[Closed] The absolutely, positively puncture-proof road bike tyre - dream or reality?

Anything better than a Continental Gator Skin out there?

Not that I've found, though other brands do make protected tyres.

DrP

Marathon plus? May only go down to a 25, and ain't no race tyre.

Schwalbe Durano? Better or worse than a Gator Skin?

Conti GP 4000s, a track pump, stop riding in the gutter.

Puncture proofing = dead horrible ride.

Attached a brush to the front of your bike? Bunnyhop more? 🙂

Schwalbe Durano Plus. They used to be folders only, but the new wire bead version has just come out.

Bontrager Race Lite Hard Case are my training tyre of choice. Great value at <£20, not an overly harsh ride nor extra heavy.

They are a bit shit under heavy braking in the wet. But I'll put up with this for 1 puncture in 10 years.

Conti GP 4000s, a track pump, stop riding in the gutter.

That's what I do, been thousands of miles between punctures (sods law next ride out I'll get one). Pumping up the tyre nice and hard (100 psi and I do it regularly), and riding it on the road, not messing around with off-road cyclepaths are the big things that sort it out I think.

If you've had 15-20 punctures in a year, with a gator skin or similar tyre, that is amazing - are you doing tens of thousands of miles, or does your rim have a sharp bit inside or something?

If you've had 15-20 punctures in a year, with a gator skin or similar tyre, that is amazing - are you doing tens of thousands of miles, or does your rim have a sharp bit inside or something?

No, I'm trading up from my clearly inadequate Schwalbe Lugano's.

Newish Luganos, recently converted to slime inner tubes. 7 miles a day, city roads, Liverpool = 15+ punctures in 2013.

I've checked out the rims religiously, going over every inch and gently filing anything that seems coarse. I don't see anything that would cause a puncture.

15 - 20 punctures in the last 4 months does sounds ridiculous, no matter what tyre you're currently running. Seriously, check your rim strip is actually intact, check the tyres again for thorns, check the bead of the rim for sharp bits.

Are all the punctures happening the same place on the tubes? I would do these checks before blaming the tyres.

I ride Clement Strada 700x28c everywhere - mostly dirt roads, gravel trails, normal roads. They aren't advertised as puncture proof and I have a pretty good puncture/miles ratio (roughly 1 per 600 miles).

Oh yea, and you do bunny hop the potholes, right?

Rim strip is intact.

The wheel - thanks to Halfords totally knackering my original 1980s race wheel whilst truing the spokes - is a cheapo 'free replacement'. It's fairly pants, but seems sound.

Schwalbe Marathon Plus.
It's heavy, won't roll as well as other tyres and is an absolute arse to get on & off the rim sometimes, but nothing comes closer to fit & forget for puncture protection

Although an expensive option, anyone tried the Foss Inner tubes?

http://road.cc/content/news/70707-just-%E2%80%93-foss-inner-tubes

well, i experienced some horredous punctures at the back end of 2012 so decided to experiment. I bought a pair of Conti Race 28 tubes (50g), filled them with 30ml of Stans and hey presto no more punctures (runs off to touch wood!)

Specialized Armadillo
Honestly
Really
Im not joking

You will never have a puncture again

Yep. Armadillos. Never flatted one. Feel like they're made of wood mind you.

Oh gosh, I misread that as 15-20 punctures in 2012, which seemed like a lot. 15 punctures in 3 months is crazy. If you're getting a puncture a week, you've got to have something more than just not very puncture protected tyres. Assuming you're not just riding without looking for broken glass on back streets where pubs and clubs kick out to or riding right in the gutter or something.

Is it always the same wheel, or is it evenly front and back? That would rule out stupid things like a burr in the rim or one tyre with a dodgy bead or a hole in the sidewall or something.

Just to check, you are pumping them up with a track pump, to 100PSI aren't you? If not, and you're just using a hand pump, that could be the problem, it is hard to gauge the right pressure for road tyres (and hard to get them to pressure with a mountain bike mini pump).

If you are, then I would get another pair of tyres, any old tyre, make sure they're kept pumped up well and see if you're still getting a puncture a week. That would rule out a bad pair of tyres.

Specialized All Condition Armadillo Elite 700x23c

@ ndthornton - this bad boy?

You will never have a puncture again

Fantastic. 😆

* Feels weirdly aroused *

Are they definitely punctures caused by something penetrating the tyre, as opposed to pinch-flats? My last two punctures have been snakebites from hitting pot holes at speed, only tubeless would help with that really. If you get them a lot what pressure are you riding at and how heavy are you?
If you are getting thorns/glass/flint etc. are you checking your tyres regularly? It's common that something will get embedded in the tread but not puncture through the protection belt but after lots more riding will gradually work it's way through the protection belt. I can usually pick out one of two bit's of potential puncturing debris after a 50+ mile ride.

Is it always the same wheel, or is it evenly front and back? That would rule out stupid things like a burr in the rim or one tyre with a dodgy bead or a hole in the sidewall or something.

ALWAYS the back wheel. I haven't punctured the front one in about 5 months.

