Schwalbe Marathon Wired Tyre with Greenguard Reflex

The first thing to understand is that these tires are puncture resistant, but not completely puncture proof. I use these tires on four separate bicycles, two using the 28 mm width, one using the 40 mm width, and one using the 47 mm width, all of which I use for commuting and recreational rides. There is a lot of broken glass on the route to work, as well as thorns and goathead stickers seasonally.On one of the bikes wearing the 28 mm tires, I've had two flats. Once I had the misfortune to run over something, perhaps a large piece of broken glass or sharp metal, in the early morning darkness and it was sharp enough to cut (not puncture) through the tire, and the tube on the rear wheel. I didn't see the object, but it made a loud "ping" sound as it came out of the tire and bounced on the road. It left a slash more than 1/2 inch wide in the tire. Whatever this object was, I suspect any bicycle tire would have been similarly damaged, perhaps a motorcycle or car tire also. I also had another flat on the front tire of the same bicycle. While repairing this time, I noticed that the tube was a racing tube, made of very thin lightweight rubber and sized for a 20mm tire, not a 28mm. So when installed in the 28mm tire, that tube was expanded considerably larger than it should have been, and it's thin walls were stretched even thinner...no wonder a tiny thorn managed to puncture it. I ended up buying new, standard weight tubes in the correct size.One the bike with the 40 mm Marathons, I rode through a patch of grass perhaps 10 feet long along the edge of the path, and instantly picked up a number of goathead stickers. I stopped a short distance further when I saw them rotating in the tire, and pulled them out, but both front and rear tire were already punctured, and leaking slowly. I managed to ride home before both went flat, and got to spend a while putting patches on both tubes.Marathons are lighter weight and more supple than the common thick walled "puncture resistant" tubes, although not quite so light as a standard tire without the puncture resistant belt. I have had very good success with the thick tubes resisting flats, but they really change the way a bicycle rides, as the thick tube adds a lot of weight where it doesn't do any good, making the wheel very heavy. So, Marathons are not a racing tire, but a very good commuting or touring tire. My personal best commute time was on 28 mm Marathons (8 miles in 28:45)...on a 35 year old 12 speed lightweight bicycle. If you want to go faster, Schwalbe makes other tires with lighter, more exotic and more expensive materials under the tread (there is a Marathon Racer, and a Kojack slick, among others). And it's not completely invulnerable, but very tough nonetheless. The "Greenguard" belt appears to be merely an extra thickness of rubber under the tread area, and helps prevent punctures simply by virtue of it's extra thickness. It's offers the benefits of a thick tube under the tread where you need it, without the weight of extra rubber on the sidewalls and in the area of the spoke nipples. It doesn't appear to be particularly difficult for a sharp thorn to penetrate, and if the thorn is long enough, it can reach your tube. The "Greenguard" belt isn't kevlar, although Schwalbe offers a kevlar belt in the Marathon Plus, their more expensive tire. However, the extra puncture resistance of the Marathon Plus does come at a cost, that tire weighs more and doesn't roll quite so well as this tire. So, you decide how much puncture protection you need, and choose the tire which seems to fit your needs best.One thing to be aware of is that the belt adds slightly, 3 to 5 mm to the height of the tire, so be sure you have clearance at your front fork and at your rear brake bridge. If you don't have significant clearance with your existing tires, consider downsizing the width when using Marathons.In addition to reducing the instances of flats from punctures, these tires have a reflective band which is highly visible in the lights of cars. I've had coworkers tell me that they could see me several hundred feet away in the darkness, lit only by their own headlights. I do have battery powered lights as well, but the first thing they reported seeing was two bright white reflective circles moving in the darkness. This feature added to the reduced frequency of punctures makes these my favorite commuting tire.

I bought the Schwalbe Marathon 700x38c "The original" 3 years ago for my Haibike E-bike. I replaced the rear tire today because there was basically no tread left after 16,000 miles (no typo!!). In all these miles, most of them on Los Angeles streets, I had 1 puncture on these tires, which is fantastic!! This is a no-brainer - buy it!

