Schwalbe Marathon plus vs Conti Touring Plus

Cycle-touring, Expeditions, Adventures, Major cycle routes NOT LeJoG (see other special board)
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Si
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Re: Schwalbe Marathon plus vs Conti Touring Plus

Post by Si »

Well, my Marathon Plusses did me proud again at the weekend. Pumped up to 100psi, they still managed to get further on the off road bits, down the side of Clent (from stones down to the Badger's roundabout) and through the (almost) famous Sands of Doom on the Tunnels Ride, than did several people with their semi-noblies and their hybrids.

they might not be the best for road-only touring but for rough-stuff touring I really rate them compared to other slickish touring tyres.
troon25
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Re: Schwalbe Marathon plus vs Conti Touring Plus

Post by troon25 »

I would agree with philg that the Marathon Supreme tyres are first class touring tyres, excellent in the wet ,though you have to be careful and make sure they are the latest version with the HD Ceramic Guard Triple Nano Compound from their 2009 range. They are vastly superior to the 2008 version, they both have the Vectran layer, but the 2008 tyre does not have the Ceramic Guard layer, which appears to me, to make all the difference in protection.
roadierach
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Re: Schwalbe Marathon plus vs Conti Touring Plus

Post by roadierach »

I've Toured through Europe, NZ and Vietnam on Schwalbe MPlus and the have were brilliant. Wouldn't use anything else. Friends have used them across Australia, the length of America and the length of NZ and had a simliar experience of them. No experience of the Conti Touring Plus - sorry.

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Robert
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Re: Schwalbe Marathon plus vs Conti Touring Plus

Post by Robert »

I've changed the Marathons on the tandem for passella tourguard 26x1.5, we had more punctures than I'd have expected with the Marathons. We've got tourguards on the airnimals 24x25 and on my Dawes solo 700x27c. I didn't check what the rated pressure would be and was surprised to find it wsa 40 - 65 psi, the other two are 115 and 105. At 65psi, they seem ok, but feel a bit squashy, we're not that heavy, under 20 stone between us, but we'll be touring with a trailer in a couple of weeks.

Looking at various threads on tyres I found a link to the sjs web site
where it says this:
The only tyre we know that is endorsed for Tandem use! Pasela users will regularly exceed stated max inflation pressures.
Max recommended pressure 65 psi.


What are the dangers of exceeding the stated rating?
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frank9755
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Re: Schwalbe Marathon plus vs Conti Touring Plus

Post by frank9755 »

For what it's worth, I think both Marathons and Contis are fine tyres.

My previous bike came with Continental Contacts, which I really liked. My record with them was two slow punctures in 4,000 miles (rear) and none in 5,500 (front). I put a Marathon Plus on the rear over the winter, as a puncture on a warm summer evening is a hassle but on a cold, wet morning in February it is nasty. The Marathon Plus did its job- no punctures - but I did feel the bike was perhaps 1mph slower with it on.

My new bike has ordinary Marathons, which I've found excellent as well. No punctures in about 700 miles. I may put a M+ on the rear over the winter again and see how that compares.

One factor with Marathon Plus is that they are hard work to get on and off, so I wouldn't change them very often.

I believe with tyres you have to make a trade-off between speed and puncture resistance, as a softer compound makes tyres faster but also more vulnerable. I understand, from what I've read rather than personal experience, that Panaracers in particular use a softer compound that makes them a little faster and more puncture prone. That bears out Robert's experience above. In particular, Willem Jongman has made several posts on here about tyres, which I would recommend as good reading for someone selecting them.
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Re: Schwalbe Marathon plus vs Conti Touring Plus

Post by PW »

I've used Paselas for a few years now, they're faster and easier rolling than most touring tyres. If pumped hard (I use 8psi, maybe 10 if I'm going away for a fortnight so they don't need topping up) they're near enough bombproof. The grip is excellent in dry or clean summer rain conditions. The 32C will cope with winter slime, the 28s and thinner get a bit skittish. If the roads are slimy drop the pressure to around 6 bar.
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Robert
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Re: Schwalbe Marathon plus vs Conti Touring Plus

Post by Robert »

PW wrote: If pumped hard (I use 8psi, maybe 10 if I'm going away for a fortnight so they don't need topping up)


I assume you mean 8 Bar and 10 Bar? I'm not sure what that is in "English money".

My question was are there any dangers in inflating above the stated rating. The SJS website says "Pasella users regularly exceed the stated max inflation pressures", what I was after was an opinion whether this is sensible.
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Re: Schwalbe Marathon plus vs Conti Touring Plus

Post by glueman »

With modern hooked rims of the correct size you can exceed the stated pressure if the tyre is a high quality, fine threaded type like a Pasela. On tandems you pretty much have to unless you're both featherweights. We aim for that slightly squashed look to the back when both of us are on board you get on a solo rear tyre. Depending on all up weight that could be 90 psi or 130psi - the alternative is squashy handling and short lived tyre walls.

