Chandne

Certainly faster on rough roads plus on descents. The safety margin is higher. I can tell while on those fast and twisty corners I usually do near my house. I am not on the ragged edge anymore. For me it isn't about being faster on the downhills in general...it is about being safer and enjoying the corners. The improved traction and the ability to brake quickly and effectively (ever seen a deer pop out when carving at 35/40 MPH?) even though I generally am trying to go slower in these sections. The comfort is really really nice. With a larger contact patch, a bigger safety margin, and a little more compliance, it just makes cycling more enjoyable for me.

PeteHski

Yeah, no-brainer for me. I have 30 mm GP5000S TR on my race bike and 32 mm Pirelli Cinturatos on my training/spare bike.

Chandne

I have Pirelli Cinturato 32s waiting for the winter. I took the Maxxis ReFuse 32s off and put on the Specialized S-Works T2/T5 whatever 30s on. They now measure 32.1...great tires though with the minimum PSI (I prob mentioned this earlier) of 65 is a bit much. So, I bought a few ENVE SES 31s (they measure 34s eventually on 25mm rims) so I can run 50-55 in front. I'll run 55ish in the back tire and I air the rear up a bit when on long climb days, so 60. You could no longer convince me to run even 28s. I do have 28s on another bike and will put the Specialized tires on it since it has hooked rims and with the Future Shock, I don't mind running 65.

eduskator

Yeah, I'd say it depends on both the tire & rim combo... Once you find the perfect combo, you keep it and cross your fingers that the factory doesn't change its molds lol.

cormacf

Any suggestions for a 28 to run on sandy roads? Picked up my first set of carbon wheels (Reynolds AeroDV 46), and they have a 19mm internal width (hooked). I do a lot of riding on Pacific Coast Highway in Califorbia, so there's always a ton of sand blowing across the road.

jaxgtr

How much sand are we talking about. Is it fairly thick where a road tire would lose traction, or just a small bit of sand blowing across the road. If it is not thick, I would say, most of the bigger brands would be ok in that, I ride near the beach here in Florida, have to deal with sand, and have not had any issues maintaining grip no matter the tire I happen to be using. I just avoid the larger piles as much as possible. If you are worried about running through thicker sand, would a 30 or 32 be a better option? I currently run Pirelli P Zero Race on 2 different bikes in 28 and 30.

Chandne

Look at the Maxxis ReFuse or some similar tire that has some tread. I have used the Maxxis and they appear to be tough and are grippy. They are a bit heavier but roll well.

mschwett 

i ride on great highway a lot, which is sometimes inundated by sand and usually at least a bit sand blown. i find that any road tire is totally unstable over more than a thin coat of sand (you have to go literally perfectly straight without braking or leaning) but on the flip side, every road tire i’ve tried from 28-35 works perfectly well with thin blowing sand. as long as i can see the color of the asphalt i’m good.

robbyville

I live in Palm Desert CA can’t get much sandier than that (especially after a wind storm). Ultimately not much will help when it comes to riding through troughs of grit. But I’d say my continental 5000’s have been pretty dang good. Right now I’m on the Vittoria Next’s and they been great as well

ussprinceton

GP5000s

DirePenguin

My 2022 Domane SL5 came with those and I’ve got no complaints.

I’ve put almost 1,500 miles on them and I’ve not had a single puncture that didn’t seal almost instantly (I only knew it had happened because of the little bit of white goo on the frame).

They’re wearing good, too. The front tire still has a little of the “molding flash” still on it!

jaxgtr

That is an older post. Have not been on the Bontrager's for a while, moved over to a Pirelli but, the Bontrager's still not a bad tire.

NoWhammies

So after just over 7,000km this happened to my rear Michelin Power Road TLR tyre. I guess I cannot complain too much since, like I said, I was just over 7,000km. Still I am burned a little bit b/c the tyre wear indicators still showed some life to go.

Overall still very pleased with the Michelin tyres. I have another set waiting to be put on the bike once I use the Veloflex tyres I bought..

DaveSSS 

I bought early model Michelin tubeless and had similar cracking at the tread/sidewall junction. I've got my last four in use on two bikes. If I see cracks, they're going in the trash. Pirelli P-Zero have been better, but they usually cost a lot more.

