+1 the repair kit in the bag and +1 spare tube in the desk drawer.
gatorskins were slippy in the wet, gp4 seasons are good but expensive,

+1 to that.

Gatorskins are ok when it’s warm and dry, slippy when it’s cold or wet and very slippy when it’s cold AND wet. They last quite well and were good for puncture resistance but the lack of grip wasn’t worth it for me. GP4seasons were good, I replaced them after a double puncture day but to be fair the back was down to the canvas in one or two places (full length mudguards meant I hadn’t spotted it).

How on earth do you get stans into a 23c tube?
Using pliers unscrew the knurled end of the presta valve.
Using a 2m allen key push the valve core into the tube, but hold it with your fingers – don’t let go!
Inject the stans fluid into the valve – get a syringe and plastic pipe – like windscreen washer pipe.
Push the valve core back into the valve.
Connect a pump and give it a few strokes.
Remove pump, the air in the tube will push the end of the core back out of the valve.
Screw the knurled end back on.
Re-fit tube and tyre, inflate and go ride.

I don’t understand this. Just get a tube with a removable core, remove the core, squirt directly from the little Stans bottle into the valve.

I’ve been using Schwalbe S-Ones tubeless

Only thing about them is they are called “Tubeless Easy” which massively contravenes the trade descriptions act!! Absolute nightmare to fit, but once on, great.

I’ve got these, they are lovely, roll easy, very grippy, and I had a shard of glass that I pulled out and the puncture immediately sealed itself. I found them very easy to fit and inflate. Didn’t even need the ghetto pop bottle inflator.

Some people have mentioned gatorkins and one person mentioned rather dying.. are they really that bad?

As above, when it’s cold and wet, yes they are. GP4Seasons of Schawlbe Ultremo ZXs are both very good ‘fast’ alternatives IME.

I don’t like talking about punctures and how I haven’t had any on the commute for a while so I’m expecting to be swearing/walking/finding a station on the way home tonight…

Anyway, I ride through London (outskirts to city) on a daily basis but similar to the OP, I’m not mad keen on draggy heavy tyres. Previously I used Vittoria Open Pave’s which wore really quickly and punctured LOADS, especially when they got a bit of wear on them.

For the past 1100 miles I’ve used GP4000’s in 28mm flavour and not had a single puncture. They do wear pretty quickly, but I’m about to swap the front and rear round to prolong them a bit. I reckon I should be good for around 2.5k before they need replacing and they’re so much faster than anything else I’ve used. I’ve recently put some new Rubino’s on the other bike which are meant to be good, however all I can say for certain is that they don’t grip on black ice…ask me how I know…

Do I need special rims to go tubeless on 700c tyres? Or is it exactly the same as what I’ve done on my Stans crest and flows on the mtb?

Dunno the answer – I will say it’s enough of a faff on Mavic Tubeless rims, so on non-tubeless… it’d probably work if you have the patience!

Another thing to carry in the meantime is Lezyne glueless patches. I always have one of these kits with me

I had zero problems with Schwalbe tubeless tyres and Mavic Ksyrium Elite rims (not tubeless specific). Couldn’t have been easier.

So literally just the same. Rim strip using something like stans tape. A tubeless valve, some sealant and a proper tubeless road tyres?

worked for me, although I will say that with it not being a proper tubeless rim and pressures/speeds being higher, I did a bit of research to make sure other people were using the rim ok & hadn’t died horribly!

i’ve got Schwalbe Marathon Plus (35s, i think) on mine. No punctures in 5years on the same tyres.

But they are very slow rolling

Mavic Ksyrium Elite rims (not tubeless specific).

You sure? – they’ve been tubeless specific for a good few years.

Hmm… I didn’t think they were, but it’s possible I suppose! Stock wheels on my 2012 Cannonale Synapse.

Happy days… checked when I got home today (took the car today) and my Bontrager rims are tubeless ready. But disappointed the bike didn’t come with valves and tape though.

So now my new question is…

Should I go tubeless and if so what tyres/sealant/rim strops would people recommend? Commuting twice each week and one long Sunday ride each weekend.

I’ve heard a lot about Gatorskins being unreliable in the wet so I’m running mine at 90 psi + riding very carefully. They’re 28s too so hopefully I’ll stay upright.

