I haven't been around for awhile-still riding regularly though. My Como hit 2,000 miles yesterday and I was thinking about the new Schwalbe Marathon Plus MTB tires that I've had hanging in the garage since early Spring waiting for a flat to swap them. About 30 min later, on my way home, the rear tire gave out!
So today I installed the Schwalbes with new Air Plus tubes. They were extremely difficult to mount and I was forced to use zip ties and levers at the end. The rear gave me fits as it would not center on the rim, I tried deflating and massaging, over inflating, riding it while low, finally what worked was deflating and lubing it all the way around with Windex then inflating quickly.
I inflated to 45 PSI and I like the way they ride. They are a bit more square on the edges than the OEM Nimbus Sport 2.3s and I can feel that when cornering but it feels very grippy. That surprised me because they are knobby and the OEM are pretty smooth, I always thought a smooth tire was more grippy on dry pavement. I may try 40 tomorrow but I do weigh 215 and the tires are 2.25" (57mm) so I do think 45 PSI is appropriate.
Now to decide if I should add any goop. The main reason for these was the thorn protection they offer and the ride is better not having to use thorn resistant tubes. I am thinking the goop will only prolong the inevitable and you never know exactly where you will be when that happens. Fortunately for me my last 3 flats have been right near the end of my ride within a short walking distance of home.
Also took the opportunity to clean and lube the chain and cassette etc. and straighten a very slightly bent rotor that was starting to scrape.
The last picture explains why I haven't been around much, brought home a new toy in January that has been keeping me very busy although I have not let it get in the way of my riding. I'm pretty much finished with it now and it can haul bikes around just fine with a heavy duty thick steel receiver hitch rack that I've had for over 20 years (not the cargo carrier in the picture, that's for camping gear).
So today I installed the Schwalbes with new Air Plus tubes. They were extremely difficult to mount and I was forced to use zip ties and levers at the end. The rear gave me fits as it would not center on the rim, I tried deflating and massaging, over inflating, riding it while low, finally what worked was deflating and lubing it all the way around with Windex then inflating quickly.
I inflated to 45 PSI and I like the way they ride. They are a bit more square on the edges than the OEM Nimbus Sport 2.3s and I can feel that when cornering but it feels very grippy. That surprised me because they are knobby and the OEM are pretty smooth, I always thought a smooth tire was more grippy on dry pavement. I may try 40 tomorrow but I do weigh 215 and the tires are 2.25" (57mm) so I do think 45 PSI is appropriate.
Now to decide if I should add any goop. The main reason for these was the thorn protection they offer and the ride is better not having to use thorn resistant tubes. I am thinking the goop will only prolong the inevitable and you never know exactly where you will be when that happens. Fortunately for me my last 3 flats have been right near the end of my ride within a short walking distance of home.
Also took the opportunity to clean and lube the chain and cassette etc. and straighten a very slightly bent rotor that was starting to scrape.
The last picture explains why I haven't been around much, brought home a new toy in January that has been keeping me very busy although I have not let it get in the way of my riding. I'm pretty much finished with it now and it can haul bikes around just fine with a heavy duty thick steel receiver hitch rack that I've had for over 20 years (not the cargo carrier in the picture, that's for camping gear).
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and saw the how-to videos on YouTube about got quite concerned about fitting them and repairing a tube if I ever got a flat. But I needn't have worried at all because they were only marginally more difficult to fit by hand than my previous tyres (which just about fell onto the rims!) I didn't even need to lubricate the bead with soapy water. They do give a really comfy ride.
