Schwalbe Marathon Plus a lot worse than stock Kenda tires!

[indianajo]

Knobby tires wear out fast on the pavement and ride like crap. Plus no traction at all and that's from m/c experience.

But knobbies don't go flat, until the knobs get under 1/16" high. I change them out before that, at home, on a nice day. I get about 3000 miles out of kenda knobbies, no flats. Year and a half. At $26 each, $.008 per mile.
So the noise of knobbies is energy lost, whoopie. 1/50th horsepower, wow. Unloading 50 lb of groceries from the bike to turn it over and repair a flat is worse than unscrewing a pair of torque arms and re-securing a wire harness. ***-**** dogs won't leave you alone, you have to push the bike until they lose interest and go home before changing the tube. This thread has removed any temptation to buy schwalbes.

 

[steve mercier]

when the Ice Spikers come off these are going on; I cant wait !

 

[2wheeler]

Anyone who's ever bought a dual sport m/c that comes with DOT knobbies can tell you that 60/40 Metzler tires makes a world of difference in wear and quality of ride with those new tires. I just don't see why a bicycle would be different. To each his own this is just my opinion, there's no right or wrong tire. Just meaning pavement riding not off road.

 

[steve mercier]

HEY !! check this out!?

 

[Nova Haibike]

HEY !! check this out!?

As if no one ever had a problem with a zipper.

 

[Bruce Arnold]

As if no one ever had a problem with a zipper.

???

 

[christob]

Slightly related to the original post (Schwalbe at least!) -- I just put two new Schwalbe Fat Frank's on my bike today. They're the tires that are stocked by the makers when the bike is purchased. (And by "I just put"... of course I mean the LBS did the work

The front tire still had a LITTLE bit of tread ridges visible down the center, but was getting very close to fully smooth across the center 3 ridges of raised tread -- but I got 5,000 miles on that tire. The rear was the 2nd rear Fat Frank I've gone through on the rear (hub motor wheel) -- the first (ie, orig tire) delivered about 2,300 miles and the 2nd about 2,700 miles, before going smooth down the center 3-ridges of tread.

I'm very fortunate that in all 3 of those Fat Franks so far, never a flat.

 

[6zfshdb]

Slightly related to the original post (Schwalbe at least!) -- I just put two new Schwalbe Fat Frank's on my bike today. They're the tires that are stocked by the makers when the bike is purchased. (And by "I just put"... of course I mean the LBS did the work

The front tire still had a LITTLE bit of tread ridges visible down the center, but was getting very close to fully smooth across the center 3 ridges of raised tread -- but I got 5,000 miles on that tire. The rear was the 2nd rear Fat Frank I've gone through on the rear (hub motor wheel) -- the first (ie, orig tire) delivered about 2,300 miles and the 2nd about 2,700 miles, before going smooth down the center 3-ridges of tread.

I'm very fortunate that in all 3 of those Fat Franks so far, never a flat.

Interesting. I've had 3 flats with the OEM Fat Franks on my Pedego Interceptor in 1,200 miles. I suppose it depends on the type of riding you do. For me, it's mostly trails with quite a bit of rough surface. I switched to the Marathon Plus and so far, no flats. The more aggressive tread works better on the gravel trails as well.

Too bad though. I liked the soft ride provided by the Fat Franks. I had to reduce the tire pressure in the Marathons to soften the ride but they are still stiffer than the FF's. To me, it's worth it though to reduce the flat threat.

 

[christob]

I should add most of my biking (easily 98+%) is paved trail or roadway. Tree root buckling of the otherwise well-kept paved mixed-use trails, and bad pavement/pothole street conditions (to be avoided)... but no real "off road" riding, gravel or dirt, in my usual routes.

 

[Captain Slow]

Others have made the same observation as you. I wouldn't use anything but Schwalbe but that's just me I guess mostly because I've never had a flat with a Schwalbe tire.

Was going to ride the stock Kenda until it wore out, but got a flat yesterday on the rear wheel and we all know what a pain that is to deal with. Going to be putting on a Schwalbe Marathon Supreme to try to avoid another flat. I do think the stock Kenda's are pretty good, but for me the rear wheel is all about avoiding a flat.

 

[FlatSix911]

Try the Energizer line of Schwalbe tires that are specially made for eBikes... the Big Ben is an outstanding tire with good performance in wet or dry conditions.

 

[Captain Slow]

Thanks for the recommendation, but I already have the Marathon Supreme and want to get it on soon. Maybe after this tire wears out I'll go for the Energizer line.

 

[Alaskan]

Thanks for the recommendation, but I already have the Marathon Supreme and want to get it on soon. Maybe after this tire wears out I'll go for the Energizer line.

I have had the Marathon Supreme 28 x 2.0 tires on my Riese & Muller Homage (a heavy bike) for almost a year now. They are fast and smooth on pavement with super low rolling resistance, quiet, durable and I have yet to get a flat on them. They are not good off pavement however. For a touring/commuting bike that will be mostly on pavement, I give them a hearty thumbs up. In the winter months or for expeditions that will be partly off road, I switch out to Marathon Mondials.

 

[FlatSix911]

Thanks for the recommendation, but I already have the Marathon Supreme and want to get it on soon. Maybe after this tire wears out I'll go for the Energizer line.

When you are ready... here is a guide for eBike tires from Schwalbe. https://www.schwalbetires.com/PEDELEC-AND-E-BIKE

 

[Captain Slow]

Thanks - until I get a different ebike the Marathon Plus with the most flat protection is what it's going to be. But if I end up getting a Grin kit and a hub motor with round axles or a mid-drive then I'll look at different tires. If I get a mid-drive in the future then I think my tire choice won't be much different than for my acoustic bikes.

 

[steve mercier]

When you are ready... here is a guide for eBike tires from Schwalbe. https://www.schwalbetires.com/PEDELEC-AND-E-BIKE

I feel the best all rounder for me is the Smart Sam. I value a tire that gives you at least a 4 off- road grip to climb steep gravel paths without slipping and maximum puncture resistance. I prefer a 4 or more on rolling resistance but that is not a deal breaker for me since I have multiple batteries. No one in my family has ever had a flat with a smart sam or a sam plus and we have them on 3 bikes including as back tires on both Ebikes. We have had 2 slow leak flats on our Magic Marys but those are so sure footed I am sticking with them anyway, and have added these new Tannus Armour liners to help with the flatproofing.

 

[Captain Slow]

Thanks for the input Steve. Given all the high mileage you ride your opinion is valuable to me. Having said that my ebike mainly sees pavement with some hard packed gravel. Nothing really too knarly at all. I have a Rocky Mountain Altitude for aggressive trail riding. Yes, no motor, but that is for recreation so while a motor would be nice it's not as necessary.

For me the priority is flat protection, followed my rolling resistance, then durability.

 

[rexel1]

Hi all. I keep reading that changing the rear inner tube is a pain on the CCS/CCX. Just do what I’ve done and use a gaadi tube. No need to take the wheel off with this

https://gaadi.de/?lang=en

 

[Captain Slow]

That looks interesting, now all I'd have to do is find a Canadian retailer.

 

[steve mercier]

Hi all. I keep reading that changing the rear inner tube is a pain on the CCS/CCX. Just do what I’ve done and use a gaadi tube. No need to take the wheel off with this

https://gaadi.de/?lang=en

That is thinking outside the box for sure , however it would only make a flat somewhat less annoying on a heavy Ebike. I would still end up dirty,greasy, and likely to pinch a hole installing the new tube like I often do , thus sending myself into a berserk rage.