New Tires Recommended??

[KnottedYet]

I suppose tire life depends on the tire itself. When in doubt, check with your LBS?

I do road riding and some dirt/gravel trail stuff. A lot of commuting and utility riding. I have Vittoria Randonneurs on both my bikes. (with reflective sidewalls, as it is often gloomy here in Seattle and I need all the help I can get to be seen) Magpie-like tendencies rule my brain: show me something shiney and I *will* ride over it. "Broken glass!?!?! OOh, boy, ride over it!" "Twisted chunk of metal!?!?! MINE, let's ride on it!" "Nail heads sticking out of a wooden bridge?!?! SCORE!!!!"

So far neither set of Vittorias has suffered from a puncture. (Knock wood) One bike has 28mm, the other has 32 mm.

I don't remember who here on TE recommended them to me (Veronica? Jobob?) but I am very grateful!

PS: you can buy a chain gauge or just have your LBS run a quick check with their chain gauge. It'll tell you quickly if your chain is worn.

[Velobambina]

I've switched out the tires on almost all of my bikes to Specialized Armadillos, which are highly puncture resistant.

I'll have to check out the Vittoria's that Knot recommends, though.

[DebW]

Chains should be replaced every 1500-2000 miles. They are narrow and do wear out quickly. If you let them go until you can tell that they need to be replaced, then you probably have to replace the cassette also. Cassettes cost $60-80 or more, chains cost $20-40, so you save money by replacing the chain early.

[maryellen]

I'll second what Deb said about chain wear. By the time I noticed I needed a new chain, I needed a new cassette as well.

I'm curious about the tires though. I noted that you said that your friend looked at your tires. Hard to imagine that young tires with less than 2000 miles would look particularly bad. Hoping I don't jinx myself but one of the tires on one of my bikes is over 4 years old, 4000+ miles and looks mine to me!

[Kathi]

I change my tires when they start to look "flat" across the top instead of "oval" or have lots of cuts in them. On the trails around here there isn't a lot to damage the tires, shoulders and bike lanes, yes. Goat heads will get you this fall. I usually get 2,500 - 3,000 miles on my tires before I change them.

Every spring I take my bikes in for a tune-up and it goes in if I notice it's not shifting well. I ride 3,000 + miles per year. I let my LBS determine when it's time to replace my chain. My bike was new last July and by this spring had 1,800 miles on it, the LBS did not replace the chain, they just made a couple of adjustments. I also clean my chain and cassette periodically thoughout the season and keep it lubed, very important in this dry environment.

I know the rule of thumb about replacing chains every so many miles but even when I did lots of hills in Cincinnati my chain did not need replacing so frequently. When I asked why my LBS told that some people are harder on their components (chains) than others.

Have you taken the bike in for it's tuneups? Cables stretch when new and need to be adjusted. Do you notice any problems when you are shifting?

For tires I've been using Michelin Pro Race, ride bike lanes, trails, shoulders, etc. and have been pretty happy with them.

[Beane]

I'm not positive but I always thought you were supposed to replace the chain and cassette at the same time...

[maryellen]

Yet another cycling matter with differing opinions. Some say that if you replace your chain before it is too badly worn, you don't have to replace the cassette. Others say that the chain and the cassette wear together and putting a new chain on a partially worn cassette is bad because the links and teeth won't fit quite right.

My bikes are not high end so i'm not sweating it.

[slinky1]

[QUOTE=maryellen;235214]

I'm curious about the tires though. I noted that you said that your friend looked at your tires. Hard to imagine that young tires with less than 2000 miles would look particularly bad. QUOTE]

He took one look at them, said "Do you see all of these holes? It's time for new tires." I just can't believe it happened so soon! There are quite a few holes from rocks and glass. I am bad. I'm so used to riding over rocks on my MTB that when I see a pile beside the road, I just ride over them, especially if I have a friend beside me and we are chitchatting away. Perhaps I need to be more mindful of what I ride over!

Thank you for all of the input so far. It seems to me I should be more concerned about the chain than my tires at this point. I don't get too many flats. If anybody knows a good text or website on bike maintenance, I would really appreciate the insight. I have so much to learn and I hate going into the LBS and feeling stooopid.

[redrhodie]

li10up posted this on another "bike maintenance" thread, so I guess there's good bike stuff on youtube:

http://youtube.com/watch?v=D0Xt_QCHD1U

I often look back to old threads when I have a question. There's lots of good info there. I also have a great LBS, so I don't feel stupid asking questions there. I did at first, but after struggling to change my first flat, I made them show me how they do it, and we've been friends ever since. You might want to ask them if it's okay for you to watch them work on your bike the next time you bring her in. If it's not that kind of place, then maybe you can find a TE buddy in your area who can help you learn what you want to know.

[Starfish]

Tires: I had been getting a fair amount of flats in the dirty winter/spring season, and switched to Specialized Armadillos. They are heavy and stiff to change, and I found I was getting just as many flats as with the regular tires. Now I ride Specialized All Condition Pro folding tires. I'm having great luck with them, and they are SO much easier to change that I am in love. I think the higher thread count helps, too.

Chain: Some of it depends on how you ride. This year, I wore out a chain a lot faster, and turns out I wrecked my cassette, too. I was on a climbing quest and did a lot of low gear mashing in trying to build my climbing stamina and strength. I'm sure that put a lot more wear on the chain.