Clement X’PLOR USH Tyres Preview

Mark Tearle

A Preview of the Clement X’PLOR USH tyre.

Clement is a brand with a colourful patchwork history of owners, from humble beginnings: founded by Gustave Adolphe Clément-Bayard, the son of a French grocer, Clement begun life in 1878 – later Pirelli owned the brand for a bit but in the mid-90s Clement lay dormant. Thanks to some licencing deal Clement Pneumatici is seeing a revival.

The Clement XPLOR USH should be perfect for rough tarmac and the odd off road excusion

We’ve just received a pair of X’PLOR USH tyres courtesy of UK distributor 2Pure. The X’PLOR USH tyres, as the name subtly suggests are designed for dirt roads, touring, and “urban assault” (I think that means commuting).  Sticking with the theme of naming their tyres after worldwide airport codes, the USH is named for the airport code of Ushuaia on the island of Tierra del Fuego, Argentina. Ushuaia is the southernmost city in the world, and the ultimate destination for adventure bike touring.

The X’Plor USH is a nice wide 700 x 35 mm tyre designed for mixed conditions – ostensibly I have these for the grind of the daily commute, where my cyclocross bike is pulled out for duty more often than not, and where I like the freedom to mix road and bridleway to keep the commute fresh and interesting. December conditions are beyond these tyres in a lot of cases I expect, but I am curious to find out how they do especially, as is my wont occasionally, if I point the bike off the road and towards the South Downs on my way home.

The Clement Xplor USH comes in a 35mm width and 60 or 120tpi casing

The combination of firm centre ridge and diamond-shaped side knobs promise low rolling resistance and good cornering control. They’re a grippy looking set of tyres and with the 120tpi version they are nice and supple – sadly not tubeless-able (I tried), but I get the impression that Clement may well be looking that way for the future.

I’ll give you my verdict after a few more weeks of testing. Check back for the full review soon.

Clement X’PLOR USH 700 x 35 tyres – £34.99ea (120TPI)

2Pure

Clement

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