Schwalbe Marathon Plus tyres

[J-Lo]

Hi all,

Ok so im looking at getting some new tyres for bike. The bike is used for riding on the roads, and country roads here in the yorkshire dales (so not the best lol!)

Im looking at a size of 700c x 28. Ive found some tyres that look really good, they have some sort of puncture protection (think its a foam layer inside). I know theyre not going to be indestructable but surely there better than unprotected road/racing tyres.

Anyway, has anyone owned these? The link is:
http://www.spacycles.co.uk/products.php?plid=m2b6s142p31

I origionally saw them in many places for around 26-30 quid each, but ive managed to find them now for £41 and thats for 2 and delivery - that soiunds great to me! Ive also read the review and user comments on bikeradar for this tyre and its got 4.5 stars and virtually every user comment is positive!

Much appreciated, jamie.

 

[phil_hg_uk]

I can recommend the Marathons as I have them on my Ultra Galaxy but never tried the pluses and I can recommend Spa Cycles as they are my LBS and I use them all the time.

I hope you are not suggesting that the roads here in the yorkshire dales are crap

 

[J-Lo]

Thanks for the recommendation Phil! Of course im not suggesting the roads here are crap, just there not always the best besides we have the best scenery in england!

 

[phil_hg_uk]

Oh yes the views from them there hills are spectacular bloody hard work though. Some people on here dont know what hills are judging from some of the pics i have seen, they need to come up this neck of the woods.

 

[Soltydog]

I run the marathon+ on 2 bikes. Probably done 4000+ miles on them now & only had 2 incidents. Saves a lot of time & hassle carrying out roadside repairs.
Some people have difficulty fitting them & they can be a bit tough to fit, but aren't too bad

 

[J-Lo]

Thanks for that soltydog, I dont mind spending a while to get them on lol aslong as I can. Hopefully they wont need to come off again for a while!

Phil - I like to think our terrain is for the 'elite' cyclists

 

[J-Lo]

Oh and solty dog, what do you use your bike for with those tyres on? Do you find they slow you down abit?

 

[phil_hg_uk]

 

[Bigtwin]

Got them on a Galaxy.

Been excellent, and actually seem to roll better than some "ordinary" training tyres.

 

[galaxy1]

Yep,me too. I've been running Marathon plus for two years for my daily commute (often on cycle paths absolutly covered with glass,do sumfink about it york council) and so far no punctures .Highly recomended.ALmost time to replace the back tyre though

 

[Auntie Helen]

I have a pair of Marathon Pluses that I put on the front wheels at hedge-trimming time.

Although they are excellently puncture-resistant, I do find that they significantly increased rolling resistance (it feels like I'm cycling through treacle!), so I am running normal Marathons at the moment and have done 6,700 miles this year with no puncture.

I will put the M+ back on when Uni term starts again as I don't want to miss a lecture due to a puncture on my 10 mile journey then, but will take them off again once term has finished as they are hard work.

I didn't find mine particularly difficult to get on and off but I only have 20 inch wheels.

 

[wafflycat]

I use ordinary Schwalbe Marathons and find they are excellent for dealing with the worst potholed, stone & sharp flint-strewn lanes Norfolk has. They are my tyre of choice on my steeds.

 

[J-Lo]

So do the normal marathons weigh less? It does say for marathon +'s that there rolling resistance is no more than the normal ones

 

[J-Lo]

Thanks for the feedback everyone! Think im going to go with instinct and buy the marathon plus's, I doubt they will slow me down much! Its your legs that count lol, and hopefully wont get as many punctures!

 

[beanzontoast]

Thanks for the feedback everyone! Think im going to go with instinct and buy the marathon plus's, I doubt they will slow me down much! Its your legs that count lol, and hopefully wont get as many punctures!

I use M+es on my Galaxy and really like them. They are very good tyres, but not perfect (what is?). IME/O they are relatively heavy and until you find the method that suits you best, not easy to put on when new. I echo the comments about rolling resistance being quite high and they also seem to 'rut' more on corners.

Also bear in mind that, though you're buying them for puncture resistance, you'll still have to examine the tyres every so often and find the flints etc that have become buried in them so that they don't work their way deeper and deeper into the tread. Examining a 'grippy' patterned tread isn't quite as easy as it is on a smoother tyre like a Conti Gatorskin (which I used to use).

But to restate - I like them!