Road Review: Panaracer Pasela #Fail
I wrote a post many moons ago about my 26×1.75 Panaracer Paselas and how much I liked them. They were my adventure tires and I took them on tours through Joshua Tree and the Carrizo Plain.
I have to say that I have to re-evaluate the tires in lieu of recent events. Laura and I have pushed off on our Big Trip and within a week of our launch we’ve had two tire failures. While wheeling around town I checked my sidewalls and found that there was a crack along the bead – not inspiring very much confidence. I went to CleverCycles and changed them out for a pair of Schwable Marathons.
On our second day of riding from Portland to Corvallis, Laura noticed a “hop” in her wheel. I checked the spokes and they seemed fine and we kept riding. During our lunch break, we checked the wheel again and found a huge bulge in her tire. The sidewall had split and the tube was pouring out. I booted it with two layers of tire tube and we rode it into Salem where we promptly changed her tires with Conti Touring tires.
My personal theory is that that extra weight of our load (85lbs – mine, 70lbs – hers) and the high pressure to keep the wheels from bottoming out on bumps caused the split in the sidewalls. The tires weren’t overly worn so it seems a bit too early to have a failure from wear.
In short, I cannot recommend them for any heavily loaded touring. The advantages of having a supple sidewall (adjusting pressure for suspension and terrain) is more of a liability than a feature when you’re on a bike with heavy touring weight. While I would still use them for day trips or lightweight touring, I wouldn’t use it for any tours that require heavy loads.
Brother, the Schwalabe’s are spot on. I’ve had them for years and have yet to get a flat.
I’ve done short and long tours, pulled trailers with 100+lbs of produce (for work), commuted through West Oakland (some nasty, nasty streets) and nothing. The worse issue I’ve seen is some slight cracking on the sidewall after about two years.
It looks like these tires have suffered the fate of all white/gum/skinwall tires. UV decay. Look how threadbare the sidewalls are, of course its going to blow-out.
How long have these tires been in use (in years/months, not miles). Are they parked out in sunlight or hidden away inside when not in use? I’ve seen tires worse than this (of other brands/models) that only had a couple hundred miles on them, but lots of UV decay. I’ve also seen tires were on bikes that hung in windows leaving the port side to rot and the starboard side untouched.
Panaracer DOES make a blackwall version of this tire that I’m sure would last longer in high UV situations.
When you say “high pressure” do you mean beyond the stated (95psi?) rating?
That sucks. It seems most of my tires wear out in the sidewall long before the tread is worn out. Last year, while crossing North Carolina, Raquel blew out a side-wall. We patched it with cardboard and duct tape to our next stop.
Keep on trucking, you guys rock!
Jack
I have to agree with FauxPorteur…this tire does look like it has suffered from UV damage. I would also comment that it looks like the one pictured was cut by some sort of debris, rather than split. A split would occur between the threads (parallel to the sidewall thread pattern), whereas a cut is through the threads, as in the picture.
I stopped using these for any kind of touring because the sidewalls go bad. I had two in two weeks go bad the exact same way yours did. I like them for commuting, but the marathons are the jam for touring! Good luck.
Laura and I have had the tires for less than a year and our bikes are stored indoors when not in use. We’ve taken them on a few tours, but nothing super duper extreme. The sidewalls do look like they’ve fallen victim to some sort of weather/drying out/UV damage, but within less than a year? For me, that seems a little pre-mature.
By high pressure, Laura was running them at their recommended PSI. I pumped in about 10psi over the max, since I was bottoming out at the recommended high.
Are they stored in a space that has a lot of fumes (gasoline, solvents, etc….)?
FauxPorter…no, lovingly stored in our living room away from any windows…
I had EXACTLY the same type of sidewall failure with a Panaracer Pasella on a heavily loaded bike. When it blew, I checked the other one and it showed the same type of damage, just not as bad (yet). It would have failed eventually. They may be good tires for less-demanding situations, but I’d stick to something else for a tour.
Mine were 700×32, were not over-inflated, and the bike was stored indoors at home and at work. They failed after less than a year of use.
Russ, I I’ve been a fan of your photos for some time, btw. Keep it up!
I have to agree, those sidewalls look awful. Those tires were toast before you took them out on that last ride.
Sheldon
I also have had numerous similar failures on Paselas, both on my bikes and those of my friends. For critical applications (touring/commuting) I’ve switched to more durable tires (Continental Top Touring, Schwalbe Marathon, Vredestien Perfect Moiree), but the Paselas are still great for a town bike, given that they’re so amazingly light and supple for their width.
I think the Schwalbe Marathons will be good to you, Russ.
Those sidewalls look terrible.
