Road bike Tyres

[DustRider]

Hi Guys

 

I come from a mtb background and am new to road cycling and recently bought a secondhand bike. (2015 Specialized Secteur Sport).

 

I have a couple of questions:

 

The bike currently has specialized Espoir Sport (700x25C) tyres on the front and back. When riding this afternoon I got a cut on the back tyre from a piece of glass in the road. I ran 8 bar pressure in both tyres.

 

1) Is the above tire a decent tire?

2) Can one put a different tire on the back than the front?

3) Will adding some Stans sealant to the tubes throw of the balancing?

4) Is there any other way to make the tyres less puncture prone?

5) Which tires would you recommend that is more puncture resistant?  

 

Looking forward to your replies.

 

Regards

[Paul Ruinaard]

HI - if you are asking about being puncture prone you clearly have had a couple - or am i on a tangent here?

 

Normally the tyres will get more puncture prone with age.

 

You can, depending on the rim, run road tubeless but that requires a different tyre. MTB type sealing doenst work the same on road as the tyre volume is lower and the pressure higher.

 

I have never tried adding stans to a road tube - it may work. Centrifugal force distributes the sealant equally so only when it gets old and starts to form lumps will it potentially cause balance issues. Otherwise it would do the same with pre-sealed MTB tires.

 

I suggest you get a good set of tires on your bike which are less puncture prone as the first thing. If you have the bucks and your rims are compatible then you can try a set of road tubeless tires but they also have their own risks.

[MDJ]

Welcome to the dark side!

 

See replies inline below, you'll probably get a lot of varying opinions .

 

Hi Guys

 

I come from a mtb background and am new to road cycling and recently bought a secondhand bike. (2015 Specialized Secteur Sport).

 

I have a couple of questions:

 

The bike currently has specialized Espoir Sport (700x25C) tyres on the front and back. When riding this afternoon I got a cut on the back tyre from a piece of glass in the road. I ran 8 bar pressure in both tyres.

> Pressure too high for 25mm (assuming your weight < 100Kgs), see below.

 

1) Is the above tire a decent tire?

> Don't have personal experience with this specific tyre - see replies to other questions below.

 

2) Can one put a different tire on the back than the front?

> Yes, shouldn't be a problem if they differ. However, most people run the same tyres front and back on their road set-up. Some people (<10% I'd guess) do run slightly thicker tyres, but normally unlike MTB, the thicker tyre goes at the back on a road bike - its more about lower pressures and comfort than anything else . Since we are talking 3-5mm difference its the exception rather than the norm, I would say get the same if you are starting out.

 

3) Will adding some Stans sealant to the tubes throw of the balancing?

> The balance should be ok with stans, however its not a good idea. Normal road tyres are too thin, too little air, too much pressure for the Stans to seal - so other than adding some weight and making a complete mess when you need to change the tube there is little value. You do get proper road bike "tubeless tyres", however these are expensive (typically R1,000+), require tubeless rims/conversions and in my experience don't really work that well for glass cuts. In my experience I'd get around 1 month before a cut too big to seal and once again, sealant mess everywhere when you need to put in a tube. However there is hope - see below .

 

4) Is there any other way to make the tyres less puncture prone?

> I would recommend getting a set of continental gatorskins, South Africa roads tend to be full of glass and I've ridden thousands of Km's on several sets of gatorskins and have had very few punctures. They are great training/riding tyres and a pretty well priced. You might read about them being slightly older or not as race orientated - there are newer options, but come at a cost. If you aren't riding in a lot of rain, I'd recommend the gatorskins:

 

https://www.cwcycles.co.za/product/continental-gatorskin-tyre

 

5) Which tires would you recommend that is more puncture resistant?  

> I'd recommend the gatorskins (25mm) as per above. If you are running a 25mm/25C and your weight is < 90kg, you can drop the pressure to 7bar or even 6, personally I run 85psi. This will make for a smoother ride, 8bar is way to high for a 25mm, 8 bar would be more for a heavy rider > 100kg on 23mm tyres.

 

 

Looking forward to your replies.

 

Regards

[DustRider]

Thanks for the replies.

 

I will definitely invest in a set of those tyres. I weigh about 90Kg. Will drop the pressure to about 7 bar and give it a go.

 

What does the 25C / 23C mean? Is that the tyre volume?

 

Also. In case of a puncture, how do you get the pressure back to 7 bar after fixing the puncture? I doubt a CO2 bomb will get the pressure that high. Is it better to carry a hand pump?

[Butterbean]

Thanks for the replies.

 

I will definitely invest in a set of those tyres. I weigh about 90Kg. Will drop the pressure to about 7 bar and give it a go.

 

What does the 25C / 23C mean? Is that the tyre volume?

 

Also. In case of a puncture, how do you get the pressure back to 7 bar after fixing the puncture? I doubt a CO2 bomb will get the pressure that high. Is it better to carry a hand pump?

