Tyres for winter

Scrumple
Scrumple Posts: 2,665
edited October 2008 in Road beginners
Want some for the trip to work, most likely on wet roads. 24 mile round trip. They need to double up for weekend rides too. No club, or serious racing, though.

Planet X SL Carbon, so I need something light and fast.
Also want great grip, good rolling, and puncture resistance.

Stuck between:

Michelin Krylion Carbon (all round longevity)
Michelin Pro Race3 (good grip / fast)
Conti GP4000S (popular)

Any help?

Comments

  • Lagavulin
    Lagavulin Posts: 1,688
    Krylion Carbons for me. They got me through last fall and winter.
    2010 Cannondale CAAD 9
    2008 Wilier Izoard
  • giant_man
    giant_man Posts: 6,878
    If you can find them, Krylion Carbons. Every time.
  • Barry Roubaix
    Barry Roubaix Posts: 233
    Schwalbe Blizzards. Brilliant tyres.

    I'd ridden Conti 4 seasons for a while but the Schwalbe's are far superiour
  • brit66
    brit66 Posts: 350
    I've just replaced my otherwise excellent GP4000s with some Specialized Armadillos - got fed up with a spate of punctures recently.

    The Specialized should makes punctures rare but they come at a cost... compared with the GP4000s they feel very heavy (because they are) and definitely impare average speed by a good couple of mph.

    Tried the Krylion Carbons but was still getting too many punctures. They seemed to thin to me.
  • cougie
    cougie Posts: 22,512
    Conti GP4000S great tyres - fast and never had any puncture problems with them.
  • nmcgann
    nmcgann Posts: 1,780
    Schwalbe Stelvio Plus. Not a cheap tyre, but they are very p*ncture resistant and acceptably light.

    I use Krylion Carbons on my summer training bike.

    Neil
    --
    "Because the cycling is pain. The cycling is soul crushing pain."
  • Stewie Griffin
    Stewie Griffin Posts: 4,330
    nmcgann wrote:
    Schwalbe Stelvio Plus. Not a cheap tyre, but they are very p*ncture resistant and acceptably light.

    I use Krylion Carbons on my summer training bike.

    Neil

    +1
  • CanterburyTailwind
    CanterburyTailwind Posts: 162
    cougie wrote:
    Conti GP4000S great tyres - fast and never had any puncture problems with them.

    My god, what are you saying??

    [* looks around for the puncture god to come thundering down from his cloud with a handful of thorns to scatter in your path*]
  • Stewie Griffin
    Stewie Griffin Posts: 4,330
    CanterburyTailwind wrote:
    cougie wrote:
    Conti GP4000S great tyres - fast and never had any puncture problems with them.

    My god, what are you saying??

    [* looks around for the puncture god to come thundering down from his cloud with a handful of thorns to scatter in your path*]

    Minor point but its a Fairy and not a God :P .
  • CanterburyTailwind
    CanterburyTailwind Posts: 162
    Surely fairies aren't that malicious?? I'm picturing an old testament god, and a good deal of smiteing...
  • Stewie Griffin
    Stewie Griffin Posts: 4,330
    CanterburyTailwind wrote:
    Surely fairies aren't that malicious?? I'm picturing an old testament god, and a good deal of smiteing...

    Jinn (a Genie to "us") is probably a better word than Fairy.

    Aleister Crowley's the Book of Law advises that laying your bike down over night in an inverted Pentagram painted with the blood of a sacrificed virgin will prevent overnight visits (this I have done and it has worked thus far). Although he admitted that even he didnt know how to prevent "on the road" p*nctures. Which he said were the bane of his life.
  • CanterburyTailwind
    CanterburyTailwind Posts: 162
    Stewie Griffin wrote:
    Aleister Crowley's the Book of Law advises that laying your bike down over night in an inverted Pentagram painted with the blood of a sacrificed virgin will prevent overnight visits (this I have done and it has worked thus far). Although he admitted that even he didnt know how to prevent "on the road" p*nctures. Which he said were the bane of his life.

    and who said cyclists were superstitious?? Perhaps you need to paint the pentagram on the wheels to prevent on the road p*nctures. But then, once every revolution it wouldn't be inverted, and that could have catastrophic effects...
  • ride_whenever
    ride_whenever Posts: 13,279
    You know the monkey lights, those flashing leds that you pop on your wheels...

    permanant pentagram anyone?
    Neeermad
    Carbon 456
    456 lefty
    Pompino
    White Inbred
  • pbt150
    pbt150 Posts: 316
    brit66 wrote:
    The [Armadillos] should makes punctures rare but they come at a cost... compared with the GP4000s they feel very heavy (because they are) and definitely impare average speed by a good couple of mph.

    Really? Cool, I can't wait to get them off my bike next summer then!

    Apart from sacrificing virgins or silly lights, does such a thing as a fast, p******e-resistant tyre exist?
    FTT
    Specialized Allez
    http://www.flickr.com/photos/49364032@N03/4820302085/
    Steel bike http://www.flickr.com/photos/49364032@N03/4656318147
  • Stewie Griffin
    Stewie Griffin Posts: 4,330
    pbt150 wrote:
    brit66 wrote:
    The [Armadillos] should makes punctures rare but they come at a cost... compared with the GP4000s they feel very heavy (because they are) and definitely impare average speed by a good couple of mph.

    Really? Cool, I can't wait to get them off my bike next summer then!

    Apart from sacrificing virgins or silly lights, does such a thing as a fast, p******e-resistant tyre exist?

    Honestly the Schwabalob Stelvio pluses have been good thus far. Did cost me £33 each though :shock:
  • duckson
    duckson Posts: 961
    Schwalbe Stelvio Plus is what some have been saying though i dont know what size and if there is any stock in the UK!

    I might be interested in some 700x23c if they do them...
    Cheers, Stu
  • N4PALM
    N4PALM Posts: 240
    I've been trying to decide between the Stelvio and the Conti GP 4 Season.

    Looks like the krylions are a popular tyre too.

    All I know is I just went out on the greasy wet roads with these Schwalbe Lugano's that came on my bike. While they didnt give up I really didnt feel secure. I have no repect for tyres with a silly diamond tread pattern. Gimme em slick and soft cos thats whats gonna grip.

    When I used to ride a slicked-up MTB I'd ride Conti sport contacts and they never let me down. Im inclined to go with conti again but more people mention the Stelvio and the Krylions before they mention GP 4 Seasons or Gatorskins.

    The trouble is, you never know the limits of your tyre until they let go, at which point youre more than likely skidding along the tarmac on your elbows!
  • balthazar
    balthazar Posts: 1,565
    N4PALM wrote:
    The trouble is, you never know the limits of your tyre until they let go, at which point youre more than likely skidding along the tarmac on your elbows!

    Exactly. That's why I'm highly skeptical about claims often made about grip levels of road tyres. I don't think it's possible to know, unless you are prepared to fall off again and again, horribly painfully, on fast corners. Test rigs have been built to test this stuff, but I don't know whether or not they are in common use by manufacturers. Riders very rarely fall off because they ran out of grip, anyway.
  • Red Devil
    Red Devil Posts: 60
    Hi ,
    just come by this thread following my first jaunt out on bike on wet country roads with autumn leaves on road very slippy. On descent could feel loss of grip and had to adjust very quickly in order to stop falling off mm :oops: however once aware of this made good progress for rest of route. Just wondered as my LBS advised no particular special tyre for wet roads if this was accurate advice as you guys suggest.
    I have no track pump as yet so unsure of tyre pressures as this may also have a bearing on this would you agree.
    Any other tips greatly appreciated.

    Chris

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