Bicycle thread

[brianwheelies]

Originally Posted by YakSpout

No doubt. 35mm on a 14mm wheel? That's a LOT of sidewall bowing. Doesn't surprise me that it pinch-flatted like a mofo.

Actually that was on the 25's I run now. Had two rears and a front go out.

I guess a smoother ride with less pressure may not be a bad thing. Less pressure means less tire inflations, right?

I am pumping up tires every two to three days. When the LBS sold me the bike he said to fill it to max psi and run for two weeks when it drops to 80psi and refill. Two days drops 16psi.

[brianwheelies]

Originally Posted by pierce

he's got a point., a front blowout at speed is skeeery, especially in a turn. I left quite a bit of road rash on Laureles Grade near Carmel Valley once when my front sew-up ("tubular" to you kids) came unglued at speed.

Such an awesome road!

Do you live in the area? I bet that is biking heaven.

When I have been there it has always been for motorcycling and that is one of a couple of places in the US that immediately made me fall in love.

I remember spanking the heck out of a guy on a Road Star Warrior on my DR650 going down that road.

[pierce]

Originally Posted by brianwheelies

Such an awesome road!

Do you live in the area? I bet that is biking heaven.

When I have been there it has always been for motorcycling and that is one of a couple of places in the US that immediately made me fall in love.

I remember spanking the heck out of a guy on a Road Star Warrior on my DR650 going down that road.

I lived in Pacific Grove, and Monterey from 1977 to 1987. been in Santa Cruz ever since. I was doing a lot more bicycling when I was down there (was in my mid 20s to early 30s).


re: tire inflations, unless you're running extra thin (or latex) inner tubes, your tires should hold air better than that, unless you have a pinhole leak or a leaky valve stem.

[neanderthal]

I had two flats the first time I rode my bike, one, then the other about 15 minutes later. I was about a quarter mile from a bike store, so I went and bought myself a tube, installed it, and kept riding.

The second flat tire inspired me to get a tougher tube, so when i walked into the bike store for the second time that's what I asked for. Something puncture resistant. He didn't have anything quite like what I asked for, but he had some cheap Chinese tubes that he stocked. Thick rubber. "Poor quality" he says.
I took one and rode my bike with no punctures for a week. I went back and got two more a week later. I also added Continental GatorSkin tires. That was ~5 years ago

I only just suffered my first flat tire last week.

[Ridge]

Originally Posted by pierce

I left quite a bit of road rash on Laureles Grade near Carmel Valley once when my front sew-up ("tubular" to you kids) came unglued at speed.

Originally Posted by k7

heehee... got a good chuckle from these posts...

Finished 9th in the single speed category of my 35 mile P2P race this past Saturday. Had I not taken the last two weeks off of my cycling completely, I feel I could have finished much better. Considering the level of talent that showed up for the race, I'm happy with top ten.

I'm glad I decided to put the 20T cog on the rear!

[Gummee!]

Originally Posted by pierce

he's got a point., a front blowout at speed is skeeery, especially in a turn. I left quite a bit of road rash on Laureles Grade near Carmel Valley once when my front sew-up ("tubular" to you kids) came unglued at speed.

I'll grant you its scary. ...but its NOT an automatic crash like is implied.

AND

Think about it for a bit: where's the most weight on a bicycle? Over the rear wheel. Right?

Where's the majority of your flats? Betcha its the rear wheel again.

Why? Just like on the moto, the front tire kicks up whatever it is and the rear wheel rolls over it. S'why there's something like 70/30 rr/ft flats on both motos and bicycles. Maybe even 80/20.

So... while Sheldon was a fart smeller, there's some things he spouts off about (and people believe) that need thinking about to see whether he's talking out his ass or not.

I will say that if you wait too long and the rear tires seriously squared off, it get fun to turn in. Takes a little effort to get the tire off the square section and onto the side of the tread. AMHIK Is it dangerous? Not if you're a half decent bike handler.

M

[Aurelius]

Originally Posted by Ridge

How did you manage to display the image like that? Is it linked to Strava's website?

[Ridge]

Originally Posted by Aurelius

How did you manage to display the image like that? Is it linked to Strava's website?

Just click the share button on your activity and use the "embed in blog" code.

[ducnut]

Originally Posted by YakSpout

I noticed that the Schwalbe Marathons are directional, but I don't know if reversing the tread would have any major effect. I did the swap on my Gatorskins and damn near wrecked trying to stop fast. Once they're worn now, I just replace them.

My Conti Contact are directional. I noticed no difference in feeling, when flipped. I do, however, notice the flattening of the profile, but, it's a bicycle. I'd rather ride than worry about the small stuff.

BTW, I used to flip my rear Michelin slick, at the track. They're a "0" degree construction. At tracks like Barber and Mid-Ohio, one side wears faster than the other.

Originally Posted by pierce

tread on bicycle tires does zilch on the pavement. you don't need rain grooves with a skinny round profile tire, you aren't going to hydroplane.

heck, slicks even work pretty good on hardpack dirt. they only suck in soft or loose stuff.

so "directional" on bike tires, which are bias ply, is purely cosmetic.

^^^ +1

Originally Posted by YakSpout

Huh. Hadn't seen that particular Sheldon note. Linky if you're interested.

I'll just continue to ignore it.

WOW!

