Spokes and Rim Options

BLADE® offers three spoke choices:

SAPIM CX-Ray spokes are included with our 2nd Gen Wheelsets.

When ordering your wheels, if you would like a combination of black and white Pillar 1423 spokes, just explain this in text. If we are unclear what you are asking for, we will follow up with either a phone call or email to ensure you get the customized wheels of your dreams!

CLINCHERS

Almost ninety percent (90%) of the cyclists use clinchers (tubes or inner tubes) because of their great usefulness:

Clinchers are the easiest to install and maintain: If you have the necessary tools at home, you don’t need to pay a visit to your local bike shop. But if you do, your bike’s tire can be fixed within a very short time.

They are affordable: Clinchers are very cheap.

Availability of various kinds of clinches: Being the most popular type of bike tires, there are more manufacturers of clinchers than any other type of bike tires.

Hence, this proffers a unique opportunity for bikers to have access to a wide variety of clinchers. You can obtain some high-performance options if you want to rival the capabilities of tubeless and tubular tires.

Consistency and reliability: Clinchers are very reliable and can be used consistently without experiencing any kinds of headache, if used properly and well taken care of.

However, the major concerns about clinchers are that they can become pinch flat or punctured. You can’t enjoy nice ride quality if your bike’s tire pressure is low. And the type of tube you chose can influence your ride quality and tire installation procedures.

Tubular tires are structurally similar to clinchers in the sense that they also have inner tubes. However, they are stitched into a completely enclosed casing that would be glued to the rims.

You must pay serious attention to the gluing of the inner tubes to the rims, or else it may be too dangerous to ride with such tires. Outlined below are some merits of using tubular tires:

Tubular tires are the lightest type of wheel-and-tire integrated equipment: This is why they are set apart for fast races such as cyclocross races.

They can perform well even with very low tire pressures: Even when flat, the ride quality is maintained throughout the journey or race.

Tubular tires rarely experience pinch flat or puncturing: The low tire pressures in them make it possible to run over sharp objects and not get punctured.

They have better ride quality: In addition to this, tubular tires are considered safer when they become flat. They also have better grip and more supple casings that improve the overall ride quality.

The major problems about tubular tires are that installing them is time-consuming, and when they eventually become flat or punctured, it is usually laborious to replace or repair them.

TUBULAR TIRES

TUBELESS

Tubeless tires do not have tubes inside the tires, but depend mainly on the tires and rims producing an airtight chamber that will be strong enough, when pumped, to sustain the weight on the bike. Highlighted here are some other good characteristic features of tubular tires:

Tubeless tires can run on very low tire pressure: Their tire casings are harder than the other types of tires; hence, they are less susceptible to pinch flat. They don’t even have tubes that could be punctured.

Tubeless tires have great ride quality and comfort: This can be attributed to its ability to function in very low tire pressure.

They have the capability to self-repair: This indicates that when a tubeless tire is eventually punctured, it can self-repair the little holes created by the pinch.

Tubular tires have very low rolling resistance and weight: You can ride your tubeless bike against the wind and still maintain a good speed. This is why they are used mostly for races.

However, you need to worry about these issues if you are going to use tubeless tires: They are very expensive, costlier than the tubed tires. They could be messy when repairing them. They lack consistent fitting and may be sometimes unreliable.

If your tubeless tires do not have either industry-standard UST or Road Tubeless labels, you may end up having tires that poorly fit your bike’s rims.

You may need to use an air compressor when you are installing them. You would need some liquid sealant to maintain the supple casings’ grit and improve traction.

Because of their unique qualities, each of the tire types is used for a specific purpose. It is possible to use more than one tire-type for the same purpose, but there will always be the best tire-type for that activity.

Here are some examples of surfaces where your bike tires can run comfortably depending on their characteristic features:

Most of the bike tires you see on the road are obviously clinchers. They have become the standard for road biking because of several reasons which include but are not limited to their affordability, easiness to install and maintain, consistency and reliability in use, and availability in various forms.

