michelin krylion

forestgump

hey everyone

new to this site, and to biking in general.

have just bought a boardman road comp but only been out on it twice and had a puncture each time - had to walk back home
i went back to halfords today and spoke to someone who was pretty helpful. i bought a bag for underneath the seat which i can put innertubes and the levers in so if i do get a puncture i can replace the tube. he also told me the tyres which come with the bike are no good at this time of year. he advised me to buy some krylions but they didnt have any in stock.
i done a search online for them and they look good but i thought i would ask on a forum about how puncture proof they are cos i dont want any more punctures.

id really appreciate any advice.

thanks

jgsi

Unfortunate to get punctured so soon...
wrong tyres at time of year..?? maybe.. but I 'd add a dash of salt to that statement... gave my best bike a ride today with its Mich Pro race 3s not exactly winter tyres but .. no problemo..
be sure you have inflated the tyres to a decent pressure and just watch your line on the road to avoid pothole craters and associated detritus with sharp edges.

Stick at it.. it's a long game

benno68

Thumbs up for Pro 3 Race too.

I hit a pothole today and punctured both my front and rear, good job I took 2 tubes out with me.

I've never used Schwalbe Durano Plus but have heard that they have good puncture resistance, but they are on the heavy side.

craker

+1 for Kyrlions, commute on them 5 days a week.

What tyres are on your Boardman? It might just be bad luck, though it's because of bad luck at this time of year I carry two tubes and Co2.

forestgump

the tyres on the bike are continental sports. they did tell me about some other continental ones, 4000 and gators or something? but i said i didnt want continentals again after this.

PaulS77

I bought a set of Krylions earlier this week after a series of punctures on my GP4000s and seeing their review in Cycling Plus. Too early to recommend them yet, but I can recommend where I got them, cheapest price I found was Shiney Bikes and they arrived next day.

peejay78

Benno68 wrote:

Thumbs up for Pro 3 Race too.

I hit a pothole today and punctured both my front and rear, good job I took 2 tubes out with me.

I've never used Schwalbe Durano Plus but have heard that they have good puncture resistance, but they are on the heavy side.

sounds very much like a pinch flat. check tyre pressure.

seanoconn

Changed the stock tyres on my Boardman to krylions 6months ago and not had a you know what since.

forestgump

sounds like krylion are the way to go then.

will they be ok on country roads? i do all my riding away from the main roads in the country lanes of herefordshire. there is quite a lot of muck, branches, hedge cuttings etc across these roads - i guess thats why i had the puncture with the ones on the bike. would krylions be stronger?

also, ive been told that i should get my bike checked by a local bike shop because its come from halfords. what do they mean by that?

rake

theyre a fine tyre in my opinion. closest to a do it all tyre youl find.

forestgump

oh right. guess i should probably get my bike checked out then shouldnt i?

thanks for all the advice.

im sure i will be back on with more questions as i get in to riding!

thanks again

benno68

peejay78 wrote:

Benno68 wrote:

Thumbs up for Pro 3 Race too.

I hit a pothole today and punctured both my front and rear, good job I took 2 tubes out with me.

I've never used Schwalbe Durano Plus but have heard that they have good puncture resistance, but they are on the heavy side.

sounds very much like a pinch flat. check tyre pressure.

Pumped them up before the ride, 100 front 110 rear. It was a pretty vicious pothole that my mate (infront) called late, so probably was a pinch flat but just one of those things.

forestgump

so i looked late last night at the continental tyres halfords recommended and, despite the punctures i had with the sports, the gatorskins do look pretty good.

im some tyres at lunch today, so one question: do i get krylions or gatorskins? (looking for best puncture resistance).

also, can someone tell me the difference between a folding tyre and a bead tyre?

thanks

redvision

i am getting a new set of tyres for my winter bike and struggling to decide between gatorskins and krylions. more i read about them the harder it gets to make a decision.
all im looking for is puncture protection, so im swaying towards the gatorskins.

in regards to difference between folding and beaded, this is from ctc website:
Traditionally tyres have steel wires wrapped into each bead (edge). They stop the tyre simply expanding under inflation pressure until its sidewalls pop over the rim flanges.
But steel wire is heavy and it’s good for tyres to be light – although the effect of rotating weight is exaggerated by cycling folklore. And whilst providing some flexibility – enough for fitting etc. – steel wires do not allow a tyre to be folded compactly. (However there is a way of rolling a “rigid” tyre in three without excessive distortion of the beads – see diagram.)

Folding tyres substitute a bundle of Kevlar fibres for steel wire. Kevlar is lighter and as the fibres are thin and flexible, the tyre can be rolled up small for storage or to carry as a spare. (I guess you could get the same effect with many thin strands of steel, but nobody does.)

Kevlar is used because it is much less elastic than most polymer fibres; however it does stretch more than steel. Accordingly: folding tyres are generally made a bit tighter and expand to fit the bead-seat upon inflation. Sometimes you’ll hear a pop as it jumps up onto this shelf inside the rim. And as a precaution against over expansion, folding tyres should only be fitted to rims with hooked flange edges. Almost all rims are nowadays like that and although folding tyres were originally made only for road racing and sport riders, you can now get mountain-bike and even touring models. They’re just as strong as rigid tyres, in fact you’ll find that only the best quality tyres come in a folding version. It is entirely for this reason that folding tyres may be said to be “faster”. The Kevlar bead merely saves a bit of weight.

