Puncture resistant tyres

failesa

Hi I have a Giant talon 2 29er with the standard Maxxis tyres on. Unsure of which particular model of maxxis.
I’m a big guy 24.5 stone currently dropping rapidly. I run the tyres at approx 50psi. As I’m covering more miles I have started picking up quite a few punctures, luckily they have so far been in very convenient places and haven’t spoiled my rides at all. However this has got me looking at puncture resistant tyres. But I’m unsure if they’ll suit me due to my weight, I’m thinking possibly they are stiffer and less able to absorb shock load putting more stress on an already highly stressed wheel, is this the case with these tyres?
Also what are they like rolling resistance wise? The actual weight penalty doesn’t worry me too much as was carrying a lot more timber when I started cycling and the bike coped well.
And finally how easy are they to manipulate over the rim? I was very surprised how easy the bead was to work on the standard Maxxis tyres Making puncture repair a doddle, are these puncture resistant tyres less pliable making a roadside puncture more awkward?
Thanks

ETA my riding is mainly trails and bridleways/cycle tracks with a small amount of road cycling.

reaperactual

I still run innertubes and tried various puncture resistant tyres, non of which made any difference.

I think the best solution for avoiding punctures will be a tubeless set up.

Charlie_Croker

 Seeing as you cycle off road most of the time, you’ll want some sort of knobblies I guess?

 I had a look for puncture resistant tyres for my trial bike a while ago now and came up blank. Having got my first trial bike and then got my first puncture, I was amazed how thin the whole tyre was, their like paper especially when compared to a road tyre. I ended up putting a silicon protective strip in-between the tube and tyre just to get some sort of protection.
 Schwalbe now make a Marathon Plus tyre for MTB’s that look to have some protection though I have no personal experience of them. They look to be a compromise between knobbly and rolling resistance so may not suit your conditions, they wouldn't suit mine.

 Tubeless maybe the way to go. Harder to fit perhaps but once on they should not need removing out on the road. The problem for me there is the sealant needs replacing every so many months, but it’s not an exact number of months cos nobody really knows how long it lasts, because it depends on the weather/temperature etc. if it was fit and forget I’d be tubeless now!    I think this is where I'll end up though, tubeless

steve_sordy

You can buy tubes with a sealant called "Slime" in them, unsurprisingly called "Slime Tubes". Slime is not latex based, so it does not go off. You will still get punctures, but you will never ever get another flat tyre. Unless of course you hit a rock with such force that the tube is ripped, along with the tyre as well.

My first experience of Slime was to buy a tube and to dose my existing tubes with it. But there was no way I could get it into the Presta valve, even with the core removed. Slime seals holes, duh! Because they have bigger valve cores, I changed to Schrader valved tubes and drilled out the rims, but the Slime only went in with extreme difficulty. I managed it but it was a right pain. So on my next bike I bought ready-filled Slime tubes. Slime tubes are about 200g heavier, each!, Which is why I eventually stopped using them and went tubeless (no tube, just some sealant).

Tubeless is definitely the way to go. But that is a whole different thread. Going tubeless is a bit harder than an expert makes it look, and a whole lot easier than a beginner makes it look!

failesa

Thanks all, I have seen people mention tubeless a lot, how does this help prevent punctures if you don’t mind me asking? I can understand possibly at lower pressures perhaps not pinching the tube but all my punctures thus far have been small shards of glass or large thorns. Does a tubeless set up protect against this type of puncture?
I have been looking at schwalbe marathon plus tyres but if tubeless is going to offer significantly better protection I may bite the bullet and go down that route.

reaperactual

You have sealant that coats the inside of a tyre and rim making it air tight. Also an excess amount of fluid sloshing around too that will seal any holes around a puncture site or holes left after a shard of glass/thorn etc. are removed or fall out.

Charlie_Croker

Tubeless does NOT stop you getting the punctures from thorns/glass etc.
(it will stop you getting 'pinch' punctures)

The advantage comes in the fact that most of the time, you never even know you’ve had a puncture. The sealant (inside the tyre) seals the hole as you ride alone, hopefully

On the odd occasion the hole is too large for the sealant to plug, you plug it with a special tool and a plug sometimes called a ‘worm’ WITHOUT taking the tyre off the wheel

Have a read of this from the cycle clinic

reaperactual

Marathon Plus probably offer the best resistance to a sharp object penetrating a tyre on the tread section. Had one flat tyre over 6 months of use.

All 'punture resistant' tyres give zero protection from pinch flats as the built in protective layer runs underneath the tread section only.

Slime tubes just caused a 6ft squirt of green fluid followed by a green puddle and a flat tyre from a shard of glass the one time I tried one. Never bothered with those again.

I'm going tubeless next as they are the best at retaining air after a sharp object penetrates the tread section (puncture) and/or a small split in the sidewall (pinch puncture/flat) caused by trapping tyre between rim and a hard edge.

failesa

reaperactual said:

Marathon Plus probably offer the best resistance to a sharp object penetrating a tyre on the tread section. Had one flat tyre over 6 months of use.

All 'punture resistant' tyres give zero protection from pinch flats as the built in protective layer runs underneath the tread section only.

Slime tubes just caused a 6ft squirt of green fluid followed by a green puddle and a flat tyre from a shard of glass the one time I tried one. Never bothered with those again.

I'm going tubeless next as they are the best at retaining air after a sharp object penetrates the tread section (puncture) and/or a small split in the sidewall (pinch puncture/flat) caused by trapping tyre between rim and a hard edge.

Thanks everyone, I think I’ll give something like the marathon plus a go over winter and if I’m still picking up too many punctures try going tubeless.

steve_sordy

For several years I used a non-latex sealant called Puncture Guard in my tubeless tyres (PG no longer available). It was the best non-latex sealant I had found. It didn't go off and it sealed the sidewalls far faster than Slime, and almost as rapidly on set up as latex does.

Every puncture I had I never noticed at the time, but the following day, I could see a small green dot where the puncture had been. I counted over two dozen on each tyre!

I've had flats when the tyre itself failed. It happened twice on two separate tyres in exactly the same place, so it was a manufacturing fault. I could get four fingers through the tear, right on the bead. Not a lot you can do about that.

I switched to using a latex sealant that others have already says dries out over time, so you have to keep it topped up. This Summer I didn't and got a puncture, followed by a flat. That was my fault. Those are the only three flats I've had since I started using sealant, over 15 years or more.