Schwalbe Pick-Up Tyre Review

 Schwalbe Pick-Up Tyre Review 

Hello happy humans. Despite already having way too many bicycle tyres I just bought some more. I think I may have a problem. Lots of photos here, and video below if you would rather:

In my quest for a high volume tyre with reasonable rolling resistance, and excellent puncture protection. I have gone for a pair of these Schwale Pick-Up Tyres in 26 x 2.35 size. 559-60 in euro sizing. 

Th tread pattern is quite smooth centre knobs, with textured shoulder knobs. The knobs themselves are quite shallow so tyre hum is not overly evident when riding on roads.

I have owned around 10 sets of schwalbe tyre over the years and they have all had very good moulding quality, they have (with one exception) all run straight with no wobbles or such like. 

These tire were measured quite thin compared to their advertised size. This is a bit annoying as I quite wanted them to be the size that is printed on the side of the tyre (60mm) but they are in fact 56mm, on 25mm rims. Had similar trouble with Super Moto-X tires. 

Fine with mudguards shown here with SKS bluemels P65s. 

I use these tyres for out and about country riding, on gravel tracks, roads, and light offroad. The main reason I went for these tyres is the "super defence" puncture guard. I am not a huge fan of "green guard" as it affects the feel of tire. 

Schwalbe (c) Owned image of super defence. Which looks like a double thick carcass. This also gives the tyre a very very firm feel when riding. Not firm as in hard, but firm as in reassuring. I should imagine (i am guessing) the structure of this tire is more similar to automotive tyres. 

More pictures of tread. The side knobs / texturing are quite good when riding in wheel ruts. The big apple tyre in particularly slips very easily when trying to get out of a wheel rut ion a track for example, as it has very little shoulder grip. 

More pictures of tread. . . . 

. . . and more.. . . .  

The tire has various markings and the side, and a reflective sidewall. The tire indicates it is e-bike ready. 

The tyre is made from Addix-E compound: "The newly created Addix E-Compound is specially optimized for maximum durability, low rolling resistance and exceptional grip even at high speed." This tyre shown is 2.35" version but you can get 2.15" in most versions. 

The tyre will go up to 4.5bar which is quite high for a wide tyre. 

Errrrr . . .  I like the colour of the writing. . . 

So hopefully many many more hassle free rides to come. With hopefully not many puncture. Or I will be going back to big apples. In summary these are a really nice tyre, but better if they had been measured properly.  

Update 09/12/2021: I have ridden this now for about 200 miles. It is not as light to pedal as the biggle apple, but is is better than I expected. It certainly rolls better than the super-moto-x. However, I have found that I cannot inflate to full pressure and still enjoy the ride. 4.5 bar on a tire of this width is crazy hard. It makes ride too uncomfortable.

Update 20/01/2023

Below are some pictures of the Schwalbe Pick Up Tire Mounted on a cargo bike, I hired in the Netherlands. I suppose this is what they were built for. We did about 100 miles in 3 or 4 days. I think I would have pumped them up a bit harder, but I had no pump (ergo pressure gauge) to check what pressure they were running at. 

The front tire os 20" size. I don't really have much to say about that. I couldn't see it from where I was sitting. 

As you can see I was carrying all of the families luggage, and for some stretch, my son sat on the rear rack and we put his small bike on the front. So we really loaded these tires up and they were very well behaved. 

 

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Choosing Tyres for the South Downs Way

Choosing Tyres for the South Downs Way

The below paragraphs will hopefully help you choose the correct tyre of the south downs way, the guide could also apply to other long distance off road tour routes, if the surfaces are similar.

If the weather is bone dry then you would want different tyres, than if it were wet. Some talk of flints of doom, but I didn't see any of that. I rode for 9 hours in total with no punctures, and after careful inspection of the tyres after by returns there were not cuts or gashes. 

A Word on Flints

Flints are a rock made out of glass (Silicon Dioxide) if they are broken in the right way, they can be used to make razor sharp cutting tools. Vast sections of the South Downs Way are covered in Flints. But that does not mean they will constantly be puncturing you tyres. A few years ago I sustained the below damage to a tyre and the inner tube popped out.

It was caused by the below flint that way stuck in the ground very securely with the sharp edge sticking out of the ground. It was a perfectly broken flint, held in a perfect position. Very unlikely to happen.

