Having the right tire on your gravel or adventure bike can literally make or break your ride. With so many tires on the market, finding the right tire for your style of riding can be a challenge!
Could Tufo’s new gravel focused Swampero and Thundero tires be that elusive “unicorn” alrounders we’re all looking for?
Read our review of TUFO’s Thundero tires here by Australian Champion, Michelle Newstead
Whos Tufo?
Hailing from the Czech Republic, Tufo is perhaps lesser-known than its mainstream competitors, but it has been exclusively handcrafting championship-winning tires for over 25 years.
With the explosion of gravel Tufo has launched a new gravel range drawing on their extensive road and cyclocross experience. The range includes the super faster rolling Gravel Thundero and the more aggressive Gravel Swampero with bigger and wider spaced knobs for better off-road grip and mud-clearing.
Gravel Swampero First impressions
First impressions of Tufo tires don’t disappoint and they shout quality especially with the tan wall version we had on test. I wanted to test out the 36mm tires to see how much of a difference it would make to my gravel/cross bike with limited clearance. Tufo also offer a 40mm and 44mm option too for those with more clearance.
Out of the box my 36mm tires weighed in at 400grams, which is around 10% lighter than similar offerings from other main stream brands. The casing doesn’t have that “one event only” feeling due in part to the mixture of 210 TPI in the tread body and 375 TPI sidewalls.
According to Tufo they use a puncture-proof ply layer under the tread with Tufo’s reinforcing Jubena layer to protect the sidewalls.
The Setup
I wanted to test the tires with innertubes to see how suitable they would be for everyday use. Being a tubeless tire it is designed to sit tight on the rims which can be challenging with non tubeless setups.
I still used my trusty water and detergent mix in a spray bottle to help seat tire and this proved essential with these tires. The bead is tight and took a couple of levers to get onto the rim however they lock in confidently which is obviously perfect for tubeless setup.
Tread Pattern
The Swampero has a directional arrow-shaped tread pattern with tighter overlapping central knobs helping it roll remarkably fast despite its wet weather credentials.
The high TPI casing construction inspires confidence too when the going gets tough. Match that with the soft tread compound, it literally transforms your bike in to a gravel grinding machine! I ran my pressures initially at around 40psi which is lower to middle of the recommended range of 30-75.
Different Surfaces
I wasnt looking for a one trick pony I wanted a tire that could do it all and the Swampero is still delivering in spades.
It eats gravel and even single track for breakfast and would 100% be my go to for a longer bike packing adventure. The 40mm wide version would give you even more scope to safely run lower pressures.
I’ve also been using it for my daily commute on hilly bitumen roads and its fast rolling, confident in the wet and super comfortable.
Durability
The Swampero seems super durable too and shows negligible wear even after daily use on a range of surface for a couple of months. Even the sidewall is still un-marked despite some pretty gnarly trails.
Whats impressive especially running tubes is I’ve only had one puncture and that was due to a large chunk of blue metal rock and in reality down to pilot error! The Swampero has handled everything I’ve thrown at it to date!
What did we think?
Love the all weather grip and go anywhere tread pattern.
Durability is next level on both road and gravel.
Perfect allrounder which can transform where you take your bike!
Only negative was the difficult setup on narrow rims with innertubes. This was easily fixed using spray bottle and detergent as with tubeless setup. You want tubeless tyres to be tight, so not really sure I should be complaining!
If your looking for a gravel tire that can do it all then I’d 100% recommend the Swampero. At $89.95 its also not overly expensive for a tire of this quality and durability. Having the ability to hit everything from bitumen to rock strewn gravel in one tire gets my vote!
The Specs
| Tyre | Weight | TPI | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Swampero 700 x 36C | 390g | 210/375 | $89.95 |
| Swampero 700 x 40C | 430g | 210/375 | $89.95 |
Where to get Tufo Swampero‘s
Tufo Tyres are distributed by PCI Sports Australia based out of Canberra and can be purchased directly from their website or through their network of dealers.
