I need your tyre anecdotes.

daniel_b

I am only new to commuting, but as I had a set of these on my bike, I am using Continental Ultra Sport folding tyres:


Only covered about 300 miles so far, but all is well so far, anyone else use them for commuting?

Dan

t4tomo

+1 for conti 4 seasons. Excellent all rounder

Ben6899

2 x Continental GP4000s ordered from bike-discount.de. £48 shipped, brilliant price.

Thanks for all the pointers!

rjsterry

Daniel B wrote:

I am only new to commuting, but as I had a set of these on my bike, I am using Continental Ultra Sport folding tyres:


Only covered about 300 miles so far, but all is well so far, anyone else use them for commuting?

Dan

I've used them briefly. If they work for you, then great, but I'd make sure you have a spare tube and some patches with you as those tyres don't have a lot of puncture protection.

Ben6899

rjsterry wrote:

Daniel B wrote:

I am only new to commuting, but as I had a set of these on my bike, I am using Continental Ultra Sport folding tyres:


Only covered about 300 miles so far, but all is well so far, anyone else use them for commuting?

Dan

I've used them briefly. If they work for you, then great, but I'd make sure you have a spare tube and some patches with you as those tyres don't have a lot of puncture protection.

I used them briefly on my winter road bike (they're now on my infrequently used SS) and never had any problems with punctures. I did, however, find them to roll AWFUL.

daniel_b

Thanks for those replies Ben and rjs,

as I say, just used them as I happened to have them, and thought i may as well use them on my commute, as I generally use Michelin Pro Race tyres on my road bike.

I have a rack box, and always have 2 or 3 tubes in there, and tend to keep them up at about 100psi, obviously as the winter comes there will be more sh1t on the road, so I will see how they go, and what mileage they rack up.

I have a pair of Rbunio pro non folding to put on after that as well (in stock) but these will hopefully last me a few thousand miles, so far I have found them personally to roll very well, I'm not a fast cyclist by any means, but I have managed a 17.0 mph average on a commute with a fair few traffic lights, and feel on an open stretch I could manage 20mph on them with little problem, I frequently look down and see I am pushing along at circa 20-24mph on the flat (Though clearly wind direction plays a part here)

Dan

pangolin

I'm looking at bike discount to get a couple more GP4000S's. The only ones I can see say that they are 23-622mm. Those would be the wrong ones, right?

The only 700 - 23 ones I can see are just GP4000 (no S).

Am I missing something?

http://www.bike-discount.de/shop/a4826/grand-prix-4000-s-23-622-mm-black.html?lg=en&cr=GBP

dhope

pangolin wrote:

I'm looking at bike discount to get a couple more GP4000S's. The only ones I can see say that they are 23-622mm. Those would be the wrong ones, right?

The only 700 - 23 ones I can see are just GP4000 (no S).

Am I missing something?

http://www.bike-discount.de/shop/a4826/grand-prix-4000-s-23-622-mm-black.html?lg=en&cr=GBP

622mm = 700c. They'd be the right ones to go for for 23c 4000S

pitchshifter

pangolin wrote:

I'm looking at bike discount to get a couple more GP4000S's. The only ones I can see say that they are 23-622mm. Those would be the wrong ones, right?

The only 700 - 23 ones I can see are just GP4000 (no S).

Am I missing something?

http://www.bike-discount.de/shop/a4826/grand-prix-4000-s-23-622-mm-black.html?lg=en&cr=GBP

http://sheldonbrown.com/harris/tires/622.html

They are 700c. Bargain.

dhope

pitchshifter wrote:

pangolin wrote:

I'm looking at bike discount to get a couple more GP4000S's. The only ones I can see say that they are 23-622mm. Those would be the wrong ones, right?

The only 700 - 23 ones I can see are just GP4000 (no S).

Am I missing something?

http://www.bike-discount.de/shop/a4826/grand-prix-4000-s-23-622-mm-black.html?lg=en&cr=GBP

http://sheldonbrown.com/harris/tires/622.html

They are 700c. Bargain.

And they arrive quickly too, I have the two I ordered on Monday sitting next to me now

vermin

Not tried many different tyres yet but, of those I have tried (with at least 1000 miles in each), I'd add:

GP4000S - waaaay overhyped. Don't believe the clever marketing. Very skid-prone/poor grip and hundreds of punctures. Biggest waste of money on my bike so far.
Gatorskin - roll ok. Few punctures.
Rubino Pro - fast and great grip. No punctures. The best I've had.
Luganos - very good for the price; roll and grip ok, if not brilliantly. No punctures for first thousand miles, then started to pick up a few.

clarkey cat

Gatorskins - roll okay, pretty puncture resistant, bit slippy in the wet.

Conti 4 seasons - faultless. fast, grippy, puncture resistant. Expensive.

