Punctures Pissing me off!!

CyclingObsession

Right I am running continental road tyres 23c in the rear I used to run michellin stock as they came with the bike. I keep getting punctures I have had my PSI to the max still punctures, had it at 100psi still punctures, they are not pinch flats, I have the bike about 3 months so the rim tape is new and the stock, I have checked for embedded glass etc there is non, there are quite a lot of cuts on the tyre from glass or stones. I have gone through about 10 tubes and countless repairs since I have got the new bike. I have never got a puncture in the front.

Do I get a better puncture resistant tyre?
A better rim tape?

veronese68

Depends which Conti tyres. I run Gatorskin Hardshells and they seem pretty resistant. However with the wet weather we've had this year I've picked up a few more punctures than usual. I seem to pick up little shards of flint washed into the path as I ride through Bushy Park. In dry weather I get very few flats.
Think about your road position. Don't ride in the gutter or close up to traffic islands in the debris where cars don't drive and similar areas. That could help.
Doubt it's your rim tape.

Boy Lard

The puncture fairly is a fickle beast. Sometimes she seems to have forgotten where I live, sometimes my bike can flat without leaving the shed. I've put some of these on my commuter though and not had 'one of them' in a while. They are cheap, bit heavy, seem pretty tough.

http://www.allterraincycles.co.uk/product/119612.html

SimonAH

I'm a firm advocate of the Halo Twin Rail Courier Berlin Edition tyres. Worn two of 'em smooth and through to the yellow core without a visit so far.

CyclingObsession

I have the gator skin foldable, im even considering using my old 30lb bike for the commute as its getting too expensive, Ive heard about marathon tyres r they any good? I tend to cycle on paths and the have done up a lot of roads on my commute so lots of chips n whatever, Do you use the cycle paths or the road to avoid punctures?

meanredspider

I've been really impressed with the Vittoria Rubino Pros that came with my Volagi - clean sheet so far. Trouble is, I think we've identified on here that punctures are region-specific. The Highland PF prefers to use flints and glass and the Rubinos seem to behave well against that assault (I do maintain them) despite the wet weather. They also seem to roll pretty much as well as GP4000s (I can't detect a difference) maybe because they are 150TPI

msmancunia

+ 1 to checking your road position. I don't ride in the gutter, don't ever do cycle lanes, and I watch where I'm cycling. So far I've done 1750 miles with the Bontragers that came with my Trek and not one puncture so far.

It obviously goes without saying that the puncture fairy will now pay a visit exactly halfway through my 13 mile commute home...

MonkeyMonster

Am sorry this could be due to the fact I have 20 inner tubes next to my desk. I think realising her futility in having a go, she has decided to work her "magic" elsewhere...

Either that or I am now doomed to get one on the way home.

meanredspider

MonkeyMonster wrote:

I have 20 inner tubes next to my desk.


Either that or I am now doomed to get twenty-one on the way home.

FTFY

cyclingprop

Have you identified the puncture spots on the tubes? What do the holes look like?

SimonAH

mudcow007

"touches wood" ive been riding with Marathon Pluses for well over a year now an have probably had about 5 flats in that time.

this might seem pretty bad for you guys but the amount of glass an barbed wire on the track i use is ridiculous.

the tread on the tyres is gashed an sliced but still performs well - in places you can see the blue puncture guard!

maybe a change in tyre?:

gabriel959

Marathon Pluses here for 2 years, no punctures ever.

Vittoria Rubino Pro, 1 puncture and only because they were worn.

Got GP4000s on my new bike, lets see how it goes.

EKE_38BPM

In the interest of cross topic posting. Have you seen this thread?

I used Gatorskins for years. Most of the visits I had were due to low pressure (my fault), massive thorns or nails. Very few from flints and the like.
I rate Gatorskins and I'm surprised the OP has had such bad luck with them.

Check the inside of the tyre for intrusions and check if you are always getting the puncture in the same place in relation to the tyre. When you put the tyre on, line the valve up with the logo as that makes checking the location of the puncture in relation to the tyre much easier.

