You don't need to be an 'investor' to invest in Singletrack: 6 days left: 95% of target - Find out more
With my Bergamont Grandurance feeling sluggish on the roads, I’d like to look at a more road oriented tyre to replace the G One Allround Performance that’s on it. I’ve found the Specialized path master pro, and also looked at the G One Speed. I still need a towpath capable/light gravel path tyre over the winter for local 1hr recovery runs as well as the Road 100k I’m using the bike for.
Any comments on either of these or could you suggest an alternative tyre?
Hutchinson Override seems to have the right balance for what you’re describing.
My stock answer is always the Vittoria Terreno Dry, good side knobs, surprisingly 'fun' in the mud, but perfectly content on tarmac.
Slight question over durability though, the centre tread has a very fine 'fish scale' pattern which I've worn smooth in the centre after 1500km.
Going into winter, finding a fast road tyre that will also cope well in any mud you encounter is near on impossible.
G1 Speeds are great in the dry, but they wear quickly on tarmac and suck in the wet, even on tarmac when they've worn a bit. Using the 29x2.35" on my fatbike was fun and fast in the summer, but I always swapped them out around this time of year.
My Marasa came with 40mm Vee Speedsters, but having had a 2.3" variant on the fatbike, that honeycomb tread is a liability once you are riding on routes littered with small debris. They get wedged into the voids and if it's something sharp, guess what happens!
I'm currently back on my 38mm Marathon Cross pair on the Marasa for commuting, they have a bit of extra puncture protection and are a bit weighty at ~560g each, but at ~55/70 PSI (f/r) they can do a bit of everything. Run them with higher pressure for smooth road, or a bit lower for more offroad grip and cushioning.
I'd like to try something like the newish https://www.merlincycles.com/panaracer-gravel-king-ext-tlc-folding-tyre-700c-199134.html or https://www.merlincycles.com/panaracer-gravel-king-ac-tlc-folding-tyre-700c-199121.html up front and either a https://www.merlincycles.com/panaracer-gravel-king-tlc-folding-tyre-700c-2019-142692.html or https://www.merlincycles.com/panaracer-gravel-king-sk-tlc-folding-tyre-700c-90671.html on the rear.
I was impressed with G-One Speeds as a compromise, but maybe a narrower width to consider as much as tread?
GP4000’s have worked fine for me on that kind of stuff
I was going to suggest Gravelkings, or Gravelking SKs. Only used the latter, but very fast rolling and very capable off-road (obvs not in the mud).
Spesh pathfinder pros have been great for me.
Never see them mentioned much but the Mavic Yksion Allroad Elites that came with my wheels have been excellent. Come in 30,35 and 40mm widths with the 40 (which I have) having a more chunky tread. They grip well, last ages, are very fast and I haven't had a puncture (yet!). Not cheap to buy by themselves but would have them again.
Rene Herse Steilacooms are very road friendly for a tyre that will cope with all year off road. Just don't get the ultralights!
Have a look at the rolling resistance website.
Not only do they measure rolling resistance, they also measure tread and sidewall strength, weight and actual size.
Michelin Power Gravel seems to be the best in terms of how it performs across all those criteria.
Happily they let you compare up to four tyres at one time.
https://www.bicyclerollingresistance.com/
As an aside - and apologies for the slight hijack - but would appreciate people's thoughts/ideas when it comes to 27.5 tyres in a 47mm flavour. Same criteria as the OP's
The "slick" Gravel Kings are great winter road tyres, but I wouldn't want to do any more than a cautious pootle on any kind of wet gravel on them. The SK version might be ok in narrower widths, I have them in 38mm width on my gravel bike and I'd say they were more the gravel end of the spectrum.
@funkrodent - I've been using WTB Byways. I think they would meet your criteria. As it happens, I'm actually after something a tad more knobby at the moment and considering Teravail Rutlands but they seem hard to find.
Aye, the slick Gravelkings are puncture magnets.
I've put Maxxis Re-Fuse on. Supposedly they "Refuse" to puncture, went onto my rims by hand and pumped up tubeless first time with a track pump, and stayed up without any sealant.
Thanks all - looks like the Michelin Power Gravel would be my choice. There's seems to be a shortage of 35mm Tubeless though, would 33mm Tubless vs 35 mm Tubed make a massive difference assume the 80/20 rule for road / light gravel respectively ?
I'd be inclined to go for the 35mm Tube on the basis I would have to carry 2 x Tubes on the road...