geepondy

In less than 500 miles, I've gotten two flats with my 700x28 Continental GP Four Seasons which I bought from the recommendation of many. Having said that, are the Gatorskins significantly improved in flat resistance over the four seasons? Although I do carry a spare tube and a bike tool, I mostly ride solo and flat resistance is hugely paramount for me. The tires are on a Specialized Roubaix and I must say I never got one flat with my old Trek Hybrid with the 700x35 thicker tread tires.

tempocyclist

In theory (and according to Continental) yes, the Gatorskins offer more puncture protection. Harder, thicker rubber compound so a less supply ride and arguably less grippy than the 4 Seasons.

I'd say you may just have been unlucky in the puncture department. Two flats in 500 miles is not what I'd call loads or a worry though. The 4 Seasons are a good choice for "all round" road cycling if you don't fancy faster, less flat resistant tyres. The Gators I'd put as more of a "workhorse" road bike tyre.

Iride01 

Hard to say. Depends on why you are flatting.

I've got over 4000 miles on my set of Continental GP 5000's and only one flat.

alcjphil

A better description of the flats you did have might point out why they happened. Not all flat tires are caused by punctures of the tire itself

jaxgtr

I used Gatorskins on my commuter and had 1 flat is 4 yrs. Great tires but ride like crap, but again, it was a commuter, so I put up with it to avoid flats on that bike.

geepondy

In more detail first flat was caused by a small piece of wire - disappointed it made it through the tire. Second flat (actually more like 200-300 miles after first) was a pinch flat when I hopped up the low curve right at my doorstep, fortunately. I think there must have been a primary fault that made me unknowingly lose air because the tires had enough pressure (70 lbs) that I should have not had a pinch flat. However I scrutinized the tire in great detail but could not find a fault. Then when I changed the tube and started pumping in air, the tube blew at maybe 40 psi. I think it's entirely possible I pinched the tube during changeover. I then brought it the bike shop and let the techician change it and I have since gone on a 30 mile ride without incident. I've watched videos and tried to practice a couple of times but when putting on the rim, I can't force it on without using tire irons. yet the bike technician rolled it on like it was butter.

HTupolev

Not necessarily. It's very difficult to determine a "good enough" pressure for pinch flats, because riding circumstances and the shape of the impact surface both dramatically affect how deeply the tire will be smushed. Pavement lips are very nasty pinch sources, and some forms of botched bunny hop can put a ton of momentum behind a wheel impact.

Always put a bit of air into the tube before installation so that it holds its shape. Once the tire is on the rim, but before inflating it up to riding pressure, check all around the tire bead to make sure that the tube isn't trapped beneath it anywhere.

If you insist on using tire levers... well, they're a non-optimal tool for installing tires, but they have a near-zero chance of actually causing problems if you employ careful technique. Whenever you're levering the bead over the rim wall, never keep going until the tip of the lever bottoms out within the rim. Pull the lever out before that happens, to prevent smashing or catching things. Always try to lever a minimum amount of bead over the rim wall at once: don't try to lever big sections of bead at high tension, it puts everything under lots of stress and makes it harder to perform good technique.

Gunther20

I got 4 flats while using Gatorskins in 2020. Yet I still don't blame the Gatorskins - 2 flats occurred while the bike was in transit. No idea why, hot car/truck maybe? 1 flat was when I ran over a sharp roofing tack. I don't think any tyre could have prevented that one. And the final flat was from air pressure that was too low, classic snake bite. The point is I don't think two flats are enough anecdotal evidence to say that Gatorskins are flat-prone.
For 2021 I switched to GP5000 and didn't get any flats, yet I still believe GP5000 to be more flat-prone than Gatorskins.

delbiker1 

l do not sacrifice ride quality for puncture resistance. For me, there are too many good riding, good flat protection tires to choose from to go that route.

msu2001la

I totally agree. I get that flat tires are a pain, but I have done tens of thousands of miles on multiple sets of GP4000 and GP5000 ranging from 25mm-32mm over the last 5-6 years, riding daily in urban conditions with broken glass, grit, potholes, etc. In that time, I've maybe had a total of 5 flat tires during that time, all of which were easily fixed with a spare tube on the side of the road in a matter of minutes.

I'm not willing to ride my road bike with heavy, hard, high rolling resistance tires that rides like crap just to slightly reduce the chances of flatting.

In terms of answering the OP's question - I don't think Gatorskin has any more protection against pinch flats than any other tire. In terms of puncture resistance, Gatorskin has a very thick and hard rubber compound that likely provides more protection. Both tires have a puncture resistance layer of materials in the layup. I think the gap in terms of puncture resistance between these two isn't as big as the gap in ride quality, but some people seem to not care about ride quality nearly as much as I do.

theblackbullet

I've had way better experience with Gatorskins than GP Four Seasons in regards to flat protection. The tradeoff is that the Gatorskins can be a bit more slippery when wet, and any size other than 700x32 ride harsh. My touring bike has 700x32 Gatorskins. My training wheels for my race bike get 700x25/28 Michelin Power Protection+.

ctak

I'd echo delbiker1 and msu2001la on the joys of suppleness, having had just two flats in the last 1.5 yrs with latex tubed Conti gp5000s over ~15k of miles.

But... if you decide to go the Gatorskin route, may as well just get Conti Hardshells for a little extra bang.