Puncture resistant winter tyre

dyson1590

Hello,

Sorry of this seems like a repeat thread! Was just wondering if anyone has any good tips for a puncture resistant, grippy winter tyre that won't break the bank? Just bought a new bike and the tyres on it are totally slick and as I've had knee surgery recently I want to reduce the odds of any incidents!

Thank you in advance.

deswahriff

..don't be misled by "slick"...road bike tyres don't need any tread to make them grip. I use Michelin Krylion Carbons (now replaced by PRO4 Endurance) ...plenty of grip, puncture protection, reasonable weight - and bald as a bald thing that's been to bald school majoring in baldness.

sungod

slicks are the grippiest tyre for tarmac, treaded tyres will squirm/slip

the compound makes quite a difference too, continental's black chili rubber is great in the wet, gp4000s

puncture resistance depends on your road conditions, glass/flint strewn roads increase the risk, add water and it goes even higher (tyres cut more easily), you could fit hyper tough commute/touring tyres, but they weigh a ton and ride like crap, unless your roads are dire i'd go with a decent tyre and accept that there may be a puncture every now and then

i use the gp4000s year-round on my commute bike without problems, haven't tried the pro4 mentioned above but others have also recommended them

avoiding riding near the gutter keeps you clear of most of the debris

unixnerd

Schwalbe Marathons are probably the ultimate but they're not that light.

Hanners

Schwalbe Durano plus for commuting last forever and have good protection

vectra0

Gatorskins or specialzed all condition only for me.... never had one puncture in either...

SaintMark

I use Vittoria Randonneur on my commuting bike, they are a touring/city tyre, super tough and grip well. Good value too but they are noticably heavy compared to my usual road tyres, they do a folding version but I haven't tried it.

Weight is the trade-off for protection I guess. So it depends what is important to you and what sort of riding you're doing. If it's just winter training rides and not glass-strewn city streets in the rain, you might be OK with a lighter tyre. On the last sportive I did, I saw a guy with deep section Zipp carbon aero wheels and Schwalbe Marathons fitted... It looked downright odd but I guess he never punctured.

For what it's worth I tried Gatorskins but in the wet they were sketchy at best, downright dangerous at worst and I got repeated punctures, but maybe that's just me, they seem pretty popular on here.

Alibran

SaintMark wrote:

I use Vittoria Randonneur on my commuting bike, they are a touring/city tyre, super tough and grip well. Good value too but they are noticably heavy compared to my usual road tyres, they do a folding version but I haven't tried it.

I've just done my first ride on Randonneur Hypers, folding 32mm, and they felt nice. I was a bit cautious with them to begin with, as you are with new tyres, but the top layer feels softer and grippier than the Rubino Pros I've replaced. It's good to know the protection is good too.

If you're looking for a 23/25 tyre, I've used Vittoria Rubino Pros for the last 4 years without a puncture, and that included one winter of commuting on Cornish back roads. They're not a bad weight for a puncture resistant tyre. If they did them in 32mm, I wouldn't have changed, but I wanted a bit more comfort for the dodgy road surfaces around here.

SaintMark

Alibran wrote:

If you're looking for a 23/25 tyre, I've used Vittoria Rubino Pros... They're not a bad weight for a puncture resistant tyre.

Funny you should say that, the tyres on my other bike are Rubino Pro 25mm. Same puncture technology as the Randonneur except the latter has a double layer.

passout

deswahriff wrote:

..don't be misled by "slick"...road bike tyres don't need any tread to make them grip. I use Michelin Krylion Carbons (now replaced by PRO4 Endurance) ...plenty of grip, puncture protection, reasonable weight - and bald as a bald thing that's been to bald school majoring in baldness.

My top choice too. Don't get gatorskins - too slippery in the wet.