Tubs vs Clinchers

Any of you ride tubs? Looking to get my new wheels soon and am undecided between tubs & clinchers.
I will be using these wheel just for TT'ing on and possibly racing.
I like the sound of the performance benefits of tubs but dont fancy shelling out for a new one after every puncture!! Also, gluing them on looks like a pain in the a**e!!
Anyone with experience using them have any views?

As I am an old man I am used to racing training and even club running on tubs. Yes they are a pain if you puncture. They can be repaired, but it is a skill I never mastered.
Fitting them is not that bad in my opinion, but I know no different as not yet ridden on clinchers.

Andy

James A wrote:I like the sound of the performance benefits of tubs

So you're taking this cold war seriously then? Do you think using tubs will make more of a difference than that skin suit you bought?

Instead of faffing with glue you could try tubular tape - http://reviews.wiggle.co.uk/7867-en_gb/5360008868/tubular-tub-tape-reviews/reviews.htm not everyone's cup of tea but on the whole it has some good reviews. I have wondered about getting a set of tubs for racing myself...still undecided.

James A wrote:Any of you ride tubs? Looking to get my new wheels soon and am undecided between tubs & clinchers.
I will be using these wheel just for TT'ing on and possibly racing.
I like the sound of the performance benefits of tubs but dont fancy shelling out for a new one after every puncture!! Also, gluing them on looks like a pain in the a**e!!
Anyone with experience using them have any views?

Tub wheels are a little lighter. Some people i know in the tri world use them and love them. But they do seem a bit of a flaff for changing. I'm not sure if the weight saving is going to make that much difference not at this level of TTing. Then again maybe if you end up in the top 5 on the local courses maybe that weight saving and higher pressure will be the deciding factor for 5th or 4th, 4th or 3rd and so on......

.....just get them and you'll be the envy of all PNECC members.

All i hope James and it was said on another post, is that Alan doesn't beat you on his commuter bike, lights and all

Cheers

Mark

I use road tubeless tyres on one of my bikes which I tend to use for longer rides. No tubes & no glueing.

I've only ever had them fitted by my LBS so cannot comment on how easy/difficult it is to fit them the first time, with sealant etc

I have Hutchinson Fusion 3 tyres fitted. They may be a bit heavy for racing but they're ok for sportives.

Schawlbe have launched a tubeless Ultremo tyre which they claim is faster rolling than their equivilant with an inner tube.

I've not had a puncture whilst using the tubeless tyre. There is room for an inner tube to be fitted if necessary to "get you home" & as far as I'm aware.

Other than that I use clinchers

Hmm, food for thought. Im not overly fussed about the weight saving, most TT courses are relatively flat, its more because Ive inherited some money and want to treat myself to a top notch ride!! Ive raced and TT'd the last few years on a cheapy alloy and its done me proud but its time to upgrade and I dont believe in doing things by half!!
Im swaying towards the clinchers as its what I know and with the state of our roads I dont fancy replacing a £70 plus tub every time I puncture.
I dont mind being beaten by Alan, ive been fairly nip and tuck with him most of the way through this season so I'll be interested to see what difference all the new kit makes!!
Im hoping to get down to about the 24min mark for the P841 course and the 23min mark for the P881.
Andy, do you use glue or tub tape? The tub tape looks easier but the wheels im looking at getting recommend avoiding the tape and gluing them on. This does look a faff and if im racing a few times within a couple of days I dont fancy hanging about waiting for the glue to set. Do you find you get many punctures?

Believe it or not, I never actually punctured on an event. And only remember once on a training run up the meon valley somewhere when i hit a raised manhole cover while tucked in behind a bus catching a tow (Mr Martin will remember those days)
I always glued the tubs on as there was no tub tape available then.
On my track bike at the moment the tubs are 'taped' on and seem perfectly secure, although I havn't done many miles on them so not sure if that would change with ageing/weathering.

Clear as mud huh ? lol

If you do want some tubs, let me know as I may be able to source some at a good price (new)

Oh i forgot to mention.....glueing is simple to do, but do NOT over glue as it will get everywhere and not cure properly. Tubs rolling off at the first roundabout is a tad dangerous