Schwalbe Stelvio letdown

[Simon Mason]

Having had to walk 4 miles to a Halfords one evening last week due to a side
wall blow out of my rear Conti UGS after hitting a broken bottle, I fitted
the only road tyre in 23mm there, a Schwalbe Stelvio. It lasted two days
before a tiny sliver of yellow glass punctured it. Back to the UGS I think.

Although since both my road bikes are in the LBS for fettling it's out with
the hybrid with its Schwalbe Marathon Plus tyres so at least I can go a week
or so with no punctures until I get the road bikes back.
--
Simon Mason
http://www.simonmason.karoo.net

 

[Pete Biggs]

Simon Mason wrote:
> Having had to walk 4 miles to a Halfords one evening last week due to
> a side wall blow out of my rear Conti UGS after hitting a broken
> bottle, I fitted the only road tyre in 23mm there, a Schwalbe
> Stelvio. It lasted two days before a tiny sliver of yellow glass
> punctured it. Back to the UGS I think.
>
> Although since both my road bikes are in the LBS for fettling it's
> out with the hybrid with its Schwalbe Marathon Plus tyres so at least
> I can go a week or so with no punctures until I get the road bikes
> back.

Were you using the bike for commuting (or something else equally important
time-wise)? Otherwise what does it matter? The price you pay for
high-performance tyres includes occasional punctures. Being only a tiny
sliver of glass doesn't mean every sliver you ride over will puncture. It
has to be just the right size and shape and lying just the right way up,
etc -- such a random thing that one two-day experience proves nothing and
it *could* have been a freak incident. In other words, give it another
chance.

~PB

 

[Simon Mason]

"Pete Biggs" <[email protected]> wrote in
message
>
> Were you using the bike for commuting (or something else equally important
> time-wise)? Otherwise what does it matter? The price you pay for
> high-performance tyres includes occasional punctures. Being only a tiny
> sliver of glass doesn't mean every sliver you ride over will puncture. It
> has to be just the right size and shape and lying just the right way up,
> etc -- such a random thing that one two-day experience proves nothing and
> it *could* have been a freak incident. In other words, give it another
> chance.

I shall do - it's just that I like to have confidence in the tyres I am on
and the UGSs have given me that assurance so far. Seeing a tiny sliver of
glass get through a tyre doesn't exactly fill you with confidence, but I'll
give it another go, but it's two strikes and you're out on my wheels ;-)

--
Simon Mason
http://www.simonmason.karoo.net

 

[Pete Biggs]

Simon Mason wrote:

>> In other words, give it another chance.
>
> I shall do - it's just that I like to have confidence in the tyres I
> am on and the UGSs have given me that assurance so far. Seeing a tiny
> sliver of glass get through a tyre doesn't exactly fill you with
> confidence, but I'll give it another go, but it's two strikes and
> you're out on my wheels ;-)

You're a hard man

I'm glad I didn't give up on my tyres after getting loads of punctures at
one time. Luck comes in funny patterns. I'm in danger of summoning the
p*ncture f*iry here but I've not had a puncture all this year with the
same model of tyre (Open Corsa CX). (Actually it is a slightly different
version [EVO] but it looks and feels just the same).

~PB

 

[Chris Gerhard]

Simon Mason wrote:
>
> I shall do - it's just that I like to have confidence in the tyres I am on
> and the UGSs have given me that assurance so far. Seeing a tiny sliver of
> glass get through a tyre doesn't exactly fill you with confidence, but I'll
> give it another go, but it's two strikes and you're out on my wheels ;-)
>

Ditto. I've only ditched one tyre that looked almost o.k. with this
rule. the hassle of punctures during commuting outweighs the expense.

--chris

 

[Simon Mason]

"Chris Gerhard" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Simon Mason wrote:
>>
>> I shall do - it's just that I like to have confidence in the tyres I am
>> on and the UGSs have given me that assurance so far. Seeing a tiny sliver
>> of glass get through a tyre doesn't exactly fill you with confidence, but
>> I'll give it another go, but it's two strikes and you're out on my wheels
>> ;-)
>>
>
> Ditto. I've only ditched one tyre that looked almost o.k. with this rule.
> the hassle of punctures during commuting outweighs the expense.

I'm worried about the Hutchinson tyres that are fitted to the winter
training bike that I've yet to ride ( its jammed freehub is being fixed).
I've not had much joy with that make in the past.


--
Simon Mason
http://www.simonmason.karoo.net

 

[Chris Gerhard]

Simon Mason wrote:
>> Ditto. I've only ditched one tyre that looked almost o.k. with this rule.
>> the hassle of punctures during commuting outweighs the expense.
>
> I'm worried about the Hutchinson tyres that are fitted to the winter
> training bike that I've yet to ride ( its jammed freehub is being fixed).
> I've not had much joy with that make in the past.
>
>


Me too. I was forced to by one in an LBS for my old tourer as they were
the only 27" tyres they then stocked. (I have since got it gatorskins).

