Actually I was using the Schwalbe Marathon Deluxe skins. They were a little pricey but nice and somewhat different. They also provided lots additional fender to tire clearance. Here are the notes I took last August while I was trying them out
Tire Experiment
My ST2 was filthy today so I hoisted it up in the garage and did a thorough clean and shine.
Since I had it set up to work on I decided it was time for my tire experiment to begin.
Since getting a flat the first night out on a ride (looked to be a tiny thumbtack) I've been looking at alternative tires. I also felt like I could benefit from a little more fender/tire clearance.
After looking at lots of options I settled on and bought a pair of Schwalbe Marathon Deluxe tires in a 26x2.0 size as opposed to the 2.15 of the Stromer flavor Big Bens.
http://www.schwalbetires.com/bike_tires/road_tires/marathon_deluxe
Visually I really like the reflective sidewall and the tires are not nearly as balloon like as the Big Bens. They look noticeably smaller than the mere .15 the specs call out.
My initial impression after a quick 10 mile test is a wait and see attitude. The ride quality did not suffer noticeably, perhaps a little more road shock from bumps but I'd be hard pressed to pick which tire was rougher in a blind "taste test". The tire does seem to roll faster even when inflated at similar pressure as the Big Bens, around 35-37psi.
Probably the biggest difference is the handling characteristics of the two tires. The Big Bens have that softer, forgiving slowness to them while the Marathon Deluxes feel more responsive, firm and quicker to react. Overall I'd say the bike feels more agile and nimble.
I can't decide if I like that new found agility or not yet. So for the moment I think I'll put a couple of hundred miles on them and see how i feel. The Big Bens aren't going anywhere and the swap out is fairly painless.
Okay, so in September I decided I liked the the softer Big Bens but I loved the look of the reflective stripes on the Marathon Deluxe so I wasted even more money and bought a pair of the non Stromer Big Bens that include the reflective stripe (thanks to New Wheel in SF for the tip and assistance swapping them out after I hosed my rear axle).
I now have enough spare tires to last out the decade and at night I looks like I have these great white wall tires.
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