Continental GP 4000 folding tyres - Page 2

all went well this morning at 110lbs and felt faster already! They'll be up to 120lbs tonight!

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Bike: Giant 2006 CXR1 Flat Bar with 12-27 Ultegra. Brilliant fast bike!!!
Interests: Granchildren, Golf, Cycling, Powerlifting, Home Brew Beer, sampling as many different beers as I can before I die!!

Crikey, there are a lot of replies saying the same thing! Does noone read anyone else's posts?

I think that is a positive thing for net opinions. It's a good confirmation for the OP. Or, it's a damn easy subject that everyone can have a voice.

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Morphed Bianchi Camaleonte IV 2006, Ridley Damocles 2006, Garmin, Mac

Its called "+1"

RidingPowerlift, do you ride up that big rock at the back of Hobart?

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Training Log

"+1" acknowledges what the other poster has written.

I’ve got gp4000s off ebay as well and they are VERY tight on the rim… much tighter than the gp3000s they replaced. Maybe it could be that some of these tyres on ebay are factory seconds and are outside the normal size tolerance. Could be that you got a loose one and that’s why it’s popped off if it’s not your rim. I think it’s most likely though that you pinched the tube. In any case I wouldn’t be putting a tyre that you are suspicious of on the front wheel. Your best tyre should always be on the front.

I’d be interested to know anyway if anyone else has found that 4000s are tighter fitting than other Contis

Cheers Jay.

I have done Mt Wellington from "The Springs", (about half way up, but it's the harder half and great fun on a frosty morning!!).

re the tyres, I think it was a combination of not paying attention to detail, eg, I didn't straighten out the kinks (and it was flippin' cold here in Hobart so one probably let the tube through), and I didn't check that the tube wasn't pinched. So... all should go well at 120 lbs tomorrow.

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Bike: Giant 2006 CXR1 Flat Bar with 12-27 Ultegra. Brilliant fast bike!!!
Interests: Granchildren, Golf, Cycling, Powerlifting, Home Brew Beer, sampling as many different beers as I can before I die!!

bump

The cold certainly makes it tougher to do anything on a bike. You may have noticed that the installation directions say to inflate the tire just a bit and then carefully check for even seating of the bead along the rim before going up to full pressure. It's a good practice which only takes a minute.

Cold makes the tires ride quite a bit more harshly as well. Now that you're into spring, bet you'll love the ride of the 4000s on the warm sunny days.

Slightly off-topic, but are you sure you need to run max rated pressures? On the side of the 4000 box, 110 psi is listed as the recommended pressure. 120 lbs is the max inflation rating, not what's recommended. Believe I read that Conti does their rolling resistance ratings at 110 psi, and their cut-resistance ratings at 95 psi.

I quit running max pressures several years ago when I read that ride, roadholding and high-speed handling was more secure at 100-105 psi than at 120. After trying 100 psi, I was hooked. Also find many fewer puncture flats and cuts at the lower pressures. Coasting side-by-side with buddies, haven't been able to notice any difference in rolling resistance either. On high-speed descents, lower pressures allow the tires to stay firmly planted on the road which seems to add more speed and security.

Interesting comments, thanks...

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Bike: Giant 2006 CXR1 Flat Bar with 12-27 Ultegra. Brilliant fast bike!!!
Interests: Granchildren, Golf, Cycling, Powerlifting, Home Brew Beer, sampling as many different beers as I can before I die!!

+1 on using lower pressures, I used to also ride my GP4000's at 120psi, what I found was a harsher ride due to the bouncing around. At slightly lower pressures, lower rolling resistance occurs as there is less tire deflection and energy loss. At max pressure I also found the tire cut more easily. Since then I've backed it off to 105-110 psi, the tires are more supple and they ride a lot smoother soaking up all the bumps, grip is better in the wet and I have had no cuts.

Sounds like an installation mishap to me.

The pressure thing is a bit counter-intuitive, isn't it. I ride with a couple of lighter guys, 68 and 72 kg who insist on running max pressure because "it's faster". One of them is an engineer who doesn't buy my story about a hard tire being slower on textured road surfaces due to the vertical energy it imparts to the frame and rider. The other guy is an old aussie farmer, so no point trying to argue with him about it

How did the old Aussie farmer end up in Alabama? That is an unusual migration for that demographic.

Believe he had a sister living in Washington DC area. He left the farm in the 60's, came to the DC area and worked as a British car mechanic there for many years. Moved here in the 90s to be with his son and got a job at a local car dealership.

At 71, he's a tough, wiry old rider who enjoys century rides and beating younger guys up hills ...on his good days. Still manages to go out and party with the girls too, which is pretty amazing. The accent must be helping here, since he definitely doesn't sound like one of the good ol' boys