These new Vittoria tubulars just arrived at BikeRadar and our tame cyclocrosser Reuben can’t wait to race them this weekend. Each tyre is made from three rubber compounds that include the bike industry’s new wonder material, graphene.
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Details are scarce, but we’re told that they run on latex tubes with 320 TPI cotton casings — and are made by hand in Thailand, going by the writing on the casing. Each tyre has the word ‘handmade’ printed 10 times, so there’s no excuse for being in any doubt.
Vittoria CX tubulars in wet, mixed and dry versions
There are going to be three different versions available: the Terreno Wet, which features widely spaced, angled knobs for shedding maximum mud; the Terreno Mix, which combines lugs on the shoulders with central knobs in an alternating pattern; and the Terreno Dry, which we haven't seen yet.
They'll come in 31mm and 33mm widths, and there will be tubeless versions as well. Suggested pressure range is 35–130psi — though many racers would be likely run them at lower pressures. We like the fact that they come with creamy tan sidewalls, too.
Vittoria has been talking up the potential benefits of graphene for a while now and launched its Corsa G+ tyre last year to strong reviews. Graphene is basically a refined version of graphite, just one atom thick and said to be stronger than steel yet very light, super durable and puncture resistant.
We’ve been told these new Vittoria CX tubulars are the only ones in the UK, and will be hitting the shops in July 2017. Pricing is yet to be confirmed.
Finally, we're also told that gravel versions will be arriving later this year, coming in 38mm widths.
We’ll be giving these new tyres to our cyclocrosser Reuben for thorough testing. Stay tuned for his thoughts on how they ride.