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Not impressed by Land Cruiser PLUS tyres

Posted: 26 Nov 2019, 11:29pm
by Manc33
I have used Marathon Plus for about 6 or 7 years and never had one p**ct**e. I have ridden over countless bits of glass on them. I swapped to the Land Cruiser Plus... they haven't even gone 30 miles and got a puncture. These might have some sort of guard in them and are called the "Plus" version, but between the knobbles it's still very thin there like on any MTB tyre. What a shame, I thought I found the perfect all round tyre. The Land Cruiser Plus actually rolls better than the Marathon Plus because the Land Cruiser Plus have got a completely smooth center, Marathon Plus (although being a lot more of a road tyre) haven't.

Re: Swapped off Marathon Plus, got p**ct**e within 30 miles!

Posted: 27 Nov 2019, 2:18am
by Manc33
Stupid kids breaking glass bottles wait it was a thorn :lol:

Image

That wouldn't have punctured it on a Marathon Plus. :roll:

Re: Swapped off Marathon Plus, got p**ct**e within 30 miles!

Posted: 27 Nov 2019, 10:18am
by reohn2
I ride what would be considered lightweight tyres,700x 40 Hypers,700x50 Supremes and in winter continental Racekings,29er x 2.4inch Conti Xkings.
Most of my rides are 30% tarmac to 70% towpath,double and single track/gravel I puncture usually about twice a year and ride in an area that's devoid of flint.
Punctures are usually thorns or glass.
I ride for pleasure and M+ would give me no pleasurable rides

So I'm thinking your puncture is a random event.

OTOH,chatting to other cyclists and my LBS over a long time period it seems some people who ride in the same areas I do puncture a lot more than others,obviously mileage has a lot to do with it but even when I was putting in 8k miles per annum I didn't puncture more than three times a year and four punctures were unusual.
I've long since concluded that some people attract punctures by just not being careful when they ride,I tend to keep an eye out for puncture inducing areas of road etc,whilst I've observed other riders ride straight over such areas,a good example would be corners where gravel accumulates some people ride over the gravel whilst I'd avoid it if at all possible.Some people rarely check their tyres for embedded foreign bodies such as small glass shards etc,which if left work their way further into the tyre with every wheel revolution.
I'm also convince many cyclists ride with too much air in their tyres in the belief they're faster and ward off puncture when the opposite is true.

Re: Not impressed by Land Cruiser PLUS tyres

Posted: 27 Nov 2019, 2:26pm
by yostumpy
Thats not a thorn......................


ImageIMG_1028 by mark tilley, on Flickr



THIS is a thorn. Mudguards are 46mm wide. It pierced my Marathon GG , first visit in either tyre,in 11,716km.

Re: Not impressed by Land Cruiser PLUS tyres

Posted: 27 Nov 2019, 6:51pm
by Manc33
yostumpy wrote:THIS is a thorn.


Crocodile Stumpee :P

That is a ludicrous one, looks like it would have got the M+, or any tyre.

Working out my mileage on M+ over the years is tough, I'd guess over 4,000 miles (over 6500 km) but under 5,000 miles (under 8,000 km) - without incident. This is mostly riding on streets in populated areas so, glass is nearly always there on a ride at some point. M+ don't care! The only time I had a flat was when an inner tube valve core had decided to undo itself which had nothing to do with the tyres.

Re: Swapped off Marathon Plus, got p**ct**e within 30 miles!

Posted: 27 Nov 2019, 6:56pm
by Cugel
reohn2 wrote:I ride what would be considered lightweight tyres,700x 40 Hypers,700x50 Supremes and in winter continental Racekings,29er x 2.4inch Conti Xkings.
Most of my rides are 30% tarmac to 70% towpath,double and single track/gravel I puncture usually about twice a year and ride in an area that's devoid of flint.
Punctures are usually thorns or glass.
I ride for pleasure and M+ would give me no pleasurable rides

So I'm thinking your puncture is a random event.