Drew123

My commute is partly road, partly tracks, but 3 in a week for me the week before last, and no repeats - all different part of the tyre / tube, all instant flat and in 3 different parts of the commute.

Changed my Conti speed kings for Schwalbe Sammy Slicks and nothing since and I'm confident the pf will have forgotten me by the time I'm next on the bike on Wednesday...

CyclingObsession

cyclingprop wrote:

Have you identified the puncture spots on the tubes? What do the holes look like?

They are pin hole punctures they seem to be in the same place but going to got to shop tomorrow and get them to inspect it n prob by new tyres

Sharkyssurfers

i share your pain woke up to find PF had visited during the night, that two this week on the rear (tyre that is ), i haven't found any intrusions, so don't know if its the type or the glue-less patches i used, will pump it up tonight and see, but tempted to go and try bontrager race r3, i have been impressed with bontrager in the past, either that or some conti gatorskins

meanredspider

gabriel959 wrote:

Vittoria Rubino Pro, 1 puncture and only because they were worn.

Got GP4000s on my new bike, lets see how it goes.

I swapped my Rubinos for some 4000Ss as an experiment to see if they'd go quicker (they're certainly quicker than Gators). It may just be luck but many months of Rubinos and no punctures, two weeks of 4000Ss and a puncture. Back to Rubinos and no punctures. And TBH, no detectable difference in speed either.

I had a similar experience with 4000Ss in my Gator swap experiment too. As soon as it got wet, 2 punctures in the 4000Ss - none before or after with the Gators. BTW any punctures I get are either glass or flints.

veronese68

Tweeks Cycles have tyres on discount at the moment. 20% off Gatorskins, 35% off GP4000S, but after reading MRS' post might be worth sticking to Gatorskins.

jejv

SimonAH wrote:

Thanks for that. I always wondered what she looked like.

jejv

CyclingObsession wrote:

Right I am running continental road tyres 23c in the rear I used to run michellin stock as they came with the bike. I keep getting punctures I have had my PSI to the max still punctures, had it at 100psi still punctures, they are not pinch flats, I have the bike about 3 months so the rim tape is new and the stock, I have checked for embedded glass etc there is non, there are quite a lot of cuts on the tyre from glass or stones. I have gone through about 10 tubes and countless repairs since I have got the new bike. I have never got a puncture in the front.

Do I get a better puncture resistant tyre?
A better rim tape?

Short answer:
Get one 25mm Durano Plus, and put it on the back.
If you still have bad problems, get one 25mm Marathon Plus, put the D+ on the front, and put the M+ on the back

Longer answer:
It depend a lot on your route.
I can't remember the last time the OH had a puncture (on Marathon X, or anything else).
12YO has been going to school on Ultremo ZX for a year, and they look perfect - no cuts at all. Just nicely scrubbed.
When my work was near the centre of town, I sometimes got punctures in Marathon+. My work moved to the North of Cambridge, & haven't had any punctures on Stelvios.

Punctures are usually at the back, so a thicker, tougher tyre at the back can solve the problem.
(Does the PF attack from behind ? Is that why we rarely see her ?)

Other things being equal, a thicker, less compliant, tyre won't grip as well. For braking/cornering safety when mixing tyres, you want the more grippy tyre at the front. Apart from that, there's no reason not to mix tyres front & back. Don't even have to be the same size.
Other things being equal, a fatter tyre will have lower rolling resistance at rated pressure. Also, the extra width may give a bit more compliance & grip. The point of narrow tyres is low air resistance, not low rolling resistance, but other things usually aren't equal - can't get a 50mm Ultremo ZX. For air resistance, front tyre & wheel matters more.

What you wouldn't want is a Michelin comp at the back and a Marathon+ at the front.

mudcow007 wrote:

"touches wood" ive been riding with Marathon Pluses for well over a year now an have probably had about 5 flats in that time.

this might seem pretty bad for you guys but the amount of glass an barbed wire on the track i use is ridiculous.

the tread on the tyres is gashed an sliced but still performs well - in places you can see the blue puncture guard!

Crikey. I knew M+ wasn't invulverable, but...