Sammy Slicks vs Gatorskins

chorlton chimp

I am currently waiting to take delivery of a Genesis cdf as my new commuting/shopping/down the pub steed. Given that the roads of suburban Manchester are pothole riddled and strewn with glass and other debris I will be swapping the stock tyres (Conti Cyclocross race) for something with decent puncture protection.

I bought some Schwalbe Sammy Slick 35's in the Wiggle sale and was going to stick with them. However as I will also be using the cdf when my road bike is off the road (rider error, repairs, servicing etc) I am starting to wonder if I might be better with Gatorskin 32's.

Of course it's not an either/or situation as I could buy the Gators and swap them out for the Sammys in November and change again in the spring.

What do you reckon the best thing to do is? The bike will mainly be used on the road for short commutes but will also be used on river banks, canal paths and Sustrans trails.

I would also be interested in anyones view who has experience on the Genesis Road Saddle - my first brief impression wasn't favourable.

Long_Time_Lurker

Last year I kept some gatorskins on my mtb all year, even for some very muddy xc trails (it was an old bike, so i was getting lazy with the cleaning and routine maintenance. They are good, strong, 3 season commuter tyres. Now i have a new bike, i'll go back to my 'full fat' mtb tyres in the winter.

Drew123

No experience with Gatorskins but I have just put Sammy Slicks on my cx commuter to replace the Conti Speedkings that were fitted (would not recommend them after multiple PF visits...). Early days but the Sammy Slicks seem to cope ok with my commute which is a mix of road, rough finished farm track and a small section of muddy trail. Will revert to the mtb with Panaracer fire xc for the winter...

How much downtime are you anticipating for the road bike? Would have thought you could stick with the Sammy Slicks if it is occasional...

fret

I've used both, albeit 28 Gatorskins.
Both roll well, but the centre tread on the Sammys seemed to wear very quickly. QUite good off road as well.

Drew123

Update after 8 months or so on the Sammy Slicks... I'd agree that the centre tread wears - they are now more slick than they were. Used them through the winter though and they've been just about ok for grip and puncture resistance. They have many slits and nicks from flints and I've had more than my share of punctures so will probably choose something different when they need replacing in the near'ish future after around 1200 miles. I have liked that I can use them on road and track / light trail though...

fret

Use the gatorskins unless you are racing as the S/S wear VERY quickly on hard paved roads. Gatorskins last for ever, I do 5000 miles a year and expect 2 years from them at least.
Since May 2012 I have used the Gatorskins and have had just 2 punctures from flints which would have gone through any tyre.

edscoble

They're both tyres, have rubber, and sometime grip.

neilp7

I had a Conti Gatorskin on my commuter, seemed ok for about 3 weeks, then I got 2 punctures in the space of a week, so I swapped it for a Schwalbe Marathon and haven't had a puncture in nearly a year!