OTOH,chatting to other cyclists and my LBS over a long time period it seems some people who ride in the same areas I do puncture a lot more than others,obviously mileage has a lot to do with it but even when I was putting in 8k miles per annum I didn't puncture more than three times a year and four punctures were unusual.
I've long since concluded that some people attract punctures by just not being careful when they ride,I tend to keep an eye out for puncture inducing areas of road etc,whilst I've observed other riders ride straight over such areas,a good example would be corners where gravel accumulates some people ride over the gravel whilst I'd avoid it if at all possible.Some people rarely check their tyres for embedded foreign bodies such as small glass shards etc,which if left work their way further into the tyre with every wheel revolution.
I'm also convince many cyclists ride with too much air in their tyres in the belief they're faster and ward off puncture when the opposite is true.


Like you I rarely puncture - 2 in the last 8 years that I can recall. I put this down to a number of factors - the fatter lower pressure tyres, checking for bits embedded in the tyres as you mention but also avoiding roads where there will be lots of sharps - mostly main roads where chavs & yobs throw glass bottles from cars that provide plenty of gutter-cutters. There are no flints where I ride, though. These seem a significant puncture cause for many. Yet hawthorn cuttings no longer get my tyres, as they certainly did a couple of decades ago.

I usually have Schwalbe Ultremos, Ones or G-Ones. I ride these summer & winter. They aren't marketed as particularly puncture proof and are light & quite thin. Yet I don't get punctures.

How to avoid the roads with all the sharps on then? Not easy if you have to commute or live in a flinty place. Max puncture proofing i' the tyre then seems the best option, even if they are heavy boots that don't roll very well. Flat tyres roll worse. :-)

Cugel

Re: Not impressed by Land Cruiser PLUS tyres

Posted: 28 Nov 2019, 12:29am
by RickH
When I was getting back into cycling I started riding my old MTB with land cruisers (I don't think they did the plus version then). I only ever had 1 puncture with them.

I got a new bike which came fitted with 25mm gatorskins. After a couple of weeks one got slashed up on some glass & had to be replaced. I could have moaned that they were useless tyres but I got another one & didn't suffer another puncture (apart from a few snakebites from hitting potholes or stones & /or not having the tyres pumped hard enough) in 5 years of use.

Re: Not impressed by Land Cruiser PLUS tyres

Posted: 28 Nov 2019, 4:08am
by Manc33
I got unlucky I guess, only going <30 miles and getting one. Schwalbe claim 3mm of protection on the Land Cruiser Plus but it doesn't feel like it is when pinching it between my fingers, between the knobbles. Also the Land Cruiser Plus is lighter than the Marathon Plus. The M+ also is one or two protection levels above the Land Cruiser Plus. I can't see the Land Cruiser Plus being of any benefit at all over any other MTB tyre. What would solve it all is a Land Cruiser Plus that has the 5mm protection of the M+ but on the smooth bits between the knobbles. Maybe they will bring out a "Plus Plus" version (sarcasm). There has to be a reason the Land Cruiser Plus are about £34 a pair while Marathon Plus are more like £56 a pair and it's certainly not due to weight when the M+ are heavier.

Re: Not impressed by Land Cruiser PLUS tyres

Posted: 28 Nov 2019, 9:52am
by andrew_s
yostumpy wrote:Thats not a thorn......................
IMG_1028 by mark tilley, on Flickr
THIS is a thorn. Mudguards are 46mm wide. It pierced my Marathon GG , first visit in either tyre,in 11,716km.


I've ridden round for a week and a half with a thorn like that in my tyre (Voyager Hyper). I cut off the twiggy bit to stop the scraping round the mudguards noises, but other than that I just topped up every couple of days (I took it out when I got a second thorn that did let the tyre down).

Thorns can plug the hole they make quite well (if they are smooth sided), so if it wasn't a flat tyre that made you stop they can be best left in place, at least until you get home. Larger/heavier inner tubes will help.

