New tires - what a difference!



Strid

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Sep 28, 2006
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Ok, this is not really that important, but I just want to share this experience with me and perhaps I'm going to inspire someone to do the same as I did.

So I've been riding around on cheap Maxxis Fuse tires that came with the bike when I bought it. I've been pumping them at 110 psi front and 115 psi rear. Also, they're rated for touring/training, how cheesy is that?? Been using them for almost a year now, and I'm not really able to compare them to anything else, since I've not been into racing bike for that long.

Anyways, I went to LBS and got a set of Vredstein Fortezza TriComp tires. At first, I was going to get Continental Ultra GatorSkin tires, but the LBS-guy recommended me this set of tires, and he told me that it was more of a racing tire and and has a much better feel to it than the Gatorskins. So, great tire - I'll buy it, and happily I went home with my new set of tires and ripped the old Maxxis tires off and put the new folding tyres on. Pumped them to 120 front/130 rear as told by the LBS, and off I went.

And seriously, what a difference!!! I can't believe how much that changed the ride. I just feels super lively and I can feel the road much better now. Guys, this have been my best investment in upgrades for my bike. And at such a low cost for a improvement that big, I got to tell everyone who might be riding crappy tires to ditch them and get a real set of tires. Not doing so is just nuts in my opinion. Also, if you haven't got one already, get one of those pumps with manometer and check that your pressure is correct.

Thanks for letting me share this with you! :)
 
Strid said:
Ok, this is not really that important, but I just want to share this experience with me and perhaps I'm going to inspire someone to do the same as I did.

So I've been riding around on cheap Maxxis Fuse tires that came with the bike when I bought it. I've been pumping them at 110 psi front and 115 psi rear. Also, they're rated for touring/training, how cheesy is that?? Been using them for almost a year now, and I'm not really able to compare them to anything else, since I've not been into racing bike for that long.

Anyways, I went to LBS and got a set of Vredstein Fortezza TriComp tires. At first, I was going to get Continental Ultra GatorSkin tires, but the LBS-guy recommended me this set of tires, and he told me that it was more of a racing tire and and has a much better feel to it than the Gatorskins. So, great tire - I'll buy it, and happily I went home with my new set of tires and ripped the old Maxxis tires off and put the new folding tyres on. Pumped them to 120 front/130 rear as told by the LBS, and off I went.

And seriously, what a difference!!! I can't believe how much that changed the ride. I just feels super lively and I can feel the road much better now. Guys, this have been my best investment in upgrades for my bike. And at such a low cost for a improvement that big, I got to tell everyone who might be riding crappy tires to ditch them and get a real set of tires. Not doing so is just nuts in my opinion. Also, if you haven't got one already, get one of those pumps with manometer and check that your pressure is correct.

Thanks for letting me share this with you! :)

Everything feels faster when it's over-inflated. The tires bounce off of imperfections in the road surface--instead of flexing to accomodate the imperfections--and the brain interprets this bumping around to mean that you're hauling ass....what a load of ****. Your LBS needs to learn how to properly inflate tires. Unless you're a real clyde, you don't need tires pumped up to 120-130 psi. That Vredrestein advertises such pressures as a benefit just shows how far a marketing dept. will go to sell a product.
 
I also understand that racing tyres typically are less puncture resistant. Good luck! ;)
 
Well, I've been riding on your Vredstein Fortezza TriComps all season long. Love them and haven't had a single puncture.
 
Good that you've experienced the difference tires make. Of course, you're spoiled now. Once you wear out the Tricomps, give Conti 4000s or Michelin ProRace2 a try. For winter riding in Sweden, give the Conti 4 Seasons a try.

But like Alienator says, a higher pressure on the sidewall doesn't mean you've got a faster tire. Michelin ProRace 2 are about the lowest rolling resistance clincher in the tests I've seen, and they show an inflation range of 87-116 psi on the sidewalls. The Conti 4000s I'm running now recommend 110 psi on the packaging, with a max of 120 on the sidewall.

At 80 kg, I've found 100 front/105 rear is what I like. Believe you'll find your new tires are just as fast, give you better ride and roadholding, and resist cuts and punctures a lot better at these kinds of pressures.
 
you say you've had your old tires about a year before these new tires...


what kind of mileage are you putting in? if its anything normal- after a year you probably have a nice 1/2 to 3/4 inch squared-off flat center worn into the center of the rear.

ANY tire will feel lively w/o that.

if you find a set you like- move the front to the rear and just replace the front.

(hint for all us buying our own kit)
 
dhk2 said:
Good that you've experienced the difference tires make. Of course, you're spoiled now. Once you wear out the Tricomps, give Conti 4000s or Michelin ProRace2 a try.
.

I'm running 4000's and love em, Riders on this Forum gave me (and the Tires) the Thumbs up so I bought a Pair...

But yeah, Tires are very important..the right ones at the correct pressure can make all the difference...I never skimp on Tires because they're so important..

Even new Tires on your Car can make it feel new again...
 
