Can't keep replacing tire

Ok, I'm getting ready to put new a rear tire on my road bike for the 2nd time in the last week. Yes, I keep buying the same tire but let me explain. I ride on Michelin Krylion Carbons because they're rated well for their toughness yet they're not tanks. I commute on this bike as well as do fast group rides, training, century, whatever. I have over 2400 miles on my front and 1500 on the rear but the rear got slashed last week by a freak accident with a metal washer that my front kicked up.

So, I replaced the tire. $43. Rode on it a week. Bam. Glass shard cut through the rubber and now I have a 1/4 gash down to the kevlar or whatever with a little 1/16" "bulge" if you run your finger over the tire. Tube did not pop though, so no flat. LBS guy says the tire is a time bomb now. One week I got on this tire!!

What do you guys do? When you get these cuts that seem to go all the way through the pure rubber part of your tire do you fill them in with something? Throw the tire away and spend another $43?

 

Frankly, I haven't seemed to have any problems with my Krylions, and I've been riding them for quite some time now. I might take a look at some other brands if Krylions are such a problem. My faitful standbys are my Vittoria Open Corsa EVO.

 

BAE Systems makes armor for the military troop transport vehicles. With your luck, it sounds as if you should call them and see if they will design and manufacture a tire for you.

 

Sometimes you just get an extra dollop of bad luck. Stick with the Krylions.

 

On a race if I get a slash in the tire I put a $1 bill between the tube and the tire. Works for me, but it's only to get me to the end of the race. You can buy patches that glue on the inside of the tire.

 

Lots of junk on the side of the roads. Price of riding a bicycle. Lots of good tires out there for less money that will perform as well, be as tough.

 

put a little super glue in the cut and sqeeze together...it will seal the cut and at least get you home...I always carry a new tube of super glue with me when riding for that very reason...luckily I have not needed it yet...knock on wood, aluminum, carbon fiber whatever...as for it holding up over time someone else might be better at answering that than me...

 

If it was me, I wouldn't worry about it for around town riding if the cut doesn't go clear through the casing and assuming there isn't a really big bulge. I would put it on the rear though if there are long descents involved. But I wouldn't want to start out on a long tour with it like that. On the other hand, I just can't stand riding with a noticeable bulge in a tire, so I would probably get a new one as soon as I could afford to do that.

Having sliced a few expensive tires before, I try my best to ride as far left of the edge as I can without compromising my safety.

There are plenty of people who would rather ride on the toughest tires they can get, but me, I would rather ride on good, high quality, kevlar beaded training tires if not actual race tires, and take my chances. I just love the feel of a good tire. But I'm a sports rider more than anything else. I pick my routes, and I avoid debris if I have to. Still, not too much you can do about the occasional glass shard. It's not like you can see them.

 

I gotta say that I've never had "good luck" with Michelin tires.

When I used to race over a decade ago I used Conti's most of the time and pretty much never had a flat despite living in the cold and rainy climes of northern England.... when I tried Michelin's.. pffffffffffttttttsssssssssssssssss punctures galore.

When I started training again a couple of years ago I got a set of Conti's - Attack and Force. Punctured once in two years. Then I got a set of the latest and greatest Michelin's for last years Death Ride and low and behold about 60 miles into the ride almost at the 4th mountain pass the dreaded Ssssswswswswswwsw sound of a tire going flat.

Hmmmmm...

Let me draw some conclusions from that....


That said, the Michelin Pro2's do let you lean a bit more than the Conti's. A little bit more forgiving - extra insurance if you will. Just what you need for that last descent down Ebbetts at 50+mph.

 

Could you please name about three or four of those tires that are comparable in weight and performance to the Michelins?

Regards,

 

I really think that after 1500 miles without incident you just happened to have a couple of severe issues in a short period of time.

Unless you want to go with one of the tires known to be severely bullet proof like the Armadillos or the Schwalbe's that are probably the "tanks" you are trying to avoid, I think you just need to realize that sometimes bad things happen to good tires.

 

You didn't mention the tire pressures or size of tire you're running, but I've found tires are more cut-resistant at 100 psi than 120. If you're much over 180 lbs, a 25 or even 28 tire at lower pressure would be a good choice.

 

Yep. Dollop is the right word for it. How did you know I was going say that?

 

I'm 140 pounds and I ride 23s at 110psi. Last night I deflated the rear with the gash, superglued it shut, and then let it sit overnight. In the morning I blew it back up to 110psi and it held! But then after my 8 mile ride to work the rubber had split again. But I've now gone about 30 miles on it like this and it hasn't gotten any worse and hasn't flatted.

I'm still thinking about trying to fill the split with something tough that will at least prevent road junk from collecting in the split.

 

OK, no issue with rider weight on 23's then. The 1/16" "bulge" you mentioned is a bit worrisome, but if the cut is only in the rubber, and the casing of the tire isn't cut or damaged, you can run it without too much worry about a blowout. Just keep an eye on it daily......and keep it on the rear of the bike just in case the big bang occurs

 

Superglue works ok, but Shoe Goo, being more flexible, seems to work better, at least for me.

 

Conti Ultra race wire, Conti gatorskin wire, Ritchey Comp slick foldable.

 

I've used a set of Michelin Krylions and a set (or two of Carbons - the model before it) with great success. I got 5500kms at least out of the rear tyres. I have Carbons on my race bike(20mm ones) and they're well into their second season.
The other Michelins I have are Megiums. My previous Megiums I got 8500kms from the back one - I was very surprised on that.
I range from 69 - 72 kgs and ride/race on coarse grit(mainly) roads.
So - I'm very happy with Michelins

If I had that last cut of yours - I would patch it inside with a thin section from the side of an old tyre and keep using it.

 

I have a 23mm gatorskin on the back of the commuter,
I'm more of a sprinter than a climber weight wise.

In the dry the gatorskins are great - bulletproof.

But I'm not sure about the wet - it could be my imagination
but it appears to cut/slash too easily when it is wet
and it is a heap more slipery than the old armadillos.
Then again the armadillos didn't do as many miles as
one would like.
-Matt

 

Personally, I use Specialized AllCondition Armadillo Elite and Specialized Mondo Pro and have not had any issues with either. Tough to go through what you do did, but I'd suck it up and buy another tire before using one with integrity issues. Last thing you want is a blowout in a corner.