rosefarts

Get a second wheelset. Road tires are not gravel tires.

Before I got a gravel bike, I rode an extremely traditional road bike on 28’s on some pretty interesting “roads”. Years before that, I rode plenty of that stuff on 23’s. Gravel as a concept didn’t exist but races occasionally had dirt roads.

Wider and knobbier tires help. So do reduced gears from the road. You pretty much have to learn to climb everything sitting. Stand and even a MTB will lose traction on sand/rocks/dirt.

OldRailfan

Yep! I bought a new bike last year — DeVinci Stellar Acera — which the mfg markets as a "XC Sport"; 3x9 gearing (44/32/22 T to go with the 11-34 T cassette).
It came with 27.5 x 2.4 tires, this year that got slimmed down to Continental Tires Race King ShieldWall Mountain Bike Tire - 27.5 x 2.0 Folding MTB Tire
The way I see it it's a happy compromise on gravel/dirt and on the road. Also gives me that "better feeling" when hitting 64 km/h (40 mph) on downhills even if the pavement is not perfect.

mstateglfr 

What are 'regular Gravel Kings' if not slicks?
There is the Slick, SS, and SK models, right?

rosefarts

I really liked my SK’s, and I’ll probably get another pair one of these days.

Isn’t “gravel king” just about the most deceptive name for a wide variety of tires?

Of course Huffy or Murray had a “titanium” model made out of iron pipes.

scottfsmith

Gravel King is Panaracer's gravel line up .. they are all made for gravel including the slicks. The "slicks" have a fine file tread on them, they are not completely slick.

Slicks work well for gravel if you have no mud, no steeps, and no deep gravel to swim through.

mstateglfr 

Yeah, I will respectfully disagree with this. I have GK slicks in 28 and 32, as well as GK SS in 43.
The slicks are for all intents and purposes- slick. There is the slightest obligatory patterning that doesnt affect riding, but it is worn off in short order and what hits pavement is totally smooth. The 28 and 32mm tires are no more 'made' for gravel than any other $30-50 road tire in the same widths.
Conti GP4k and GP5k are gravel tires as much as a 28mm GK slick is a gravel tire.

And I have found that riding thru loose gravel is best with volume vs knobby tread. For loose deep gravel sections on flat road, I would take a 43mm slick over a 35mm with knobby tread as more volume helps the tire dig in less.
Steep sections are fine with my 43mm SS tread, which is basically also obligatory patterning in the middle. If I spin out on a steep section with the SS tires, I am confident I would spin out with any other similar sized tire regardless of tread pattern.

I will agree that slick tires arent great for mud. That is when some knobs can help.

Racing Dan

Yeah, I dunno. Where I live GKs are often recommended for gravel, but at the local Gravel FB group I often see ppl complain about them flatting all the time, however not often specifying what particular model. Cant say I tried any of them but I agree. The "slick" model, without the "+" moniker sure look like any ol road tyre, except maybe for the claimed anti-flat casing that doesnt seem to do much anyway. I do think they are less susceptible to side cuts than true road tyres like GP5000 tho. Id agree the standard slick is as much (little) "gravel" as a many slightly reinforced road tyres.

freetors

I've been running the 38mm GK slick on my bike for nearly 1000 miles now and honestly I can't believe some of the crap it's survived. I've ridden it on tons of gravel, a lot of it sharp, and a bunch of chunky roads with rocks embedded in the surface and I've only experienced one puncture so far that sealed up almost immediately. I think that's pretty darn impressive for a tire that is thinner and lighter than a dedicated road tire like a 28mm GP5k.I weigh about 175 and run them between 30-45 psi depending on conditions. To me, the only downsides to the slick is that 38 is the largest size available and they get pretty drifty on looser surfaces. Also they are so floppy that on my wheels it's impossible to get the beads to seat without using a tube first or preseating them with tire levers.

mstateglfr 

A 38mm GK slick is 100g heavier than a 28mm GP5k. Tread thickness is less for the GK.

freetors

I specifically meant (ok it was implied in the context of the gravel forum) the GP5k tubeless version, which according to the specs I could find are near enough the same weight as the gravel king.

redlude97

The gravelking slick is fast because the tread is thin but the casing isn't particularly supple. Gotta rely on good sealant for reliability with them, but you'll get 3-4k before they are down to treads. Contrast that with the Rene Herse versions also made by panaracer which are faster and more robust in the tread area with a thicker rubber and much more supple casing and no? puncture layer.

chaadster

I remember when GK was launched because I was on their Race Type A Evo tires at the time, and I recall that the GK was pitched as having an all-new construction— new casing, compound, everything— that was specifically designed for gravel use. It was certainly unlike any of the other tires they had at the time, as I recall; I had Paselas on one of my rigs, too.

Anyway, I’ve been running some type of GK since ‘16 or so, either in 28c or 32c tubed, and they’ve been great for my needs. The 28s were my gravel tires until I built up a dedicated gravel bike this year, and they were so well suited to the job that although I selected Herse rubber, I confidently stuck with the file tread type. I still use the 28c GK on my spring/rain/winter bike. Good tires, IMO.