- Active Topics
- Forums
- Create Topic
-
Mostly road, some MTB in-between
Distance: 4,882.3 km
Time: 181h 22m
Elev Gain: 39,606 m
Rides: 96
.The jury is out , they are definitely faster . I did a 25km in 56min with an average of 26,6kph . All round the slicks perform better on tar than knobbly's . Easier to get up to speed and stay there on flat road , climbs are that much enjoyable as your speed drops less , down hills well do i need to say it, awesome speed and cornering is that much faster as you can go infast and not have that initial slide that you get with knobbly's . I rode them at 3,5bar front and back .
Just wait until you try a real road bike ... 
Hopefully someone else can learn from my mistake or rather lack of knowledge. My rear roval carbon rim on my month old new bike literally melted because of the heat of the exhaust gasses of my hilux bakkie. I use the thule velocompact 926 towbar rack. This past friday we were on our way to an event, while on the road I heard a huge bang and pulled over. At first I thought that the wheel just burst for some reason but later on I realized the rim melted to what I believe is beyond repair. I went to a lbs and they explained to me that there has been instances of this happening. The exhaust pipe faces directly to the rear and has no downward or sideward bend and that caused the heat directly to the rim. Thule sells a heat deflection plate for this type of rack for roughly R900 which for me is money well spent or you can even make it yourself if you’re a hands on person. The cost of a new rim plus a rebuild plus a new tire cost me R6500.00 . Please take note of your vehicle setup and decide for yourself. I really hope this can help someone save a few moolas.
Sorry man - that really sucks! I had the same thing happen 
. I arrived at 5am for winter event to discover the tyre was flat - replaced the tube in the dark only for the sunrise to reveal the melted rim. It was a miserable drive back home. Luckily Cyclesure covered the replacement and rebuild - even after I filled out a claim explaining the melting from exhaust heat. In my case it was a diesel car - I take the wheels off now and put them inside.
it does sound like a Grooooooooooot ****up
Glad my wife collected my number. she said something about it printing upside down or something like that
Yes, I checked mine last night and not only is it upside down, the printing is on the wrong side of the sheet! So they printed the details on the disposable backing v.s the sticker. I had to peel off the backing and use glue to stick the "disposable backing" to the board etc, then throw away the "sticker"!
I'd recommend that everyone checks their number - else you might only discover this on the morning and not have any glue handy!
You could try the Shimano XC7s - they are around 40% cheaper than the XC9. I've had a set of XC7s for about a year and use them for both road and occasional MTB trails. You can still hear some clicking on tiles, but on carpet I've worn them a full day at the office and hardly noticed the difference vs. normal shoes. The top is made of a composite material that is breathable, but is also easy to wipe off mud and dust .
https://www.evobikes.co.za/apparel/mtb-shoes/shimano-sh-xc7-mtb-racing-shoe.html
I disagree will Manuel about 8bar being too high. Look on the sidewall of the Tyre, there will be a recommended pressure, use that.
My 25mm tyres are recommended to be 8.3 bar.
I do agree that Gatorskins are brilliant tyres and are probably best at puncture protection, but they are damn expensive. If you don't mind the high price tag, get them.
If you are like me and are price sensitive, a good, puncture resistant Tyre that is cheep is a Maxis Detonator.
Some guys recommend putting super glue into the cut, I personally don't trust that. I don't want a Tyre to explode at speed, it could hurt. If the cut is bad, I would rather replace.
Official Gatorskin manufacturer recommended 25c pressure is 95psi = just under 7 bar.
http://www.conti-tyres.co.uk/road-and-track/clinchers/gatorskin
The maximum is 8.3bar, but it does make for a bumpier ride - like I said there will be various opinions .
> What does the 25C / 23C mean? Is that the tyre volume?
Google is your friend: https://bicycles.stackexchange.com/questions/16190/what-does-the-c-in-bicycle-tire-size-mean
Its basically the width of the tyre, practically you can say that C = mm. So in general 25c = 25mm tyre width. Depending on the brand they might actually inflate to be a bit wider. Some of the older/aero bikes have less space so can only take 23c tyres. Since you already have 25mm, stick to them - probably the most common at the moment.
> Also. In case of a puncture, how do you get the pressure back to 7 bar after fixing the puncture? I doubt a CO2 bomb will get the pressure that high. Is it better to carry a hand pump?
CO2 bomb will work just fine, remember that the volume of air is A LOT less in a road tyre vs MTB.
Thanks for the replies.
I will definitely invest in a set of those tyres. I weigh about 90Kg. Will drop the pressure to about 7 bar and give it a go.
What does the 25C / 23C mean? Is that the tyre volume?
Also. In case of a puncture, how do you get the pressure back to 7 bar after fixing the puncture? I doubt a CO2 bomb will get the pressure that high. Is it better to carry a hand pump?
Welcome to the dark side!
See replies inline below, you'll probably get a lot of varying opinions .
Hi Guys
I come from a mtb background and am new to road cycling and recently bought a secondhand bike. (2015 Specialized Secteur Sport).
I have a couple of questions:
The bike currently has specialized Espoir Sport (700x25C) tyres on the front and back. When riding this afternoon I got a cut on the back tyre from a piece of glass in the road. I ran 8 bar pressure in both tyres.
