s
I ride about 8000km a year on mainly back roads but also bridleways forest tracks, and gravel roads I ride Durano DD 28mm last year not a single puncture this year one, the wheels are a hed ardennes disc version, not the most super fast road tyres but really reliable I occasionally race the same bike on a race track and swap to P zero but the Durano DD is a great puncture resistant tyre
After 8 years on a wide variety of tyres on my nasty for punctures (long distance) commute I'd say avoid the heavyweight options (marathon and durano plus) and go for a middleweight tyre like conti 4 season or similar. In fact for summer use on your local lanes gp5000 or similar would be fine. I'm guessing the tyres you have are the standard ones that came with your bike? If so they are always cheap and prone to puncture tbh
That's right, they came standard with the bike so I didn't expect anything special. Definitely edging towards a good mid weight tyre such as some of the Conti 4 season or gp5000 mentioned by yourself and some of the other forum users. I appreciate some punctures are inevitable, but getting tired of heading out for every ride in fear of another puncture. This is made even worse by the tightness of the stock tyres and subsequent difficulty in changing them.
Conti Gator Skins.
3 punctures in 15000 miles. All weathers and seasons.
Id say that was quite conclusive of a decent puncture resistant tyre.
(Im bored of hearing about the poor rolling resistance/grip etc - Never been an issue for me)
Arthritic hands make it difficult for me to remove a tyre so I've used Schwalbe Durano Plus on my road bike for the past 8 years.
I may be lucky but my puncture count is 4, or 1 every 10,000 miles - 2 of those were on the same cycle path in France on holidays 2 years apart!
Most of my mileage is in rural Cheshire, plenty of thorn hedges.
I wonder if any readers have come across this problem? The 'gatorskin' layer has detached from the sidewall on my 28mm Continental tyres!
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Yup, had that once.
Decent tubeless tyre, dynaplug micro pro, a small sealant top up bottle and a pump.
I found Vittoria with the graphene compound good if you want inner tubes.
I bought some Marathon Plus tyres once. They were an utter pig to fit and I broke levers getting them on. A few commutes in and I had a piece of stiff wire go right through the rear tyre. I couldn't remount it, trashed the bead trying, and walked my bike home. My trusty commuter now wears Conti 4 seasons and I can get them back on with just my hands. I'll take an additional few punctures a year over standing by the roadside feeling terminally abject.
They are about the hardest tyres to fit, no argument. You may have been unlucky but they can be fitted without too much fuss - lots of advice online, e.g. www.portsmouthctc.org.uk/fitting-a-marathon-plus-tyre
And once on they probably the most puncture-resistant of all. I go thousands of (mostly city) miles between punctures.
They are also super heavy, though, so on my weekend bike I use Durano Plus (also Schwalbe). The folding ones aren't too hefty and also have good puncture-resistance and longevity.
And I get the benefit from properly light rubber on trips to parts of the world where the roads are better!
Excellent video. I had trouble 10 years ago with my first ones but had bought some special levers under advice. I evolved most of the technique in the video but never took it to the limit of the demonstrator and completed it without levers altogether. His expert tip is to keep moving the second bead down into the well over and over again.
I run Marathon Plus on my commuter. The first pair lasted me ~6 years, using them mostly 5 days a week for a central London commute in all weathers. In all that time, I got only one puncture, and that was a nail which went in one side of the tyre and out the other! So I haven't had to remove them much, but I'm pretty sure I got the replacements (some more Marathon Plus) on by hand. It probably helps both fitting and puncture rate that mine are quite large (35c I think). They are probably a little dull to ride, but fixing punctures on my bike (single speed, rear facing dropouts, mudguard fitted) is a real faff and I only use it for commuting, so I'm happy with the compromise. On my weekend bike I've found Grand Prix 4 Seasons pretty good.
Thanks for the insight Compact Corned Beef. I did look into the Marathon Plus tyres as an option due to their perceived resistance to punctures, but the last thing I want is to be stranded on the side of the road when the inevitable flat does eventually happen and I can't remove/refit the tyre.
