crispyblunts

Either way part of riding brakeless puts you into the "cool" category. I find that if you learn to whip skid you'll stop faster and preserve tires longer. If you're putting your balls on the stem and letting your skid slide, any tire will get effed up. So long as all your weight is forward as you skid, your stopping power will be crap and your tires will drag on the floor longer, causing the tire life to end sooner. And of course, don't forget you can just put backward force on the pedals to slow down. A 30 ft skid isn't required for every red light, lol.

Chicagoan

Spam! Thickslicks blow. That gaudy logo and cheap price attract hipsters and people who don't know anything about bikes. But they ride like crap....its like a garden hose. They are sticky tires and will last a while...but they aren't all that flatproof. Get Randonneurs, Gatorskins, Everwears, or Armadillos(Armadillos chunk away eventually) All solid tires though. I love my Vittoria's though. I dumpstered a pair of Gatorskins and they lasted me 4 months brakeless (they were already somewhat worn, they were dumpstered from a high end road oriented shop)

Scrodzilla

Have you actually ridden on them? The Urban Elite model is actually pretty bomb-proof. and the fact that you're suggesting Everwears as a good alternative makes me think you don't know as much about tires as you think you do.

theooriginal

so i finally decided on what to get and got some RiBMOs to replace my stock Kendas on my Kilo. They're great, i would recommend it. Very tough, very stiff side walls, and pretty thick. Like hairnet said, the rolling resistance is probably not as low as others, but hey, that's probably cuz it's tough as hell, and not as soft as the other tires out there. They're pretty sticky too. I've hear nothing but good things about Panaracer tires.

but then again, i've only rode on so many tires, what do i know.

Ken Cox

Continental 4 Seasons: as tough and flat resistant as Gatorskins and better handling.

Panaracer T-Serv Protex: tough, flat resistant, cost effective.

Continental Top Contact 28mm Wire Bead: one year no-flat guarantee, easy on and off the rim, low rolling resistance, excellent handling, comfortable, extremely cut resistant, cost effective, and the best all around street tire I've ridden.

Stop skidding.

Either get a front brake or gear down to where you can stop without skidding.

Preferably, get a front brake and use it.

Also, pump your tires up to the correct pressure for your tire width and your riding weight EVERY DAY.

Correct pressure in pounds per square inch FOR THE STREET: 23mm tire, 1.1 times your riding weight in pounds divided by two; 25mm tire, 1 times your body weight divided by two; and, 28mm tire, .9 times your body weight divided by two.

The street and the track do not equate to each other.

If you ride on the street with high track pressures, you'll go slower and have more cuts and flats.

Get a floor pump with a built in pressure guage and use it every morning before your first ride.

iBgearLess

You are a funny man!!

bhurin

Continental Ultra Gatorskins

Leukybear 

GP4000's; expensive but they're so awesome (bikers equiv of sex on the road?), it's worth losing a couple of meals over. Try not to skid in them tho.

evangelinegale

tioga comodo! i've been riding this thing brakeless for over a month now and it's still going strong. plus i got the tire off a road bike i had last year so they already had several hundred miles of riding on them beofre they went on my fixie

arp415

Stop spying on me! plus I can't help it when it's cold out...

Chicagoan

I have basic model i think....bombproof yes but rides like a gardenhose.

BryantTheTyrant

Didn't wanna start a new thread.

I'd like to ask how much a good tire affects comfort in a ride?

And is it usually recommended to run the same tire on the front and in the back?

Leaning towards getting one Gatorskin for the back.

Squirrelli

If you're a heavy skidder, keep a nice front tire like GP4000S, Ultremo, Vittoria Open Corsa CX, Krylion Carbon because front tire is more important in terms of turning. Use thick tread tires like Rando or Thickslick for the rear.

BryantTheTyrant

Thank you. Good to know.

calv

Anyone ever use Schwalbe tires? The Ultremo series looks pretty good.

Corwings

I like mine too! Only one flat yet and it was a pinch flat.

Pretty sure my pressure wasn't high enough though.

markaitch

hi all...
my question is directed more towards the tire size rather than brand, for the moment.
my bike came with pretty nice 25c tires but since i had been exclusively riding mountain bikes for many years, they seemed so skinny to me that i was a lil freaked out by them. i kinda wonder how badly 23's would've affected me? all i thought about was swapping to bigger tires but then i got used to them after a while & actually grew to like the way they performed.
fast forward to earlier this week & it is way past time for new tires.
at 1st i was going to replace them with the exact same thing but figured this was my chance to see if i liked bigger tires after all & since my bike is alu, certainly wouldn't mind padding the ride a bit. since it is sort of an experiment, i picked up some cheapo cheng shins rather than take the chance of overbuying on something that would get used a couple times & then end up sitting in the spare parts stash, like i so often do.
went on a few short rides around the neighborhood earlier on them this week but just now got back from my 1st really long ride & i have mixed feelings.
i do like the extra cushioning these bigger tires offer, made riding on some of the s***ty roads around here almost comfy. but, and i know these things are heavier than my old tires, my bike now feels so slow & its quick handling disappeared. i don't think i can live with this, sure makes me glad i did not go for 32c tires.
so here's my question(s)
is it due to the bigger tires? or to the fact that they are not very good tires?
would a set of nicer, lighter 28's let me keep the softer ride while getting back the sharp performance i miss?
thanx for any suggestions...

hairnet

probably because those tires aren't good. I just switched to 35mm from 25s with Panaracer Paselas (also in 28) with the gum wall and I don't feel any slower yet the ride feels much softer than before. They aren't very expensive so they're worth giving a shot.



--I have ridden GP400s, it would be great to ride those all the time but I am happy with the Paselas at less than or equal to half the cost

Scrodzilla

Keep in mind that Paselas run a little small. The 25s on my Leader are closer to most 23s. When (if) they finally die, I'm going with 28s.

TejanoTrackie 

That's true in the smaller and medium sizes, but not for the larger sizes. I had a 28mm that was more like a 25mm and a 32mm that was more like a 28mm, but the 35mm is true to size.

Scrodzilla

Good to know.

markaitch

i will keep those paselas in mind for when i get fed up with these cst's. since i was looking for 28s guess that means i would have to go with the 32.

are you guys using gumwalls like hairnet mentioned? i think i prefer the all black but sure would like the softer ride...

EpicSchwinn

A buddy of mine mentioned that there are some fixed gear tires that change color as they wear down. Anybody on here know what he's talking about? I had some el cheapo bell tires on my 27" wheelset with a small patch that would go green to red, but I think these ones are the whole tire.

Edit: Nvm. I guess the latest everwears do this.

plowmanjoe

just got the ultremo r1 from bonk town. haven't had a chance to try them out yet. only heard good things though.

Scrodzilla

I really want to get a set of Scwalbe Durano Plus but I guess the 28c version is only available in Europe right now.