Winter rubber

[braddo]

The slick vs tread argument is interesting. I have gone for nearly two years of London commuting on a pair of Vittoria pro slicks (my new bike was supplied with them) and their dry grip is obviously fantastic but their wet grip is terrible compared to what I had on my previous bike for several years:

Specialized All Condition Pro



As mentioned in this thread, I expected that the small contact patches would mean a tread pattern makes little difference on a narrow bicycle tyre. In full dry and full wet conditions perhaps it is still the case, but greasy conditions you get in between those two stages, I'm not sure.

What I like about the Specialized tyre is that it resembles a motorbike tyre - both the tread and the variable radius (i.e. flatter in the middle of the tyre). Perhaps it is the latter that makes a bigger difference compared to my current slicks.

Anyway, is the Continental Grand Prix 4000S II the Daddy that will outperform both tyres mentioned above?

[HereBeMonsters]

Batfink said:

I've used slicks all year round. I was contemplating a CX bike with wide and slightly more interesting compounds and tyre shapes for the slushy, icier days where a wider tyre that can cut through to the tarmac better might be a bit more stable.

Why would a wider tyre cut through to the tarmac better? Surely a narrower tyre would be better for that?