Next to the clinchers, for road biking, are the tubular tires. For the fact that they rarely become pinch flat or punctured, they may provide cyclists some great comfort while running on hard, rough surfaces.

Even though very few bikers may want to use tubeless tires for road biking, you can still find some bikers using them.

ROAD

RACING

The best racing tires are those that are very light and can sail through the wind and other physical elements with little or no resistance. They also have great aerodynamic properties that improve ride quality.

As a matter of facts, the tubular tires are the best choice for speed and racing. They are the lightest kind of wheel-and-tire integrated biking equipment. Most tubular tires can perform significantly with very low tire pressures.

And because they rarely experience pinch flat or puncturing, racing cyclists can concentrate on the races without worrying whether they may be thrown off-balance by a sudden puncture.

And tubular tires are practically considered to be safer when they become flat. They possess a good gripping capability and have more supple casings that make race biking quite comfortable.

This is not to say that some bikers may prefer using either clinchers or tubeless for their races, but tubular tires are the best, judging from their comparative advantages.

For practical reasons, the best tires to ride for cyclocross are tubulars. Most tubular tire can perform greatly with very low tire pressures.

And because they rarely experience pinch flat or puncturing, cyclocross cyclists can concentrate on the events without bothering themselves about experiencing a sudden puncture.

And tubular tires are practically considered to be safer when they become flat. They have a great grip on the surface and have more supple casings that make race biking quite comfortable.

You may be somehow confused about which bike tires to choose, knowing that there are different types of them exhibiting different capabilities. Here are five (5) tips that can assist you in your selection process:

Purpose: What do you want to use your bike for? For mountain climbing or road biking or cyclocross? You should be able to have a very clear picture of your biking purpose (s) in mind.

With that, you would be able to know which bike tire type will help you achieve that purpose. If you want to race, you know that your best bet should be tubular tires. And if mountain climbing is your thing, go for the tubeless tires.

Price: How much can you afford? Pricing is as important as knowing which purpose you want to accomplish. While it is possible for some bikers to spend as much as $2000 to purchase a bike tire, others may not be able to afford more than $50 or $200.

So, keep your tire choice according to the power of your wallet/purse. It is uncomfortable to go into debts simply because of buying a bike’s tires. You would not derive any pleasure from riding your bike; all the thoughts in your mind will be about finding money to pay off the debts.

Technical features: Even though every tire type can be used for all biking purposes, you should select the most appropriate tire type for your bike riding.

There are two important reasons why you should do this: First, using the most appropriate type of tires will increase your ride quality and comfort. Second, using the wrong set of tires may cause you some financial woes.

You will end up replacing the tires every now and then as they become punctured or flat. Sometimes, the wheels of your bike may be more compatible with certain types of tires than the other. So, pay serious attention to the technical properties of your chosen bike’s tires.

Maintenance: No one likes to spend their hard-earned money on the wrong set of tires that are too costly to maintain or repair. Choose the right tires that would continue to function for a long period of time. As a result of this, you won’t be required to constantly visit a bike shop to repair the tires.

Because of their self-repair ability, tubeless tires are the best choice for trail or mountain biking. No matter the number of holes accidentally drilled into them, they continue to repair those holes in motion. This gives bikers the rest of mind to enjoy their biking experience without having to stop and fix their tires.

CYCLOCROSS

Warranty

Make sure you know exactly what warranties are on the tires you are purchasing. No any industrial products can be trusted one hundred percent, even though you just bought them new.

Obtaining at least one-year warranty will help you concentrate on enjoying your biking experience. In case of any unexpected problem concerning the tires, you can quickly use your warranty to obtain another set of new tires or you may have the tires repaired at no extra cost to you.

Most manufacturers of bike tires often add warranties to their products, but you must ask your local bike dealers for it. Sometimes, it is secretly hidden inside the contract. If you don’t understand the content of your bike contract, seek the help of a friend who is knowledge about bikes.