Someone suggested tyre weight didn't make much difference, I disagree. I'd suggest tyre weight and feel makes more difference to ride quality than any other single factor. That isn't to say heavily armoured tyres aren't the right choice for some situations but I wouldn't ride on M+ tyres habitually, for pleasure at least.
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Re: Schwalbe Marathon plus vs Conti Touring Plus

Post by PW »

I assume you mean 8 Bar and 10 Bar? I'm not sure what that is in "English money".

Ooops :oops: yes I meant 8/10 bar. There's 14.7psi to one bar.
Over inflation might wear the centre tread a shade quicker but it's paid for by the lack of punctures and faster rolling. If your rims are severely worn, an over inflated tyre might blow the brake track out so beware when pumping it up, but if it blows it wasn't safe on the road anyway!
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Robert
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Re: Schwalbe Marathon plus vs Conti Touring Plus

Post by Robert »

glueman, PW,

Thanks for your replies, I'll get the pump out.

Robert
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Re: Schwalbe Marathon plus vs Conti Touring Plus

Post by glueman »

Just to add if you do over-inflate make sure you have the right sized inner tube for the tyre. Some tubes have a ridiculously optimistic range and I've had blow outs when filling narrowish ones hard, made much more likely with a patch. If you go for a 32mm tyre for example, get a 28-35mm tube, not a 25-32.
travelling
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Re: Schwalbe Marathon plus vs Conti Touring Plus

Post by travelling »

Good point glue

can I ask then to anyone...when using something like the marathon plus would you use a standard inner tube or a self repairing and whatever your choice what have you found works best with the marathon plus
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Re: Schwalbe Marathon plus vs Conti Touring Plus

Post by galoka »

I would just use standard tubes, I never bother with self repairing tubes anyway.
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Re: Schwalbe Marathon plus vs Conti Touring Plus

Post by willem jongman »

The original question was about a good touring tyre for use in Western Europe. I also assume that most of this would be on tarmac, with the occasional gravel road etc thrown in. In essence, you want the fastest and most comfortable tyre you can get away with. At one extreme, I think a tyre like the Marathon XR is overkill, and at the other extreme narrow racing tyres mean you are asking for trouble and riding uncomfortably. So let us try to narrow the range a bit further. At the rugged end, I think the Marathon Plus is still nearly always overkill (unless you are riding in a thorny area). I really think that for a solo tyre (tandems are a different story) the ordinary Marathon or the Marathon Supreme are as rugged as you will need in Western Europe. In my family we have used the ordinary Marathon on all our commuting and many of our touring bikes, and they are very reliable (virtually no punctures over many years), and reasonably fast. In recent years we have also had very good experiences with Schwalbe BIg Apples (loved the 50 mm, hated the squishy 60 mm). These are significantly faster than the Marathons, more comfortable, and thanks to their size quite grippy on soft terrain. Thus far, we have not had any punctures with them. At the even faster end I think the Schwalbe Marathon Racer and the Panaracer Pasela Tourguard are the lightest and fastest tyres. Of the two I have only used the 26x1.75 Pasela (the Racer is apparently a bit harsher). I know the Pasela is less puncture proof than the Marathon or the Big Apple, but the ride is glorious. So those would be my personal choices: the Panaracer for light loads and for those of you who do not mind the occasional puncture (but it is really not too bad) or fairly rapid wear, the ordinary Marathon (or probably the Supreme, but I have not used that tyre) for heavier loads, for tandems, and for rougher conditions. Those are the two tyres I alternate between, depending on conditions. If you don't want to alternate between tyres, and if they fit, the 50 mm Big Apples are the perfect all rounder, I think. They are fast, comfortable and reliable. Only you can decide what kind of riding you will do, how heavy you and year gear are, and how irritated you will be if you have puncture. In any case, I would fit the widest tyre that will fit your frame (but not the 60 mm Big Apple - I hated the imprecise feel).
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EdinburghFixed
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Re: Schwalbe Marathon plus vs Conti Touring Plus

Post by EdinburghFixed »

Great advice, Willem.

On my new bike I am making a radical departure - from slick 23mm tyres to 40mm Marathons. I'd rather have a 'true' slick as I never intend to ride in mud or soft ground, but it's Marathons or Stelvios from the shop, and I don't want something as thin as 28mm without the ability to jump (it's a recumbent).

I think closer to my ideal might be the 35mm Kojak slicks. They are notably lighter (half the weight) and don't have a needless tread. However, it will keep the plush ride of a wider tyre. It's hard to know as all my experience has been on cheap wide tyres, or good thin tyres...

travelling wrote:can I ask then to anyone...when using something like the marathon plus would you use a standard inner tube or a self repairing and whatever your choice what have you found works best with the marathon plus


When I fitted my Marathon Pluses at the start of last winter, I just put in the same tubes (already several times patched) that I had been using all summer. There was no further problem!

You could put in 1/2 lb of green slime to your tubes but to be honest, the tyres are already so heavy, and so tough, that I just can't imagine doing so. (There's no reason not to, if you want ultimate reassurance.)

The Marathon Pluses come in at ~1.6kg, where a good pair of 'normal' tyres might weigh 600-800g (and you can get down to 400g for a pair of summer slicks).
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