Replacing Continental Gatorskins

richard36

I bought a second hand bike about 3 years ago and it came with C Gatorskin tyres. The bike and the tyres were in excellent condition and the tyres still show little signs of wear and tear. However I'm not sure how long the tyres have been on the bike or what sort of mileage they did before I got the bike. I've used the bike a lot since I bought it and whilst the tyres still seem to be in good nick I'm wondering whether it's sensible to change them. I'm thinking about rubber degradation over time and whether it's good practice to replace tyres after so many years/miles. If so I was going to replace them with C 4000 S tyres.

Thanks

furrag

Conti 4000s over winter? Don't bother. You'll cut them up, get punctures, and probably end up looking for a different tyre around March out of frustration. From March onwards, I find them brilliant! My Gatorskins are on a pair of Khamsin's, ready to go on my bike. However, it's just too dry and warm at the moment!

My opinion is, if you feel the tyres are potentially unsafe, then change them. If you feel the tyres are worn, change them. If not, then continue to use them and don't fix something that isn't broken.

Monty Dog

Agreed, GP4000s are a performance tyre and would get shredded if you tried to use them throughout the winter (or would in these parts). Unless you're getting repeated punctures or they are worn-out, stick with the Gatorskins or their ilk. Unless the tyres have been exposed to strong chemicals or excessive sunlight, then vulcanised rubber actually gets stronger with age.

richard36

Thanks for your replies.

Didn't realise that Monty Dog.

As said in my post the tyres look fine but given there is no wear indicator it's difficult to tell whether they are wearing thin. There are certainly no cuts.

boggybrn

I found with my Gatorskins that eventually the rear got quite square in profile and suddenly started getting punctures (3 in a week after months and months without any). This was my trigger to change it!

If they are still running puncture free I would leave them on for now.

Bordersroadie

Richard, I recently got my old road bike out of hibernation. It had lightly used Gatorskins on the rims that were 15 years old, at least. They'd been stored in a dark garage so UV degradation was minimal, although I noticed micro-cracks in the sidewalls, not enough to worry me though.

I'm now 6 months down the line and have been riding 100 miles per week on them, winter commuting and training and the tyres have performed superbly. I have no reason to replace them despite their huge age as they would appear to be working just fine. And I've had no punctures on them in their new era. Or in their previous era, if I recall.

Interesting to hear that vulcanised rubber ages well if not sunbathing - my findings would appear to bear this out.

richard36

Thanks for your replies

Will leave them on for now

furrag

Bordersroadie wrote:

Interesting to hear that vulcanised rubber ages well if not sunbathing - my findings would appear to bear this out.

I seem to recall a thread stating that one of the pro teams (or maybe shops... or maybe a rider? I've forgotten!) chucked a load of tyres in a cellar out of the way of UV light to achieve the above.

Monty Dog

'Ageing' tyres used to be quite common, particularly for tubulars where people would store them somewhere dry and dark for a few years. You often see this at races like Paris-Roubaix where you see riders using long-extinct tyres from the likes of Clement. These days, modern rubbers are more stable and so the benefits are more marginal. Rubber does artificially age due to exposure to UV, ozone and certain chemicals - it discolours and goes brittle, so tough if you live by the seaside.