[Aurelius]

Originally Posted by Ridge

Just click the share button on your activity and use the "embed in blog" code.

Let's see if this works....

[ducnut]

Originally Posted by pierce

he's got a point., a front blowout at speed is skeeery, especially in a turn. I left quite a bit of road rash on Laureles Grade near Carmel Valley once when my front sew-up ("tubular" to you kids) came unglued at speed.

Yeah, but, rolling a tubular off the rim is totally different than a blowout. In over 30 years of riding, I've never had a blowout. I'll continue to rotate my tires, to get the most out of my equipment, and leave the safety-nazi crap to the internet.

Originally Posted by brianwheelies

Actually that was on the 25's I run now. Had two rears and a front go out.

I guess a smoother ride with less pressure may not be a bad thing. Less pressure means less tire inflations, right?

I am pumping up tires every two to three days. When the LBS sold me the bike he said to fill it to max psi and run for two weeks when it drops to 80psi and refill. Two days drops 16psi.

Well, the LBS is selling inaccurate advice. There's a good article here. I don't believe everything I read, but, I did try this one, while I was competing in time-trials. I definitely picked up speed and experienced a much smoother ride, when reducing pressures. There was noticably less slowing over chattery, chip and seal surfaces. Also, when you inflate to such high pressures, you're stretching the rubber of the tube. Bicycle tubes are naturally thin to reduce weight and rolling resistance. The more stretch, the more air that seeps through that membrane. And, you should be checking your tires, before every ride. You'll get better wear and more likely to find a tire problem, pre-ride.

My GF and I, both, run 32mm tires. I had a local, who's considered to be the "go-to guy" around here (he runs 23mm on everything, including his tandem), question our tire sizes and saying how they must feel really slow. When I explained that we ride whatever roads we feel like turning down and that we ride a lot of dirt and gravel, he shook his head and said "Not for me.". We broke his draft, when we took off.

What one has to realize is that there's going to be so many square inches of contact patch on the ground, based on the weight carried. In a narrow tire, that contact patch is going to be long and narrow. Conversely, a wider tire's patch is going to be shorter and wider. The narrower tire's longer patch flexes a longer portion of the sidewall, which decreases efficiency. Sidewalls are purposely made thin to allow for easier flex and better efficiency. Even so, there's a whole lot of rolling resistance in all that sidewall flex. I don't know at which point aero trumps sidewall flex in tire width, but, I'm not going to get that worried about it. For me, I'm fast enough, I go down whatever road looks intriguing, and I'm having a great time doing it. I'll leave the skinny-tired types to battle the traffic, on the asphalt.

BTW, I'm moving up to 37mm or 38mm, on the next set of tires. A bunch of new stuff just hit the market, so I'm still undecided.

[Ridge]

Good stuff Ducnut. I've switched all of my race tires over to the Conti GP4000 all season in a 700x25. I also used to swear by 23's but quickly found myself as a convert after borrowing a teammate's bike for a mixed surface race. I'm also the only guy on my team that runs latex tubes in every set of tires. The road feel is simply improved in every way from butyl rubber tubes. They require a bit more attentiveness to air pressure and need topping off more often, but well worth the extra time for the feedback and feel.

Sent from my intergalactic space modulator using tapatalk

[ducnut]

Originally Posted by Ridge

Good stuff Ducnut. I've switched all of my race tires over to the Conti GP4000 all season in a 700x25. I also used to swear by 23's but quickly found myself as a convert after borrowing a teammate's bike for a mixed surface race. I'm also the only guy on my team that runs latex tubes in every set of tires. The road feel is simply improved in every way from butyl rubber tubes. They require a bit more attentiveness to air pressure and need topping off more often, but well worth the extra time for the feedback and feel.

I'm exploring the tubeless option, for the same reasons, after feeling the difference on my MTB.

And, I managed to squeeze a 28mm, into my GF's road bike. She's not going back to the 23s. But, after getting a 'cross bike, she never rides her road bike, anyway. Funny, how that worked; get a more all-'rounder bike and enjoy cycling even more.

[rbrsddn]

Originally Posted by ducnut

I'm exploring the tubeless option, for the same reasons, after feeling the difference on my MTB.

And, I managed to squeeze a 28mm, into my GF's road bike. She's not going back to the 23s. But, after getting a 'cross bike, she never rides her road bike, anyway. Funny, how that worked; get a more all-'rounder bike and enjoy cycling even more.

I've been running Tubeless since June, and don't think I'll ever go back to tubes. Running Hutch Fusion 3's, 23mm at 85 F and 90 R. The ride is awesome.

[Ridge]

Originally Posted by ducnut

I'm exploring the tubeless option, for the same reasons, after feeling the difference on my MTB.

And, I managed to squeeze a 28mm, into my GF's road bike. She's not going back to the 23s. But, after getting a 'cross bike, she never rides her road bike, anyway. Funny, how that worked; get a more all-'rounder bike and enjoy cycling even more.

The last set of wheels I had built for my CAAD are Stan's Alpha Pro rims. I want to run them tubeless, but have just not found a true tubeless road tire I like. The Hutchinson Atoms are 300g each... without adding the sealant. My Conti GP4000 all seasons with latex tubes are only 240g each. I'm not adding almost a half pound in rotating weight to try tubeless just yet. On my mountain bike, I don't care as much about that weight but it makes a discernible difference on the road bike.