Weight Weenies

Multebear, how many years are you riding?

What kind of flats are you getting? Sidewall cuts/metal-glass in tire or cuts from the rim because of bad rim tape or sharp edges in the rim bed?

Sounds to me like your current riding style has outgrown your previous favorite tire. You probably need a new tire to accomodate. When I lived in Germany and rode Schwalbe Durano I thought it was normal to have like 10 flats a year, because the reviews were so good. Then I moved to China, started riding unknown chinese lightweight tires, and realized you can go whole years between flats even when upping the ride distance a lot.

That same tire (200gr) that rarely caused me any flats I've now again replaced with an even better one. I need more protection as I like riding on different kinds of roads and even longer distances. Today I ride Vittoria Rubino Pro 3's (standard). They work for me. Haven't had a single flat yet, but I haven't ridden more than 1000km on them. (I use Challenge ultra light latex inner tubes)

They feel fast too. Among the tested mid-priced tires on bicyclerollingresistance these have the lowest rolling resistance.

/a

Where you ride has a lot to do with it. Your # of flat experience in Germany vs. China may have more to do with the amount of debris your tires run through. I remember there was a route I used to ride which would give me a flat nearly half the time. Turns out it was these little prickly seed pods that trees would shed. They were like little tacks on the roadside.

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True, I did go more on gravel there than I do here.

But the difference of distance between flats is just mindblowing. More than to just explain it on the debris alone. China is constantly under construction so I've had my fair share of gravel/mud here too.

You can't go on reviews alone though. Many factors are at play. Compound variance, rider weight, tire pressure. Use the reviews as a guide but don't let it determine your favorite tire. At least make yourself a top 3 list and compare.

Loose gravel displaces when a tire rolls over it. Rough asphalt does not. Gravel does not necessarily increase your chances of puncturing.

TobinHatesYou wrote: ↑

Sun May 13, 2018 11:15 pm

Frankie - B wrote: ↑

Sun May 13, 2018 5:49 pm

Ever thought of tubeless?

Tubeless has reduced my flatting to effectively zero.

What is your tubeless configuration?

While definitely on the heavier side, I will sometimes put a Topeak Masterblaster Road pump in the rear triangle.

I hate to be stranded so I carry two CO2s AND a very light and small carbon pump. If someone in my group ride gets a flat and he doesn’t have CO2, I give one to him so that the group doesn’t get delayed.


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pdlpsher1 wrote:I hate a be stranded so I carry two CO2s AND a very light and small carbon pump. If someone in my group ride gets a flat and he doesn’t have CO2, I give one to him so that the group doesn’t get delayed.


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That’s the way you make friends in the group!

If you are consistantly get a lot of flats. I would just suck it up, take the weight penalty and put liners in the tires. because I hate having flat in the middle of a ride, not to mention a lot of them.

may not be the greatest thing to do to a bike, but to me it beats changing tubes ... all the times.

buttrash wrote: ↑

Mon May 14, 2018 6:47 am

What is your tubeless configuration?

Tires: Hutchinson Fusion 5 Performance or Mavic Yksion Pro UST
Sealant: Orange Seal (30g per tire)
Tape: generic green 2mil powder coating masking tape
Valves: various
Wheels: various

I use either a Lezyne Road Drive mini pump in size M that I can put in my pocket, or a Silca Impero frame pump on the appropriate bikes. With the Lezy it takes 200+ strokes to get around 80 PSI. The Silca takes a whole lot less, probably under 100.

Check out bicycle-pumps.com. Has anybody tried Fineed handheld 12v electric mini inflator ?