Two words: Schwalbe Marathon Plus (ok, that was three words). Get the largest set your wheels will fit. Mounting them is a royal pain, but once on they will not puncture.
Of course, they are HEAVY and forget anything about supple riding feel. But for loaded touring (I ride them on my commute in Rome, Italy, through crappy pavement and glass strewn streets) nothing is better. I was averaging 1-2 flats a week on Vittoria Rubino Slicks (admittedly the wrong clincher for the job). Have not had a flat since mounting the Marathons.
Happy, happy Pete
Try the Panaracer Ribmos. They have a much more durable sidewall than the Pasela and have greater flat protection, speed, and durability due to the 1/4″ thick slick tread along the center. They are also lighter and half the price of of Schwalbe Marathons. I have not gotten a flat yet while using them for loaded touring.
What you got is my experience from riding with improperly inflated tubes. You are talking about suspending by controlling of pressure. Bingo. Under-inflated tires put a lot of stress into side walls and they fail sometime not far later. My experience comes from Brompton Kevlar and Schwalbe CityJet.
My main concern for new tire is Strong side walls now
Thanks for the review Russ! I’ve been running 700c x 32 Paselas for commuting without issues, but I keep them inflated below max. I do switch to Marathon Plus’s during the dark rainy months, for the extra grip and flat protection. The last thing I want is a flat in cold, dark rain.
As one data point I did a recent (unloaded) day tour from Portland to Silver Falls. I thought for sure the Paselas would get chewed alive on some of the unexpected gravel roads I encountered. But, they did great. Not even a flat, and no sidewall damage. I was surprised and relieved (I was carrying a spare just in case).
Having said all that…I did have a mysterious sidewall failure (cut?) in a relatively new Pasela once. And they do seem to have a reputation for sidewall issues. Anyhow, I’m grateful for your report, since the lesson is obviously NOT to use them for loaded touring.
Safe passage and best wishes to you and Laura on your journey.
Mitch
PS: It’s Schwalbe, not Schwable (notice transposed l and b). I heard you say “Schwable” on the YouTube video with Jonathan Maus. It rolls off the tongue very nicely, and sounds charming, but I don’t think it’s the correct spelling or pronunciation.
well…it doesn’t look like uv damage to me, it looks more like salt was left on for a long time in the past, maybe it was ridden in the winter, stored, and the tires were never washed?
you had a pretty unusaully wintery winter(?) this year right?
salt is tough. salt plus the sun is really bad.
and now just a suggestion: try the t-serv’s. they are lighter than marathons, have a better grip (i’ve tried both in two chicago winters and 5 in new england). salt doesn’t get to them, and you won’t even slip in the rain.
anyway, not to drag.
The Panaracer T-Servs and the Vittoria Randonneur Pro are both very good options. They both are half the weight of the schwalbe’s – and that saves you almost a pound of rotational weight on both tires. The Vittoria is available with a reflective stripe also.
I have been running Tourguard tires on my bike for years with no problems. Now last night on my commute home from work I had a rear blowout and discovered that the sidewall had ruptured in a way similar to your pictures. I now wonder if there is not a problem with the current manufacturing process for the tires.
The tires that were on my bike were less than one year old and had plenty of tread left. I would esimate about 3 to 4 thousand miles on them at this time.
I have had similar issue with Panaracer crosstown
we just got out bike back out after a couple year break in riding
they have been hanging on bike hooks in the basement
so the tires are about 3 years old and have about 2K on them.
We lost all the tires within the first week to tread split or sidewall breakage
I love the reflective stripe on the cross towns so I am going to chalk the splitting up to age and
order another pair. If it happens again then I will look for a different tire.
Wow, the casing threads in the pic look like they’re ridiculously close to the surface. If so, that could be a contributing factor to their early demise. Even a shallow scrape will expose the fibers. Any wet ride will then allow them to soak up water and they eventually weaken from rot. Then what started as a scratch becomes a blowout.
I have really come to like Schwalbe Marathon Supremes, so I think you’ll enjoy them. That being said, just as no bike tire is totally immune from flats, neither are they immune to sidewal damage. The Schwalbe on my rear wheel needs replacement due to sidewall damage from a big stone, and the poor tire only has about 500 miles on it. I will comfort myself with the thought that a lesser tire would have blown out on the spot.
I’ve had Pasela’s for three months and once it started getting wet out every tiny sharp shard of glass they picked up off the street promptly tore through them and popped the tube. These things are garbage.
[...] the most problematic consumables we’ve had are tires. Early in our tour, we swapped out our Panaracer Paselas because of splitting sidewalls. We changed our tires at the same [...]
