Winter rubber

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Discussion

S10GTA

Original Poster:

12,645 posts

166 months

Monday 14th July 2014
quotequote all
This might make me look a bit dumb, but I have a question:

Which is better to commute on in winter on my CX bike? 28 slick road tyres such as a Durano or 32 cx tyres such as the Rapid Rob's fitted.

Knobbly or Slick?

Steve vRS

4,836 posts

240 months

Monday 14th July 2014
quotequote all
Interested in this also.

I would have thought slicks as according to Sheldon Brown:-

[i]
Tread for on-road use
Bicycle tires for on-road use have no need of any sort of tread features; in fact, the best road tires are perfectly smooth, with no tread at all!

Unfortunately, most people assume that a smooth tire will be slippery, so this type of tire is difficult to sell to unsophisticated cyclists. Most tire makers cater to this by putting a very fine pattern on their tires, mainly for cosmetic and marketing reasons. If you examine a section of asphalt or concrete, you'll see that the texture of the road itself is much "knobbier" than the tread features of a good-quality road tire. Since the tire is flexible, even a slick tire deforms as it comes into contact with the pavement, acquiring the shape of the pavement texture, only while in contact with the road.

People ask, "But don't slick tires get slippery on wet roads, or worse yet, wet metal features such as expansion joints, paint stripes, or railroad tracks?" The answer is, yes, they do. So do tires with tread. All tires are slippery in these conditions. Tread features make no improvement in this.
[/i]

Steve

S10GTA

Original Poster:

12,645 posts

166 months

Monday 14th July 2014
quotequote all
^ interesting

For clarification, I am talking about the adhesive qualities during winter on asphalt/leaf/wet/cold/icy conditions not ride quality etc.

Batfink

1,032 posts

257 months

Monday 14th July 2014
quotequote all
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. Must be some interesting soft compounds available for CX?

Disco You

3,681 posts

179 months

Monday 14th July 2014
quotequote all
For commuting, I would fit 28mm shwalbe marathon tyres. Who wants to get a puncture in the pissing rain and be late for work?

scubadude

2,618 posts

196 months

Monday 14th July 2014
quotequote all
Been using Conit GP4000S 25mm year round, no complaints... just have to man up in the wet and ride appropriately.

S10GTA

Original Poster:

12,645 posts

166 months

Monday 14th July 2014
quotequote all
for clarification, I have done the MTFU thing, I rode all last winter on 23's cool

I am trying to find out which in theory should grip more. Slicks or knobbly.

Disco You

3,681 posts

179 months

Monday 14th July 2014
quotequote all
S10GTA said:
for clarification, I have done the MTFU thing, I rode all last winter on 23's cool

I am trying to find out which in theory should grip more. Slicks or knobbly.
On tarmac, wet or dry, slicks are.

Introduce winter detritus, and it might be the other way around.

That's the other reason I suggested marathons, they have a little tread, but aren't too slow on smooth tarmac.

IroningMan

10,154 posts

245 months

Monday 14th July 2014
quotequote all
Slicks.

The tread pattern on car tyres is there to clear water and thus prevent aquaplaning; bicycle tyres cannot, as I understand it, aquaplane, since the right combination of weight, speed and contact area are either impossible or very unlikely.

Jimbo.

3,941 posts

188 months

Monday 14th July 2014
quotequote all
Tread on a road bike tyre does the square root of f*ck all. Perhaps less. Bikes don't go fast enough to aquaplane for their weight/tyre contact patch. All tread will do it reduce the contact patch further still, and for the CX rubber referred to earlier, quirk around making the bike feel awful. It may even reduce traction. A good demonstration of this is the pros not reaching for the knobbliest for even the grimmest of spring classics.

Gruffy

7,212 posts

258 months

Tuesday 15th July 2014
quotequote all
Knobbly tyres are for loose surfaces. Anything on the road, wet or dry, will be best for slicks. As others have said, you don't need any tread whatsoever. You won't be aqua-planing on your bike in even the heaviest of downpours.

gazza285

9,779 posts

207 months

Tuesday 15th July 2014
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You'll find that CX tyres are too soft for the road and wear at a fantastic rate.

CVP

2,799 posts

274 months

Tuesday 15th July 2014
quotequote all
Got through last winter on a set of Schwalbe Duranos. They cut up quite a lot but were a lot grippier in the wet than the Conti Gatorskins I previously used and didn't puncture once. The Duranos are basically slick and I never had a grip issue in either the wet or greasy conditions. I discovered one huge slice right across the tyre but it didn't get through the puncture resistant band so all was good. These tyres lasted through all that rain and flooding when I continued to ride and rode over who knows what under the water. I've just swapped them for replacement set and hope to get another 2,000 miles or so out of the new ones.

On the commuter I also add a bit of latex solution as used in my tubeless tyres into the inner tube, just in case I do get a puncture, it will hopefully seal enough to get me home without having to stop in the cold and wet to try and change a tube. I reckon the extra bit of rolling weight is well worth the added puncture protection.

Chris

S10GTA

Original Poster:

12,645 posts

166 months

Tuesday 15th July 2014
quotequote all
Cheers. I use(d) duranos on my single speed, and these would be the default choice in 28's for the cross bike.

TonyHetherington

32,091 posts

249 months

Tuesday 15th July 2014
quotequote all
Discussing outright grip, I agree with the consensus; slicks all year round. (The engineer in me agrees!).

However, consider also that puncture protection is high up during winter, and the typical summer slicks have less.

For me, on my commute, puncture protection is everything. To the point where this winter I intend to try some of those solid puncture proof tyres.

When it rains, and with more crap on the road, the summer slicks will puncture far more easily. Even though they grip just as much. It just so happens that the more winter-geared tyres (gatorskins, for example) have tread patterns on them.

benny.c

3,472 posts

206 months

Tuesday 15th July 2014
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28C Conti Four Seasons for me on the cross bike in winter road mode.

Rob_T

1,916 posts

250 months

Tuesday 15th July 2014
quotequote all
Disco You said:
For commuting, I would fit 28mm shwalbe marathon tyres. Who wants to get a puncture in the pissing rain and be late for work?
this every day of the week (assuming you mean marathon plus). three years of all year round commuting and no flats. when it gets snowy and icy, i just swap to some studded tyres and job jobbed.

IroningMan

10,154 posts

245 months

Tuesday 15th July 2014
quotequote all
TonyHetherington said:
Discussing outright grip, I agree with the consensus; slicks all year round. (The engineer in me agrees!).

However, consider also that puncture protection is high up during winter, and the typical summer slicks have less.

For me, on my commute, puncture protection is everything. To the point where this winter I intend to try some of those solid puncture proof tyres.

When it rains, and with more crap on the road, the summer slicks will puncture far more easily. Even though they grip just as much. It just so happens that the more winter-geared tyres (gatorskins, for example) have tread patterns on them.
In theory a dedicated triathlon tyre should give you the grip of a slick/summer tyre combined with the puncture protection of a winter/training tyre.

In theory.

Kell

1,708 posts

207 months

Tuesday 15th July 2014
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I must admit, I've often wondered whether a compound that remains sticky at lower temps (like winter tyres on a car) would have any benefit on a bike.

TonyHetherington

32,091 posts

249 months

Tuesday 15th July 2014
quotequote all
IroningMan said:
In theory a dedicated triathlon tyre should give you the grip of a slick/summer tyre combined with the puncture protection of a winter/training tyre.

In theory.
Ooo I'm up for a good theory. Will investigate.