Tyre life

"Tony C" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

When do you folk consider tyres need replacing from a wear point of view

?.

Quoted message said:

I've been running 700x25 Continental Ultra Gatorskins on my Audax bike for the last year and found
them very reliable and a good ride. Until today,

one

Quoted message said:

rear puncture in a modest 2,500 miles can't be bad. No amount of kevlar would have fended of
todays nasty little shard of glass which assisted by

a

Quoted message said:

wet road did the inevitable. However, whilst giving the tyre close examination in more cosier
surroundings of the kitchen I noticed a lot of very small splits running along the entire tread.
Checked the front tyre

and

Quoted message said:

its the same. This is along the crown of the tyre, not the duraskin protected sidewall. Is this
normal rubber wear/fatigue ?. I've always maintained the manufactures recommended pressures (95
psi) using a track pump (which are slightly less than the max pressures shown on the tyre). Anyway
I've ordered another pair fron Settle Cycles (good prices) just in case.

I just changed my Michelin Axial Pros to-day after two punctures in a week. I had the same
problem a lot of little nicks and cuts. I changed them for the cheaper Michelin "Speedium" £11
each from my LBS. I reckon if you get two punctures in a week going to work and in the winter
then it's time to get new tyres.

Graham

Quoted message said:

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Tony C said:

When do you folk consider tyres need replacing from a wear point of view ?

When grip is compromised by lack of rubber (when the threads are showing). I don't use many tyres
that survive that long, unfortunatley. Usually a cut (bad enough to bulge) means I have to throw
tyre away first.

Quoted message said:

I've been running 700x25 Continental Ultra Gatorskins on my Audax bike for the last year and found
them very reliable and a good ride. Until today, one rear puncture in a modest 2,500 miles can't
be bad. No amount of kevlar would have fended of todays nasty little shard of glass which assisted
by a wet road did the inevitable. However, whilst giving the tyre close examination in more cosier
surroundings of the kitchen I noticed a lot of very small splits running along the entire tread.
Checked the front tyre and its the same. This is along the crown of the tyre, not the duraskin
protected sidewall. Is this normal rubber wear/fatigue ?.

I can't recall seeing exactly that on any tyre.

Some users haven't been so lucky with the sidewalls. See: tinyurl.com2c2dbOpen ↗

and tinyurl.com236xtOpen ↗

and search Google archives for sidewall failures and notice how many times the Conti name comes up
in the same threads.

I recently bought an UltraGatorskin, thinking that the quality must have improved by now (and it's
been fine for me so far), but I'm not sure I'll ever buy a Continental tyre again after reading
those /recent/ reports. Schwalbe Blizzard Kevlar is a pretty similar tyre, with a very similar tread
but extending further towards bead and stronger sidewalls and thicker beads. It is slightlier
heavier and does have a lower TPI count but still seems to roll reasonably fast for its type.

Quoted message said:

I've always maintained the manufactures recommended pressures (95 psi) using a track pump (which
are slightly less than the max pressures shown on the tyre).

Tyre should be inflated according to what weight the wheel is carrying and what amount of traction &
comfort is required. That may be less or more than the manuf's recommendation or max, and front
should be softer than rear (if same model & width).

~PB

Tony C said:

Checked the front tyre and its the same. This is along the crown of the tyre, not the duraskin
protected sidewall. Is this normal rubber wear/fatigue ?

Sounds normal enough. As long as the casing is not showing through the cracks, and they are only
small, I wouldn't worry.

Guy
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Tony C <[email hidden]> wrote:
: the last year and found them very reliable and a good ride. Until today, one rear puncture in a
: modest 2,500 miles can't be bad. No amount of kevlar

2,500 miles for a lightish weight 25mm tyre on the rear sounds fine.

Buy a new one.

Arthur

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Arthur Clune clune.orgclune.orgOpen ↗ "Technolibertarians make a philosophy out of a personality defect"
- Paulina Borsook

"Just zis Guy, you know?" <[email hidden]>typed

Quoted message said:

On Tue, 13 Jan 2004 19:56:35 -0000, "Tony C" <[email hidden]> wrote:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Checked the front tyre and its the same. This is along the crown of the tyre, not the duraskin
protected sidewall. Is this normal rubber wear/fatigue ?

Quoted message said:

Sounds normal enough. As long as the casing is not showing through the cracks, and they are only
small, I wouldn't worry.

I disagree. I think the tyre might be safe to ride but will suddenly get *lots* more punctures. I
would replace it for that reason. Tyres tend to go 'porous' and much more puncture-prone after a
while of almost totally trouble-free use. That's when I replace them (cos I'm lazy...)

--
Helen D. Vecht: [email hidden] Edgware.

"Helen Deborah Vecht" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

"Just zis Guy, you know?" <[email hidden]>typed

Quoted message said:

On Tue, 13 Jan 2004 19:56:35 -0000, "Tony C" <[email hidden]> wrote:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Checked the front tyre and its the same. This is along the crown of the tyre, not the duraskin
protected sidewall. Is this normal rubber wear/fatigue ?

Quoted message said:

Sounds normal enough. As long as the casing is not showing through the cracks, and they are only
small, I wouldn't worry.

I disagree. I think the tyre might be safe to ride but will suddenly get *lots* more punctures. I
would replace it for that reason. Tyres tend to go 'porous' and much more puncture-prone after a
while of almost totally trouble-free use. That's when I replace them (cos I'm lazy...)

--
Helen D. Vecht: [email hidden] Edgware.

Thanks for your opinion Helen, 'porous' is not a bad description of the condition. More noticable
with the tyre of the rim and squeezing the walls together. This tends to open up many little pore
type cracks along the tread. Settle sending out new ones today, just hope they turn up before the
audax on Saturday.

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Helen Deborah Vecht said:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Checked the front tyre and its the same. This is along the crown of the tyre, not the duraskin
protected sidewall. Is this normal rubber wear/fatigue ?

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Sounds normal enough. As long as the casing is not showing through the cracks, and they are only
small, I wouldn't worry.

Quoted message said:

I disagree. I think the tyre might be safe to ride but will suddenly get *lots* more punctures. I
would replace it for that reason. Tyres tend to go 'porous' and much more puncture-prone after a
while of almost totally trouble-free use. That's when I replace them (cos I'm lazy...)

I had a pair of Hutchinson Globetrotters which formed such cracks and they only lasted another two
thousand puncture-free miles before I took them off to put the summer tyres on ;-)

Guy
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