Just bought my first set of modern clincher wheels - what tires?

[saab2000]

Originally Posted by BdaGhisallo

21mm

Smart. I run Vittoria clinchers on 20mm rims. I’d look for a cotton tire from Vittoria or Veloflex. I’d also be tempted to try some of those Specialized 26mm tires. I dislike Continental tires for a number of reasons, not least of which is that the shape when inflated is tall and not round. At least that’s my perception.

I run my 25mm Vittorias at 75-80 PSI and my 28s even lower and am perfectly content. I think you’ll be happy with them. I use lightweight butyl tubes and haven’t tried latex in decades because I found them to be far too fragile. Newer ones may be better.

[BdaGhisallo]

Originally Posted by saab2000

Smart. I run Vittoria clinchers on 20mm rims. I’d look for a cotton tire from Vittoria or Veloflex. I’d also be tempted to try some of those Specialized 26mm tires. I dislike Continental tires for a number of reasons, not least of which is that the shape when inflated is tall and not round. At least that’s my perception.

I run my 25mm Vittorias at 75-80 PSI and my 28s even lower and am perfectly content. I think you’ll be happy with them. I use lightweight butyl tubes and haven’t tried latex in decades because I found them to be far too fragile. Newer ones may be better.

Thank you, James. You've answered a few follow up questions I was going to ask before I had a chance to do so. Is there a particular lightweight tube that you favor?

I'm leaning toward trying some 28mm Veloflex Corsa Evo tires with butyl tubes. I love my tubulars but the ease of getting tires mounted straight and evenly with clinchers is appealing.

Thanks.

[saab2000]

Originally Posted by BdaGhisallo

Thank you, James. You've answered a few follow up questions I was going to ask before I had a chance to do so.

I'm leaning toward trying some 28mm Veloflex Corsa Evo tires with butyl tubes. I love my tubulars but the ease of getting tires mounted straight and evenly with clinchers is appealing.

Thanks.

Once wide rims became ubiquitous I moved on from tubulars. I find the ride to be close enough to tubulars that I was OK moving on. That said, there truly is nothing like the sweet song of a quality tubular on a quiet road!

I rode Campagnolo Nucleon tubulars for years with Veloflex. I then purchase a set of Nucleon clinchers to make a direct comparison and I disliked the experience. The narrow rim made the tire shape to be sort of like a light bulb and standing up the side to side rocking was not confidence inspiring like a tubular would be. The only way to get this to feel better was to pump up to 120 PSI, which ruined the ride quality.

Once wider rims became the norm the tire shape changed when inflated to have a more vertical side wall or at least a more natural rounded shape, like a tubular. I’m content with the ride quality and the ease of operation and as you mentioned, they’re always straight and round, something that wasn’t always the case, even with the best tubulars and a good installation job.

[BdaGhisallo]

Originally Posted by saab2000

Once wide rims became ubiquitous I moved on from tubulars. I find the ride to be close enough to tubulars that I was OK moving on. That said, there truly is nothing like the sweet song of a quality tubular on a quiet road!

I rode Campagnolo Nucleon tubulars for years with Veloflex. I then purchase a set of Nucleon clinchers to make a direct comparison and I disliked the experience. The narrow rim made the tire shape to be sort of like a light bulb and standing up the side to side rocking was not confidence inspiring like a tubular would be. The only way to get this to feel better was to pump up to 120 PSI, which ruined the ride quality.

Once wider rims became the norm the tire shape changed when inflated to have a more vertical side wall or at least a more natural rounded shape, like a tubular. I’m content with the ride quality and the ease of operation and as you mentioned, they’re always straight and round, something that wasn’t always the case, even with the best tubulars and a good installation job.

Is there a particular lightweight butyl tube that you favor?

[saab2000]

Originally Posted by BdaGhisallo

Is there a particular lightweight butyl tube that you favor?

I had a supply of Michelin Air Comp Ultra Light tubes but that’s running low. I do tend to patch my tubes so they last a really long time in my world. I’ve got a large supply of Rema dime-sized patches and the good cement. The reason I liked the Michelins is that they don’t have a threaded valve stem, making it easier on my pump head.

