Tubbies vs. Clinchers

[singletrackmind]

Would like to see if I should get a set of tubbies or just stick with my trusted clinchers.

[Anthony]

ure talking about racing wheels obviously?

i wont race anything but tubby...

 

[singletrackmind]

yeah racing wheels

[singletrackmind]

what are the benifits

[Christie]

The top brand tubby wheels (like Zipp, Reynolds, Campagnolo, Fulcrum) are lighter than clinchers by about 200 to 400 grams. For a 7hr stage through the Alps, this is important. For SA races, which are mostly flat, and ridden with very little speed variation, the lower mass wont increase performance much.

 

A deep section rim will give some aero energy savings. At 50km/h, a Mavic Ksyrium takes 33w to turn. A Fulcrum Racing Speed takes 23.7w, and a
Zipp 808 takes 18w. So around 3% aerodynamic power saving when riding alone for a rider going at 300w, less when drafting in a bunch.

 

Negatives are:

1. Cost. Good rims/wheels are expensive to start with. The tyres are also expensive, a puncture costs you R500 (new tyre, I dont know of anybody who patches tubbies)

2. If soft glue is used to glue the tyre (as is mostly the case) tests show that rolling resistance is higher for the tubbie. Rolling resistance for a Vittoria Corsa clincher @ 8bar is 27.1 watt. A Vittoria Corsa tubbie at the same pressure & speed is 38.2. A loss of 11.1w, which is more or less the aero gain!

 

The bottom line is that your performance wont improve dramatically.

 

Best option would be a light, deep section clincher link the new Lightweight, or Reynolds ones. Think Edge has a full carbon clincher, too.

[Korbach]

Problem with tubbies these days is cost. A competitive set will set you back between R1200 and R1600. A top set will cost R1800 or more.

 

Who can afford that? Generally most cyclists will throw a tubby away if it gets punctured or cut. Very few will go the open-repair-restitch route which results in a suspect tyre at top level performance anyway.

 

Konica Minolta's Martin Velits and Yolande de du Toit won the mens and ladies elite section of the 94.7 a couple of years ago on training clinchers after they had a tyre supply problem. There were a number of pro riders behind them (Malcolm Lange for one) on top quality tubbies. So, how big is the performance gap between tubbies and top quality clinchers (never mind entry level training clinchers) on the day? 

 

At current prices and with the deteriorating Rand and SA road conditions, is there any sustainable future for the high tech carbon wheel/tubby explosion which has erupted in the last 3 or 4 years? I doubt it.  It'll go back to niche market levels.