Return Of The Gumwall
If you’ve been paying attention, you may have noticed that ‘useful’ things like practicality and functionality can often take a back seat to more basic pursuit of aesthetics and taste. If you haven’t, then your name might just be Paul.
You may have also become aware that there is occasional flagrant flouting of certain guidelines by curators and purveyors alike. Long black socks, red bar tape and big bidons, facial and leg hair, some have even been known to experiment with the much-maligned and socially destructive drug EPMS. Some things shouldn’t be tampered with, while others are prone to some manipulation as seen fit by circumstance. And some things will always be ‘just the way it is’.
Take tyres for example. Rule #8 was one of the first decreed (it was the eighth, if memory serves) and is one of the more complex in its simplicity. To put it in layman’s terms, tyres are a simple thing to get right. Black. They match any bike regardless of colour and will always look good no matter how much abuse they receive. But look more closely and a myriad of options are offered; match this to that or that to the other bit, and the other bit back to that. Or just go black. See, told you it was simple.
So why should choosing a new set of rubber be a cause of consternation? I needed to replace my trusty Pavé CG’s as they’d seen better days, from the cobbles of Belgium and France in April through a winter of more off-road detours than any road bike should be subjected to. Punctures became a feature of almost every ride, two at a time on a couple of outings. The green tread was worn and cut up and my mates were getting sick of waiting and probably wanted to strangle me with a tube as I attempted to get aired up and mobile yet again. Hang on, green? Surely not compliant…
Well yeah, the hue that is ubiquitous with Pro bikes in the European spring is the one color of tread that gets an automatic pass due to that other great cornerstone of the dual pursuits of Cycling and Looking Fantastic: heritage. From Malteni orange to Lampre pink, green goes with anything and everything in Spring. Vittoria’s Pavés and FMB’s Paris Roubaixs have seen more action on more bikes on more cobbles than Mother Theresa has seen sick kids, and thus get almost as many blessings as she gives out on a mission to Africa. But go back further still, and the sidewall colour of choice to set off any steed is the gumwall. Or skinwall. Maybe tanwall, depending on your diocese.
It should’ve been easy to choose a new tyre due to my spate of flats. Thick, heavy rubber with all kinds of Kevlar reinforcement, varying TPI counts and tread patterns all were mulled over, for about five minutes. I wanted gumwalls. To hell with practicality and functionality, not to mention cost. I made the call to my rubber pusher Graeme and he administered the goods stat. Thinner, lighter, faster, probably less durable; my new Corsa SC’s may not solve any puncture issues, but damned if they don’t look the business. Fantastic, even.
The gumwall is back, and there’s no going black.
[dmalbum path=”/velominati.com/content/Photo Galleries/brettok@velominati.com/gummy/”/]
Yep,
Both wheelsets are rocking the gumwall tubs, Veloflex Criterium on the deep carbon and Challenge Strada on the Nemesis.
Sweet rides on both.
[IMG]http://i49.tinypic.com/2441xcm.jpg[/IMG]
[IMG]http://i49.tinypic.com/dlj89d.jpg[/IMG]
Bugger !!!
Second time lucky …
Yes! Wonderful article and timely as well! Planning on ordering some Veloflex Criterium tubs for my new wheels soon.
Love the old tan side wall look.
I hope they look as good on my Prophet as they do on yours!
@SimonH – are your bidons filled with matching liquid gum? that stuff looks gross!
Got some dark tan-walled Vredesteins on my all-black #1 bike. They look great and just lighten things up nicely. Having come of age (bike-wise) in the 80s, I’ll be delighted to see gumwalls return.
I am continually amazed at the timeliness of the articles posted here. I am currently in the process of acquiring some new wheels for Bike#1 – most likely HED Belgium C2s laced to King R45 hubs -and am looking for a gumwall clincher to mount on them. I’m certain my Ridley won’t accept a Challenge Parigi-Roubaix so I’m looking at Grand Bois Col de Madeline’s or Cerfs (if they’ll fit). Like Brett, I’m saying durability be damned and foregoing my dependable GP4000s for the sexy look and ride of something tan and supple!
Good one. Ran Open Corsa SCs last year on the Wilier. Looked great. Somehow they didn’t look right on the other bike, ran all black this summer. Now that rain season is here, the Paves are on.
I really wish Continental made these.
@RedRanger
Do Conti GP 4 Seasons not count as “gumwall”? What about GP Classics? I have the 4 Seasons on my 90’s Merckx MX Leader and they seem to fit the retro aesthetic.
@Tartan1749 Ha ha, 1/2 orange juice, 1/2 water, 100% Instagram dodgy filter.
Holy cannoli, the Merckx looks fantastic!
I wanted some gumwalls on my #1 to go with the new Ksyrium Super Light wheels I just put on it. Had them on hand and while not the best color, heck, if green is GO for spring, blue will suit me well for some cool winter riding. I’ll have to get a photo as the wheels + tyres have really classed up the bike. Veloflex Masters, blue tread, tan wall.
