jonathanf2

My usual gravel tires have been WTB Nano 700 x 40c. They roll fast on pavement and give me excellent bite on the trails. Though last week I wiped out on the road resulting in some nasty elbow and leg scrapes. I was riding on dirt covered tarmac and lost control when I was corning fast on a turn. I believe the lack of adequate side tread on the Nanos made me lose grip.

After the crash, I decided to swap out the Nanos for my other set of gravel hoops which are GravelKing SK+ plus tires in 700 x 38c. They're grippy, corner adequately, work well on trails, but definitely slower. I even confirmed what I was noticing on Strava, with far slower times on numerous segments. Anyways, I've been offered a pair of regular GK SK tires (non-plus) heavily discounted and I was wondering if those would ride better than the SK+ version tires and at least match my Nanos in terms of speed while having better cornering grip? I've read the extra layer of puncture protection is what makes the SK + plus tires slower. If the SKs are still slow are there any recommendations for a fast gravel tire that has the traction bite of the Nanos with slightly better cornering tread? Thanks!

dsaul

Terrene Elwood(tough version) is the best rolling gravel tire I have ridden and far superior to the Gravelking SK, in my experience. They don't have the chunky knobs of the Nano, but I find that they have great traction in everything but mud. They roll very similar to a road tire on pavement and have great cornering traction.

People seem to love the Gravelking SK, but I don't think they have much experience with the other options available. My experience with Gravelking SK's was that they roll really slow on pavement and the cornering sucks, because of the almost continuous rib around the edge instead of individual knobs. That effectively turns the tire into a slick, at a time when you need knobs to grip the surface.

jonathanf2

The Nanos despite being heavier than the GK SK+ tires, roll so much faster. I was a good 20 seconds slower on an uphill segment with the SK tires versus when I used the Nanos. On the Nanos I can push myself to accelerate, but on the SK+ tires it feels like my tires are boat anchors. I've read previous threads comparing the plus and regular SKs and some people said it might just be in their head, but all my computer data with the SK plus tires confirm I'm slower. Also road performance is quite important to me, since I usually ride to the trails as opposed to driving there.

The only reason I was even considering the regular SK tires was due to the discount I'm receiving. Though I still have to deal with mounting and testing the tires and I'd be disappointed if they feel exactly the same as the plus version. I'll definitely check out the Terrene Elwood. Thanks for the suggestion!

MinnMan

Consider Gravelking SS?

jonathanf2

I love the SS tires. I'm using those on my road bike in 32c. Though I'm bit concerned they might not be as grippy on some of the uphill trails I ride. The GKs at least have the small knobs. Though I could see myself going up to 43c (as opposed to 38c) on my gravel bike with the SS to get maximum cushion and grip.

chas58

In my experience, tread (or lack of it) doesn't really do much to cause a loss of grip in the dry (especially on hardpack or dirty tarmac). It does significantly impact breakaway characteristics. Tire pressure can make a significant difference, in that too much of it can cause the tire to lose contact with the road while lower pressure allows the tire to conform to the terrain and stay incontact. The biggest thing to cause a tire to loose traction in the dry is even pressure on the tread - which again goes back to tire pressure.

Realistically, it is mostly technique - but hey I've gone down in those conditions just because I was going to fast when the surface conditions changed. Smooth inputs and loose supple upper body will keep the tires in contact with the road surface, and maximize your grip.

As for the specific tires in question, the Nano's are known for being one of the slowest, most draggy tires out there. Specifically it takes about 60 watts to power those at 18mph. Interestingly, the SS+ is just as awful.

Contrast that to the regular SS, that takes about 46 watts, or the SK that takes 50 watts to maintain the same speed. So yeah, you can do a lot better.

dwmckee

Several of us at our shop rode the SS. We all came to the same conclusion that they are kind of slick on pavement, especially wet pavement. They do not have as much traction as the Vittoria Terreno Zeros, Challenge Strada Biancas or Rene Herse tires. It seems like the tread compound is kind of hard when compared to other tires. They are not terrible, but we stopped recommending them as we felt there are better choices.

jonathanf2

I ended up biting the bullet and getting the regular GK SK tires. I tested them out today and they feel much more nimble and less sluggish than the SK plus tires. I guess the plus version really does prioritize puncture protection over ride performance. The regular SK tires feel much more nimble and less sluggish. Even though they have the same tread pattern, they definitely feel like different tires. Thanks for all the suggestion and help!

jfranci3

BRR tested the slick and SS in TLC and Plus, but they also tested the Rene Herse which are similar... the difference stays consistent and will be consistent for the SK.

https://www.bicyclerollingresistance...&minknobe=-0.1

There's a significant rolling resistance / ride difference between the PLUS and regular TLC. The WTBs never test well in terms of RR, and roll like the Plus tires. The Plus have about 25% ( 26.6w vs 20.8w on the SS; 28.5w (inferred) vs 22.7 on the SK)
higher rolling resistance from the ~33% thicker rubber. That's per tire, so you're looking at about 2x those values, so if you're cranking out 200w, the regular tire would save you 12w or 6% of your power.

Maybe have a look at the Pirelli Gravel H (20.3w) in those sizes and save a few more watts. These would save 16w / 8% of your power output.


The SS is kind of useless in my view. For LA, you're looking at a layer of dry dust over smooth hardpack in most cases. You'll want mini-knobs to reach through the dust layer during braking and climbs and cornering knobs. The SK is the minimum you'll want to do that. TIres like the SS and g-one allaround just dont' have the knobs to deal with the dust layer. The Conti Terra Speed, Spec Pathfinder, and Pirelli H might work, but the cornering knobs are minimal. The