Making the transition to tubulars

Wheels, Tires, Tubes, Tubeless, Tubs, Spokes, Hookless, Hubs, and more!

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The spirit of this board is to compile and organize wheels and tires related discussions.

If a new wheel tech is released, (say for example, TPU tubes, a brand new tire, or a new rim standard), feel free to start the discussion in the popular "Road". Your topic will eventually be moved here!
jeffy
Posts: 1325
Joined: Sun Oct 05, 2014 11:51 pm

by jeffy

Does anyone ride with ONLY Tufo Extreme? in their pocket and not a spare tub?

What other brands/models have people had success with Tufo Extreme?

My (very noob) understanding, if that sealant (unspecified brand) is a bad idea for any Tub that has a Latex tube sew inside - as the when the tyre loses pressure (say you go on holiday for a fortnight - without bike - the horror!) your tub with stick together and rip/pop.

or am I understanding it wrongly and 'post-puncture' Tufo Extreme (or Vittoria Pit Stop) is injected and then tub reinflated and the sealant used dries - so the whole tub ruining with sealant is more of a using stan's type of thing?

on Velonews Ask Nick
Stretch the tire, then apply a thin layer of glue. Let that dry and then stretch the tire again. The second stretching is really helpful when you’re struggling roadside.


Am i correct that by 'stretch the tire' he means stretch by inflation (to What psi??) as surely stretching the glued tub would stick it to the rim?!?

by Weenie


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PinaRene
Posts: 857
Joined: Mon Feb 12, 2007 12:08 pm

by PinaRene

jeffy wrote:Does anyone ride with ONLY Tufo Extreme? in their pocket and not a spare tub?

What other brands/models have people had success with Tufo Extreme?



I ride tubular tires now for 3 years of and on, together with clincher tires. In these 3 years I've put aprox. 25.000K on my bikes and almost 15.000K on tubular tires - had 3 flats on clichers and 1 puncture on a tubular tire. This tubular tire ( Veloflex Extreme ) is one of the brands that I ride. I have some Vittoria EVO's and Vredestein Fortezza Tricomp also to ride with.

Last year ( June 2014 ) I repaired the Veloflex Extreme with Tufo Extreme - and I still ride the tire on my Shimano C50 wheels. It is still perfect and it deflates a lot slower then before adding the Tufo Extreme. When the tubular tire is empty and I push it to the rim it feels sticky so it isn't hardened up to now, and I hope it will stay okay for a while or until it's worn.

:smartass:

sungod
Posts: 1702
Joined: Fri Dec 24, 2010 9:37 pm

by sungod

i use tufo extreme to fix smaller punctures in veloflex, if it looks like a cut so big that the tube'll force through i fit the spare

once the tufo is in, you need to keep at least little air in there, if the tube deflates enough to collapse it may get stuck together by sealant, but deflating this far takes a long time, much longer than a fortnight (caveat: i leave the bike on a wall rack, so there's no weight on the tyres)

i've got tyres that i've patched and then fixed 3-4 subsequent punctures with tufo, once they're fairly worn i just use sealant, though if it were a brand new tub i might pull it off, fit the spare, and repair it rather than use sealant

re stretching, no, stretching is putting the tub, dry, on a rim for a while before fitting, in my experience you do not need to stretch veloflex, they fit easily without

just back from vacation, i fitted new veloflex carbon/arenberg front/rear a week before, 1200km not even a teeny cut, the joy of good roads! now i'm back in the uk i reckon that will change

audiophilitis
Posts: 479
Joined: Sun Jul 29, 2012 12:49 am

by audiophilitis

Sungod, I just went with the Carbon/Arenberg (F/R) setup as well and did a fondo ride a couple of weeks ago. I think it's an excellent setup for a 145 lb person. I have Velo Extreme (F/R) on another bike and although supple, the Arenberg/Carbon combo provides a better ride overall. Just sharing my opinion on this setup.

bm0p700f
in the industry
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by bm0p700f

How do folk ride for 25000 km with just 4 flats. I get a flat a month at least no matter the tyre I ride. I suppose this year alone I have done 12000km with about 15 to 20 flats, it's been a bad year so far. Sealant has saved me several times. I have had conti competition tubs with zeal sealant in them to fix a puncture that has got 2 or three more but the sealant did it job so I did not have to stop. I get a lot of punctures when it's wet which is quite often.

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Amaro
Posts: 74
Joined: Sat Dec 13, 2008 2:33 pm
Location: Vigo (Spain)

by Amaro

I wanted to give tubulars a try so I went for a new wheelset from 2rc.bike (It was a recommendation from a friend). So here they are, very light (the bike went from 7,300 to 7,070) and rigid, rode for 82 kms and everything went fine. I´m very happy with my new wheels.

I plan to take with me some Tufo sealant but no spare tubular.

