due ruote 

We have been using the Supple Vitesse EX (38 width) on our tandem and have been pretty pleased. Not a lot of flats, and we get around 4k miles from them, which I think is pretty good for a tire this light on a tandem.
Like everything else, the price is going up on them, and I was looking around at other options. The Shikoro looks very similar, but with a beefier sidewall protection and perhaps a bit more tread(?) I know lots of people like the Gravelkings. The SV seems to be the most spendy of the lot, but not by much; so I wouldn't see much point in changing unless performance was essentially equal, or longevity was superior, or both. Thoughts? Other tires to consider? I have no experience with Rene Herse. My general impression is they are high performance tires but a bit delicate - am I wrong about that? TIA.

52telecaster

Love to know as well.

csport

Are you looking at them specifically in the context of the classic and vintage?

I had Supple Vitesse tires, I am a heavy rider and I got <2k miles when something pecked the rear tire removing a layer of rubber up to the casing. Not many flats either, I remember one caused by a large shard of glass. As far as I know, they are clones of Rene Herse.

In addition to Shikoro there is also the new Everwear - it has more tread and they same puncture protection as Shikoro.

AngryScientist 

I would say 4k miles is excellent service out of a nice supple tire, especially on a tandem. I think the gravel king in slick will not last as long but will ride as nicely.

Another option that will last longer, cost less and give up just a little in the ride category is the venerable Panaracer Pasela.

m.c. 

The Supple Vitesse is or was made by panaracer for Soma, the ride may be very close.

AngryScientist 

That's true, but Panaracer makes tires for lots of folks I believe, many of which are quite different. I believe they are the manufacturer for Rene Hearse tires for example, which are quite a specialty $$$ tire.

That said, I have ridden a lot of Panaracer products, and they have all been very good IMO

m.c. 

I recently bought the protite pasela and have been debating on trying the Rene herse tires. I recently bought some things from them and don't really like that there is no phone number or email address to contact them.

AngryScientist 

The RH tires are probably the nicest riding fat tires out there. They can be delicate though, but I just finished up some back roads credit card touring in Vermont on a set with no problems. I do agree that their absolute lack of customer service is a turn off, as is the price.

due ruote 

Stated weights for 38mm tires:

Supple Vitesse 320g
Gravelking Slick 330g
RH Barlow Pass 385g
Pasela Protite 420g
Shikoro 430g
Everwear 460g

In the Soma tires, the Supple Vitesse casing seems to be the differentiating factor, judging by the descriptions on their site.
If there is a comparison to be made with the Pasela (which I have nothing against, mind you), I suspect it's a closer match to the Shikoro. And it may be close enough, performance-wise, to consider. The Pasela would clearly win the price battle, by a fair margin.

csport

An article comparing Rene Herse to Panaracer

m.c. 

Which of their tires are Compass tires? Are they all Compass but have different names?

ehcoplex 

Compass became Rene Herse when JH bought (or otherwise arranged) the rights to the RH name.

I will surely soon live to regret saying this, but in about 2.5k miles on RH tires riding on roads ranging from OK, to crappy, to chip-seal, to seasonal gravel, to just-short-of-single-track I have yet to have a flat. I'm 155-160#, and not carrying a load, and have no idea how wear would be on a tandem, but I'm right at the point of swapping front & rear tires now. We'll see how much more I get out of them- I'm hoping another 1k at least. I will say they are THE most comfortable tires I've ever experienced.

csport

Compass is the same as Rene Herse. At some point they acquired the Rene Herse brand name and merged Compass into it.

m.c. 

Thanks.

stardognine

Another option to investigate, is the Vittoria Terreno Dry (mine is 700x37c). It has the bigger knobby treads on the sides, so really could be a light duty gravel tire, but a pretty smooth tread in the center, for better pavement riding.

I dunno how it stacks up with the others mentioned, got this one as a used freebie, lol, but like it, so mentioned it. 😁

nick_a

Soma fab had a sale not too long ago on the SV EX 42's, which have become my absolute favorite tires. I started on some 38s, then tried the Gravelking SS+ (hated them, felt like riding through peanut butter) before returning to the Somas. I bet the Gravelking slicks are great (standard, not plus)and have looked forward to checking them out. They're also ubiquitous and cheap. But the Soma tires come up for sale occasionally on modern bike or other retailers, and that's when I try to snatch them.

frogger72

Yes I got a set of those SV 42's and they are really nice, wish I had stocked up on them in a bunch of sizes at the sale prices, I fear they won't be restocked.

ascherer 

My experience is that they are completely different. I have Pasela, Rene Herse and Soma SV mounted in various sizes on various bikes and find that the RH/Compass are clearly superior in terms of comfort and ride quality, with Somas close behind and Paselas being less remarkable in those qualities. I haven't had wear or excessive flats on the RH or Paselas, and haven't ridden the Somas enough to say.

I've never wanted to call a tire maker. It seems to be a sticking point for some folks as it relates to RH specifically, is it because they are expensive? I used to think expensive tires were ridiculous. Now I think I'm worth it. YMMV

m.c. 

I will try their tires after all the positive posts.

I needed to contact them concerning some parts I’ve bought, some proprietary. I thought they would have a customer service or tech help number to call. They have no email or phone number, just an online return form IIRC.

ascherer 

I get that, wasn't calling you out specifically @m.c. Other folks in other posts have expressed that concern. I hope you like the tires!

cooperryder

I just recently read this Rene Herse blog post which lists some very long and rugged rides with riders using the Rene Herse tires...mostly the tougher Endurance version from what I saw.

https://www.renehersecycles.com/rene-...he-world-over/

I have a 4 or 5 year old pair of the 26" Rat Trap Pass (not the lightweight version) that have held up well for city riding.

If I ordered another pair in any size I would get the more rugged Endurance version which doesn't add all that much weight.

A friend just started riding on a new pair of these and raves about them. Continental Contact Urban.
They are pretty economical. He bought the 700x42 but they come in quite a few sizes.
He likened them to the Vittoria Voyager Hyper which were popular years back but discontinued .
After listening to him tout them so much I ordered a pair which just arrived.
I look forward to mounting and trying them out.

The guy that does the rolling resistance test gave them good marks overall.

https://www.continental-tires.com/bic.../contact-urban

motochick 

We are running Soma Everwear on our tandem in 38mm at 55 and 60 psi, f/r. The only difference I can tell so far in the lack of flats every ride compared to our GK slicks. That was getting old!

due ruote 

I just looked at the Barlow Pass tires and was surprised to see that they are listed as 385g. vs 320g for Supple Vitesse. I wonder if that’s a typo, especially as the endurance casing version is listed as the same weight.

due ruote 

That’s a buzz-kill for sure. Were they old, or did they give you trouble from the start?

motochick 

They were on the bike since we built it up in December, the front was the regular casing and the rear was the plus. I will never buy the regular again as the front had the most trouble. They only had 1200 miles on them. The goatheads have been especially brutal this year, all of our bikes have been affected. They almost all run GK. We put sealant in everything and have been good so far! We had way too many multi flat days to count, something needed to change!