Schwalbe Marathon Plus MTB - experiences?

Jolly Swagman

Having done a part of the SDW (50 miles) and picking up 2 punctures in short order, I was looking at these: http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Mode ... elID=48773 however from reading several reviews they seem to be a bugger to fit - what I don't want to be doing is buggering about on a ride if I still get a puncture with them, not having the right tools (only carry plastic tyre levers), so the first question is - does anyone have any experience of fitting these? For all I know the people that are fitting them are not mechanically minded and/or weaklings.

Second question: are they the best option, or are liners the way to go? These are the liners that I was looking at: http://stopflats.com/about.php Or what is the consenus as to the best method of trying to lessen punctures? Apart from staying at home.

nicklouse

watch the video on you tube on how to fit them they are not hard to fit but most people forget how they should fit tyres.

NukeThemAll

I have these tyres on my full-susser. I've had the more road-orientated version (with a raised centre tread and knobbly bits towards the tread edge) on my commute bike for at least 5 years without a single puncture (tempting fate here, yes I know). Lots of cuts from flints, thorns, glass, but not a single penetration.

Now, for the sort of riding I do (eg Ridgeway, Wayfarer's Walk, local forest tracks, canal towpaths) these MTB tyres work just fine. They roll pretty well, have decent grip, and even when I've tried them at higher pressure (eg ~50 psi as an experiment) the flexible anti-puncture layer still has some 'give' to deaden the trail buzz. I normally run them at ~40psi and for my riding that works just fine as a good compromise for grip and rolling resistance. I simply don't notice the additional weight over and above my previous tyres. The 2.1 version come up fairly tall and narrow (more like 1.9 on my rims).

No doubt for those who claim to be very experienced and who live 'life on the edge' they might view these tyres as too heavy and lacking in, well, whatever 'X-factor' that makes some tyres deemed to be 'good'. If you're into very rough riding then you'll be choosing a much wider/bigger-volume item, I'd guess. But I don't want to fuel the flames of the 'this tyre is so much better than that tyre' debate, so let's park that topic for another day.

I didn't have any great problem fitting these (even managed without levers), and when I removed one recently for a wheel change removal was difficult but not crazily so. I found that the lip on plastic levers is sometimes too thick to hook over the tyre bead, but I carry a single metal lever that works just fine, with its thinner lip. Once the first lever is in place, plastic ones complete the job. I've also found that once the tyres have been on for some time, removal is slightly easier (I've compared a tyre that's been on for 3 months with one that was on for 5 years!) and re-fitting definitely easier.

Personally, I absolutely loathe getting punctures. Sod's law says it's always wet/cold and getting dark, you've used up that spare tube haven't you, so it's repair time, your patch doesn't stick (especially if you get it wet) your hands are tired and cold.....yes, we've all been there. But, fortunately for me, not recently

Jolly Swagman

Thanks, I think that I will go for them especially after watching the recommended videos (I assume one of these 2: http://youtu.be/z4ZBZwR5Xu4 or http://youtu.be/-XUFVrl0UT4). I found this one informative and amusing - watch until the end or FF to it: http://youtu.be/Uz8fT13rtlk