Schwalbe Tires

Hello all,
Does anyone have any experience with using Schwalbe Tires? They are a German company.
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They offer several tires that are puncture proof and they also resist snakebite and sidewall punctures. One tire in particular, the Marathon Plus MTB provides protection against Glass Shards, Tacs, and Flints.
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They are a little pricey, but if they perform as advertised, you have the peace of mind of not worrying about a Flat, so the price may be worth it.
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Please only respond if you had direct experience with Schwalbe Tires.

Hi Randy, it is funny that you posted your question here. It is because of the C&O that I am very familiar with Schwalbe tires. On our first through ride,(we ride DC to Pitt), we were very close to Cumberland when I got a huge cut on my rear tire. Too large to be confident in any type of repair. We made it to the Cumberland Trail Connection bike store. They had a display that had a cross section of a Schwalbe with a thumb tack in it. The thumb tack did not reach the tube. I was sold. I believe it was $54.00. I was more than happy to pay it. Since then I have replaced my front tire with a Schwalbe. I believe it is a Marathon Plus. It too was in the $50.00+ range.

On our second through trip my wife got two flats on her rear tire in one day. Long story short, there was a thorn stuck and broke off in the tire. Had to unload the panniers from the bike and the rear tire was very tight on the rim. Would I have paid $50.00 bucks for a Schwalbe then? Oh yeah.

To my mind, they are worth every penny, for the very reason you mentioned. I truly have not worried about a flat tire at all. We have local idiots who feel it necessary to break glass on our paved trails. You cannot avoid the glass. I always take point and let others know where the glass is.

There is talk about the extra weight of the tires, performance, etc. I will worry about the weight of the tire when I lose my 30 pound spare tire....lol. Performance? I am mostly a recreational trail rider. I am all about comfort these days, not shaving seconds off my ride time.

I have joked about being a paid Schwalbe spokesman. I love them and would highly recommend them. Let me know if you have any other questions.

If I ever get to do a long distance ride Im going with the schwalbees. The ONLY thing I have heard is they are a bit difficult to remove from the rim.

Hello JJB,
Thank you very much for your reply. Your response is exactly the kind of feedback I was hoping for. I have seen the broken glass on the C&O Canal trail (and other trails) due to vandalism.
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I had 2 flats so far this Summer, so I will be "upgrading" to Schwalbe.
Thanks again for your feedback.

I bought a pair of basic 35mm Marathons just before I went on my trip last October and to date they haven't let anything through after nearly 3100 miles. Not even glass from the city streets has managed to get through.

We ride a Longbikes tandem recumbent. I wouldn't consider any other tire than a Schwalbe Marathon Plus Tour. The last thing I want to do is change a tire/tube on our 11 foot limousine while on tour. As far as I'm concerned they are the best flat proof tire available. I also run Schwalbe tubes. I prefer their Schrader valves with threaded stems and SS sealing valve caps. The only threaded stem Schrader tubes I've seen are from Schwalbe.

Appreciate the feedback regarding Schwalbe Tires. There is a bike shop in my area who can special order them for me. I am using Kenda Kevlar tires, but had 3 flats in the last 2 months due to punctures.
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Time to "upgrade" to Schwalbe. From the feedback it also sounds like they wear better also, which means I'll get more life out of them.

I installed my new Schwalbe Tires MTB, 26x1.75 and they are great. Nice smooth ride.
Thanks to everyone for your feedback! :)

My brother in law runs them and swears by them. I bought a set of gatorskins in may, and have had nothing but good luck. only downside is they dont come in bigger sizes. havent had any flats, and Ive put alot of miles on them.

I've learned that Raleigh will be buying out Schwalbe Tires. Raleigh Bicycles are beginning to put Schwalbe Tires on their Bikes.
This should increase the distribution of Schwalbe Tires and hopefully make them more readily available for consumers.