25 x 700 clincher tyre suggestions please?

Kaiser Sose

Hi all,
I've been quite disappointed with the longevity and ruggedness of my continental GP5000s. They have worn down quickly and one of them has developed a hole just above the beads. Rather a poor show considering they were 38.99 each and I have only done about 500 miles on them.

I am after some clinchers, something robust with good puncture resistance - that is the number one criteria for me. I don't race and prefer robustness over a bit of extra speed, and ease of getting them off if I do puncture. I had some success with Gatorskins in the past but wondered if anyone had any other ideas please? Budget is £40 or so each and I like 25mm tread width. Wheels are Borg 26. I am quite a heady rider at 103kg + bike.

Many thanks for any ideas!

Kaiser Sose

.. I meant to say I have Hardshell on my winter bike and they are good too. Swine to get on and off though!

singleton

I'd recommend Michelin Pro4 Endurance - good puncture protection and nice to ride on.
You should be able to get a pair for £50 - try decathlon if you have one nearby.

Kaiser Sose

Thanks, I am also considering Schwalbe Durano Plus. I am happy to pay more for tyres that are robust.

spatt77

Hi, I run Vittoria Rubino control on my winter bike and they maybe what you're looking for!

Kaiser Sose

Thanks guys, Yeah fallback position is to stick to gators. They are easy to get on and off if needed. Will look into those Vittorias.

darkhairedlord

Open paves.

webboo

Gatorskins maybe great for not getting punctures but they are heavy and cumbersome. You also have to remember not to get out of the saddle if it’s wet.

Dorset_Boy

webboo said:

Gatorskins maybe great for not getting punctures but they are heavy and cumbersome. You also have to remember not to get out of the saddle if it’s wet.

May as well put a hosepipe around your rim - i'd imagine it feels about the same to ride on, and has about as much grip in the wet as a pair of Gators.
Dreadful tyres, though their puncture resistance is excellent.

webboo

I have GP5000s on my bike like Kaiser. However I have done somewhere between 1500 and 2,000 miles on mine ( I ride one of my other bikes sometimes) since April. There appears to be plenty of wear left in them according to those wear indicators.
I have had 2 front wheel punctures one was a thorn and the other was a mystery deflating as I couldn’t find a hole in the inner tube when I checked it later.
However I’m not as heavy as Kaiser. They also don’t seem to be any improvement on GP4000s and they come up smaller.

amrushton

Vittoria open Pave in 25mm. chain reaction had some the other day (I got a few). A fantastic tyre, good enough for Roubaix in tubular form.
Pro4 endurance - under £50 in a twin pack from Decathlon https://www.decathlon.co.uk/p/pro4-endurance-road-bike-tyres-twin-pack-700x25c/_/R-p-X8570249?mc=8570249. Good tyre - not as nice as Service course but the title Endurance is the clue.
Durano Plus - fantastic. use them as a commute tyre. Hard wearing, great puncture resistance. not the most supple but on the commute i'm looking for reliabilty and protection.

emanresu

I found the Michelin Pro4 prone to cutting, far more than GP4000-5000.

Much like Webbo I'm roughly 2000 miles into a set of GP5000 and both wear indicators are still present

N0bodyOfTheGoat

What pressure were you using on those 25mm GP5000s, especially the weight bearing rear? Taking account of you, the bike, water, cycling kit etc. total weight, I'd expect the maximum pressure of 120psi on the rear to be borderline.

Lower pressure gives more comfort but increased wear rate.

I currently have a 32mm on the rear and 23mm on the front, ~83Kg and total weight when I head off for a 2+ hour ride of ~97Kg. I'm using ~75/95psi respectively. I was ~5Kg lighter last summer and used a 25mm on the rear, but running it this year at ~90psi felt really harsh.

If your bike frame will take wider tyres, I'd suggest at least trying a 28mm+ on the rear, which has very little affect on aero drag.

pblakeney

Kaiser Sose said:

Thanks, I am also considering Schwalbe Durano Plus. I am happy to pay more for tyres that are robust.

As I was trying 28s I got a set of the Duranos. Nothing great, nothing bad, but I just couldn’t get them to sit right. There was alway a high or low spot.
Reverted back to 25mm* Open Paves. Cut very easily but don’t puncture more than any others IME.

* The 28s fitted but any gravel pick up on the tyres was annoying beyond acceptable.

daniel_b

Kaiser Sose said:

Thanks, I am also considering Schwalbe Durano Plus. I am happy to pay more for tyres that are robust.