Now I have only ever had this happen once in 10 years of cycling. And the problem was quickly got around by cutting up my old inner tube and laying over the inside of the tear before inserting a new inner tube, and limping home. A better option might be to carry a piece of tyre side wall in your repair kit, and even a tube of super glue.

The fact here is that you could run some serious rubber to protect against this freak occurrence ,and it may never happen. Better to take a repair kit to cover the slim chance of it actually happening. A small pair of scissors will see you through. You can chop up the damaged inner tube, lay it in tyre 4 deep, in playing card sized pieces and it will hold the new tube in.

Tricks

Things to watch out for:

• Green Chalk - Algae covered chalk which is very slick.
• Cycling on Side Slope - Expose side walls to sharp flints. 

 

The side slope as described is typically found in long sections of wheel rut, so cycle on the centre ridge or off to one side if there is an option to do that.

South Downs Way Surfaces

I have included a selection of pictures below so you can make you own mind up. There were some farm track muddy sections, flinty paths, mud / flint paths, cobble farm tracks, tarmac, concrete, smooth-ish, compacted aggregate, and grass. It is a smorgasbord of surface dressings.

When belting down Beacon Hill, near East Harting you might want you knobbly tyres. Wet grass is very slippery. And I would be very nervous about going down this hill on slick tyres.

The flinty decent from Bignor Hill is fine with any type of tyre, in wet or dry conditions. The flints are grippy.

Heading up the gentle incline west past Glatting Beacon, grass again so low profile knobbles would be useful if wet. 

The mud covered flint path ways of Graffham Down, you would probably be OK on slicks as they would bite down through mud.

 Narrow side paths of Heysott Down probably want some knobbles for that . . . . .

Another downhill grassy slope, glatting beacon would be to the left in this shot.

An image borrowed from the Petersfield Post.  I doubt it would be possible to pedal up that hill without some fairly serious mud tyres. 

So if nothing else we can see that surfaces are varied. If you are racing or doing a very long stint in one day, then hope for dry weather and run something semi slick, perhaps even full slick. The care you have to take on grassy, muddy bits will likely be paid back double when you get on the tarmac or hard pack. 

If you are not racing or doing more than 30 miles a day then go for some knobbles, then you can enjoy the fun bits in the knowledge that you have good traction. Look for tyres with following attributes:

• Low Profile (but not slick) Centre Tread
• Good Side Lugs
• Puncture Protection
• Side Wall Protection
• Thickness of 2" or More
• Size of 26" or More
• Good Load Rating if Carrying Luggage

This would lead me to recommend the following tyres, these are all based on 26" 559 sizing. Most are available in 27.5 / 650b also.

When Wet 

You may wish to try the below after a prolonged period of wet weather.  Don't go mad with the knobbles, but you will need some.

For Wet

• Smart Sam Plus
• Knobbly Nick DD
• Black Jack (Kevlar) - Good Budget Option

When Damp

Unless there has been a prolonged period of dry weather, then I would suggest using something with side lugs. 

For Damp

• Marathon Mondial (DD)
• Rock Razor (Tubeless)
• Land Cruiser Plus - Good Budget Option

When Dry (as a bone)

If the weather has been dry for a couple weeks, then you might optimise your performance with some of these slicker tyres. 

For Dry

• Super Moto X
• Marathon Almotion
• Marathon Classic Green Guard - Good Budget Option
• Schwalbe Pick-Up

Sorry they are all Schwalbe, but you know you can get an idea of tread levels.

BUT I here you say what did you use? Well despite owning a pair of £80 Marathon Mondial, which are a very well made tyre, I ran a pair of £15 a pair Impac Trailpac Tyres, and they were fine.

Ultimate Conclusion

Just remember you can do the South Downs Way on any tyre you like. If the worst comes to the worst you can always get off and push. The main thing is to just get on a do it! It is a great route.

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Arisun Mount Baldy Tyre Review 26 x 2.50

Arisun Mount Baldy Tyre Review 26 x 2.50 - Intro

Just £23 for a pair of these Arisun Mount Baldy Tyre Review 26 x 2.50 tyres on Ebay at the moment, and as such I have pruchased these with an aim to building up an off road / MTB type bike. I haven't owned a pair of mount bike tyres for years.