Well you can’t have everything. The smooth ride and light weight are a result of a supple sidewall on the pasela. You should compare apples to apples. Sure a vittorria randonneur or a schwalb marathon will be more resistant, but that comes at a price in ride quality. That being said, if reliability is the main concern, they are great options. But you cant fault the pasela for not having reinforced side walls, which bye the way all the other tires mentioned have
I think tire quality based on puncture flats is mostly luck. I got a Schwalbe Marathon 700×28 and got a piece of glass through it after only 74 miles. It’s not like I was riding around behind a fraternity on Sunday morning; these were miles on my normal commute route where I’ve logged over 3,800 miles. So long as I average 500-1,000 miles between flats, I can’t justify cursing a tire brand.
I got 2,000 miles on the stock Bontrager Race Lite Hardcases, but I didn’t like the feel, so I doubt I’ll buy more. I got several flats after switching to Continental’s Ultra Gatorskins, but they feel faster. My colleague got tons of flats on the Bontragers and hardly any with Continental’s Ultra Gatorskins. I ride a lot of the same commute route that he does. I’m convinced that it’s mostly luck when it comes to punctures. Sidewalls; that’s a different story.
I love the Pasela but agree that it’s not suited for loaded touring. I agree with your analysis, too: you won’t notice a supple sidewall when you’re carrying weight, and it is vulnerable, too. However, it’s a very good tire and an excellent value for light to medium loads.
Pasela’s are wonderful tyres: they are fast, light and comfortable. Much of this comes from the thin refined casing. So yes, the sidewalls have a tendency to fail, as I can tell from my own experience. However, for light tours, I have found them sufficiently reliable. For more heavily loaded tours such as yours, the next step up in wide 26 inch tyres would be the 50 mm Schwalbe Big Apple. These are amazingly comfortable, and pretty fast. I really know no faster loaded touring tyre in this size. The 2011 version will also be lighter. They are pretty reliable: maybe not quite as reliable as a Marathon, but miles better than a Pasela. If you want more tread, the ordinary Marathon is the next step up to heavy duty. The bad news is that for 20011 Schwalbe have changed the Marathon, and made it more heavy duty, with a 3mm rubber anti puncture strip. This will make the tyre quite a bit heavier, and too heavy and stiff to my taste. Of Schwalbe’s premium offerings I really like the Marathon Extreme for trips with a lot of off road riding. They are light, have good puncture resistance, and great traction on trails. I liked them a lot on my recent Norway trip. Road rolling resistance is pretty low, considering the course tread. I have not used the Supreme (for a fat slick I would prefer tha faster Big Apple) or the new Dureme.
There was one thing that struck me enormously, however: your luggage load. You seem to be taking everything but the kitchen sink. On my recent solotour in Norway I had 40 pounds, and that included a spacious 2 person tent, sleeping kit for seriously cold weather at higher altitudes, including a comfy Exped mattress, and similar clothing, including rain gear. I also had a Trangia stove for real meals. I cannot possibly imagine that one would need more for a trip in the US. It is not as if you are doing the Karakorum HIghway or so. Moreover, if there are two of you, you save on quite a few things of which you only need to take one thing, like tools, first aid kit, etc. In my recent calculation it adds up to roughly another 6 pounds weight saving. The weight you are taking really is too much for a tyre like the Pasela. I also think it takes the fun out of cycling.
Willem
I have been running the palsea tourguard tires for ~3 years commuting and have had 2 flats in that time, both due to the valve stems ripping out under different circumstances. I love their feel and even though they are 27×1 1/4 I don’t feel slow on a relaxed training ride at up to ~17 mph or so. I have never ridden with more than 280 lbs combined weight (me plus bike plus gear). The sidewalls look very thin right now but no splitting yet. They have even seen some singletrack miles. They are on my go to bike. They also have a unique property where the innertube bonds to the casing, which prevents pinch flats.
I ran the t-servs for a few months and they didn’t feel as good, but that was in a 23c width.
Been using P. TG 700′s and 26′s on both my road and utility bikes. The tread wears out long before the sidewalls ever get that beat looking. I’m wondering what caused the visible sidewall deterioration if not UV or underinflation?
it’s funny, I have had exactly the same experience on Schwalbe Marathons. I am now on on my third tire having returned two which blew right off the sidewall. The third one has developed a rather unhealthy looking bulge on a set of Mavic A719. Personally, I have had the best luck with Vittoria. I will certainly never buy Schwalbe again.
marathons have a nasty habit of cracking around the tread edge which allows bits of grit and glass in which work there way through the tyre and puncture , we had to throw away 6 pairs of marathons that had done less than 3 months of use and are handed 50 plus pairs a year that look new until you examine the tread edge, they all crack in the same place!! , try specialized all condition armadillo tyres , easily out perform the over rated marathon and are the most puncture resistant tyres out there , 8 years and NO flats ! good luck