Tubular or Clincher
Moderator: robbosmans
Clinchers and latex innertubes for everything except cyclocross. For cyclocross I would suggest tubulars. And also alu rims, although You can Buy a lot of nealy new high end carbon tubular wheelsets At low price since a lot of People sell them once they have flatted once or twice and realize the hassle.
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My Colnago came with Fulcrum Racing 5s clinchers. I kept getting pinch flats more than weekly and got really tired of that. Did some homework and concluded:
1. Go tubular to avoid pinch flats
2. Carry sealant for road side emergency
3. Go tubular, since I went to carbon wheels. The safety factor vs clinchers mattered here.
4. Ride feel. I went lower and lower on tire pressure ending at ~80F/85R. Hit a small pothole and far less impact felt, and no pinch flat
5. No need to carry spare. Just call uber to get me home and change to backup wheels
1. Go tubular to avoid pinch flats
2. Carry sealant for road side emergency
3. Go tubular, since I went to carbon wheels. The safety factor vs clinchers mattered here.
4. Ride feel. I went lower and lower on tire pressure ending at ~80F/85R. Hit a small pothole and far less impact felt, and no pinch flat
5. No need to carry spare. Just call uber to get me home and change to backup wheels
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Johnny Rad wrote:Wow, nearly a 50:50 split after >175 votes. I was initially surprised we have so many tubie users here ....
I'm surprised. I saw your reasons but still it is way out of proportion to what I see on group rides.
I voted clincher because I only use tubular for racing (i sometimes race on clinchers as well), the majority of my riding though is done on clinchers though. And on those training rides, bunch rides, shop rides it's rare to see someone riding tubulars. If I had to place a percentage on the away from racing use I would say I witness 98% clincher / 2% tubular. And this is around riders that actually race bikes. Imagine the split on riders who don't. Staggering we could get 50/50 here.
Even in races unless you are at the upper end of national racing clinchers are more prevalent now. Back 20 years ago pretty much everyone raced tubular.
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Always used clinchers and last year bought my first carbon clinchers after years of deliberation. I'd loved the look Campy Bora's forever but was not prepared to ride tubs. When the Bora clinchers were released last year I bought a set and have been 100% happy and all my worries have (so far) been unfounded. Braking has been perfect in the dry (as good as my alu wheels) and reasonable in the wet with no scary moments. In terms of climbing and descending they have been fine. I've not done any Alpine descents on them but done many UK descents over 1-3 miles and often 20%+ and and 50 mph and had no issues at all and I'm not a particularly good descender and brake more than I probably should. I am also quite light at 56 kg.
I will say I have nothing against tubs and have borrowed a couple of sets over the years for events and have been very impressed but my new Bora's do now feel in the same ball park as tubs. It's a risk assessment and so far for me there have been no down sides with the clinchers and I value the ease of repair over the (arguably) slight performance advantage of tubs. Saying all that though I've not had a flat yet in the 4000 miles I have on the Bora's so far so if they had been tubs i'd not be at a disadvantage!
I will say I have nothing against tubs and have borrowed a couple of sets over the years for events and have been very impressed but my new Bora's do now feel in the same ball park as tubs. It's a risk assessment and so far for me there have been no down sides with the clinchers and I value the ease of repair over the (arguably) slight performance advantage of tubs. Saying all that though I've not had a flat yet in the 4000 miles I have on the Bora's so far so if they had been tubs i'd not be at a disadvantage!
Bianchi Oltre XR2 + Campagnolo Super Record 11 + Campagnolo Bora 50C
Litespeed T1 + Campagnolo Chorus 11 + Campagnolo Shamal Ultra
Litespeed T1 + Campagnolo Chorus 11 + Campagnolo Shamal Ultra
I have a set of Bora One 50 tubulars and a set of Bora One 35 clinchers. Been on them for over a year now. I agree with cmcdonnell above that the 3Diamant braking surface of the carbon clinchers is as good as aluminum. Gaining more confidence on the braking safety on descents. I think the key is higher volume 25 mm tires inflated to 90-95 psi (or lower), butyl tubes and proper (intermittent) braking technique.
I still feel more confident on the technical alpine descents with the tubular version however do not have a team car following me on every ride, so I use my tubulars mostly on race day. Otherwise, I switch to my Shamal Ultra aluminum clinchers if the ride involves super technical, long, mountainous descents.
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I still feel more confident on the technical alpine descents with the tubular version however do not have a team car following me on every ride, so I use my tubulars mostly on race day. Otherwise, I switch to my Shamal Ultra aluminum clinchers if the ride involves super technical, long, mountainous descents.
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It's all downhill from here, except for the uphills.
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Like to ride clinchers with latex innere for the tubes like feel.
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It is very beneficial to deal clincher punk.
Rolling resistance and better.
Rolling resistance and better.
fogman wrote:^^^You have only 3 posts and you are already calling people "punk"?
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I don't think he meant "punk" literally. Probably Google translate malfunction [emoji14]
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- iliedanila
- Posts: 122
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- Location: Romania
bikes4ever wrote:new clinchers with LATEX tubes (the secret ingredient in a great clincher ride) - are as clsoe to tubular as you can get - with all the benefits of clincher ease
Unless you have carbon rims, in which case latex tubes are not recommended.
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bikes4ever wrote:new clinchers with LATEX tubes (the secret ingredient in a great clincher ride) - are as clsoe to tubular as you can get - with all the benefits of clincher ease
Agree - I would add that a super light butyl tube (50gr) has the same benefits with latex in rolling and provides the bonus it holds air.
I tested many tubes and I found continental supersonic the best. No flats with them (paired with One's) for a year now.
I use both tubulars and clinchers. I pump up my tires every ride because I don't ride daily and I like them to be at the optimal pressure. Just bought some latex tubes and will install them tonight hoping that it'll make my tt ride less jarring...
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- ProfessorChaos
- in the industry
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I own more tubulars than clinchers, and I only race on tubulars, but I do the bulk of my training on clinchers.