Re: Not impressed by Land Cruiser PLUS tyres

Posted: 28 Nov 2019, 10:08am
by reohn2
Manc33 wrote:I got unlucky I guess, only going <30 miles and getting one. Schwalbe claim 3mm of protection on the Land Cruiser Plus but it doesn't feel like it is when pinching it between my fingers, between the knobbles. Also the Land Cruiser Plus is lighter than the Marathon Plus. The M+ also is one or two protection levels above the Land Cruiser Plus. I can't see the Land Cruiser Plus being of any benefit at all over any other MTB tyre. What would solve it all is a Land Cruiser Plus that has the 5mm protection of the M+ but on the smooth bits between the knobbles. Maybe they will bring out a "Plus Plus" version (sarcasm). There has to be a reason the Land Cruiser Plus are about £34 a pair while Marathon Plus are more like £56 a pair and it's certainly not due to weight when the M+ are heavier.

Land c
Cruisers are from the budget range of Schwalbe tyres,whereas M+ are from their higher end premium range that's why they cost more.

FWIW,SinL has commuted on Landcruisers(not the plus version)for six years in all weathers on a 12mile round trip commute consisting of gravel/singletrack/concrete with a half mile of tarmac at on end,with the odd puncture.

Re: Not impressed by Land Cruiser PLUS tyres

Posted: 28 Nov 2019, 12:46pm
by yostumpy
andrew_s wrote:
yostumpy wrote:Thats not a thorn......................
IMG_1028 by mark tilley, on Flickr
THIS is a thorn. Mudguards are 46mm wide. It pierced my Marathon GG , first visit in either tyre,in 11,716km.


I've ridden round for a week and a half with a thorn like that in my tyre (Voyager Hyper). I cut off the twiggy bit to stop the scraping round the mudguards noises, but other than that I just topped up every couple of days (I took it out when I got a second thorn that did let the tyre down).

Thorns can plug the hole they make quite well (if they are smooth sided), so if it wasn't a flat tyre that made you stop they can be best left in place, at least until you get home. Larger/heavier inner tubes will help.


Haha, yes, well you see, it 's like this....................Riding along, was aware the hedge had been cut some time ago, it had been wet, with some traffic, sun was in my eyes, preventing my 'picking the best line' type thing. then thwap, thwap, thwap!! So I pulled over sharply, and looked more closely, and saw it was going in on the angle. Actually it penetrated the tyre just under the tread line, where the side wall starts, so I thought it must have gone across the top of the puncture proof. :roll: layer, so decided to pull it out. It was a bit like the circus trick pulling a hanky out of the hat, a never ending hanky! So out it came, and was duly photographed. A generous dob of spit on the tyre showed no leakage, so I continued, only for it to go soft about a mile further on, and as I was only about 3 miles from home, and the sun had disappeared, soon to be replaced by an imminent deluge, I did a pump and run, actually 5 pumps and runs, and fixed said problem at home with a hot brew.

Re: Not impressed by Land Cruiser PLUS tyres

Posted: 14 Aug 2020, 2:41am
by OldLimey
Manc33 wrote:...These might have some sort of guard in them and are called the "Plus" version, but between the knobbles it's still very thin there like on any MTB tyre. What a shame, I thought I found the perfect all round tyre.


Any tire with knobbles, in my opinion, is going to be vulnerable to punctures because of the thin rubber between the knobbles. I bought a Specialized Fatboy with big, knobbly tires. Not really suitable for riding on paved surfaces, I know, but it didn't take long before I had to change the tires. I rode into some long grass, only a short distance, and the next morning both tires were flat. I found a total of fifteen sand burrs in the tires. Their tiny spikes are little more than 2mm but it was enough to do the damage.

The tubes had so many punctures I had to buy new ones. I also fitted fat bike road tires on it, and have had no more problems since then, even in long grass. I know it's a mountain bike but people use them on dirt tracks, and I don't know if they have problems with punctures from small things like sand burrs or whatever.

Re: Not impressed by Land Cruiser PLUS tyres

Posted: 15 Aug 2020, 10:27pm
by Landy Mann
I ran a set of Land Cruisers (I think standard not plus) for a year of city commuting and gravel roads. The only puncture came from a drawing pin, I am now running Marathon Crosses which have had one puncture from a thorn, although I don't feel they handle so well (but it's different bike and a different hemishpere... so may not be fair comparison).

As a semi slick for a retro MTB you could do alot worse.