PeteHski

That is definitely not a good end of life scenario! I don't know what it is about Michelin bike tyres, but I had issues years ago with their mtb tyres cracking up around the tread blocks like this. Probably not related as it was literally 20 years ago, but I've kind of stayed away from their bike tyres since. This would certainly put me off their current road tyres too. I would expect them to wear out on the tread, not literally crack and fall to pieces like this! Did they get exposed to any extreme sun or heat during their life?

NoWhammies

I have one more pair of Michelin tyres waiting to be mounted and I have a set of Michelin tyres on my second bike. To your point DaveSSS if the Michelin tyres on my second bike start cracking like this, my time with Michelin tyres will come to a swift end. I have been getting good result with Veloflex tyres. Even if the tyres are a few dollars more, I will switch back to them.

NoWhammies

So just to post an update on this thread. I had a look at the set of Michelin's on my other bike. Just under 4,000km and the rear tyre appears to starting the same process as the tyre in the photo above. I definitely think I am done with Michelins. Too bad too b/c the tyres were a breeze to mount on my setup and I thought they gripped the road quite well. Bummer about the shortness of the tyre life though. Looks like I'll be sticking with the Veloflex tyres.









I will continue to ride the tyre but I am going to inspect the tyre after every ride so I can keep an eye on when the tyre splits.

PeteHski

Thanks for the update on Michelin tyres. I’ll cross those off my future list.

I’ve now got 4000 km on my Conti GP5000S TR (30 mm) and they are still looking good. No cracking and plenty of wear life remaining. They’ve seen some rough roads and extreme heat too. No flats either, but the rear took a small cut recently that self-sealed without me noticing on the ride.

GhostRider62

That MIchelin looks well beyond when I would replace it. Worn out. YMMV

Alex_stompbox

Michelin

eduskator

Some people like to live dangerously. If that thing explodes at high speed on a descent, there will be a serious hospital bill (unless that guy lives in Canada and/or has a free health care system).

msu2001la

I double flatted Wednesday AM on a chunk of broken glass and ruined two brand new 28mm GP5000 S TR's. I happen to have an REI and a Backcountry store just a few blocks away, so I walked up there today assuming I'd be able to find some replacements, or maybe one of the other popular road tubeless options (P-Zero Race, Pro One, maybe the Power Cups or one of those crazy Vittoria options...). Nope. Neither of those stores have any 28mm+ road tubeless tires in stock at the moment.

Anyway, there is also a Specialized store near me (yes I'm surrounded by corporate chains) and they had some snazzy tan wall S-Works Turbo's in 30mm size. This was not my first choice, I've been very happy with 28mm GP5000's, but seemed like the best option if I wanted tires today (which I do, so that I can ride tomorrow AM).

So... Specialized gets another $200 from me (I also bought a mini hand pump and a bottle of sealant). I'm going to mount these up on Zipp 303S wheels tonight and try them out tomorrow on a group ride. Hopefully they go on & seat easy and don't cause me a bunch of headaches.

Anyone have any experience with these tires? They're the regular Turbo 2bliss 2T/5T, not the "RapidAir" which I think is the higher end version. I presume that means they have a little more flat protection at the expense of a few grams and rolling resistance, the latter of which I'm hoping I won't notice.

msu2001la

Ready to rock. Install was uneventful. Fit is slightly tighter than the GP5000 S TR's, but nothing a tire lever couldn't handle. I needed to use my airshot on both tires to get them seated initially, but they stayed seated when I deflated to add sealant, so that's a nice bonus. Size wise - I don't have a caliper to measure, but visually I don't see any difference between these and the 28mm Conti's.

I like the tan sidewalls. Hopefully these last a while:

PeteHski

It will be interesting to hear your thoughts on how these compare with the GP5000S TR.

Troul 

If you dont mind, how much were those tires from Specialized? I'm thinking the reason why the local B&M stores don't carry the sought after tires is likely due to cost to stock them & unlikely event they will sell for the price they'd stick them up for. Which, shouldn't be the primary reason, but it is what it is with things.