I used to have them. A pain to get on first time and then off. But second time and subsequent is ok.
You can get lezyne heavy duty levers and they also do a proper metal one that is smooth and rounded. Obviously you can't use the metal with any old wheel !
It is my view that nothing resists the British thorn. I have not even tried filling the tube with horrendous gloop because I don't believe it's going to work. I could be wrong, so I await comments from people who have actually used the stuff, and find that it's still possible stick a standard tube repair patch even with the gloop in place. Similarly, users of tubeless tyres (I have tubeless rims and tyres, but haven't used them tubeless) are encouraged to report their experiences.
I have pulled over 20 of your finest british thorns out of each of my 3 inch Maxxis Chronicle thorn magnets, and the satisfaction of seeing the wonders of Orange Endurance seal up those ride ruining nasties is very smug inducing.
I run very low pressures so cannot possibly comment on road tubeless tyres.
I like running quality rubber, and latex tubes in my other bicycles, punctures are part of life. The nastyness of puncture resistant tyres, let alone Tannus, fills me with horror.
I think the various tubeless how-to articles could do with a little more discussion of tyre pressure. I do wonder whether there might be some threshold pressure with separates the lovers from the haters.
I've been using tubeless for about 5 years. The key is top brand tyres and the sealant used in my experience. I used several of the standard sealants for the first couple of years with Schwalbe and Mavic tyres. I had maybe 1-2 flats over the 2 years.
Just over 3 years ago I tried Stans Race Sealant - and I've experimented with tyre pressures over that time mostly for grip, comfort and speed as against punctures. I've never had a flat since using Stans Race, not one, at any pressure (I ride the usual mixed road surfaces over Scotland and England with potholes and cattle grids etc, but not gravel). I check and top up/change the sealant in 5-10 minutes every 3-4 months (using Milkit valves, which make it a doddle). I say 'never a flat' because I have found punctures when changing tyres, but they all self sealed and I never noticed them at all.
I don't carry any puncture kit at all now - just a phone, which I've never needed to use (I do about 6000 miles a year).
Like many folk on here I've followed the seemingly endless and tortuous path that leads from a dislike of flats. And spent more money than is sensible in pursuit of the perfect tyre too. The lesson that eventually permeated my thick skull is that there are two possible approaches for you to take :
First, you can experiment with an increasingly expensive series of so-called puncture proof tyres. This will eventually lead you to that special place where you don't get flats but your wheels are as heavy as a teenager's mood. You will by now have lost your love of the bicycle.
Or you could short-circuit this madness and go straight to my preferred solution, which is simply to buy very high quality rubber from one of the big names. Ordinary road tyres such as Conti's GP 5000 or Michelin's Power series or Pirelli's latest offerings turn out not to be ordinary at all. These top-of-the-range tyres not only give grip and comfort, their expensive construction and materials also provide surprising levels of toughness. Tubed or tubeless, this principle invariably applies.
It has taken me many years to condense my experience into a couple of paragraphs, please feel free to make use of them.
I'd second that. I have run Conti GP4000s for over half a decade now, after having several punctures in a few weeks on a stock set of Schwalbes.
Since then, I think on average I have 2 punctures a year, usually in the actual bike parking compound at work (littered with all kinds of rubbish like staples and screws as it's next to the delivery yard) - or once, when someone shot out every single lamppost cover along the cycle path. I can change them mostly with hands, and a little help from cheap plastic tyre levers.
The only time I don't ride them is when there's sheet ice around, but for me and my handling (or lack of) only spiked tyres will deal with that.
The ride on them is excellent, and I was recommended them by a cousin who cycles 10,000 miles+ a year and won't ride anything else (I haven't asked if they've moved up to the 5000s). They're probably a lot cheaper now than when I bought my last set, given their successor is out, and I'd definitely consider upping the width to 28mm if your frame can take it.
Agreed - from a tubeless user. If going tubeless use top brand tyres and top brand sealant (Stans Race in my opinion).