Kevlar may also be used in the tyre casing as part of a puncture resisting belt. These two entirely different uses of Kevlar in a tyre may cause confusion, but a folding tyre is always described as such.

vorsprung

According to the Boardman Comp Road is generally supplied with Continental Ultra Sport tyres

These are rated at 84 tpi for puncture resistance. This is "threads per inch" and is a measure of how resistant the casing is to sharp penetration

The Michelin Krylions claim 127 tpi and the Continental Ultra Gator Skin claim 180 tpi

The folding Ultra Gator Skin and the Krylions are approximately the same weight 230g. The cheaper, non folding Ultra Gator Skin is a bit heavier

As people above have pointed out you must run any tyre at the correct minimum pressure or you will get pinch ("snakebite") flats. I suggest buying a track pump with a pressure gauge

kingrollo

Continental ultra sports are worst tyre ever - slow / not puncture proof / only average grip.

Pro Race 3 - are the best tyre ever - these are extremley fast - puncture resistance isn't great - but providing you keep em pumped up - they are well worth it (easy to change when you do get a Punct)

Kryliions - very bombproof - but thats it - slow ,heavy, difficult to get on & off - and expensive for what they are

what brakes

i have gatorskins on my winter hack and im not happy with them! I havent puntured aas yet! but they really are skittish! theres been a couple of occassions where i have thought "now that was dangerous" maybe its because im reckless but the previous tyres CST's (fitted to a willier) were much better. and these havent puntured eaither! Although they do have a few nice slits in them.

Mossrider

Watch gatorskins on wet man-hole covers and the like. I 've been using them for some years and they are very puncture resistant and also roll well. I was, until recently doing a transpennine commute, so the last thing I wanted was a puncture on a cold winter's night. The one drawback is that they are a swine to change on my wheels (campag ventos which are not easy with any tyre) so I'm going to give Krylions a go next time (and a different set of wheels when I've worn these out).

northpole

The most pun***re resistant tyres I know off are Spesh Armadillo's. They may have improved in the last few years but when I used them they had a really dead feel. I changed to Krylions which were much much better to ride on. Not quite as robust but I reckon they are a really good compromise. I only stopped using them when there were supply problems at the launch of the pro race 3 (?). The pro race 3's are lovely tyres but they sure as heck aren't pun***re proof and cut up quite easily. I currently have Conti GP4 Seasons which have grown on me - quite sturdy and durable with a bit of road feel thrown in.

Peter

bisoner

Pro Race 3 - fast, smooth but wont last long at all on the terrible UK roads.
GP4000s - pretty fast and have been bullet proof for me.

I have actually ordered a Krylion as a spare so will try it out when rear Conti's is worn out.

For me, changing a tyre on the roadside is a pain and I will always take puncture protection over speed - but boy are the PR3's sweet to ride on.

peejay78

used to be a big fan of gatorskins.

still am; insofar as they simply don't puncture, ever. however, had a nasty off, admittedly it was ice, but hadn't been feeling that 'secure' on the bike before, or after.

switched to gp4000, which were my race tyres when not using tubs, and they are really grippy, feel much better.

forestgump

thanks for all the help and advice. decided to order some gatorskins yesterday from wiggle.co.uk. they have arrived this morning! very impressive delivery service.

putting them on in a bit and then going to go out for a few miles!

Veronica Bottoms

I'm glad this thread came up, was just about to post something similar.

In the summer I'd get a puncture once every few weeks if I was unlucky but since I've been back on the road this winter I've been having a puncture at a rate of once every two days. No joke!!!

Today I rode a mile before getting my first puncture. Took the inner tube out to see three holes in different places. Fixed it and put the innertube back in and had another puncture later on!!!

It's not a pinched tube as I double check and it's not the spokes as the tape is in tact. It varies between the front and back wheel.

Unfortunately leaving broken glass on the floor seems to be a hobby around where I live.

Anyway I was going to ask for advice because I've now put it down to the crappy tyres which came with the bike. They've got dozens of wholes from pebbles and what not in them and they've only done 1000 or so miles.

It seems gatorskins or the krylions seems the way to go forward. Any advice on inner tubes? Is it worth buying self sealant tubes, or just buying new tyres and use standard tubes?

Thanks

sparkins1972

Another vote here for Schwalbe Duranos - not the greatest rollers in the world, but they are the first tyre I have ever had where I feel like they are totally bombproof

Old Tuggo

I found that Krylions easily spin slip on steep damp climbs.

titch124

i just changed to some vittoria rubino pro's and have been really impressed by them

even more impressive is they were £36 for the pair from http://stores.ebay.co.uk/High-On-Bikes

rake

Old Tuggo wrote:

I found that Krylions easily spin slip on steep damp climbs.

i found most tyres do if your weight isnt rearward.