My Tommasini has some Veloflex Masters in black with gumwalls and boy they look sharp on a classy older bike.
HUGE fan of classy looking throwback tyres on modern race bikes.
If you’re worried about lifespan of sexy tyres…just get a bunch of bikes! I have Vittoria Open Corsas on my Casati, Veloflex Masters on my LOOK & Tommasini, none of them a high kilometerage but if you are only riding the bike one day a week, well, then they last pretty long.
Hurrah for the Veloflex Masters – superb cornering, sadly cut a bit easily, but look class
@Ron
How the hell do you keep the Veloflex sidewalls clean? Despite cleaning mine every other ride with a nail brush and degreaser, they are becoming really stained, especially towards the bead, which is a c shame
@Skip
Shoulda specified the 4000S
Dr. C – I try not to shift my chain into them! Nah, just kidding. Mine have definitely gone from light gum to darker tan with use but they don’t look too bad. I don’t do anything special with the Veloflex tires I have. New ones definitely look better than old ones, but they wear kinda quickly so I rotate and replace them. I have Masters, Records, and Paves. I think the Paves were phased out and are now the…Masters? I’m sure someone knows.
I’ve been riding a pair of Vittoria Evo Corsas for a long, long damn time. Though not as tough wearing at GP 4000s, I can’t complain about these. I have found Veloflex tires to wear faster, but I do have four road bikes…
The tires I have had trouble keeping clean…GP 4000s in limited edition white! Not the walls of the outer tread like Vittorias but the entire tread! A naive purchase. They now sit in a box in my stock closet, seeing limited limited edition usage.
@Skip
Do you mean the GP 4000 rather than the 4 Seasons? I’ve only seen the 4 Seasons available in black, indicated by your link. Perhaps they used to make gumwall, but no longer?
Bugger! I just went and got the all black Veloflex Carbons for the tubolare I’m building over winter. It’s impossible to keep up with you guys.
@Ron Are the Veloflex Paves now the Roubaix (gumwall)/Arenberg (blackwall)?
Ah, the gumwall. I’m quickly coming to the conclusion that while it’s a long way from being a Rule, the gumwall is the true choice of the Velominatus.
My problem with Vittorias or any of those beautiful, supple tires is that I do most of my riding in the city, and they just get cut up so quickly…that and I wear through the tread too quickly because I’m such a monster. But I’ve found that if you let them age a year in your cellar, they’re OK. I did that to my Gommitalia Calypos’s and they are holding up just fine. Just drink a bottle of the wine you’re storing and put a set of tires in its place for a year. No one needs to know.
The aged tires are a little slippery in the wet, though.
The Dugats on the CX-C are also natural sidewalls – talk about amazing tires, WOW. I’ll be rebuilding the wheels on the TSX into tubbies this winter and put some naturals on there as well – probably either FMB or Dugast.
Also, I’m bringing these wheels – the Richters (which will no longer be called Richter but Café Roubaix) on Keepers Tour. I’ll be mounting some more FMB’s on them and bringing a Shimano cassette body – the idea will be we’ll let anyone who wants to try them ride the wheels and see what they think. I’m super impressed by them so far, incredibly light and sturdy despite their featheriness.
Dan_R is building me a set for the Haleakala ride in January which will actually come in under a 1000g. Amazing. Compared to the 1700 grams I dragged up there last time, I expect to cut my time in half. What could go wrong?
@frank does he have a full site yet? will he be doing MTB wheels?
Nothing beats tan sidewalls on a bike. Nothing. Particularly if you love bikes from a certain age. I see your rule, and I understand it, but it gives me a certain frisson to deliberately disobey.
Good post! I went gumwalls for my first set of tubulars and I am really enjoying the look, in addition to the fantastic quality tire [Corsa SC].
Still Ten Dam, but I can’t say about the sidewall…
@SimonH I should have pulled the trigger on an Enigma while I lived in the UK. That’s one good looking ride. Cheers, Bryan
Photographing it in the little dog. Finally another Keeper sees the light. Nice touch on setting it in little-little, the True Way.
@frank
Care to expound on the True Way for us uninitiated? Is it out of respect for the RD spring?
@frank Bianchis should be celeste and celeste only. That said this one’ an absolute beauty
@Bryan Petersen Cheers Bryan, it’s a great bike which flatters me at every opportunity and will always out performs Meyer clumsy input.
I’ve got a custom steel lugged XCR in the pipeline, a modern classic with lots of shiney bits. It will be home to the Nemesis / Royce wheelset which I built earlier in the year inspired by our very own Frank. The Enve’s are being reglued at present hence the wheel swap.
I’m sorry, but the gum-wall is old school – I’m going with all-black on my ’72 Super to match the seat, bar tape, and (oh my!) the black hoods.
