someone assure me that my new rubber will be fine.

just sampled the new tubeless ready nobby nic/ racing ralph combo and saved a good chunk of weight over my previous maxxis LUST on my 819s, more than half a kilo
tyres went on a treat btw but they feel terribly thin, especially the sidewalls compared. i suppose the weight saving had to show somewhere! will be running abou 35 -40 psi in them.

who’s had good/bad experiences of these tyres. are they noticably weaker than any other brand.
i dont ride anywhere particulary rocky most of the time, maybe the odd visit to the “Staines” etc but other than that general trail centre stuff

i have torn sidewalls in the past – make sure you ride with tyre boots and spare tubes handy

I find the “snakeskin” versions to be tougher in the sidewall

But don’t stress about it – the weight saving will be worth it. And after the tear I have kept the boot in, stuck up the tear with superglue and kept using the tyre

I ripped up a couple of UST nobby nics in no time (flinty terrain though)

Won’t be rushing to buy more

ive heared a few “torn sidewalls” storys in the past but does this depend on where/how your riding and how much psi you have in your tyres, or is it all too common for these tyres do ya think?. still couldnt resist the weight saving though.

my Ralph couldn’t cope with Chilterns flint at all. So I set fire to it.

Racing Ralphs are, err, racing tyres, I don’t think I’d bother with them for general trail centre stuff.

For any lightweight tyre, get the reinforced sidewall versions.

Ive gone through plenty of Schwalbes, Nobby Nics in particular, with torn sidewalls. I found that the extra speed they ‘create’ is worth the pay off though, and they give great grip. I still have them on all my bikes (Nobby Nics on my Spark and Felt, Fat Alberts on my Fritzz)

Nicked my the sidewall of my new Racing Ralf on a stump at the Black Park race a couple of weeks ago.It did not tear but it was more like a graze which caused a slow loss of air that stans wouldn’t seal. I’ve got a tube in now but like 7hz said they are racing tyres. I’m lucky enough to have another set of wheels with Geax tyres on for everyday use.

are these issues with the “older” versions of schwalbe tyres or the newer type, ie 2011?. do you know if they have they improved their material quality over the years or not. if not it looks like i may have to “Tread” carfully for the forseeable future!

Ran Nics, Ralphs and Dirty Dan XC for most of last year tubeless including trips to the rockier places like the Lakes with no problems.

The only proper puncture was when a 1cm thick sharp stick went through the tread of a Ralph but the Stans milk kept it going for the rest of the ride and I plugged it and carried on using the tyre afterwards.

I’ve tried two NN UST last year, 190g saved but front lasted 5 rides & rear lasted 3 before they went in the bin – rediculously fragile.
I went back to Maxxis/Michelin combo that I’d been using faultlessly for over a year previously.

I’ve been running a set of Fat Albert Evo Snakeskins tubeless. Only done about 80 rocky peak district miles so far but they’ve been fine, despite the first 40 miles being at a bit too low a pressure.

seems the problems are a bit hit and miss, maybe due to the pressures people are running or terrain being ridden. im not a particulary heavy rider and dont often ride in rocky/flinty areas so ill keep em on and hope for the best. cheers guys.

Been using Schwalbes for years without any problems – the side walls do eventually wear through, but I still prefer them to anything else I’ve tried.