You can see they tyres on a new build. In the above video. Below shows picture of initial build. 

 

Arisun Mount Baldy Tyre Review 26 x 2.50 - First Impressions

These are folding tyres, and come zip tied to a plastic hanger. The rubber has a supple feel to to it and the tyres unfold nicly. Mounting them on the rims (EX325) was easy, and the nbeads seated well. I used innertubes when insttaling these Mopunt Baldy tyres from Arisun. The knobs are small, and although I havn't ridden on these yet they should roll quiote well.

Arisun Mount Baldy Tyre Review 26 x 2.50 - Width

These Mount Baldy Tyres are lablled as 2.5" but this is misleading, they are 2.35". LAbelled at 559-60 size in ETRO sizing this 60mm width is accurate, but a imperial conversion of 60mm is 2.35" not 2.5" so this is misleading.

Arisun Mount Baldy Tyre Review 26 x 2.50 - More Pictures

Arisun Mount Baldy Tyre Review 26 x 2.50 - Conclusions

I will update this post when I have finished the bike and gone for a ride. The tyres certainly seam fair quality, and for the price I paid are unlikely to disappoint. The mount well, have a quality finish, and are not excessively knobbly. 

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Schwalbe AV13 AV13F and AV13D Comparison

Schwalbe AV13 AV13F and AV13D Comparison - Intro

First off, this comaprsion would apply also to SV13,  SV13F and SV13D. The AV and SV at the front of each inner tube type denotes the type of valve. AV is schrauder, the SV is presta.

But why write a comparison . . .we hopefully it will save you some time:

	AV13	AV13F	AV13D
General Description	This is a normal width tube for use in normal size tires. 1.5 to 2.5", although better used for tires up to 2"	This is a wider tube (but not a lot wider) that weigh the same as a normal tube, so is a bit thinner.	This is the same thickness as a normal AV13 tube and a bit wider. But again not much wider.
Weight	190g	185g	290g
Price	£4	£8	£6
Schwalbe Blurb	A standard Schwalbe tube holds the air considerably longer. Due to the purity of the rubber compound. Due to the uniform wall thickness.	Large volume. Low Weight.	Extremely robust. A reinforced rubber base protects against dreaded valve shearing off. Only in Downhill sizes. If you want large volume with low weight, choose Extralight
Thorpy's Rating	5/5	4/5	5/5

Below I have includedsome pictures of the tubes laid out next to one another. From left to right, AV13, AV13F and AV13D. As you can see there is not a great deal of width differnce between them.

Schwalbe AV13 AV13F and AV13D Comparison - Conclusions 

Whilst the Standard Tube (AV13) is very good quality and will fit nealry all tires sizes, the AV13 costs considerbaly more and offers little in teh way of befits other then the slightly wider size it can be inflated too. The AV13F is also the most expensive of all three tubes.

The AV13D is worth using if you have a wider tire. But the Michelin C6 is in by opion a better tube, as it is wider out of the box, and requires less streching to get up to size.

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Schwalbe Dirty Harry BMX Tyre Review

Schwalbe Dirty Harry BMX Tyre Review - Intro

These are a cheap BMX tyre from Schwalbe. However, do not be fooled by the price, this is an excellent tyre that could be used on folding bikes, kids bikes as well as BMXs and have an excellent building quality and a good multipurpose grip. It comes in 20" (406) variant only, and is 1.95" wide.

Not Just for BMX

Schwalbe Dirty Harry BMX Tyre Review - Grip

The tread pattern is ideal suited to street riding, loose gravel riding, and dry dirt. Where it quickly comes undone is claggy mud, where the closed block tread pattern quickly clogs. The tread pattern is also quite shallow, this is advantageous in that the "knobs" do not flex when under load but a disadvantage as they clog more readily. 

Tread Pattern Looks Flash and is Good for All Except Thick Mud

The rubber compound is SBC (Schwalbe Basic Compound) as used on early Big Apple Tyres and is perfectly adequate, although not as good as some of their high end compounds. 

Schwalbe Dirty Harry BMX Tyre Review - Build Quality 

These are a moderately high quality tyre. But is has one blinding feature that most other BMX tyres do not have, a kevlar puncture protection belt (Kevlar Guard). This is an excellent feature, and will stop punctures from just about anything, except hawthorns. 

