Conti gp4000S - something new I learned today

jon1981

Those two little weeny holes are wear indicators... when you can no longer see them it's recommended to replace. I know I get excited over the silliest of things.

Cee-Jay-Cee

Pffft...I don't even have Conti's and I knew that 😆

jon1981

Cee-Jay-Cee wrote: »

Pffft...I don't even have Conti's and I knew that 😆

Don't ruin it for me!

Rogue-Trooper

jon1981 wrote: »

Those two little weeny holes are wear indicators

You sure??!! :pac:

68 lost souls

That's something I din't know either thanks for sharing.

Crocked

If you have a close look at the rims on your wheels you'll see a little wear indicator there as well for when the rim is worn down.

Wishbone Ash

What did you think the holes were for?

jon1981

Wishbone Ash wrote: »

What did you think the holes were for?

No Idea! Some specific reason to do with the mould they use?!

Wishbone Ash

If you have my type of luck, you'll tear the side walls or sustain some other type of deep cut rendering the tyres useless long before you see the wear indicators disappear!

68 lost souls

Wishbone Ash wrote: »

What did you think the holes were for?

As above I thought it was air in the mould or similar

Deagol

jon1981 wrote: »

Those two little weeny holes are wear indicators... when you can no longer see them it's recommended to replace. I know I get excited over the silliest of things.

My tires must be defective, those holes aren't on them

jon1981

Deagol wrote: »

My tires must be defective, those holes aren't on them

ah-ha "apparently" they only starting doing this in the last 2 years and so some stock sold might not have them.

http://www.conti-tyres.co.uk/conticycle/twi.shtml

Some confusion has arisen from one of our technology advances on our road tyres - the Tread Wear Indicator (TWI).

We've been phasing in this feature on our German made race tyres over the past two years and so now you will find two small tap holes in the tread which are designed to disappear as the tyre nears the end of its serviceable life.

- See more at: http://www.conti-tyres.co.uk/conticycle/twi.shtml#sthash.gIiHazDC.dpuf

Tyres featuring the TWI :

GP4000SII, GP4000S, GP4000, GP Attack/Force, GPTT, Grand Prix, Grand Prix GT, GP 4Season, Gator Hardshell, Gatorskin, Grand Prix Classic.

As this is a phase-in feature, some customers may find that they have identical tyres without this feature. This is no cause for concern.

- See more at: http://www.conti-tyres.co.uk/conticycle/twi.shtml#sthash.gIiHazDC.dpuf

letape

Deagol wrote: »

My tires must be defective, those holes aren't on them

They could be worn out ;-)

Deagol

letape wrote: »

They could be worn out ;-)

I was actually trying to be funny, but OP has pointed out that they might not be there. Now I'm heading out to the bike room to check it out

jon1981

Deagol wrote: »

I was actually trying to be funny, but OP has pointed out that they might not be there. Now I'm heading out to the bike room to check it out

I'm please to report 2,000km later the the hole is still looking like a hole. Though i have plenty of long nicks :mad: ... which as a previous poster has pointed out will likely be the death of the tyre before proper wear.

dragratchet

Wishbone Ash wrote: »

If you have my type of luck, you'll tear the side walls or sustain some other type of deep cut rendering the tyres useless long before you see the wear indicators disappear!

have had mine about 3 months and noticed a bulge in the sidewall the other day. took it off and found this disaster waiting to happen.

531

You know that GP4000s have rotation direction indicators, I assume. It is illegal to put them on the wrong way 'round.

Wishbone Ash

531 wrote: »

You know that GP4000s have rotation direction indicators, I assume. It is illegal to put them on the wrong way 'round.

I think most people use the designs on the tyre as a guide.

(The directional arrows on Conti Gators are very difficult to see.)

crosstownk

Crocked wrote: »

If you have a close look at the rims on your wheels you'll see a little wear indicator there as well for when the rim is worn down.

Not all wheels. I've a pair of Zondas with no wear indicators. However, the OE wheels they replaced did have them.

I remember reading somewhere that all bikes sold are required to have rim wear indicators under EU law but the same doesn't apply to aftermarket wheels. I don't know if this is true or not - I just read it on some other forum a while back.

