Commuting on gp4000s

jon1981

Hi,

So I've been commuting on my gp4000s for about 10 months and done about 2750-3000km on them. I've had a couple of punctures but nothing to complain about. I commute in Dublin city centre, the quays, a lot of glass littered roads ...etc. I inspected the tyres today and while the wear is minimal and I can still clearly see the wear indicators, there are loads of cuts and nicks in them, some quite pronounced! I'm thinking they might already be for the bin after 3000km because of all the cuts in them.

I love these tyres for their grip but starting to think I'm mad commuting on these given they aren't cheap!

Any thoughts from anyone that moved from the gp4000s for commuting/winter spins... any recommendations?

kumate_champ07

they are very durable with great grip. I switched to GP4Seasons because Im heavy and more prone to punctures(Newtons 3rd law of motion), but the 4000s is the 2nd best after those, and that includes commuter specific tyres Ive used in the past.

they arent cheap unless you buy from Germany, I remember paying 27euro each a few years ago, now its 33euro I believe, sometimes there are better deals. the gp4season is 36euro, or close to 60 here, tho I recently needed one in a hurry and got it for 42euro on 'sale' from CRC

Rosebikes,Bike24 would be the main 2, theres also starbikes and bikecomponents.de, postage varies from 7-15euro

kumate_champ07

if you do well commuting on them I think you will like their GP TT tyre for racing, its got some puncture protection but is much lighter than the 4000s. you wont get the same mileage because theres less rubber, but paired with latex tubes they are awesome for racing on

Beasty

I don't use anything else for the road - commuting, club/training spins and racing. Normally get a few as they can be quite a bit cheaper in bulk.

Arthurdaly

Over the years I've commuted on the gatorskins and GP4000S. The gatorskins were good in terms of puncture protection but had a tendency to produce some scary moments in the wet. The GP4000s were a lovely ride but probably too expensive for running on city road.

The GP 4 Season whilst nowhere near as racy or nice a ride as the GP4000s were a good compromise and about 5-6km of commuting later I've still to get a puncture. They are expensive and when I saw them on sale last year I bought a replacement set, they are still in the box waiting for my current set to let me down. Couldn't recommend them enough.

kumate_champ07

Arthurdaly wrote: »

Over the years I've commuted on the gatorskins and GP4000S. The gatorskins were good in terms of puncture protection but had a tendency to produce some scary moments in the wet. The GP4000s were a lovely ride but probably too expensive for running on city road.

The GP 4 Season whilst nowhere near as racy or nice a ride as the GP4000s were a good compromise and about 5-6km of commuting later I've still to get a puncture. They are expensive and when I saw them on sale last year I bought a replacement set, they are still in the box waiting for my current set to let me down. Couldn't recommend them enough.

never say those words!

Arthurdaly

I know, the entire bike will most likely fall apart completely tomorrow . I've also got a set of supersonics for TT's, never punctured once in about 600km of TT's. Continental make good bloody tyres.

Quigs Snr

Second this. Somehow I have 9000km on a set of GP4000 25mm, mostly winter miles. Still have rubber left on them before the wear indicators are gone. I get less punctures and less hairy moments than I do on any other tyre.

ted1

Tbh I find this to be just as good as the contis

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/mobile/s?q=michelin+lithion+2+tyre+blue+%2b+free+tube&cat=product

I commute 200km each week and they are my tyre of choice.

kumate_champ07

Arthurdaly wrote: »

I know, the entire bike will most likely fall apart completely tomorrow . I've also got a set of supersonics for TT's, never punctured once in about 600km of TT's. Continental make good bloody tyres.

23mm supersonics? I cant find them anywhere, only 20mm which is strange because wider rims are more popular now, a 25mm supersonic would be cool


I tried Michelin for 1 year, they cut more easily, grip seemed fine, but didnt like how they wore. Im not a brand loyal guy but Continental make the best tyres, that black chili compound works

JimmysCar

4 seasons are great. I went 5,000km before I got my first puncture on them. Highly recommend for winter.

cython

jon1981 wrote: »

Hi,

So I've been commuting on my gp4000s for about 10 months and done about 2750-3000km on them. I've had a couple of punctures but nothing to complain about. I commute in Dublin city centre, the quays, a lot of glass littered roads ...etc. I inspected the tyres today and while the wear is minimal and I can still clearly see the wear indicators, there are loads of cuts and nicks in them, some quite pronounced! I'm thinking they might already be for the bin after 3000km because of all the cuts in them.

I love these tyres for their grip but starting to think I'm mad commuting on these given they aren't cheap!

Any thoughts from anyone that moved from the gp4000s for commuting/winter spins... any recommendations?

Continental Grand Prix from Germany (e.g. http://www.bike-discount.de/en/buy/continental-grand-prix-25-622-mm-black-107817) are a pretty reasonably priced option, and I think I got my second flat in 4200km of mostly commuting this year (and the first was from a perished tube, where the valve came away!) only yesterday evening. TBH I think this was because I had been lax about picking glass out of the tyres, and one chip worked its way in just a little too far resulting in a tiny hole that leaked out slowly, as I found a quite embedded one at the same place in the tyre. Like your GP4000s there are a lot of nicks, but the wear indicators are still there, and I'm not planning on retiring this tyre quite yet. Performance almost certainly not quite up there with the GP4000s, but at the same time the compound is quite similar, and a good bit cheaper if you're concerned about the roads tearing them up.

Beasty

Many posters seem to throw away punctured tubes (I certainly do). At a fiver or so apiece it doesn't take many "saved" punctures to justify forking out a bit more for some decent puncture resistant tyres.

aFlabbyPanda

I switched from gators & GPs to schwalbe (marathon & lugano) and found them better for pure puncture protection/reliability, since I'm just commuting that's all I worry about. I rode about 5K on my last set of marathons with zero punctures.

lennymc

i use conti ultrasport for commuting and find them at least as durable to the gp4000 i used previously, but at 15 quid or so a tyre. No abnormal puncture issues, reasonable grip all year round. Sometimes I buy the yellow ones for the craic.

pedro_colnago

Il throw Vittoria pro rubinos out there as a good value puncture resistant training tyre, ive gotten 10-12,000 km from pairs of them, seem to remember one full season of training and sportives and only got one pucture in September. Not a racing tyre tho but for everything else Id swear by them.

Dermot Illogical

pedro_colnago wrote: »

Il throw Vittoria pro rubinos out there as a good value puncture resistant training tyre, ive gotten 10-12,000 km from pairs of them, seem to remember one full season of training and sportives and only got one pucture in September. Not a racing tyre tho but for everything else Id swear by them.

I usually use Vittoria rubino pro or zaffiro pro. They're very good value, and I prefer them over the contis on price, grip, and puncture resistance.

micar

On my commuter Road bike, I've

Gator hardshell 23mm on the back and
Grand prix 4000s 23mm on the front