Tire purchases in Canada

Does anyone know of any online stores to buy tires in Canada that will not charge hefty shipping and customs fees? I was actually trying to find some Continental Ultra Gator Skin 700c X 25 tires in Ottawa but none to be found. MEC only sells 700 x 23 or 28.

 

Try probikekit.com. Their prices on tires are great. They ship free to the US without taxes or customs fees; perhaps free to Canada as well.

 

No. They don't carry Continental Ultra Gator Skin road tires

 

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Models.aspx?ModelID=18800


you should have known of this - I bought from them, shipping is cca $20 for two tires, not bad at all if you insist on your gator skin 25c
cheers

 

23s only, but I'm sure they're alot cheaper than MEC, even with customs...
http://www.probikekit.com/display.php?code=Y1320

 

I see that it is a foldable not a rigid tire. Is there a difference in durability or performance?

 

my experience with folding tires is much better than with those with wire beads. in any case, those guys carry both types and it's almost the same price

 

As Tony said, they have them in 23s. If you really want 25s, consider the Conti 4 seasons or the gp4000s. I've found the 4000s to be "virtually" puncture proof in my riding, but the sidewalls are probably easier to damage than the Gatorskins.

Folding beads have virtually replaced wire beads for performance tire applications because they are lighter with no disadvantages.

 

Except cost.

 

In my experience, folding bead tires tend to be more difficult to put on a rim than wire bead tires of the same size.

 

Agree the folding tires likely cost a bit more to produce. It's hard to compare though, isn't it? You may know tire brands that still come with wire beads, but none of the ones I use do. Besides, cost means nothing to a club cyclist like me out to save 50 grams

 

Another good source for tire purchases is sdeals.com. Tires ship from the UK, but prices are so cheap that if buying more than two you come out way ahead even with higher shipping costs. Be sure to click the button to exclude VAT (value added tax) to see/get non-UK pricing.