It was made of cheese and cheese that did not even hold the road. I
moved it onto the rear wheel despite the punctures, as loosing grip on
the rear is less exciting than on the front. It was around that time I
started to formulate the two strikes rule....10 years later I'm doing it.

--chris

 

[[email protected]]

Chris Gerhard wrote:
> Simon Mason wrote:
> >> Ditto. I've only ditched one tyre that looked almost o.k. with this rule.
> >> the hassle of punctures during commuting outweighs the expense.
> >
> > I'm worried about the Hutchinson tyres that are fitted to the winter
> > training bike that I've yet to ride ( its jammed freehub is being fixed).
> > I've not had much joy with that make in the past.
> >
> >
>
>
> Me too. I was forced to by one in an LBS for my old tourer as they were
> the only 27" tyres they then stocked. (I have since got it gatorskins).
>
> It was made of cheese and cheese that did not even hold the road. I
> moved it onto the rear wheel despite the punctures, as loosing grip on
> the rear is less exciting than on the front. It was around that time I
> started to formulate the two strikes rule....10 years later I'm doing it.
>
Hutchinson kevlar were the worst I've ever had for punctures and for
breakdown (collapsing sidewalls), not to mention poor grip. The
punctures seemed to be on wet roads - as if the tyre collected thorns
etc and only when wet they would work their through.
Total ****.

cheers

Jacob

 

[garryb59]

On Tue, 25 Oct 2005 15:27:13 +0100, "Simon Mason"
<[email protected]> wrote:

>Having had to walk 4 miles to a Halfords one evening last week due to a side
>wall blow out of my rear Conti UGS after hitting a broken bottle,

Was out with a mate on Sunday, miles from anywhere and his rear tyre
went bang after riding over a sharp stone, giving him a tyre with a
bloody great slit in it. F***. Some people carry a Park tyre
whatsitname, but being a bodger I carry a piece of old tyre [wire bead
obviously removed] for the very purposes of protecting the tube from
sticking its head through in such a case. 35 miles later, we was home
[just about]. Most of these things you never need, but when you do,
boy do they save some hassle. Chain tool is another one.

Garry


> I fitted
>the only road tyre in 23mm there, a Schwalbe Stelvio. It lasted two days
>before a tiny sliver of yellow glass punctured it. Back to the UGS I think.
>
>Although since both my road bikes are in the LBS for fettling it's out with
>the hybrid with its Schwalbe Marathon Plus tyres so at least I can go a week
>or so with no punctures until I get the road bikes back.

 

[Tosspot]

[email protected] wrote:

> Chris Gerhard wrote:
>
>>Simon Mason wrote:
>>
>>>>Ditto. I've only ditched one tyre that looked almost o.k. with this rule.
>>>>the hassle of punctures during commuting outweighs the expense.
>>>
>>>I'm worried about the Hutchinson tyres that are fitted to the winter
>>>training bike that I've yet to ride ( its jammed freehub is being fixed).
>>>I've not had much joy with that make in the past.
>>>
>>Me too. I was forced to by one in an LBS for my old tourer as they were
>>the only 27" tyres they then stocked. (I have since got it gatorskins).
>>
>>It was made of cheese and cheese that did not even hold the road. I
>>moved it onto the rear wheel despite the punctures, as loosing grip on
>>the rear is less exciting than on the front. It was around that time I
>>started to formulate the two strikes rule....10 years later I'm doing it.
>>
> Hutchinson kevlar were the worst I've ever had for punctures and for
> breakdown (collapsing sidewalls), not to mention poor grip. The
> punctures seemed to be on wet roads - as if the tyre collected thorns
> etc and only when wet they would work their through.
> Total ****.

Weird, I had a very happy life with Hutchinson kevlars. Only commuting
though. But now I've seen the error of my ways and professed my sins
before Schwalbe and use Marathon Plus and XRs(as yet untested).

 

[Mark Thompson]

> p*ncture f*iry

phew...

> puncture

....ooops.

 

[John B]

Simon Mason wrote:
>
> "Pete Biggs" <[email protected]> wrote in
> message

> > it *could* have been a freak incident. In other words, give it another
> > chance.
>
> I shall do - it's just that I like to have confidence in the tyres I am on
> and the UGSs have given me that assurance so far. Seeing a tiny sliver of
> glass get through a tyre doesn't exactly fill you with confidence, but I'll
> give it another go, but it's two strikes and you're out on my wheels ;-)

I put Stelvios on by Bike Friday in August and the rear is shot already.
The side wall split open and I've had five punctures (tree rear, two
front).
I replaced both (again Stelvios) on Saturday and have already had one
front wheel puncture. It was the worst sort - it was OK when I put the
bike to bed on Sunday, but it was flat when it was awoken for work
yesterday morning :-(

A problem is that they are 451s and there are few alternatives.

John B

 

[Arthur Clune]

Simon Mason wrote:
> Having had to walk 4 miles to a Halfords one evening last week due to a side
> wall blow out of my rear Conti UGS after hitting a broken bottle, I fitted
> the only road tyre in 23mm there, a Schwalbe Stelvio. It lasted two days
> before a tiny sliver of yellow glass punctured it. Back to the UGS I think.

