Just picked up a set of tubular race day wheels for the first time. (wheels = Head H3c front and back)
Never had tubular tires before, what brand/model of tires are a good race tire, what brand/kind of glue is recommended, instructions on how to stretch/glue/change them myself.
Anything is appreciated.
Thanks
JD
Just picked up a set of tubular race day wheels for the first time. (wheels = Head H3c front and back)
Never had tubular tires before, what brand/model of tires are a good race tire, what brand/kind of glue is recommended, instructions on how to stretch/glue/change them myself.
Anything is appreciated.
Thanks
JD
Set up an appointment with your shop and have them show you how to do it. Clear it with them ahead of time, and have them do it at a time when they’re not too busy. Unless you’re not a big fan of the hands-on game, in which case you can just pay the $50 a tire and have them glue them for you. (sissy)
Vittoria’s high end tubies are nice, but I ride Vittorias exclusively. Tufo is kind of the king of tubular stuff…
One last note: get a black sidewall, no matter what you do.
I too just started doing tubulars this year. If the shop is willing to show you then that’s cool, just remember it’s a multi day process to glue them. You can pre stretch them yourself. If you get Vittoria’s then you can do it overnight. If you get conti’s it takes like a week to stretch them real good and they are much harder to get on the dry rim the first time. Also don’t forget to pre stretch your spare before you start glueing. But basically just throw the tire on there and let it stretch. Then put a layer of glue on the tire and the wheel and let it dry overnight. Now here is where it’s a matter of personal opinion on what to do next. Zipp says put another layer on both the tire and wheel and let it dry overnight. I personally would just put another layer on the wheel and glue the tire.
Also as a tip, make sure you open the top valve hole in the tire well to get the tire to seat properly. I used a round file to just file away the carbon and the tire seats nicely. Good luck, it’s not that hard once you do it the first couple of times. And putting on a spare tubular is ridiculously faster than changing a tube. After you stretch a tire, take it off and put it back on again and you’ll see what I mean. If it takes you more than 20 seconds to put the tire back on, then it’s probably not stretched enough.
AlexG you make it sound so easy my next wheelset might be tubies.
here is a good video that shows the steps
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5kvfdB1i3HA&feature=related
.