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Rider on the storm...

Geoff
Posts: 5395
Joined: Sat Dec 13, 2003 2:25 am
Location: Canada

by Geoff

Nice. @bm0p700f, I'm one of 'those folks' who gets stupid kms on tubulars. I tried clinchers on a long-term test, but got a lot of flats. I think it is a combination of size (I'm 60kg), riding style and the availability of a Crown-sponsored glass recycling programme.

audiophilitis
Posts: 479
Joined: Sun Jul 29, 2012 12:49 am

by audiophilitis

bm0p700f wrote:How do folk ride for 25000 km with just 4 flats. I get a flat a month at least no matter the tyre I ride. I suppose this year alone I have done 12000km with about 15 to 20 flats, it's been a bad year so far. Sealant has saved me several times. I have had conti competition tubs with zeal sealant in them to fix a puncture that has got 2 or three more but the sealant did it job so I did not have to stop. I get a lot of punctures when it's wet which is quite often.


I've been really lucky with tires -- 2 flats in 20 years of cycling (albeit weekend rides only). Continental Competition tubulars for 19 years and a switch to Veloflex Extreme, Carbon and Arenberg last year

thprice
Posts: 252
Joined: Sun Jul 17, 2011 6:34 am

by thprice

bm0p700f wrote:How do folk ride for 25000 km with just 4 flats. ...
Can you provide a little more information: tyre pressure, road condition, weight, large group riding, small groups or alone, etc?

sungod
Posts: 1702
Joined: Fri Dec 24, 2010 9:37 pm

by sungod

road conditions are a huge factor

if you ride in areas such as cities with broken glass and other debris, or where the roadside soil contains sharp chips of stone, or plants that drop thorns etc., then you're likely to get more flats, if it's wet it'll get even worse

whereas on debris-free roads in areas with benign geology/flora and little or no rain, things tend to be a lot better

Delorre
Posts: 967
Joined: Sat May 24, 2014 12:09 pm

by Delorre

bm0p700f wrote:How do folk ride for 25000 km with just 4 flats.

I've got 1 flat during the last 2 seasons (approx 23000 km), and was my own fault, rear gp4000s was really worn and the flat was on the 'one' ride to far. I think I max at 1 flat/year for the last decade, using gp4000s (and some gp attack at front for a couple of years now, never flat one) And Belgium is not known for there well maintained roads :wink:

bm0p700f
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by bm0p700f

Actually this last month its been better. Commuting at the moment on challange strada bianca and no flats I really like these tyres even though the grip is not the best (run out in the bends). 2000km so far on them with one flat.

I weigh 82kg but obviously more dressed. I ride alone mostly but race or do group rides on sundays. The roads I ride are rural and falling apart with gravel and flint everywhere.

fingers crossed that there are no more flats this year I am doing around 400km a month at the moment so I best not hope too much.

mrlobber
Posts: 1930
Joined: Sat Oct 23, 2010 9:36 am
Location: Where the permanent autumn is

by mrlobber

Zoro wrote:The Veloflex arrived last week. I am aging them. They are beautiful. The tread is rather light and I expect riding through cities with glass and Goat head's they will puncture like all the others. I also expect the tread will wear sooner than other PR tyres.
Still - just wonderfully made tires. I may take them for my old man riding and buy another set for my son. For PR-these are the tyres. For sunny day road races still a FMB 25mm silk fan, but for the Pave - these win.


Just to throw some stones in Veloflex's garden (although after a brief disastrous stint with Vittoria I've only used Veloflex since), recently took out my last new (but aged) Sprinter, mounted and before gluing noticed a bulb on the sidewall. Clearly this was a fault in manufacturing process and I wouldn't ride it with the substantial risk of an explosion, given how fragile the sidewalls of Veloflexes tend to be. Guess what, through Jedi or personal, you just don't get any reply from them whatsoever, so eventually I just had to write down that tyre...
Minimum bike categories required in the stable:
Aero bike | GC bike | GC rim bike | Climbing bike | Climbing rim bike | Classics bike | Gravel bike | TT bike | Indoors bike

sungod
Posts: 1702
Joined: Fri Dec 24, 2010 9:37 pm

by sungod

your contract is with the retailer, if it hasn't been glued contact the retailer, it's their responsibility to replace it

in uk at least, you can still do this several years after purchase, may get trickier cross-border, but within the eu i'd think you'd be ok

upside
Posts: 654
Joined: Fri Mar 09, 2007 1:26 am
Location: USA

by upside

I have been using the Vittoria Evo CG 27 this past season. Not one puncture.. did have a staple go in, but when the staple hit the puncture belt it never penetrated and went side ways. Nice riding tire, probably not a high mileage tire. I have since purchased some Comps in the 25 and give them a go.

by Weenie


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