Wheels

Nadder
Nadder Posts: 73
edited July 2009 in Road beginners
Hi,

Can someone explain the difference between what is a 'clincher' wheel and what is a 'tubular' wheel?

Thanks

Comments

  • geoff_ss
    geoff_ss Posts: 1,201
    AFAIK 'clincher' is an American term for an ordinary tyre with a wire or Kevlar bead and a sepaerate inner tube..

    Tubulars are, as the word suggests, complete tubes which have a sewn-in inner tube. They are glued onto special rims. The only advantage is that they can be made to be very light and were at one time always used for racing but I think some riders now use 'clinchers'. They are much more difficult to repair in the event of a puncture and the usual practice was to carry a complete spare though reglueing at the road side is also a problem. Obviously in road races with full support repair isn't an issue.

    Geoff
    Old cyclists never die; they just fit smaller chainrings ... and pedal faster

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