Wow, this thread is bringing out some goddamn nice bikes! Hmm, now I’m a bit nervous to throw mine up, for it might lower the Awesomeness Average we have goin’ on right night.
Pedale.Forchetta – Superb photo! Just great, thanks for putting that up.
Roadslave – are those Leader’s Calipers on the Serotta? Two slick bikes there!
Nate – not positive. I know they changed/phased out one name/tire. I think it was the Paves became the Masters. And there is also a Record. Not sure which the Paves became.
Frank – Never tried aging my more fragile tires. I ride 20 minutes in the city before getting out though so good to know. Can I swap Genesee Cream Ale for wine though?
roadslave – also forgot to mention the awesome Deda Zero100 bars you have. I love them bars! Have them on my cx bike with Sram Force and on my Casati with older Centaur. Great feel and transition with both. Those look to be the matte finish, eh? Hmm, if you’re like me you went matte over gloss to save some money (I think it was a $40 usd price difference when I bought mine), but maybe you just like yer bars more subtle.
@frank
You really need to photograph your gumwalls by the gum wall.
Next time I need new tires for my dad’s old bike I’m going to get some gumwall-style tires for sure. Would defiantly fit the bike.
@Pedale.Forchetta
Beautiful! It reminds me of that photo-realistic painting that was the title graphic of an article here a year or so ago, where a rider (in the Giro I think?) was coming up a mountain pass in the mist, with cars and other riders behind them.
@mcsqueak yes, it was the Federico Bahamontes paint!
@frank I’m aging me up a pair of Veloflex tubulars for the Nemeses.
@mcsqueak Yet another avatar change?
@Pedale.Forchetta
That’s right!
This beauty here:
@Nate
I got tired of being Frank.
@Pedale.Forchetta
I got me a Ten Dam picture in Foix this year and he’s rockin’ gumwalls and Giro’s.
For ten points who’s the Cofidis guy with the Bonts behind (Oli)?
@frank
I’ve got the same issue. The city streets here are an abomination. Never one for practicality, I decided that yes, I want to try the Corsa SC’s when the new hoops arrive. So it’ll be tubular, with soft soft sidewalls, and horrible glass riddled streets, what could go wrong?
put them on the old wheels and have them stretching. 2013 can’t come soon enough
@roadslave Absolutely gorgeous!
@roger It’d be a wicked pissah if you get a flat in those.
Not only on the road! Nino Schurter:
http://www.cyclingweekly.co.uk/galleries/photos/34608/1/2/men-s-mountain-biking-london-2012-olympic-games-by-graham-watson.html
@G’rilla thats a fucking beauty!
@the Engine based on the fact that I think it aint Moncoutie or Remy di Gregorio and he looks small and i dont know many of the other Cofidis riders, I would say Sammy Dumoulin.
@frank
Roadslave’s Serotta is so sweet, I think I dribbled on it a couple of times in Belgium.
(But it needs that stem tumor removed.)
@brett You never fail to disappoint.
@frank Hey, Frank, as always, thanks for the shout out! These climbing wheels are spooky light!
@RedRanger
I am soooo close I can taste it. Well, the website is taking a bit of time, mostly because I am a yard ape with HTML stuff. BUt, once it is up, I will have a page dedicated the “brick & mortar” studio, for which I am signing the lease this weekend. That’s part of the delay too – I’ve got 99 problems…anyway, I am working on the shop, website, Franks wheels, design, oh yeah, my four year old daughter too. In the new year she will be in the turning wrenches daycare. BUT, I had not planned on working on Mnt bike wheels, but I can do special orders as I will have access through all the distributors, etc. In fact, I have a set of C4 6-bolt hubs and some DT Swiss rims sitting in stock. I have some stuff with the “Richter” painted on the rims, some blanks (both alloy and carbon) that will be either part of my personal fleet of wheels, rentals, or let go for a bargain.
Gumwalls rock. I will be carrying Challenge, Veloflex, Gommitalia, a bit of Vittoria, with access to all the other tires out there two. I have an email into FMB, I just hope my French was somewhat understandable. Oh, and a little American company that does CX Tape found here…http://cxtape.wordpress.com/about/ . They are sending me a sample to try out, but if it works well with Vittoria Mastik, I will be stocking it for cx.
@mcsqueak
I’m surprised it took this long. The hammer has been looking real good lately.
@brett That’s a pretty tight ride, but in the spirit of Merckx I’d ditch the computer. Also those alien-head water bottle cages look weird, but if they are super functional on the stones I’ll withdraw any criticism.
@Nate
The computer is compliant but probably coming off soon. On our ride the other night, it was giving crazy readings like 40kmh uphill and 107kmh down… my workmate thought it was hilarious. While mounting the Corsas I found out why; the old extra magnet on the spokes trick.
The cages are Elites, they are awesome on the stones and won’t be coming off.
@Marcus
It’s the only guy from the TdF 2012 Cofidis startlist that bears any resemblance to Dumoulin