Not exactly OT but I though I'd mention it.

ted1

I've loads of holes in my tyres, in fact each day I get more, those that mean that I've doecusl infinitive tyres.

Carawaystick

Deagol wrote: »

My tires must be defective, those holes aren't on them

Oh I'll take them off you so. Save a trip to the bin....:)

The only thing about directional arrows is to put them over the valve hole unless there's a bigger image on the tyre (rule40)

Mercian Pro

Wishbone Ash wrote: »

If you have my type of luck, you'll tear the side walls or sustain some other type of deep cut rendering the tyres useless long before you see the wear indicators disappear!

Beginning to wonder if it's bad luck or poor design/manufacture?

jon1981

Mercian Pro wrote: »

Beginning to wonder if it's bad luck or poor design/manufacture?

They look pretty new too, are they?

Fender76

Is that the rim wear indicator in those pics? The tiny little hole under the tyre tear..?

Deagol

Fender76 wrote: »

Is that the rim wear indicator in those pics? The tiny little hole under the tyre tear..?

Yup!

Deagol

Beginning to wonder if it's bad luck or poor design/manufacture?

Are you perhaps not inflating the tyre fully? Or are you heavy? I'm thinking they look like damage from pinching?

xebec

Mercian Pro wrote: »

Beginning to wonder if it's bad luck or poor design/manufacture?

I've damaged sidewalls on three GP4000SII's this year, been costly...

Vincenzo Nibbly

I've experienced the sidewall issue with GP4000S but find the GP4000S II version is much improved

Mercian Pro

Deagol wrote: »

Are you perhaps not inflating the tyre fully? Or are you heavy? I'm thinking they look like damage from pinching?

They are about a year old and probably have about 4000k on them so I can't complain about the thread wear. Always well inflated (90-105psi) and I am normally around 70kg but I did get two pinch flats in Italy after hitting potholes on descents. Only noticed the damage recently but it could be a result of that.

nialljf

how do these tyres fare in irish winters?

triggermortis

nialljf wrote: »

how do these tyres fare in irish winters?

Can't comment on Irish winters as I didn't have them fitted then, but they did well in a Swiss winter!

Mercian Pro

nialljf wrote: »

how do these tyres fare in irish winters?

I have found both the 4000's and the 4 Seasons to have good grip in all conditions and to be reasonably puncture resistant. The 4000's seem to be wearing better than the 4 Seasons but the sidewall issue is annoying.

Someone in the trade explained to me that "It does not take much to rupture the side walls as they are only cotton with a paper thin soft rubber covering the cotton threads. They are strong enough to hold the inflated tube, but anything that presses against them will go through. Gatorskins (especially the Gatorskin Ultra) have thicker side walls but the trade off is that they are noticeably more sluggish on the road."

Interesting.

ted1

Has anyone ever fixed a tire using blackwitch or similar?

I've a conti GP 400s ii with only a couple of hundred I'm on them that got a nick on main surface leaving the tube slightly visible.

Deagol

ted1 wrote: »

Has anyone ever fixed a tire using blackwitch or similar?

I've a conti GP 400s ii with only a couple of hundred I'm on them that got a nick on main surface leaving the tube slightly visible.

Not a fan of repairing tyres. The high pressure they have to deal with is usually too much for any repair substance / patch in my experience.

Tyres are the 5mm2 that attaches me to the road at up to 80km/hr, I don't believe in taking chances with them

But to answer your question: Nope, never tried that one.

nialljf

i got a nick on the sidewall of my gp4000s ii similar to the pics above. sent the bike in for service and the mechanic sealed the inside with some rubber (not sure about exact process). it seems to be a good job. how will the tyre fare now? i have the stock tyres that came with the bike. would it be better to put one of these on (not as good a tyre)?

clog

ted1 wrote: »

Has anyone ever fixed a tire using blackwitch or similar?

I've a conti GP 400s ii with only a couple of hundred I'm on them that got a nick on main surface leaving the tube slightly visible.

Try some e-6000 glue. Have never tried it myself but know people who have had success with it.

Previous mention on the forum here.


http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=83863086