Getting ready to buy some tubular tires for my 650c race wheels. I’ve settled on the Vittoria CORSA CX. two questions.
I will need valve extenders & would prefer to not mess with the teflon tape. Does the Vittoria Corsa CX use the removable valve stem cores that accept the extension that’s available?
Do people carry the same tire as a spare or use something cheaper like say the
Continental Podium Tubular
Suitable for all road race and time trial applications. Excellent handling in all situations with high-performance. ASC Silica tread compound for improved grip. Ultra-fine casing for high puncture protection. Very low weight and rolling resistance. Rated for max inflation pressures of 170 psi. Manufactured in Germany. Available in size 700x19mm and 650x19mm. Weight (700x19) 250g.
I am going to have to recommend against the Corsa CX this one time. They may say 650x20, but they are definitely on the heavier side of 20 and usually more like 21. Your rims (if they are still the Lews you bought last year), are 17.3mm wide, which is an aerodynamic nightmare with a tire that wide. The narrower the better with those rims.
Veloflex Record (around the same price as Corsa CX are “19mm” and are generally pretty close to that mark) is probably your best bet for rolling resistance vs. tire width.
The Continentals are the only tubulars I know that have the removable cores…
That said, I’ve been using one of the simple screw-on extenders that just screws over the valve, for five years now, and never had an issue. Don’t use the teflon tape either, though I might when I replace that tire.
I carry the cheapest spare I can find, since the last spare rotted on the back of my bike for most of a decade without ever getting used. Actually I race on the Podiums or Sprinters, so my cheap is clearly cheaper than yours
Thanks for the comments. I’d been going for a thinner tire on the Lew just for the reasons you mentioned. Others locally had said it didn’t matter or just to use their personal favorite which has been all over the map from tufo to vittoria to?? I Veloflex was my 2nd choice so I may just go with that. I prefer a higher inflation tire even though people have said it doesn’t matter. I still like it. In the meantime I’d just been putting it off as I didn’t want to mount until closer to the race season & keep my eye out for sales.
Mount them up as soon as you can. Harder glue rolls better according to the Crr tests being conducted by the BTR fellows. Use the Vittoria Mastik One glue. Its super good for carbon rims.
Vittorias do have removable valve cores in 700c, so I presume they do in 650c as well. You definitely want the core extensions rather than the plastic pieces that screw onto the normal presta valve. It’s pretty common for the plastic ones to slip. You tighten but you also tighetn your valve core, without knowing it. Eventually, you can’t get air in at all and the only fix is to remove and re-glue the tire. For a spare, try to get a used tire since it will be easier to stretch than a new one. Something cheap is fine. You could also try something like Vittoria Pit Stop.