I've been over this Halfords cheapo POS again and again, and I can't detect anything suspicious.

But, now you mention it, it does seem really weird that the punctures aren't evenly distributed.

Just to check, you are pumping them up with a track pump, to 100PSI aren't you? If not, and you're just using a hand pump, that could be the problem, it is hard to gauge the right pressure for road tyres (and hard to get them to pressure with a mountain bike mini pump).

No, just a hand pump. 😳

Even so, wouldn't both front and back puncture if the pressure isn't high enough?

Feel like they're made of wood mind you.

Mine feel OK
If your pumping 19C tyres to 100+ PSI you cant really expect a great deal of shock absorbtion from any tyre.

I think wood is a bit harsh 🙂

@ Camo16

Yep - thats what you need
As long as thats the width you want
I run the super skinny 19C

5 years - 60 miles a week - crappy roads and the odd dirt path - Zero punctures and counting

....and Im not even going to touch any wood 🙂

Hutchinson intensive TUBELESS

Not ONE puncture since fitting, although i did lose a little pressure one ride whilst the sealant repaired a hole.

I will put in a vote for Specialized too. The turbo is tough and the Roubaix is tough as old boots and goes pretty quick too.

Have you got heavy panniers on? That would mean more back punctures, particularly if they were pinch flats from hitting potholes and having too soft tyres. It could also be the rim shape making pinch flats more likely.

Or it could be a dodgy tyre, I'd swap front and back tyres and see if they start happening on the front instead.

I found that using a pump with a pressure gauge was a revelation for my road riding, so good that I went out and bought one for my dad for his birthday. Mine cost twenty quid (I think it is a Blackburn one), was well worth the money, totally recommend track pumps.

....and Im not even going to touch any wood

The P*nct*** Fairy can see you & she knows where you live 😯

camo16 - Member

ALWAYS the back wheel. I haven't punctured the front one in about 5 months.

But, now you mention it, it does seem really weird that the punctures aren't evenly distributed.

my commute is a bit 'glassy' - it seems that i only ever get punctures in the rear tyre, on my alfined inbred.

it's either sod's law - the rear wheel being harder to remove than the front, or it's something to do with weight distribution...

I have a new theory to pass around the group...

...the rear wheel was a free replacement from Halfords - maybe it wasn't a proper like-for-like? Now that I'm really looking at it, it seems slightly wider than the front wheel... so, could it be that I'm running too narrow tubes/tyres on the rear wheel?

Could it be that a poor fit between the tube and the wheel is causing these punctures? Almost all punctures are the same dimensions - 2-3 mm.

Specialized All Condition Pro Armadillo - seconded.

17 st, panniers, only puncture has been a pinch flat (yay for Manchester's roads) and when I wore the tyre through to the case. Typical week is 100-150 miles communting on roads of varying degrees of goosed/covered in glass

Only downside is after 3 yrs the wearing surface seems to de-laminate from the case.

Grippy but lack in 'feel.' I think it's a fair trade off personally. Recommended.

Anything better than a Continental Gator Skin out there?

not in my experience - 3 years with no punctures on Gator Skin Hardshells

Armadillos also worth a look but not used them on my commuter as the Contis are still going...

No, just a hand pump.

Even so, wouldn't both front and back puncture if the pressure isn't high enough?

Source of the problem right there if you are pinch puncturing all of the time. The majority of your weight is over the back wheel, hence why it pinches so easily, especially if you have a 23mm tyre at hand pump pressures.

Stronger and heavier tyres will help, but you should buy a track pump first.

Feel like they're made of wood mind you.
Mine feel OK
If your pumping 19C tyres to 100+ PSI you cant really expect a great deal of shock absorbtion from any tyre.
I think wood is a bit harsh

You're absolutely right. Everything is relative and if I'm honest I wish I'd never discovered any other tyres. I'd have been perfectly happy and not had any punctures.

[img] [/img]

This is great! Thanks, chaps.

Trouble is, now I'm convinced it's that damn Halfords wheel that's the source of the problem... 👿

Gatorskins are the best compromise imo, they feel fine on a winter bike, not as smooth as GP4000s but waaay more flat resistant. Since Jan, 3000 miles + and one flat on a set of Gator 25s that have worn square on the back and been on since middle of last winter, riding on flinty, crappy-surface Chilterns roads. Just check for flints / glass embedded in the tyre now and then, that's all that gets through them once they are thinner/worn. Never had a thorn flat with them.

are you getting pinch flats, cuts or pin prick punctures
If cut or pin pricks - are they on the inside or outside of the tyre?

are you getting pinch flats or pin prick punctures
If pin pricks are they on the inside or outside of the tyre?

Neither pinch flats nor pin pricks, ndthornton.

Most of them are 2-3 mm slits.

I'm not sure if there's a pattern to their location, but I don't think many are on the proper outside of the tube.

Ah - id just edited my post to include cuts 🙂

Hmm - cuts on the inside could mean spoke holes not covered properly with rim tape - cuts on the side could be a sharp rim edge or exposed bead - but cuts on the outside that arent pinch flats......?

