Road tyres to get me through this poor weather?

[Stupeo]

Hello PH'ers, I need your advice.

I currently have some cheap 23c smooth tyres on my road bike and I want to invest in some better tyres that will get me through the poor weather over the next few months safely. I will also put these on my new Ribble R872 when it arrives in a few weeks.

Requirements are:

- 25c clincher tyres
- As puncture resistant as possible, my current Halfords ones are crap
- Decent in poor weather

I've heard good things on the Conti Gp 4 Season tyres, but at £65 for the pair I thought I'd seek PH advice first.

Thanks!

[okgo]

I'd just buy them.

I've used sets that have thread exposed without issue, they're really quite tough, roll well, and are pretty quick tyres still.

[yellowjack]

Same as okgo - my last set of Conti Grand Prix 4 Seasons ran until the canvas showed through the rubber. Few punctures and pretty long-lived. Only the price is keeping me from another pair, simply because I don't have the cash right now. They'd certainly be high on my shortlist for a new set of poorer-weather tyres. Best all-round tyres I've used.

[Pachydermus]

If you want something a bit cheaper then try gatorskins. I've used them for commuting for the past 10 years or more and punctures are rare (touching lots of wood). There's also a hardshell variant now that's supposed to be more puncture resistant but I haven't tried that yet.

[okgo]

They do however have a very poor ride, and grip is very poor owing to the compound of the tyre which always felt a bit wooden to me.

[Pachydermus]

possibly but it's not something I've noticed on the commute - maybe I'm just too slow.

[TheInternet]

Pachydermus said:

If you want something a bit cheaper then try gatorskins.

Awful in the wet IMO, won't have them on my front wheel. GP 4 Seasons are top.

[okgo]

Pachydermus said:

possibly but it's not something I've noticed on the commute - maybe I'm just too slow.

For a commute, anything will do assuming its a fairly normal one, but I guess if OP meant proper riding in the lanes in the winter, grip is useful.

[Steve vRS]

Another happy four season user here.

[neenaw]

The 4 Season's seem pretty popular but personally I prefer Schwalbe tyres.
I've used the Schwalbe Durano on my bikes for the past few winters with absolutely no problems and next to no punctures.

[Mark83]

I bought 28c 4 Seasons for my single speed. I decided or try them on my road bike and was very surprised they fit. I'll be running those over the winter now. Big fan of 4 Seasons so interesting to see how I get on with the extra width over the 25s I ran last winter.

[47p2]

I've been running Gatorskind on my single speed for the last 3 winters and done over 3000 miles on them. The only time they let go was then I took a sharp left hand bend and rode over an iron drain cover.

[ALawson]

I ran GP4ks through winter on some pretty poor roads, potholes and I only had one 1 puncture so I would expect that the 4 Seasons would be fine.

[alfa phil]

Ive had Shwalbe sammy slicks on my Caadax for 12months ,they have been great,with good road holding, no punctures ,although the rear has worn now and needs replacing

[okgo]

Two flats on my gp4 seasons today - probably time to replace then

[Banana Boy]

okgo said:

Two flats on my gp4 seasons today - probably time to replace then

Out of interest, how long have you had them and how many miles/kms have they done?

[Stupeo]

Thanks all - will go for the 4 seasons.

[okgo]

Banana Boy said:

Out of interest, how long have you had them and how many miles/kms have they done?

Hmmmm.

I think its just under 1 year old, though I may have swapped the front and back round? Not 100% sure - I've done 10,000 miles since then, some of those miles on another set of wheels, but either way, must be a lot of miles ha!

[bakerstreet]

I ran 4 seasons for a few months. Better ride (softer side walls) than the gatorskins and certainly much easier to put on, but after a silly amount of punctures on my normal commute, they went in the bin .

Not commuting anymore, but I'm currently running Michenlin Pro4 Endurance on my nice bike and they are holding up very well

Still got an old set of gatorskins on my Ali bike. They need changing though as one is pretty square now.

[loudlashadjuster]

I weighed up the GP 4 Seasons and the Duranos but went with the Schwalbes because my previous Continental Grandsport Races were a bugger to get on and off my Fulcrums.

Turns out the Schwalbes are no better in that regard but are looking impressively unshredded after about 700 miles, not seeming to pick up as many nicks as the Contis always managed to.

That said, they managed me through a whole winter without a problem before starting to puncture regularly in the spring (flints in the Chilterns eventually slice up too much of the surface), so they weren't too bad. A surprising 40g heavier per tyre than the Schwalbes though, and they're not a light tyre.

Edited by loudlashadjuster on Monday 5th September 12:42