Schwalbe Durano - any experience?

[dontlookdown]

My wife needs some less puncture-prone tyres on her commuter bike for the winter. I have had to rescue her several times recently, the cheapo Kenda tyres here Pinnacle hybrid was supplied with are easily perforated, especially in the wet.

Anyone use Schwalbe Duranos? They get a good write up for being fairly tough but with more grip and comfort than the really armoured Marathon/Marathon Pluses. I have Marathons (not Plus) on my winter wheels and although they hardly get any punctures they could be grippier and are quite harsh and wooden to ride.

If the Duranos are a halfway house between puncture-proofness and comfort/grip then they could be a good choice. Size is 700 x 28.

[Ashfordian]

dontlookdown said:

My wife needs some less puncture-prone tyres on her commuter bike for the winter. I have had to rescue her several times recently, the cheapo Kenda tyres here Pinnacle hybrid was supplied with are easily perforated, especially in the wet.

Anyone use Schwalbe Duranos? They get a good write up for being fairly tough but with more grip and comfort than the really armoured Marathon/Marathon Pluses. I have Marathons (not Plus) on my winter wheels and although they hardly get any punctures they could be grippier and are quite harsh and wooden to ride.

If the Duranos are a halfway house between puncture-proofness and comfort/grip then they could be a good choice. Size is 700 x 28.

I run 700 x 28 Marathon plusses on my pub hybrid bike and 700 x 25 Duranos on my winter bike.

Both are good tires but if I wanted peace of mind I would go for the pluses over the Duranos. The plusses are so good that I have worn the tread off the reat without having to take the tyre off since putting them on the bike years ago (note to myself to swap front and rear tyres soon).

How long is the commute? If longer than 10ish miles I would go with the Duranos but shorter than that I would go with peace of mind of the plusses. I don't really notice a grip issue as you are never pushing it in the winter and for comfort I would and do happily run the plusses as low as 40 PSI.

Only negative of the plusses is they are a bh to get on the wheel. Definitely do it in the warm with the tyres warmed up for suppleness first (eg airing cupboard)

[dontlookdown]

Tks that's good info.

Her commute is 10 miles each way, with the odd longer ride too.

The Marathons are bad enough to get on, no doubt the Pluses are worse!

[MC Bodge]

I used folding 28 or 30mm(?) Duranos for a few thousand miles of commuting on my cyclo-cross bike. Very hard wearing, but good grip in all weathers -my commute involves main roads, ungritted roads and a mile or so of dirt/stone track. Very good.

I then used folding 32mm Marathon Supreme (very different to the normal, heavy, marathons) for a few thousand miles of commuting. Very good too.

The two tyre types were very similar, but the slightly extra volume of the Marathon Supreme swung it for me whilst being fast rolling. I highly rate them

It was very rare to get punctures in either.

I now commute far less (more WFH) and have a 35mm Schwalbe Road Cruiser on the front and a 38mm Range Cruiser on the rear for a bit more off road/gravel volume and grip on loose/light mud whilst still being acceptable on the road. Also good.

Ps. I got a free set of 25mm Durano from British Cycling and put them on my road bike. They weren't noticeably slow and I used them extensively.

Schwalbe tyres are excellent.

Edited by MC Bodge on Thursday 23 December 09:11

[waynecyclist]

I have used Durano's but find them lacking in grip this time of the year, switched to these for the winter, really impressed so far.

https://www.sjscycles.co.uk/tyres-large/vittoria-r...

Marathon's are ok but feel slow and heavy unless you go for the folding Supreme's

[MC Bodge]

waynecyclist said:

I have used Durano's but find them lacking in grip this time of the year, switched to these for the winter, really impressed so far.

https://www.sjscycles.co.uk/tyres-large/vittoria-r...

Marathon's are ok but feel slow and heavy unless you go for the folding Supreme's

I have genuinely never found that Durano grip on the road is a problem. Certainly not worth buying a set of winter tyres for.

The Marathon Supremes are excellent tyres.

[lauda]

I've run Duranos on my winter bike for the last couple of years and never had a puncture (I know I'm tempting fate by saying that) nor any issues with grip.

I had Marathons on my old CX bike and they felt very heavy and slow. Pretty bomb-proof though.

[dontlookdown]

Tks all. I think I'll get the Duranos. She can try them out and if they're any good I might try a pair myself!

[Randy Winkman]

I like them. Never get punctures but they aren't particularly long lasting. I always replace tyres when they get any significant "nick" so I'm not sure that makes much difference anyway.