Clinchers or Tubulars?

[aicabsolut]

was going to say bit of a loaded question...

It used to be that the "performance" is better on a tubular. lower rolling resistance, smoother, better cornering, lighter...

But like DebW says, its a royal pain in the ar*e (PITA). If goathead is a problem, constant worry of flat(s), clincher may be a better bet.

I'm pretty good at fixing flats and all but its not something I look forward to doing. For that reason, actually the trouble of fixing a sew-up versus clincher, I stay with clinchers.

Clinchers I think are bit cheaper anyway.

just my 1 cent opinion (yes zen )

I agree with this, but I want to add that most of the time, tubular wheels will weigh less. So if weight is a huge thing to you, then that's another factor to consider. Say you want some sweet aero carbon wheels. Clinchers are a ton of money if you get full carbon with comparable weight to tubulars. Or you can get a slightly more durable set with an aluminum rim and carbon fairing, but that tacks on a good amount of weight.

I don't want to deal with tubulars myself, and I also wanted my race wheels to be something I could train in if I wanted. So I went with an aluminum/carbon clincher.

If you're just going to race on them and weight is important, then there isn't a lot of reason not to go with tubulars unless you never want to deal with changing the tire (or paying for a shop to do it).

[Andrea]

Aica brings up a good point- if you're going to be climbing or riding in races that will include a lot of repeated coasting/accelerations (like criteriums), then the lighter tubular will almost always be superior to a heavier clincher. If you're focusing on triathalons or time trials, then you won't notice the extra rotating weight as much.

[pinkychique]

I'll basically be doing all Tri's, but there's still some pretty hilly races, so weight can be a slight issue in climbing. These wheels are going to be used exclusively for racing, and I'm leaning towards tubulars. I've never used them, and I'll get to try them before I make a definite decision either way.

Thanks for all the input!

[aicabsolut]

Actually, for tris, I'd go with clincher. In a tri, you get to fix a flat if you need. In other races, there's usually a wheel pit / wheel car where you could put a spare, but not so much in a tri. So, if you blow a tubular, you're out. If you'd just resign anyway, then that doesn't matter so much I guess, but if you'd like to take your chances with a spare tube and CO2 cartridge, then clinchers are the way to go. Plus, you will really benefit from a deep rim if not a rear disc too. So you're already looking at some weight there, but the aerodynamics will make up for it most of the time. What I mean is that they aren't really going to be much of a climbing wheelset anyway. So with that, I don't know how much you'd notice the added weight of a clincher, particularly when you're not going to be doing many accelerations along the way but rather trying to maintain a constant effort (like Andrea said).

[SheFly]

As a bigger racer (I am 5'10" and 150 lbs), I race on clinchers and do NOT have an issue with the wheel weight. And FWIW, I race road races and crits on these wheels (they are carbon Zipps, however). As others have said, for the PITA work with a tubular - stretching, gluing, etc., I wouldn't worry about it.

I have a teammate who is significantly smaller than I (108 lbs, and probably about 5'3") who I just talked out of tubulars for the same reason. The weight difference wasn't going to make that much of a difference to her, even at an elite level of racing.

If you are primarily doing tris, I would look at a clincher before a tubular.

SheFly