Specialised Pro - bit puncture prone and dont roll massively well but very grippy.

Vittoria Corsa Evo - fast (very), grippy - beautiful... but cut up very easily.

DrLex

dhope wrote:

And they arrive quickly too, I have the two I ordered on Monday sitting next to me now

Excellent - looking forward to gümmifest v. soon...

kiwimatt

Schwalbe Durano Plus folding just delivered to replace an aging set of Krylion Carbons. Determined not to be standing out in the sleet this winter...

roger_merriman

had Luganos on the old road bike fine though Blizzard sports where better, faster/better ride.

did up a size so bigger contact patch.

on new bike have Mavic Aksion, a nice looking single compound tyre, mid weight and mid about every thing else.

I think they are better than the Blizzards/Luganos but difficult to say.

pangolin

vermin wrote:

Not tried many different tyres yet but, of those I have tried (with at least 1000 miles in each), I'd add:

GP4000S - waaaay overhyped. Don't believe the clever marketing. Very skid-prone/poor grip and hundreds of punctures. Biggest waste of money on my bike so far.
Gatorskin - roll ok. Few punctures.
Rubino Pro - fast and great grip. No punctures. The best I've had.
Luganos - very good for the price; roll and grip ok, if not brilliantly. No punctures for first thousand miles, then started to pick up a few.

That's interesting. I've had a set of GP4000S' on my kaffenback for a couple of months now, and not yet used it on really wet roads. Nothing to make me nervous on them yet though. Strange so many people love them but you've had such bad experience. Have they caused an off?

Bontrager R2 on my Dolan at the moment, which in the rain both slipped out going down a hill and left me with a big rip in my favourite shorts. Similar story from another owner of them on here, so I won't be buying them again!

I was leaning towards replacing the R2's with GP4000S' but maybe I will try some Rubino Pro 3's. It's about £15 cheaper for a pair (£33.60 for 2 on Ribble, free delivery).

vermin

Maybe I just got a bad batch. I don't think I've come off using them, but I've certainly had a few 'interesting' moments with the rear stepping out unexpectedly on fast bends. It's also the only tyre I've had where I've routinely spun the back wheel on hard acceleration. Of course, reading all that, it's probably evident that a lot of the problems are down to my poor riding style, but I'd suggest that the fact that other tyres have not shown up similar shortcomings in my riding marks the GP4000Ss out as rather less reliable for better riders in emergency situations. Plus, the punctures sustained with the GP4000S have become more than a little tyresome ( )

Like I said, maybe I just got a bad batch, but I'd definitely stick with Rubino Pros for my next set.

UndercoverElephant

vermin wrote:

Maybe I just got a bad batch. I don't think I've come off using them, but I've certainly had a few 'interesting' moments with the rear stepping out unexpectedly on fast bends. It's also the only tyre I've had where I've routinely spun the back wheel on hard acceleration. Of course, reading all that, it's probably evident that a lot of the problems are down to my poor riding style, but I'd suggest that the fact that other tyres have not shown up similar shortcomings in my riding marks the GP4000Ss out as rather less reliable for better riders in emergency situations. Plus, the punctures sustained with the GP4000S have become more than a little tyresome ( )

Like I said, maybe I just got a bad batch, but I'd definitely stick with Rubino Pros for my next set.

That's more like it - I'll just stick with the Rubino Pros then. Like I say, I've always been disappointed with anything else, but so many people rate GP4000s so highly, I always wondered.

For me:

Not tried many different tyres yet but, of those I have tried (with at least 1000 miles in each), I'd add:

Bontrager Hardcases - Awful. Very skid-prone/poor grip. I could wheel-spin on the flat when it was wet, heaven forbid trying to go round a corner!
Rubino Pro - Very fast and good grip, wet and dry. Few punctures that aren't snakebites, excellent if I keep the pressure high. The best I've had.
Luganos - Perfectly good, to be honest - but I didn't know any better. Wore out after 1,500 miles, then I fitted my first Rubino Pro and it felt like I was flying -from that I'd say they were pretty slow.
Serfas Seca RS - Bought these when I built my first wheels so that I could easily swap back in case of problems, they were very cheap and had good reviews. Stupendous grip and cornering in the wet or dry, but felt very slow, so I went back to the Rubino Pros. Eventually gave them to a mate, and he's ridden hundreds of miles on them with no fairy visits.

gtvlusso

Continental Ultra Gatorskins - last until they simply wear out, so far, very very few punctures over many years of usage

Continental GP4000 - Great grip in all weathers. Again, last forever and very few punctures - expensive.

Specialized Armadillos - Bit slippy in the wet, again, bombproof.

Only ever had an issue with the Schwalbe Durano London plus - split from the inside out, probably manufacturing fault - tyre feel a bit spongy to me, but that's not so bad on a long ride.

asprilla

Never got on with GP4000s. Certainly couldn't see what the hype was about.

