Stupid Tricross Tyres

kev_gray

Ok guys,
Need a bit of tyre advice! I'm sick and tired of the bog standard ones that came with my tricross, done about 1000miles on them now and it seems like I am getting two or three punctures every week. I keep them pumped up to the higher end of rating (~90psi) but still seem to be getting glass/thorns/squirrels stuck in them and causing punctures. Looking at them it seems they are just worn so much that anything will slip through and puncture the inner! They have holes in them in places as well from bigger bits of glass.

The only thing is, I like these tyres! The tread on them is perfect for what I do, generally cycling to work and back on tarmac and cyclepaths full of glass. Not too much grip that slows me down but at the same time they also have enough grip on them so that if I do want to (and often do!) I can go the more fun way home and hit some of the woodland trails without worrying about slipping off or not having grip in all the mud/pine tree droppings.

I've been having a search on these forums for other recommendations for tyres and it seems everyone is stating that the marathon pluses are an excellent commuter tyre. It has great grip and great puncture resistance (a must for me as I have just noticed I must of picked up a flat on way to work this morning!!) but my only worry is they have too much grip in the centre. The bourogh (sp?) tyres I currently have on give an excellent slightly slick centre line that I quite like for when on tarmac. The closest I have found to these are the Vittoria Randonneur Cross tyres but not sure exactly how much they match as can't see anywhere locally that stocks them only online! Replacing the current tyres is out as I feel they don't offer enough puncture resistance, can anyone advise anything else that would work or I could look at? All help is greatly appreciated as I am fed up patching inner tubes several times a week!

will3

Twinrails.

I use

scrumpydave

I've tried loads of different tyres on my Tricross, and for mixing on and off road riding these have been the best.

http://www.conti-tyres.co.uk/conticycle ... ross.shtml

They are much fatter than the standard Borough tyres but I've not found them any slower. Quite the opposite in fact. The only down side is the noise you get from the nobbles on tarmac, but this is not much of a problem.

rhext

If you want to do the occasional bit of offroad, you could try the Continental Travel Contact. I use them on my MTB if I want to use it for commuting, but they do them in 'road' size also. They're strong, puncture resistant and robust enough for some light off-road (have to confess, I've actually used mine for some rather more than light offroad, but only on bone-dry gritstone trails where the rocks are very grippy).

Canny Jock

I think you can get an armadillo version of the Borough CX?

will3

rhext wrote:

If you want to do the occasional bit of offroad, you could try the Continental Travel Contact. I use them on my MTB if I want to use it for commuting, but they do them in 'road' size also. They're strong, puncture resistant and robust enough for some light off-road (have to confess, I've actually used mine for some rather more than light offroad, but only on bone-dry gritstone trails where the rocks are very grippy).

But can you get them in 700x 32ish size?

Wallace1492

Get the Snicker Plus's. No punctures in nearly 2,000 miles. Canal tracks, bridle paths, and most dangerous of all, Maryhill Road have all been safely negotiated on these.

biondino

"Grip" and "tread" are different things, fwiw. The more tread, the less grip ON THE ROAD. Off road it will be different of course.

kev_gray

Thanks for the replies so far guys!
They conti travel contacts look the biz but I can't seem to find them in 700x32 at all unfortunatly!
Wallace, I have read loads of good recommendations for the marathon pluses but my only worry is that they seem to have a lot of tread to them whereas I am hoping for something a bit more slick in the centre, hence thinking of the Vittoria Randonneur's. Has anyone used these ones? Or has anyone seen conti travel contacts in 700x32 size?
Thanks for the help so far, please keep it coming!

kev_gray

biondino wrote:

"Grip" and "tread" are different things, fwiw. The more tread, the less grip ON THE ROAD. Off road it will be different of course.

Hmmm, something I will need to think about I guess when looking at what is what!

Kieran_Burns

I'm reading that the Travel contacts are over-sized and that the 37s are in fact nearer 33mm...

jackthelad

nimbus armadillo from dales in glasgow 700x32 £40 for2 tyres and 2 tubes,better rolling tyres than the marathon plus and just as good puncture protection

will3

kev_gray wrote:

Or has anyone seen conti travel contacts in 700x32 size?
Thanks for the help so far, please keep it coming!

Nope and I've looked.


The Halo twin rails I use are a 38, but they're a skinny 38 if you see what I mean.
Seem very hard wearing.

Wallace1492

kev_gray wrote:

Thanks for the replies so far guys!
They conti travel contacts look the biz but I can't seem to find them in 700x32 at all unfortunatly!
Wallace, I have read loads of good recommendations for the marathon pluses but my only worry is that they seem to have a lot of tread to them whereas I am hoping for something a bit more slick in the centre, hence thinking of the Vittoria Randonneur's. Has anyone used these ones? Or has anyone seen conti travel contacts in 700x32 size?
Thanks for the help so far, please keep it coming!

I have 28mm plus's, and found them excellent. I have stuck 25mm Gator Skins on for the Etape, and these are much faster. Though I will change back to the plus's if 1. I start to get punctures 2. require to do light off road and 3. In the autumn when I need more grip.

Jay dubbleU

Marathons - not Marathon Plus - fast on the road and tough enough to soak up the crap you get on cycle tracks - I run 700x28 on the CdeF