If the tyre is intact then I cant really think of anything to be honest

except perhaps a pinch flat that didnt make it all the way through to the other side....?

OP, sounds like pinch flats or a burred rim - sidewalls or spoke holes. I've seen it on OE rims where the finishing hasn't been up to standard - check the inside of the rim with the tape removed and sand down any rough areas. If there aren't any it may be that the rim tape itself is causing the slits or moving to the sides exposing the spoke holes, try some cloth (Velox) tape if so.

cuts on the side could be a sharp rim edge

I've been through some repaired inner tubes and I reckon they're pretty much all on the side.

So, I'll check for the sharp rim edge.

Cheers. 😀

Could this possibly be caused by a wheel that's too wide for the tube?

Or a big piece of glass in the tyre - sometimes it can be inbedded in the rubber and only pertrudes into the tube when pressure is exerted from the road - check the outside of the tyre for this as you may not feel it on the inside with the tyre off.

Could this possibly be caused by a wheel that's too wide for the tube

I doubt its this

On my mtb I often run skinny tubes in high volume tyres with no ill efects.

If you are getting thorns/glass/flint etc. are you checking your tyres regularly? It's common that something will get embedded in the tread but not puncture through the protection belt but after lots more riding will gradually work it's way through the protection belt. I can usually pick out one of two bit's of potential puncturing debris after a 50+ mile ride.

Yup, it's worth deflating the tubes from time to time and having a really good look at the tyres for bits of glass or flints.

Cheers guys!

It's been really helpful - I'm off to conduct a thorough, Stalinesque examination of the suspect wheel.

slits sound like spoke hole cuts or pinches. Duck tape your rims and start pumping your tyres up proper hard, rear wheel only would support both of these aswell, I always get more pinches on rear wheel.

Schwalbe durano worked well for me, decent grip, bit of a faff to get on, bit heavy but on the whole ok. conti gators still punctured, right faff to get on and bloody lethal in the wet.

Only downside is after 3 yrs the wearing surface seems to de-laminate from the case.

made the switch to CX commuting this winter, now [b]that's[/b] puncture-tastic.

Compare your old tubes to see if the punctures are in the same place. If so, then it's something sticking in it, either rim or foreign object in the tyre.

Aligning tyre labels to valves etc sounds anal but it can help in showing where a puncturing object may be in the tyre.

From your description of 2-3mm, I'd suspect pinch flats, especially if you are using a hand pump. They will be generally on the inside edge of the tube, in line with the rim.

I run 35mm Marathon Greenguards at max pressure of 85 psi on my commuter. 25 miles each way on/off road, fully laden with panniers etc, and not a puncture in sight. Previously used Michelin Tracker, same result, but eventually split the tyre after 3 years abuse.

Marathons are tough, a bit slow and lifeless in 35mm flavour.

But as above, get some pressure in there on your current tyres!

I only replaced my gatorskins when they had worn square too....!!

DrP

I've checked the wheel and the tyre and can't find an obvious culprit. The rim tape seems to be fine. It's the plastic variety; the spoke holders are lumpy, but not sharp. I've checked the rims and filed off a couple of tiny imperfections. Again, nothing I reckon that would cause an issue. The tyre is fine.

So, can it really be just a pressure issue?

I have gatorskins, got them on my Genesis day-one 2 months ago.

I have had 5 punctures in 1600 km or so. Tyre has barely lost the central ridge, but is absolutely shredded.

I put it down to poorly maintained and swept roads and using panniers.

I think im going to try the armadillos, I'm fed up of changing tubes.

[b]Dont, whatever you do, try and use the Slime tyre strips. They caused more punctures than the glass, through rubbing holes in the tubes.[/b]

If your using a hand pump your only going to be getting about 40 PSI max I would have thought - even though it feels like your pumping really hard - sorry about that one 😉 - your supposed to put about 110 PSI in road tyres and some people go higher.

So your only running about a third of the recommended pressure

So basically yes - buy a track pump.

even though it feels like your pumping really hard

You're right - I do like to pump hard. 😉

I'll be getting a track pump then. Ta!

+1 for putting some stans latex in a tube with a removable valve core.

Been doing this for a couple of years, still had a couple of punctures that wouldn't seal, due to the pressures being so high in a road tyre. Funnily enough, both times I punctured, I gave it a couple of minutes, rotating the tyre whilst flat to let the stans coat the tyre and pumped the tyre back up and hey-presto, puncture fixed.

If you are worried that your rim/tyre combination is wrong rhen the internet is your friend.

http://www.schwalbe.com/gbl/en/technik_info/reifenmasse/index.php5?flash=0&gesamt=27&ID_Land=38&ID_Sprache=2&ID_Seite=141&tn_mainPoint=Technik&tn_subPoint=

I've only been riding road bikes for about 3 years, but I've yet to have a puncture (obviously I'll have 8 next time I go out now). Seems strange to me that you have so many.

Seems strange to me that you have so many.

It is strange. From late summer to December 2012 I probably had three punctures - using the same wheel/tyre/tube combo - and the same hand pump!

This year, something's not right - I'm puncturing so often it can't just be bad luck.