Just biking to work today and the sidewall in my rear Conti GP 4 season tyre punctures on something. went back to look but did not see anything seriously offending on the stretch of road- weak sidewalls?
Any decent sturdy roadbike tyres ayone would recommend? Was thinking something along the lines of Specialized armadillo range, in the 700c 25c size or so!
any experience is appreciated!
Used to run armadillo - very puncture resistant, but just as wellas they were a dog to get on and off.
Have done 3,000 miles on a set of Conti Top Touring 2000 with no punctures but the fabric starting to show!
I think they're pretty sturdy for a reasonably fast road tyre. It depends on what you're prepared to compromise on. I tend to get about 5,000 miles out of a set of GP 4 seasons in London which is not necessarily easy riding. After trying a set of Specialized road tyres one year in the wet, I'd personally never ride another set as it was quite interesting riding along a flat straight road with almost no control at all.
Have done over 3000 miles on a set of spesh armadillos, 2 punctures (one a massive piece of flint (think boulder size) and another a tyre cutting piece of glass)
As for aP, I ride spesh armadillos all year round, and have never lost control. Ever.
I use schwalbe stelvio plus 700x25. No punctures in 6500 miles - but the rolling resistance is telling. The added 5 minutes to a 20 mile commute compared to continental gator skins (but I got punctures every month with those). The stelvio has been replaced by the durano model now..
Only 3000 miles? Doesn't sound very impressive to me.
** Shrugs **
GP4s are 50% more expensive than Top Touring 2000
Schwalbe Marathon Plus
Not @ you stoner
Are you saying you need more then 3000 miles to find out if a road tyre has bad grip?
No, I'd reckon on less than a mile myself.
As an alternative to those others above Vredestein tyres are pretty good and have reasonable puncture resistance compared to weight and rolling resistance.
I have, in the past, advocated the use of Conti UltraGators for such a purpose ...however that was until saturday when I glanced at their current price in one of my LBSs and saw that they now cost over £20 each!
So, my current reccomendation would be Vittoria Rubinos, can't remember how long I've had them on my road bike but I don't seem to be getting punctures that often.
You might also want to consider something like this:
[url= http://www.wiggle.co.uk/p/cycle/7/Slime_Road~Cross_Tyre_Liner/5360009044/ ]Helpful[/url]
If you are not bothered about folding tyres try a set of panaracer Pasela's
they roll well and are very puncture resistant and give a great smooth ride (28mm but more like a 25mm)
Audax riders have used them for years
Used to fit Conti GP's but grip is poor and rolling resistance even worse and I still got the occasional puncture. Just replaced (today) a "michelin pro2 race" which had worn through to canvas and had suffered exactly zero punctures in it's entire life. Lucky... perhaps. Same again.. you betcha.