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I've got Continental GP400 2s on my road bike which are great, and have recently acquired a pinnacle arkose 3 to use as a commuter. It came with some off road tyres which are not ideal for road commuting on.
I was going to get continental GP 4 seasons, but then spotted there was the Continental Gator Hardshell tyres which are described as a 'hardcore' commuter tyre.
Now i'm paralysed by indecision - my commute is 22km on road, with a couple of underpasses that occasionally suffer from broken glass.
Thoughts?
I've been using continental GP 4 seasons for years on my commuter, great tyres. I have 28mm or one bike and 32mm on the other.
Conti gatorskins really work on puncture protection and have good grip - just wear out more quickly than some tyres. I regularly pull shards of glass out of mine but have never had a puncture
- What's more quickly? I tend to commute on the bike 2 or 3 days out of 5 - so maybe 5000-6000km a year. I could cope with new tyres once a year i reckon.wear out more quickly than some tyres
I've not owned the top end Contis so far, but I find the 25mm and 28mm Grand Sport Race are good enough for me and haven't shown the very quick wear I've seen on the GP4000s S2s on others' bikes. They do 32mm versions too, which you should have clearance for.
But for <£11 each in the promo that finishes today, I would be more inclined to get https://www.planetx.co.uk/i/q/TYSCMRCFOL/schwalbe-marathon-cross-wired-tyre-with-raceguard . Paid £40 for my pair last summer and they fly on the road at higher pressures, while at lower pressures they are great off-road too for gravel.
ewan - I think its less than that mine have lasted but its the rear that has worn most from heavy braking as mine is urban use. I really am not at all sure tho
No worries TJ.
Nobody of the goat - don't really want off road tyres - I've got an MTB for that 🙂 but thank you for the suggestion! Hadn't realised you could get the contis in 32mm.... will investigate.
Hadn't realised you could get the contis in 32mm.... will investigate.
Didn't seem to be available in the UK when I was buying, I got mine from Canyon.
On an arkose i'd probably go with the Top Contact II in 37c
I use my Marathon Cross mainly on the road, typically at ~60/75PSI, after washing out on a mini roundabout at ~77/83 back in Feb (which sadly cracked my right Wellgo C162 and killed it eventually in August). They are rated as one of Schwalbe's lowest rolling resistance tyres (5 out of 6 IIRC), only potential negative is their ~560g weight due to being wired bead.
http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/schwalbe-marathon-touring-tyre-greenguard/rp-prod69133 are rated highly at https://www.bicyclerollingresistance.com/
32mm Conti Grand Sport Races don't look easy to source, I think Merlin used to be a good bet, but couldn't see them in stock.
Saw these lower tier Contis, no idea what they are like though, https://www.planetx.co.uk/i/q/TYCONSCII/continental-sport-contact-ii-700c-wired-tyre
Unless you are devoted to Conti tyres, get ye a set of Vittoria Hyper Voyager tyres from PX.
[url= https://www.planetx.co.uk/i/q/TYVIVOHY/vittoria-voyager-hyper-folding-tyre ]Here[/url]
I've been running the 35mm on my commuter bike for about 3 years, never had a puncture and they absolutely fly on tarmac!
Conti gatorskins really work on puncture protection and have good grip
You must use different Gatorskins to me. My experience of them is that the grip levels are average in the dry and terrifying in the wet. Puncture resistance is is no better than my normal road bike tyres. They're also heavy. For me, they're a terrible tyre and can turn a nice bike in to a pig.
Vredestein Senso Xtreme are much better in every regard IMO, grippier, faster, more protection, just better.
Lunge - mine have not punctured at all despite having loads of bits of glass in them. I regularly pick them out and they certainly have far more grip than marathons. they are certainly not heavy at all Something funny going on.
I've run Continental Cyclecross Speed folding for a few years commuting, light, roll well on tarmac and grippy on usual gravel bike type stuff. They don't last too long though.
all road tyres sacrifice feel in the quest for puncture protection - however the gatorskin uses quite a hard tread compound so if you do get one, have it on the back only and run it at the bottom of the recommended pressure range (but don't let it go below that, you don't want pinching). GP4season for the front because the gatorskin is too sketchy without the weight of the rider helping adhesion at the rear. granted they are tough and last well, my fixed gear commuter has one and it doesn't just burn out like others do.
there are other brands though, the Michelin Pro4endurance are great and not expensive as are the vittoria and vredestein are much better than the contis
Hardskins are even more horrible to ride than gatorskins.
That I still have one as my rear commuter tyre as it’s pretty bomb proof. I have a 4seasons on the front.