Side View

The TPI is s little low if you want to carry large loads, but for normal riding is is very good. These have a soft feel when riding when compared to a very high TPI tyre such as the Eclat Ridgestone.

Tread Deatil

Schwalbe Dirty Harry BMX Tyre Review - Conclusions

A cheap reliable tyre form a quality brand, with excellent puncture protection. A tread pattern suitable for all sorts of surfaces. . . .what's not to like?

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Eclat Ridgestone Traction Tyre Review

Eclat Ridgestone Traction Tyre Review - Intro

This is a BMX tyre, with trendy marketing etc. But will fit most wide etro 406 rims (i.e. 20"). I was looking for a 20" tyre to use on a cargo bike, which has . . .

• Semi -Slick Tread
• High Pressure Rating
• High Load Rating
• Very Wide

. . .and this tyre seemed to tick all of the boxes, I would have liked some schwalbe type puncture protection, but I put some slime in the tubes instead. Plus these were £10 each on ebay, so pretty cheap. They are available in three widths from 2.2 to 2.4 inches. 

Eclat Ridgestone Traction Tyre Review - Description

The Eclat Ridgestone Traction tyre is a slightly nobbly version of the Ridgestone Slick tyre. Whilst the ridgestone slick has a smooth center tread, the ridgestone traction has slight steps on the center ridge, allowing for perhaps a little more traction. Although the difference would be slight.

Ridgestone Slick (Left) vs Ridgestone Traction (Right)

The side wall tread of traction is significantly more knobbly than the slick variant, with enlarged lugs, and more aggressive tread off centre of the central ridge. 

 

Eclat Ridgestone Traction Tyre Review - Build

The tyres are very sticky rubber, so will probably wear quickly if used for commuting, i.e. high milage use. These tyres has a very high TPI at 120, a quality touring tyre such as the big apple from schwalbe would use a 67 TPI carcass so why such a high TPI?

Sheldon Brown links a high TPI tyre to a thin wall, but these are fairly heavy tyres. but one would assume this is for greater flexibility and thus lower rolling resistance. 

These tyres are rated for 100psi, I doubt I will ever run them at that pressure. But it gives an indication of their quality. I have carried close to 200kg (including bike) on these tyres. 

Used for EBike on this Occasion

Eclat Ridgestone Traction Tire Review - In Use

If you are using these on a BMX then perhaps it is time for you to tune out. As I am using these on a longtail cargo ebike, which will never do a jump or a bunny hop in its life. 

There is tyre hum on the tarmac when in use owing to the slight knobbles on the centre ridge. I swapped these after using Schwalbe Jumpin Jacks for a while, but they just munch the battery being so knobbly (this would translate to leg ache on a normal bike). The eclat ridgestone traction tyre role very nicely on tarmac.

On rough stuff these are grippy as you would expect. In heavy clay they struggle of course, but the advantage is that the shallow tread clears easily once you get back up to speed. 

These tyres are not very puncture proof, a set of Schwalbe Dirty Harrys would be a cheap alternative to these, with better puncture protection, but these would not role as well, nor are they as grippy. 

I have been riding these through the hedge trimming season, in the UK with roads littered with thorns, and have unsurprisingly suffered numerous punctures, I am running tyre sealant (in tubes) and this has stopped the tyres deflating on most occasions but there is white sealant visible in numerous places on the outside of the tyre. I have puncture during the "thorn" season with other kevlar or better tyres, so this is not really a sign of weakness. 

Eclat Ridgestone Traction Tyre Review - Conclusion

A performance grade tyre, that is well suited for use on heavy duty cargo bikes, although its lack of a puncture protection belt is a slight draw back this can be easily got around by using tyre sealant. 

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Schwalbe Jumpin Jack Tyre Review

Schwalbe Jumpin Jack Review

These are a very knobbly offering from Schwalbe that come in a 2.1 or 2.25 size. Both 20".

These are pictures of the 2,25" size and they are evidently sweet.

Big Knobbles . .

. . . more Big Knobbles

These tyres have a funny little raised bit that sits against the rim, this might be there to help prevent pinch flats / snakebites but not sure. This means fitting the tyres are a bit more tricky especially on "taller" rims. These are on gusseet rims, and they were a tight-ish fit. i.e. I needed levers.

