Road bike newbie

chrisb81

Evening all,

I'm Chris from North Cumbria and have recently purchased my first road bike.

I've been a regular mountain biker for years and commute 12 miles most days. However, I felt a need for change and my new stead is a Giant Defy 3 (2015). The bike is mint, love the speed compared with my mountain bike.

Unfortunately albeit i have only done about 150 miles on the new bike I need a new rear tyre already I came across a bloody pot hole, managed to lift the front wheel completely but couldn't get my ass of the seat in time to reduce the weight on the rear and what followed was an almighty crunch. The wheel is fine, however it cut a slice out of the side wall, the inner then bulged out and boooom. Ive tried a repair which seems to be lasting but I don't feel confident knowing that it could blow again.

The tyres which came on the bike are Giant branded 700x25C SR-4….from a bit of googling i can't even get a like for like which makes me think that they are just cheap tyres.

Please can somebody point me in the direction of some decent tyres! I don't know where to start as there is so much choice. I Haven't' got the budget in the world but i need something which will see me through my winter commutes and training as well as something for the warmer months.

Thanks for your help.

Chris

dj58

I use one of these in 25c size on the rear wheel of my Defy.
https://www.cyclestore.co.uk/productDetails.asp?productID=63902

There are also the Michelin Pro4 Endurance V2 and Continental Grand Prix 4 Season tyres which are regularly recommended on here.

beski

I put Schwalbe Durano Plus' on my Defy, seem very tough

markhewitt1978

Everyone has their favourite brands and types which they tend to stick to. But Continental and Michelin are popular brands.

I would say the Continental GP 4 Seasons are a good quality tyre which will last you through the winter. Yes; they are on the expensive side but IMO tyres are the one part of a bike where cost shouldn't really be an object.

kajjal

[url=http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/viewtopic.php?p=19700663#p19700663]markhewitt1978[/url] wrote:

Everyone has their favourite brands and types which they tend to stick to. But Continental and Michelin are popular brands.

I would say the Continental GP 4 Seasons are a good quality tyre which will last you through the winter. Yes; they are on the expensive side but IMO tyres are the one part of a bike where cost shouldn't really be an object.

I have used GP4 seasons for a few years now and they have been good all year round.

ben@31

Make sure you have the correct inner tube pressure too. Road bikes run at a much higher pressure compared to MTB's. Road inners can be as high as 100PSI and more.
Low pressure can cause punctures when the tube deforms and pinches as it goes over stones. While a high pressure tube will stay solid. Like most things there is pros and cons, higher pressures will be so solid it can be a bit more uncomfortable.
Its worth getting a good track pump and checking the tyre pressure every 2 or 3 rides. The inner tubes seem to easily loose pressure after a few days.