I did look at the Continental Gatorhardshell too – they don’t seem to have the same reputation for poor wet performance but they appear to have the same rubber as Gatorskins – the only difference is an additional layer of puncture resistance.

Anyone got experience of both? Are Hardshells grippier than Gatorskins?

I’m probably going to regret having posted this on tomorrow’s ride but… been riding GP4000’s with latex tubes (25’s at 80/90) this winter on some pretty shitty country lanes and I’ve not had a problem yet. I’m a bit surprised TBH but I reckon the suppleness of them actually makes them less puncture prone. I was prepared to put up with a few punctures to run nice rubber as the ride is so much better, but so far it’s been fine. YMMV.

+1 for marathons. No point fannying around with summer tyres in winter. They are heavy though.

I’ve still managed to puncture them twice in the past 3 years – once was a 2 inch nail and the other was due to the tyre being overworn (I do a large amount of miles)

Marathons.

The slow rolling issue isn’t an issue, I’m commuting not racing, think of it as resistance training. Current cx commuter bought in August came with maxxis mud wrestler, I’ll run them til they die and then get the marathons on.

The marathons will seem fast by comparison.

Going to throw a curve ball in, what about Tannus Solid tyres?

I had to ride a lot of rural roads for commute and with so much mud and a lot of flint in the area i live, i had a string of 4-5 punctures a week, often having to repair them in unlit area with no pavement.

I put Tannus on my commuting singlespeed and have had them on there for about 2500 miles, so have quite a bit of experience with them.

POSITIVES.
– They ride a lot better then you expect a solid tyre to ride, actually grip pretty well and have less rolling resistance and less weight, than something like Marathons.
– You do not have to carry spare tubes, pump, levers etc.
– They are barely worn at 2500 miles and are supposed to last for about 8000-9000.

NEGATIVES
– Git to fit at first, but you get used to it.
– It takes about 300 miles to get them to “scrub” in, they have a harder outer layer which is a bit slippy, after 300 miles they become a lot better.
– Whilst they do roll well and are better than many normal tyres, they are solid tyres, so you do feel the bumps in the road more, but not as bad as you’d think.
– Cost

So all in all, i think they are perfect for shorter distance, urban commutes and it is great not having to carry pump etc. But my commute was 28 miles each way til recently and by the end of a long day, i’d find them a bit physically wearing due to the vibration.

Interesting that solid tyres are getting usuable, scud – thks for posting that. Reckon they will become steadily more popular as materials improve.
Are they glued on, out of interest? Wondering how the ‘bead’ works for a solid tyre, if in fact they have one.

That is interesting! Even with tubeless you have to keep them pumped up once or twice a week – not having to do that would be good. And to eliminate the possibility of punctures = win.

Conti GP 4 seasons if you want road bike sizes.

My bet is that either you haven’t removed the original debris or you’ve not pumped the tire up hard enough and pinch flatted.

I wouldn’t bother with 2 tubes, just one plus a puncture repair kit for the odd time this happens.

Also, when you get a puncture, don’t just feel round the tyre to find any debris. I used to do this but after a couple of spates of punctures commuting, I found that tracing the hole whilst there’s still some air in the tyre (or reinflating the punctured tyre) makes debris removal a lot more effective and faster (Under 10 mins to carefully remove debris, new tube and reinflate).

2 tubes would just mean getting another puncture the next morning if the debris is still in the tyre.

I would add a length of duct tape around your pump in case you rip a tyre though – this has saved me a walk home once or twice, plus you can use it if there’s any damage you’re just not sure about on the tyre.

@Garry_Lager – article here shows fitting procedure http://www.cyclingweekly.co.uk/news/product-news/puncture-proof-install-solid-tyres-146970

Garry_Lager – Member
Interesting that solid tyres are getting usuable, scud – thks for posting that. Reckon they will become steadily more popular as materials improve.
Are they glued on, out of interest? Wondering how the ‘bead’ works for a solid tyre, if in fact they have one.

They are held on to the rim with a number of plastic pegs, so you strip the the rim tape out, choose the plastic peg that will be tight in the rim and place the pegs through holes in the bottom of the tyre, so you place one side of the plastic peg into one side of the rim, then seat the inside of the tyre into the rim, then there is a supplied tool that pops the second side into the rim, can be a bit fiddly for the first 10, but you then develop the technique.

Takes no longer (and a lot less cleaner) than setting up road wheels tubeless.