Unlike Dirty Harrys (another tyre by Schwalbe) these tyre do not have a puncture protection belt. I am running them with tyre liners.

Cheap if bought from Germany <£10.  Try Bike Parts De


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Schwalbe Marathon Mondial 26 x 2.15 (55-559) Review

Schwalbe Mondial 26 x 2.15 (55-559) Review - Intro

I mourn the loss of kevlar guard on the 26 x 2.35 big apples, why did schwalbe down grade the puncture protection level on this their most practical of commuter tyres? The new big apple with "race guard" is not as good, and so after 8 puncture in around a years cycling, I have started to look for alternatives.

Marathon Mondial - A wide tyre, shown here with 65mm mud guards.

After much google-alisation I arrived at the Schwalbe Marathon Mondial 26 x 2.15, a high end touring tyre, which is wide and has a very high level of puncture protection.

The tread on these Schwalbe Marathon Mondial 26 x 2.15's is more off road-ish than I am used to much I figured I would give them a go after getting some for around £50 for the pair.

Schwalbe Mondial 26 x 2.15 Review - Out of the Box

It important to realise that these mondials come in two flavours, folding and non folding. There is no benefit in buying the non-folding varierty over other marathons, apart from the width. The folding mondials have Schwalbe's premium puncture protection system "double defence" which consists of a high density ceramic fibre guard to protect the tread area, and a strengthened "snake skin" side walls.

The tyres have a reflective strip as is the case with most Schwalbe tyres and are extremely well made.

Marathon Mondial - Side lugs for grip in wetter conditions

Marathon Mondial - Reflective Side Wall

Marathon Mondial - Quality Construction

Schwalbe Mondial 26 x 2.15 Review - Fitting

Easy enough even of wide Mavic EX 325 rims.

Schwalbe Mondial 26 x 2.15 Review - On and Off the Road

Off the road these tyres are very good, although the center blocks could be better connected to provide easier rolling whilst on the road. When pedalling on smooth tarmac up hill, they is significant "squirm" as the tyre does not grip overly well.

Expect hum. This is an off road tyre.

Marathon Mondial - An off-road tyre

Marathon Mondial - Gaps between centre blocks are quite large.

Off road the tyre grips well. On hard packed gravel the tyre comes alive, and I must presume this is what it was designed for.

Run at 5 Bar ( 75 psi) the tyre is fairly unpleasant to ride, although the option to run the tyre at this pressure is handy for load luggers. At 4 Bar (60 psi) the tyre still feels hard, and a drop to 3 Bar (45 psi) results in a good compromise between comfort and rolling resistance.

Schwalbe Mondial 26 x 2.15 Review -Life Span

From what I have read else where they last a very long time.

Pedalling to Nowhere = 12,000 - 16,000 km

Dave McCraw - "Many thousands of Miles"

So a very long time.

Schwalbe Mondial 26 x 2.15 Review - Conclusion

If you are after a fattish tyre with very high levels of puncture protection, and lowish rolling resistance then the Marathon Mondial 26 x 2.15 is a fine choice.

EDIT 2017: Having looked in to rolling resistance, I can confirm that it is high for this tyre. At 26.7W when tested. This compared to the Marathon Almotion at 17.1W.

However, you could cosider the Fat Frank* or Big Apple (or Big Apple Plus) tyres as for the on road commuter use the mondial is still quite knobbly. Kevlar guard has been dropped from the big apple, but the fat frank still has it, these are by next port of call .

If you drop to a 26 x 2.0" tyre size then double defence is available on 2 other tyres, such as marathon deluxe, and marathon dureme, both of which are worthy choices, and more likely to fit within existing mudguards and frames.

Update: 21/09/2015

The Fat Frank is not actually any easier in rolling than these Mondials,the Fat frank is a low grade rubber compound and with kevlar guard is a little more spongy to pedal, infact the Mondial roles better than the Fat Frank.

With hedge trimming season here again and the roads littered with thorns I have reverted to these Mondial tyres having suffered dual simulation punctures in front a rear fat frank tyres, second time around they did not seem too bad at all rolling better to than fat franks. I will be using them through out the winter.

Update 21/09/2017

Again the big apple race guards are succumbing to thorns, and so I have switched back to these. It is like pedalling through treacle!

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