That would be my recommendation - I run them on our two winter bikes, and only one visit in all that time, and it was a mahoosive 2 inch long thorn, pure bad luck. Tyre was fine after removing it though.

Downsides - it is slower rolling, and depending on the bike may deaden the feel somewhat, but if lack of stops is what you are after.....

They make some more standard Duranos that might be worth a look as well, less resistance to fairy visits, but faster rolling.

Personally I love the 4000s and 5000s on my best bikes, but if I go out on a ride, and I know I have to be back by a certain time, or if the weather or roads are ropey, as is often the case, I turn to the Durano plus bike.

Basemetal

Michelin Lithion 3?
I've had 2000 miles out of a pair and they look like they'll go the same again. They punch way above their weight costwise (even the Lithion 2s do), though I use them with latex tubes so that might be partly responsible for the road feel. Confidently grippy, I've ridden them through last winter (Scotland) and had one rear pinch puncture slamming a pothole in a shadow but that was a tube burst with no tyre damage.

I have beens swithering about upgrading to GP5000s, but I keep reading about longevity/QC problems like you're having...

amrushton

didnt know they still made them.But at full price Open Pave from chain Reaction are less money. However I notice Tredz have the Lithion 3 for 17.99 in 25mm so got to be worth a punt. wiggle have them at about £23 in 25mm
https://road.cc/content/review/michelin-lithion-3-tyre-273417

https://www.tredz.co.uk/.Michelin-Lithion-3-Clincher-700c-Road-Tyre_110223.htm?sku=409899&utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=google_shopping&gclid=Cj0KCQjw_dWGBhDAARIsAMcYuJxYvMo2mXxH1bqdIrTkt62pDex8DdLXHZtAF7uvKyMXtO9UFTmn2BQaAt-NEALw_wcB#

pblakeney

amrushton said:

didnt know they still made them.But at full price Open Pave from chain Reaction are less money. However I notice Tredz have the Lithion 3 for 17.99 in 25mm so got to be worth a punt. wiggle have them at about £23 in 25mm
https://road.cc/content/review/michelin-lithion-3-tyre-273417

https://www.tredz.co.uk/.Michelin-Lithion-3-Clincher-700c-Road-Tyre_110223.htm?sku=409899&utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=google_shopping&gclid=Cj0KCQjw_dWGBhDAARIsAMcYuJxYvMo2mXxH1bqdIrTkt62pDex8DdLXHZtAF7uvKyMXtO9UFTmn2BQaAt-NEALw_wcB#

£24.99 is a bit of a bargain.

molteni_man

Dorset_Boy said:

webboo said:

Gatorskins maybe great for not getting punctures but they are heavy and cumbersome. You also have to remember not to get out of the saddle if it’s wet.

May as well put a hosepipe around your rim - i'd imagine it feels about the same to ride on, and has about as much grip in the wet as a pair of Gators.
Dreadful tyres, though their puncture resistance is excellent.

Fully agree with these two comments. Great puncture resistance, but downright dangerous in damp/ wet conditions due to very poor grip. Avoid these tyres!

amrushton

're lithion 3. Chain reaction are doing them in 25mm with a free tube for 17.99

cltroadcyclist

I'm 1500 miles into my Continental 5000s, new in January 2021. I'm pleased with their performance - riding exclusively on smooth paved roads. No punctures so far and the wear is minimal.

darrell1967

I’ve got a Gatorskin on the back wheel of my commuter and I’ve never had a problem with grip. Admittedley I’m no speed demon but…

Kaiser Sose

Many thanks for the comprehensive inputs. In the end I stayed with the devil I know and I went with 25mm Gatorskins. I know tyres are a very personal choice and one's person's meat is another one's poison.

I am familiar with these tyres, can get them on and off quickly, they last well at my weight/power and I have had good previous experience with them with very few punctures. Point taken about the wet but generally I do not go out in the wet unless I get caught out in it and I am not a speed demon. I still have a GP5000 on the rear until it completely wears down and a new 25mm Gator on the front. Done 200 miles now in the [slightly] wet and dry and so far, so good. I may come back to this thread at some point.

mr_eddy

Just curious any reason why not go 28s ? They are more comfortable , lower rolling resistance , more grip etc.

That being said I have found Jack Brown Mile Muncher from Planet X to be excellent, They come in 25.5mm / 28mm and 30mm and at £15 are excellent value. They have double kevlar protection and are reasonably light at 284g (for robust tyre)