Initial impression is outstanding, the visual quality after unwrapping the basic plastic is something you can see compared to lesser quality tires. The overall shape and form was clean and round. The sidewall and tread is robust in so much that you can see it. Mounting was simple and smooth. Mine weighed in at 855 grams 700x38 which is heavier than the original el-cheapo tire made by Giant. After a quick ride I feel confident to take my bike on an extended excursion. I will update my review after a few hundred miles with my unbiased opinion based on actual usage. For now I am happy and they look good too especially the reflective sidewall.UPDATE AFTER ROUGHLY 100 MILES:Schwalbe Marathon GG RLX Wire Bead TireOK so after breaking them in a little here are my opinions. I put the tire through several heat cycles and roughly a hundred miles over the course of about a week. They are Ok in rain I am extra careful in the rain but the tires were fine, no issues. They also took a little bit to come into shape after installing. They were narrow at first but are now filled out so to say. No problems installing they went on easily with just my fingers on a 19mm wide 700 rim.Strengths:1. Flat protection with the 3mm green Guard layer2. Comfortable ride firm yet comfy. You don't feel every pebble you run over like some other tires. Suspension switched off is comfortable due to the construction. Yet they have a certain firmness.3. Handling is very good for such a heavy tire and they corner adequately, straight line riding is steady and firmly planted.4. Quality A+++ Tried and true design, just check the numerous reviews, these tires have a strong following among long distance riders. Schwalbe is a major tire manufacturer.5. Durability based on reviews and mfger notes, these are made to last. Anti-aging compounds to prevent rubber deterioration.6. Multi useability they transition well from paved to hard dirt or gravel.7. Broad PSI range of 60-85 PSI Allows you to dial in your ride based on terrain.8. Nice tread design not to much with a smooth center.9. Sidewall is beefy to resist punctures.10.Affordable I got these shipped for 35 usd here on amazonWeaknesses:1. Sand or any really loose stuff at high pressure. You get buried to the spokes in sand quickly...2. Weight, these weigh in at 855 grams and you feel it when pedaling especially upon accelerating.CONCLUSION based on my limited amount of time with them.An excellent all purpose tire with an emphasis on touring,urban rides or commuting. Able to adapt to varying terrain they don't suck to bad on gravel but wouldn't be my first choice. They sink at full psi in sand not floaters at all like some tires. They have average roll resistance,considering the narrowish profile of the tire. I picked up about 1.5 mph pushing it compared to my previously installed cyclocross type tires.All testing/riding done with these installed on a Giant Roam with a 700x38c tire.Bottom line I am happy with my purchase and will ride them with confidence. I will buy another set of Schwalbe Smart Sams with green guard protection for single track and more off road riding. However I will experiment with these at a lower pressure when I am in the area.

Very nice tires.

Life is often 6 and 1/2 dozen of the other, and my experience with bicycle tires hasn't been any different.I replaced a set of Pirelli Cinturato Gravel H 700x35c tires with these in a size 700x38c, hoping to ride on a tire that was more durable, and faster.The tires couldn't be more different. Looks like I got the added durability, but at the cost of decreased speed.While I've only put about 10 miles on them so far, I can say that they were incredibly easy to install. I barely needed to use a tire lever for one of them and didn't need to use a lever at all for the second one.They are a little "squirrelly" at this point though, and that could be because they just need to get scrubbed in a bit more. If the less than sure-footed sensation I'm experiencing goes away, I'll update this review.As I mentioned, I wouldn't consider this to be a fast tire, whatsoever. While they are only 3mm wider than the Pirellis I mentioned, they feel quite a bit slower. But, confidence in the turns is substantially better and they're just more substantial tires overall, and quite a bit heavier given the wire clincher design compared to the foldable tire I was using, in addition to the rubber compound used with these. I haven't taken them on the trails yet, but I think they're going to do much better than the Pirellis.