Gatorskin alternative

[BlinkFan]

I'll start by saying I'm a firm believer in Gatorskins. They have served me well in the past, and I'll probably continue using them for the foreseeable future.

 

They are however extremely hard to get onto my rims (American Classic Race 30). I usually have to use some soapy water just to get them on. Then I also have to pump them to 9bar to get the bead to pop into the rim "cavity" (for lack of the correct word). This might be due to the wheelset though?

 

Anyway - my wife and I are doing Ironman this year, and while I can still muster up the strength to do a roadside puncture repair, she really struggles to do it on her own. She just can't get the tyre back on the rim.

 

My question - what is out there that is as reliable as a Gatorskin, and perhaps a little earsier to fit on a wheel? (25C)

[Skinnyone]

I find the Bontrager R3 tyres a very good alternative - I have done over 1500km of commuter km's on a set with reasonable puncture/km ratio....

[Cippo]

I'll start by saying I'm a firm believer in Gatorskins. They have served me well in the past, and I'll probably continue using them for the foreseeable future.

 

They are however extremely hard to get onto my rims (American Classic Race 30). I usually have to use some soapy water just to get them on. Then I also have to pump them to 9bar to get the bead to pop into the rim "cavity" (for lack of the correct word). This might be due to the wheelset though?

 

Anyway - my wife and I are doing Ironman this year, and while I can still muster up the strength to do a roadside puncture repair, she really struggles to do it on her own. She just can't get the tyre back on the rim.

 

My question - what is out there that is as reliable as a Gatorskin, and perhaps a little earsier to fit on a wheel? (25C)

I am assuming you are talking of wire bead version. I use the foldable Gator which is slightly more expensive but same quality and almost as light as GP4000S. I have done about 4000km so far and the wear indicator is still visible. I had a puncture yesterday in SCT and it took me 5min to pop tyre off and change tube. I only used one tyre lever. The problem might also be that your rims are tubeless ready and therefore has a different inner profile which seals much better. The foldable Gators will still be much easier to change a tube with.

[bertusras]

What Cippo said. I have wire bead gators on my AC Argent rims, and I totally feel your frustration, it's an absolute nightmare to get them on or off. I however recently put the folding version onto some other wheels and wow, what a pleasure.

[DJR]

Foldable Gatorskins are much easier than the wire bead version, like Cippo said

Also, for roadside tyre repairs, use your lip ice stick, or even just a squirt of water from your water bottle to lubricate the last bit of tyre bead that is difficult to seat. Spit also works if you can get enough together.

[Martin PJ]

It may be an obvious suggestion, but here goes. Do you push the whole bead to the center of the rim tape before you try to get the tire off. You need to quickly go around the whole wheel, the center has a slightly smaller diameter than the edges of the wheel.

[gummibear]

You can get some good deals on the Conti GP4000 tyres at the moment 

[WeekendWarrior80]

I was in the market for Gatorskins in January last year. I spoke to the one LBS about them, and they suggested Vredestein Freccia TriComp as a slightly cheaper alternative. They seem to be hardy tyres - I haven't picked up one puncture with them yet.

 

Here's a little write up about them:

https://www.bikeradar.com/road/gear/category/components/tyres/road/product/review-vredestein-freccia-tricomp-road-tyre-13-47129/

Edited January 21, 2019 by WeekendWarrior80

[LongDonkey]

Re gatorskins and them having a slightly higher rolling resistance. How useful are those tape inserts that go onto the inside of a tyre to give "better" puncture protection? I use a faster (very little puncture resistance) tyre for races where i hope the road surface is good such as Argus. Is there any benefit to going this route?

[HdB]

Re gatorskins and them having a slightly higher rolling resistance. How useful are those tape inserts that go onto the inside of a tyre to give "better" puncture protection? I use a faster (very little puncture resistance) tyre for races where i hope the road surface is good such as Argus. Is there any benefit to going this route?

Tyre liners? I had more punctures with them than without, on my road bike. Maybe I was just super unlucky, but they damage the tube if they don't sit absolutely perfectly.

Gave up on them, now I just put sealant in the tubes, or buy them with it already in.

[Ozzie NL]

Have a similar problem on my tubeless ready rims. Found it makes a big difference if you spray some water on the rime before inflating tires as it helps them slide onto rim

[vulgar]

Any foldup tyre will be "easier" than a beaded tyre on those rims.

Conti Grand sport Race foldup is a good alternative....If you brand conscious

If not 

Chaoyang Viper foldup bang for buck!!! Client had same rims and gave him these, Took his gators off with 2 tyre levers , put foldups with my fingers....

[Martin PJ]

I think tire liners are rubbish. If the race is important, put new tires and new tubes. That sorts out most problems. New tires are far less likely to puncture than old ones.

[BlinkFan]

Thanks for the feedback. I actually a spare Gatorskin (foldable) at home. I'll give it a try this week to see if it's a bit easier to fit.