Commuter currently has 25mm Schwalbe Duranos on and I think they are everything that most people think 4000s are.

Vittoria Open Pave Evo CGs on the weekender. Was very disappointed with two punctures on my first three outings but since theny they have been fantastic. Very quick, particularly on rough roads, grippy as hell and monumentally comfortable. Mind most of this will be down to me running them at 85psi on rims with 19mm wide bed.

daniel_b

I think I will probably swap to Rubino pro's after these Continentals - what size tyre do you go for, am currently running 23's, do you tend to go for a 25 or 28 for more comfort and perhaps more safety during the winter months?

gtvlusso

Daniel B wrote:

I think I will probably swap to Rubino pro's after these Continentals - what size tyre do you go for, am currently running 23's, do you tend to go for a 25 or 28 for more comfort and perhaps more safety during the winter months?

Always 23.....25 does not fit in my frame! Very tight clearances!

pangolin

Just to add some anecdotal evidence, here is the running puncture total. Similar mileage on both bikes. I don't record per bike I'm afraid so can't be too specific. Dolan has done more miles but I don't know how many more. Both have done several hundred.

Kaffenback with GP4000s' (about £52 pair)
3 punctures
Last 2 were little bits of glass. Lots of little cuts in the tyre.

Dolan with Vittoria Rubino Pro's (about £36 a pair)
0 punctures
Tyres look good.

gtvlusso

For the record:

Still no punctures on Mavic Aksion 23mm tyres.....quite surprised at how tough they are, grip level is low in the wet though.

Picked them up in a bargain bucket for £10 each.

veronese68

pangolin wrote:

Just to add some anecdotal evidence, here is the running puncture total. Similar mileage on both bikes. I don't record per bike I'm afraid so can't be too specific. Dolan has done more miles but I don't know how many more. Both have done several hundred.

Kaffenback with GP4000s' (about £52 pair)
3 punctures
Last 2 were little bits of glass. Lots of little cuts in the tyre.

Dolan with Vittoria Rubino Pro's (about £36 a pair)
0 punctures
Tyres look good.

Does one tend to get ridden in better weather than the other?

Headhuunter

I bought an almost unused Cannondale CAAD8 on ebay which had Schwalbe Luganos and they are a disaster... Had about 4-5 punctures, roughly half in each wheel, over the past month or so and I haven't even been riding it daily! I'm very careful when fixing punctures, check the tyre carefully for anything stuck, have fixed enough in my life to know how to do it properly. I'm mystified as to why people here have given them the thumbs up.

Better tyres include:
Vittoria Zaffirio - cheap, decent tyre
Blizzard Sports - Also pretty cheap and very good
Michelin Krylion Carbon/Pro4 - Used on my weekend bike, very good
Gatorskins - also good

pangolin

Veronese68 wrote:

pangolin wrote:

Just to add some anecdotal evidence, here is the running puncture total. Similar mileage on both bikes. I don't record per bike I'm afraid so can't be too specific. Dolan has done more miles but I don't know how many more. Both have done several hundred.

Kaffenback with GP4000s' (about £52 pair)
3 punctures
Last 2 were little bits of glass. Lots of little cuts in the tyre.

Dolan with Vittoria Rubino Pro's (about £36 a pair)
0 punctures
Tyres look good.

Does one tend to get ridden in better weather than the other?

I wondered about this. The Kaffenback has probably seen more wet roads than the Dolan, but not a huge amount. I've certainly been caught out in the rain a few times on the Dolan, and set off on it in the morning with no rain forecast but the roads still quite wet from the night before.

So yeah, the GP4000s' have been in the wet more, but not enough to justify the 3:0 score at the moment.

cyclingprop

I guess there is a balance to be made. The braking force your brake set up can apply versus the level of grip supplied by your tyre in the dry. This will always vary depending on set up and weight of rider etc.

If your wheel locks up easily there is an imbalance in the equation, but I would maintain that you should be able to lock the wheels up - there is a small but present risk that one day you need to put the bike down.

That said I went to GP4000s because of cornering grip - much better than the stock tyres my bikes came with but I'll admit I haven't tried anything else since....

Paul E

Specialized Pro II, felt wooden, tough though but didn't roll that well
Krylions, felt a lot better than the above on the same bike, puncture protection was great until a certain mileage then very prone to them
Pro4 Endurances, feel more supple and roll a bit better, had one puncture in the first week in the back due to a very sharp shard of glass.

porlyworly

Time has come to replace my trusty Specialized Armadillos on my Equilibrium, need something at least as good puncture protection wise as predominantly used for commuting, any bargains out there on decent 23's at the minute? Had a quick search on here and seems Conti 4 seasons get great reviews and the cheapest I can find them is approx £51 delivered for a pair from bike-discount.de but open to suggestions on other brands etc. Cheers!