> Pressure too high for 25mm (assuming your weight < 100Kgs), see below.
1) Is the above tire a decent tire?
> Don't have personal experience with this specific tyre - see replies to other questions below.
2) Can one put a different tire on the back than the front?
> Yes, shouldn't be a problem if they differ. However, most people run the same tyres front and back on their road set-up. Some people (<10% I'd guess) do run slightly thicker tyres, but normally unlike MTB, the thicker tyre goes at the back on a road bike - its more about lower pressures and comfort than anything else
3) Will adding some Stans sealant to the tubes throw of the balancing?
> The balance should be ok with stans, however its not a good idea. Normal road tyres are too thin, too little air, too much pressure for the Stans to seal - so other than adding some weight and making a complete mess when you need to change the tube there is little value. You do get proper road bike "tubeless tyres", however these are expensive (typically R1,000+), require tubeless rims/conversions and in my experience don't really work that well for glass cuts. In my experience I'd get around 1 month before a cut too big to seal and once again, sealant mess everywhere when you need to put in a tube. However there is hope - see below
4) Is there any other way to make the tyres less puncture prone?
> I would recommend getting a set of continental gatorskins, South Africa roads tend to be full of glass and I've ridden thousands of Km's on several sets of gatorskins and have had very few punctures. They are great training/riding tyres and a pretty well priced. You might read about them being slightly older or not as race orientated - there are newer options, but come at a cost. If you aren't riding in a lot of rain, I'd recommend the gatorskins:
https://www.cwcycles.co.za/product/continental-gatorskin-tyre
5) Which tires would you recommend that is more puncture resistant?
> I'd recommend the gatorskins (25mm) as per above. If you are running a 25mm/25C and your weight is < 90kg, you can drop the pressure to 7bar or even 6, personally I run 85psi. This will make for a smoother ride, 8bar is way to high for a 25mm, 8 bar would be more for a heavy rider > 100kg on 23mm tyres.
Looking forward to your replies.
Regards
Gatorskins are great tyres. For those that have had issues with them you either got a bad set or your tyre pressure is off.
I'll add that Gatorskins are still just tyres. Don't go riding over glass and sharp objects.
The best way to avoid a puncture is to keep your tyre pressure right, wipe those little stones and pieces of glass out of your tyres after every ride and watch where you are going. Do this and your Gatorskins will go the distance.
Same experience from my side, I guess there is some "luck" involved - but in my case Gatorskins were better than tubeless road tyres. I tried Schwable one pro x2 and Giant Gavia x2 costing double the price - both types developed irreparable holes (around one per month from glass while commuting).
Gatorskins are a bit heavier and not as grippy in the wet/cornering - but I use them for daily commuting, training and fun rides, close to 5000 km's on the current set. One small puncture from a thorn when doing some gravel riding over a 10 month period.
> My question is, do any of you regularly race on a road bike with discs
Yes, I've been riding a disc roadbike since December 2016. Also moved over from MTB, sold on hydraulic discs .
> Have any of you ever been prevented from doing a race?
No, never been questioned or had any issues. I've done about 10 PPA/Funrides including 99er, West Coast Express, with my road disc bike - https://www.giant-bicycles.com/za/bikes/on-road/endurance. I normally ride in the "fun" seeded letters highest group was D batch - here MTBs are welcome.
Has anyone tried a mini-plug on road tubeless tyres? A Sahmurai or Ryder kit or similar should work well enough for emergencies.
Yeah I've tried it, limited success and I could "feel" the bump at higher speeds - unsettling when cornering at 70kph+
Before you buy the Schwable Pro One tyres, consider the type of roads you will be riding. Large parts of South Africa have terrible roads.
The Schwable Pro One tyres are amazing tyres- very light and offer very low rolling resistance.
I eventually gave up on mine as they are very soft tyres and puncture very easily. One ride I got 5 punctures and although they all sealed, I got covered in stans in the process.
Also be wary that if you get a sizable hole (piece of glass etc) you will need to patch the tyre as the sealant won't be sufficient at 7 bar - the hole tends to reopen.
Ditto, had exactly the same experience with the Schwable Pro-One - amazing to ride but punctures way too often for everyday use and it gets very messy to put in a tube with sealant going everywhere and the tighter fit. In addition at around 1k to replace a tyre it gets expensive. Switched back to tubes with gatorskins - lower cost and almost never get punctures.
Cold, but awesome ride - results up on Racetec!
Best place to buy cycling apparel?
in Buyer’s Advice
Posted
Yes, I've tried both the cheapest Capestorm stuff and the high-end First Ascent gear. In my opinion/experience, the Capestorm stuff is terrible (padding, comfort, durability i.e stitching, wear all suck) - I would/did not buy them again.
The high-end First Ascent stuff is great though. I found them comparable to my Ciovita bib, using them on rides of up to 5 hours over 9 months and they've held up well too. I've never used Assos or done rides more than 5 hours at a stretch.
I must add however that the high-end First Ascent stuff is not exactly cheap (bibs R1,500+) - its the same price as Ciovita. The First Ascent clothes are however cheaper than "professional" stuff my LBS sells and its convenient - sportsman's warehouse is 5 minutes from my house
.