I've been running Stelvios all summer without a single puncture.

If the cut is small, then you can pop a bit of superglue into it to seal it.
It it's large, the tyre is toast.

Sometimes these things just come down to luck. I once totally destroyed a brand
new Micheln ProRace while descending (at some speed) by hitting a very sharp
flint which ripped the side wall. I had to fit the tyre boot I always carry with
me and then bin the tyre when I got home. I then bought another one which lasted
the rest of the summer without a puncture.

Arthur

--
Arthur Clune

 

[Just zis Guy, you know?]

On Tue, 25 Oct 2005 15:27:13 +0100, "Simon Mason"
<[email protected]> said in
<[email protected]>:

>Having had to walk 4 miles to a Halfords one evening last week due to a side
>wall blow out of my rear Conti UGS after hitting a broken bottle, I fitted
>the only road tyre in 23mm there, a Schwalbe Stelvio. It lasted two days
>before a tiny sliver of yellow glass punctured it. Back to the UGS I think.

Stelvios are puncture magnets, but very fast. I rode them on the
'bent to and from Henley every day for a year or more, I'd get maybe
two or three punctures a month and averaged 1500 miles per tyre before
it was so full of slits from the little flints along the way as to
cause blowouts.

I think 1500 hard road miles from a 406 racing tyre run at 120psi is
actually pretty good going.

Guy
--
http://www.chapmancentral.co.uk

"To every complex problem there is a solution which is
simple, neat and wrong" - HL Mencken

 

[Pete Biggs]

>> p*ncture f*iry
>
> phew...
>
>> puncture
>
> ...ooops.

Phew, no p*nctures tonight. That means I'm all right now, right? The
p*ncture f*iry only has a 24 hour memory, right?

Funny thing is that even though I'm not at all a believer in superstition,
I really was expecting a puncture tonight. ...Oops!... I did it again.

~PB

 

[Arthur Clune]

Just zis Guy, you know? wrote:
>
> I think 1500 hard road miles from a 406 racing tyre run at 120psi is
> actually pretty good going.

That's all I expect from a light weight racing tyre.

Arthur

--
Arthur Clune

 

[Arthur Clune]

Simon Mason wrote:
> Having had to walk 4 miles to a Halfords one evening last week due to a side
> wall blow out of my rear Conti

You need to buy a set of Park Tyre Boots. Cost about bugger all and they'd have
let you ride home.

--
Arthur Clune

 

[Dave Larrington]

Tosspot wrote:

> Weird, I had a very happy life with Hutchinson kevlars. Only
> commuting though. But now I've seen the error of my ways and
> professed my sins before Schwalbe and use Marathon Plus and XRs(as
> yet untested).

I had a Top Slick on the back of the Speedmachine for a while. Not bad, and
nicely spriced in comparison with a Stelvio or GP. I used to use their
600As on the Kingcycle and they were OK too, if rather prone to cuts. And
they had oodles more grip than the Schwalbe wheelchair tyres which I was
obliged to use once SJSC stopped selling the Hutchinsons.

--
Dave Larrington - <http://www.legslarry.beerdrinkers.co.uk/>
Never play leapfrog with a unicorn.

 

[Dave Larrington]

Just zis Guy, you know? wrote:

> I think 1500 hard road miles from a 406 racing tyre run at 120psi is
> actually pretty good going.

I got 1600 km out of the front and 2000 out of the rear Stelvios on a
/trike/, which I thought not too shabby. Had to replace the one on the
front of the Speedmachine last night, thobut, as it had been visited twice
by You Know Who on Monday, wielding her sharpest knife. Bah!

--
Dave Larrington - <http://www.legslarry.beerdrinkers.co.uk/>
Murdock's Gardening Law: If it's green, the paving isn't finished yet.

 

[[email protected]]

Just zis Guy, you know? wrote:
> On Tue, 25 Oct 2005 15:27:13 +0100, "Simon Mason"
> <[email protected]> said in
> <[email protected]>:
>
<snip>
> Stelvios are puncture magnets, but very fast. I rode them on the
> 'bent to and from Henley every day for a year or more, I'd get maybe
> two or three punctures a month and averaged 1500 miles per tyre before
> it was so full of slits from the little flints along the way as to
> cause blowouts.
>
> I think 1500 hard road miles from a 406 racing tyre run at 120psi is
> actually pretty good going.
>
> Guy
<snip>

Allow me to recommend the Schwalbe Blizzard tyre.
I've got just over 1000km on a pair of 700x23, run at 90-100psi.
About half of that is commuting, half road riding in the countryside
I'm 90kg (about 14.5stone), so this is a narrow tire to be using for
commuting.
Only 1 p******e in that, which was a little piece of wire (mucho thanks
to the inventor of the wire-belted radial car tire).
No sign of any significant wear yet, front or rear.
They're kevlar belted, wire beaded, and have a light herringbone tread
design.
They're about 40% of the price of the Stelvios hereabouts, and a little
heavier with it, but execellent value for money so far.

Small sample I know, but so far, so very good...

Regards,

bookieb.