I would run the tyres around 8 bar.

 

If you're buying new, 25c is great, and the number refers to the width.

 

I carry a hand pump and bombs, bombs will get it up to decent pressures, but if really not enough then you can top up. They fill the Tyre really quick so it's only a matter of pressure equalizing between the Tyre and the bomb inflator.

[MDJ]

> What does the 25C / 23C mean? Is that the tyre volume?

Google is your friend: https://bicycles.stackexchange.com/questions/16190/what-does-the-c-in-bicycle-tire-size-mean

 

Its basically the width of the tyre, practically you can say that C = mm. So in general 25c = 25mm tyre width. Depending on the brand they might actually inflate to be a bit wider. Some of the older/aero bikes have less space so can only take 23c tyres. Since you already have 25mm, stick to them - probably the most common at the moment.

 

> Also. In case of a puncture, how do you get the pressure back to 7 bar after fixing the puncture? I doubt a CO2 bomb will get the pressure that high. Is it better to carry a hand pump?

 

CO2 bomb will work just fine, remember that the volume of air is A LOT less in a road tyre vs MTB.

 

 

Thanks for the replies.

I will definitely invest in a set of those tyres. I weigh about 90Kg. Will drop the pressure to about 7 bar and give it a go.

What does the 25C / 23C mean? Is that the tyre volume?

Also. In case of a puncture, how do you get the pressure back to 7 bar after fixing the puncture? I doubt a CO2 bomb will get the pressure that high. Is it better to carry a hand pump?

[DustRider]

Thanks for all the help [emoji106]

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Eugene]

Thanks for the replies.

 

I will definitely invest in a set of those tyres. I weigh about 90Kg. Will drop the pressure to about 7 bar and give it a go.

 

What does the 25C / 23C mean? Is that the tyre volume?

 

Also. In case of a puncture, how do you get the pressure back to 7 bar after fixing the puncture? I doubt a CO2 bomb will get the pressure that high. Is it better to carry a hand pump?

I disagree will Manuel about 8bar being too high. Look on the sidewall of the Tyre, there will be a recommended pressure, use that.

 

My 25mm tyres are recommended to be 8.3 bar.

 

I do agree that Gatorskins are brilliant tyres and are probably best at puncture protection, but they are damn expensive. If you don't mind the high price tag, get them.

 

If you are like me and are price sensitive, a good, puncture resistant Tyre that is cheep is a Maxis Detonator.

 

Some guys recommend putting super glue into the cut, I personally don't trust that. I don't want a Tyre to explode at speed, it could hurt. If the cut is bad, I would rather replace.

[Grogs]

If you can get the folding Gatorskins (not the wire bead, which are far more common), go for the folding ones. Just as durable and easier to mount (I think they're also marginally lighter, if you're a weight weenie).

[MDJ]

I disagree will Manuel about 8bar being too high. Look on the sidewall of the Tyre, there will be a recommended pressure, use that.

 

My 25mm tyres are recommended to be 8.3 bar.

 

I do agree that Gatorskins are brilliant tyres and are probably best at puncture protection, but they are damn expensive. If you don't mind the high price tag, get them.

 

If you are like me and are price sensitive, a good, puncture resistant Tyre that is cheep is a Maxis Detonator.

 

Some guys recommend putting super glue into the cut, I personally don't trust that. I don't want a Tyre to explode at speed, it could hurt. If the cut is bad, I would rather replace.

 

Official Gatorskin manufacturer recommended 25c pressure is 95psi = just under 7 bar.

 

http://www.conti-tyres.co.uk/road-and-track/clinchers/gatorskin

 

The maximum is 8.3bar, but it does make for a bumpier ride - like I said there will be various opinions .

[Malpiet]

A tube of super glue is always handy and works like a bomb on cuts. Make sure you use a good brand like bostik or loctite and not the cheap crap.

 

Personally i wont run more than 6.5-7bars on a 25c tyre. 95psi in front and 100psi at the rear

[Jase619]

How's the puncture protection on GP4000s? Decent? 

[Mr lee]

How's the puncture protection on GP4000s? Decent?

Also keen to hear some feedback on this question!

[Jase619]

Also keen to hear some feedback on this question!

 

Yeah, am stuck between them and the Gatorskins. . .  Don't want to pay more to fix punctures more often

[Tristand]

I disagree will Manuel about 8bar being too high. Look on the sidewall of the Tyre, there will be a recommended pressure, use that.

 

 

Check the tyre AND the rim. Both have maximum pressures, replacing a popped tyre is not too expensive unlike a cracked rim. 8 bar should be the absolute upper limit for a clincher, some rims will only allow 7.5 bar.

[Tristand]

How's the puncture protection on GP4000s? Decent? 

 

GP4000s are race tyres.

Their puncture resistance and general lifespan is poor.