In the stack downstairs in my shop are also a couple Continental light tubes and recently I added a few Schwalbes from Rene Herse. The ones I got are like 65 grams and claim to be good only for a maximum rim width of 19mm. I’ll take my chances as I’ve found that tubes will stretch a lot. That said, I run 25s and you’ve got 28s. The one set of 28s I have I think I’ve got a slightly larger tube.

If you can get the Air Comp Ultra Lights from Michelin they’re probably my favorites.

[AngryScientist]

What depth are those new wheels?

[Caballero]

Originally Posted by BdaGhisallo

It's not completely built yet - I need to find my cutting guide to trim the fork - but here's an shot of it as it stands.

That looks absolutely awesome ! We must be some of the very few riding 12 speed Dura ace in rim brake form.
I’ve only seen one other bike with it out on the road and I live in japan

[BdaGhisallo]

Originally Posted by AngryScientist

What depth are those new wheels?

They're a mismatched pair - a Aeolus XXX 4 in the front and an Aeolus XXX 6 in the back. The '4' is 47mm tall and the '6' is 60mm tall. Both have an ID of 21mm and an OD of 27mm.

I'm planning on keeping them for summertime riding when the winds are lower.

[saab2000]

Back to the top for a question to which I think I know the answer. Are these rims hooked or hookless? I would assume hooked but I don’t know what Trek does with their wheels.

[BdaGhisallo]

Originally Posted by saab2000

Back to the top for a question to which I think I know the answer. Are these rims hooked or hookless? I would assume hooked but I don’t know what Trek does with their wheels.

Hooked.

[saab2000]

Originally Posted by BdaGhisallo

Hooked.

I assumed as much as the casual user might not be aware of the safety consequences of one vs. the other. I’m hardly an expert on the subject but know that hookless have pressure limits that are usually fairly low when run tubeless.

Report back when you have some rides under the wheels.

[BdaGhisallo]

Originally Posted by saab2000

I assumed as much as the casual user might not be aware of the safety consequences of one vs. the other. I’m hardly an expert on the subject but know that hookless have pressure limits that are usually fairly low when run tubeless.

Report back when you have some rides under the wheels.

I won't be touching anything that's hookless.

I will be sure to check in when I have some mileage on them.


Thanks for the feedback, folks.

[phishrabbi]

I'm running the Veloflex corsa 32mm tubeless and am very happy.

[tootall]

Originally Posted by BdaGhisallo

I won't be touching anything that's hookless.

I will be sure to check in when I have some mileage on them.


Thanks for the feedback, folks.

Can I ask why the aversion to hookless? I've been using hookless wheels tubeless for several years now on MTB with no issues, but am relatively new to the tech on the road. I got a set of 303S wheels a couple of months ago, I've ridden 1000 miles on them and done a few tire swaps in that time with no issues. I know the pressure limitations, but I've been enjoying riding them well below the limit. Admittedly this is limited experience, is there something else to watch for?

[BdaGhisallo]

Originally Posted by tootall

Can I ask why the aversion to hookless? I've been using hookless wheels tubeless for several years now on MTB with no issues, but am relatively new to the tech on the road. I got a set of 303S wheels a couple of months ago, I've ridden 1000 miles on them and done a few tire swaps in that time with no issues. I know the pressure limitations, but I've been enjoying riding them well below the limit. Admittedly this is limited experience, is there something else to watch for?

Have a look at this clip - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H1xvlifJI2E

This is the final instalment of a series on an unexplained blowout of a Conti tubeless tire. It turns out that the rim was out of spec - but not by much. The rim circumference was out of spec by about 0.3% and the hookless sidewalls were out of spec by 0.5mm. That's not much, but it led to catastrophic failure of the tubeless tire system. Luckily for this guy, it didn't happen while he was riding. There's just too much potential for things to go wrong, imo.

I'll have none of that, thanks.

I am still a little surprised that I even bought these wheels, such is my long time faith and comfort with tubular tires and rims, but I'll give these hooked rim clincher wheels a try and see how they go.