Hutchinson Blackbird Racing Lab TLR review

The Hutchinson Blackbird TLR – or ‘Blackbird Racing Lab TLR’, to use its unabridged name – is the latest flagship race-type tyre from the French brand.

As with practically all race tyres, low rolling resistance is mooted, along with an improved tread and new, more supple casing, compared to the now second-tier Fusion 5 Performance tyre.

Although there’s a lack of comparative evidence supporting the claim that the Blackbird TLR is “the fastest tyre ever developed” by Hutchinson, it has nevertheless impressed me in testing.

It feels as fast, supple and grippy as the very best road bike tyres.

Even if it is giving a watt or two away compared to the fastest tyres we’ve tested in controlled conditions, the fact that it feels the way it does at a price of only £61.99 / €69.99 makes it a compelling choice.

Hutchinson Blackbird Racing Lab TLR details and specifications

The Hutchinson Blackbird TLR comes to the table with the lofty claim of being the fastest tyre Hutchinson has developed – but the brand stops short of providing data or evidence to support this statement.

Performance claims aside, the brand says the tyre features a number of improvements over its outgoing flagship road tyre, the Fusion 5 Performance.

Under the skin, the Blackbird TLR uses a new 127 TPI (threads-per-inch) casing – called ‘SwiftEasy’. This is layered twice over the central portion, and three times at the bead and lower sidewall.

Hutchinson says this design helps the tyre achieve low rolling resistance, but reinforces the sidewalls for added protection and support, while improving air retention.

The casing is bonded to a polyamide puncture protection layer, while the tread is formed of a new ‘Mach Tread 3.0’ rubber compound.

This is said to be the grippiest compound Hutchinson has ever produced and the brand says it has widened it by 15 per cent (compared to the Fusion 5 Performance) for improved cornering performance.

Hutchinson also claims the construction is durable and will last for 4,000km before the useful tread wears out.

The Blackbird TLR tyre is available in three sizes – 700 x 26, 28 and 30c. Only the 28 and 30mm-wide versions are suitable for use with hookless rims.

You can have the 26 and 28c sizes with black or tan sidewalls, but the 30c tyre is only available in black.

There’s also a clincher version, which sees a modified construction with an aramid-based puncture protection layer, swapping out the SwiftEasy tubeless casing.

My 700 x 28c test tyres, with tan sidewalls, weighed in at a competitive 283g apiece. Hutchinson says there should be no weight difference between tan or black-sidewall tyres.

For context, the Goodyear Eagle F1 R tips the scales at 313g, the Pirelli P Zero Race TLR weighs in at 310g, the Continental GP5000 S TR 281g and the Schwalbe Pro One TLE 264g.

On paper, then, it’s competitively light with some of the best (and most popular) tubeless race tyres, while managing to undercut most on price.

The £61.99 / €69.99 price tag is favourable when compared to the tyres named above – the Schwalbe Pro One TLE (£74.99 / €74.99) and Goodyear Eagle F1 R (£65 / $80 / €70) come close, while the Panaracer Agilest TLR costs £60 / $80.

Hutchinson tyres aren’t available in the US.

Hutchinson Blackbird Racing Lab TLR installation and tubeless setup

I installed the Blackbird TLR tyre on two rims as part of testing: a FFWD Raw 44 wheel and a Hunt 54 Aerodynamicist Carbon Disc wheel (the latter to repeat the process we undertook last year when testing a batch of the latest road race tyres).

Both have hooked rims, the FFWD measuring 21mm across internally and the Hunt a slightly narrower 20mm. Externally, the FFWD wheel is also 1mm wider, at 30mm.

Irrespective, in both cases the Blackbird tyre slipped on over the rims without the help of tyre levers (a rarity, in my experience), thanks to the flexible bead.

Things weren’t quite as easy when seating the tyres – in both cases, I needed to resort to using a shock pump rather than a standard track pump, with air escaping too quickly to force the bead into the hooks.

Air retention was very good, but only after a few rides. I inserted Hutchinson’s recommended 60ml of sealant (give or take a few millilitres), and my usual experience is for a tyre to reach its peak air-retention capability after a single ride.

Here, it took three rides before I could return the next day and find the tyres still inflated with a rideable pressure – before this, I’d see sealant (and therefore air) bubbling out of the ‘seated’ bead.

That said, after this point, the Blackbird TLR tyres impressed and notably lost only around 5psi (0.34 BAR) over the course of three days. There was no more bubbling, indicating the tiny gaps had either sealed or the tyre had settled further into the rim hook.

On the 21mm/30mm-wide FFWD rims, the tyres inflated to 28.8mm wide and out to 28.6mm on the slightly narrower Hunt wheels.

Hutchinson Blackbird Racing Lab TLR performance

The Hutchinson Blackbird TLR has quickly become one of my favourite race tyres.

While I wasn’t able to run comparative rolling resistance testing to help confirm Hutchinson’s punchy claim that the Blackbird is the fastest tyre (of its type) around, it certainly feels quick – on the same level as its primary competitors.

It appears to have no real weaknesses, bar the known downsides that a race tyre isn’t likely to be as puncture-resistant or as long-lasting as a four-season tyre, of course.

Having said that, I haven't experienced any punctures, nor any early signs that the compound might be wearing prematurely.

All-round grip is excellent – sticking resolutely to the road in warm and dry conditions, while it's competent in the wet too – and the suppleness of the tyre inspired confidence to push hard into descents and corners.

I consider the Vittoria Corsa Pro TLR a leader in this respect (it has a cotton casing, ostensibly for this purpose). However, my go-to tyre for summer use has remained the Continental GP5000 S TR, because it combines a close level of suppleness with strong all-round performance elsewhere.

But, like the aforementioned Goodyear Eagle F1 R, Pirelli P Zero Race TLR and Schwalbe Pro One TLE, the Blackbird is a great alternative. If I needed to replace the GP5000 S TRs tomorrow, I wouldn't be disappointed with the Hutchinson tyres.

This bodes well for the French brand, because, as I’ve mentioned, it’s refreshingly competitive in terms of price.

Some might consider the 4,000km expected lifespan of the tyre to be a little restrictive – but this ought to be considered par for the course.

I found my first set of GP5000 S TR tyres lasted for around this distance before I noticed the central compound flattening off, for example, while it’s fair to say much will depend on factors such as road surface, weather conditions, weight, tyre pressures and so on.

Hutchinson Blackbird Racing Lab TLR bottom line

The Hutchinson Blackbird TLR tyre is a worthy challenger in the road race tyre category – one I’d be happy to switch to if my current tyres expired, either through age or an unlucky major puncture.

The Blackbird seems competitive in all relevant aspects of performance and is cheaper than almost all of its rivals.

The fact that I found them very easy to fit over the rim makes them appeal even more, because should I ever be caught out by a tubeless failure, I have greater confidence I’ll be able to insert a tube and remount them easily by the side of the road.

The only real shame (for some) is the Blackbird can’t be had in anything wider than a 700 x 30c size.