Alienator is right. Incorrect inflation loses you speed. I run my training tyres at 80/85 psi and racing at 90/95 or 95/100 psi. Doing a 150km ride at racing pressure is much harder than doing it at training pressure (on the roads around here). Oh, conti 4 seasons do not wear out, ever, I swear it. 11000km on my rear tyre and no serious signs of wear. No punctures either. Terrible ride quality though.
 
Bobby OCR says he clocked up 11000 (thousand) kms on the rear tyre. That is obviously a typo, it would be 1100 kms. Unless he weighs about the same as the little fella in his avatar. Then I'd believe it. AHHHH CR@P sorry just listening to the radio and that bloody Eskimo Joe song came on- the INXS rip-off
Boy I hate that band, so over-rated
 
Aussie Steve said:
AHHHH CR@P sorry just listening to the radio and that bloody Eskimo Joe song came on- the INXS rip-off
Boy I hate that band, so over-rated
Sorry to go off-track but I agree. And what's with the new song - 'Sarah, won't you tell me your name...' :mad::mad::mad:
Are you stupid!..you already know it, why the hell does she have to tell you what it is!!! **** lyrics from a **** band.
Anyway, that's my little rant over. :)
 
Aussie Steve said:
Bobby OCR says he clocked up 11000 (thousand) kms on the rear tyre. That is obviously a typo, it would be 1100 kms. Unless he weighs about the same as the little fella in his avatar. Then I'd believe it. AHHHH CR@P sorry just listening to the radio and that bloody Eskimo Joe song came on- the INXS rip-off
Boy I hate that band, so over-rated
No, its 11000, I am 62kg, and have no idea that it could last this long. It hase some stupidly fine casing, like 490tpi. I have had that tyre on since December last year. I have another rear with 6000km on it which is when I would just routinely change them and it still looks almost new. I can take a pic of the tread if you want to see it. I assure you I am perfectly serious.

Also, I think Eskimo Joe is overrated as well. Their music isn't original or different, and as you pointed out the lyrics make no sense.
 
bobbyOCR said:
No, its 11000, I am 62kg, and have no idea that it could last this long. It hase some stupidly fine casing, like 490tpi. I have had that tyre on since December last year. I have another rear with 6000km on it which is when I would just routinely change them and it still looks almost new. I can take a pic of the tread if you want to see it. I assure you I am perfectly serious.

Also, I think Eskimo Joe is overrated as well. Their music isn't original or different, and as you pointed out the lyrics make no sense.
Mabye it is the lower pressures?
 
Paulie-AU said:
Mabye it is the lower pressures?
The 4 Seasons are not exactly a high performance tire. They are made from some sort of super durable rubber that makes them ride like ass. They probably last a long time with light rider on smooth roads.
 
Ashley3 said:
Well, I've been riding on your Vredstein Fortezza TriComps all season long. Love them and haven't had a single puncture.
same here.

i wore the rear into the cords at just about 2200 miles. one day it looked good, the next ride ended up with cord protruding thru maybe 20% of the circumference.

this is the first clinchers i've ridden since 1972 so i can't compare them(speed/handling/grip/wear) to any other clinchers, but they are ZERO to date for punctures...and i ride on plenty of crappy highways that are littered with bits of metal, glass and small stones.

vredstein claims you can inflate these things to 160 psi. not on a dare! i don't ride much above 110-115 psi. that's plenty to carry me down the rode. rarely do i feel the need to take quality sew-ups above 120 psi.
 
Bro Deal said:
The 4 Seasons are not exactly a high performance tire. They are made from some sort of super durable rubber that makes them ride like ass. They probably last a long time with light rider on smooth roads.
They are a great training tyre though. You would not believe the speed you pick up switching to a low RR tyre. I have never heard the expression 'rides like ass', I think hose pipe is closer. The roads around here aren't exactly smooth either......It must be the low pressures.
 
bobbyOCR said:
They are a great training tyre though. You would not believe the speed you pick up switching to a low RR tyre. I have never heard the expression 'rides like ass', I think hose pipe is closer.
I agree with the training tire/equipment thought. Why use something like Ti cogs or Veloflex Pave tires for training?

As far as "rides like ass," I'll leave what that means to your imagination.
 
Bro Deal said:
I agree with the training tire/equipment thought. Why use something like Ti cogs or Veloflex Pave tires for training?

As far as "rides like ass," I'll leave what that means to your imagination.
Thanks for all the input, I will try a lower pressure like 110ish.

Anyways, I think that the difference between rolling resistance is a small contribution to a bikes total resistances. Riding the new tires feels significantly different (in a good way) compared to the older tires, and I really don't think that I'm loosing (but nor gaining speed in terms of speed gained from less resistance) speed either.

While this thread mostly turned into a thread of tire pressure, I just wanted to tell everyone that I love my new tires compared to the old ones, and yeah .. people with **** tires should consider getting new ones.

Also, I don't really care about mileage on my tires, they're not that expensive. As long as I get like 2000-3000 km'ish on a tire, it's good enough for my 2 times a week training, that I don't have to replace them every other sunday.

Btw, to Aussie Steve, my commuter bike has had more than 10,000 km on tires before. Mine were 28c tires, but still, I don't think BobbyOCR is wrong here, if it's a 23c made that way, I think it's very possible.
 

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