Are these tyres OK for my bike?

[hepburn]

After suffering 2 punctures in a week I have been advised by some Sky Ride leaders to get Gatorskins. Will these be OK for my Specialized Vita (hybrid bike)?

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/continental-gatorskin-road-bike-tyre/rp-prod18800

Also, what inner tubes should I get?

Sorry for all the questions - I really do need spoon feeding - there's so much to learn....

 

[Kies]

Yes they will fit your bike. Inner tubes will be say something like 16-28c compatible.
I changed my specialized sirrrus tyres from 28c to 23c without changing the inner tubes.

 

[hepburn]

Thanks for super swift reply!

 

[Kies]

No problem. Haven't tried gatorskins but plenty of folks here swear by them for a P free existence

 

[hepburn]

OK thanks Kies, at the risk of sounding even more stupid, another question - when I go to order them it gives options of folding bead or wire bead. What does that mean?

 

[Kies]

Folding tyres are lighter and more expensive than beaded tyres which is the conventional type. It has a wire bead around the edges which will slot into the wheel (hope that makes sense).
If your weight obsessive then go for a folding tyre, but I tend to stick with convention and beaded.

 

[hepburn]

No that makes perfect sense, thanks very much!

 

[Cuchilo]

A happy Gatorskin owner here . After two punctures I swapped over to them and the local council has help me test them by cutting the hawthorn hedge on my local route and thrown it all over the road .

 

[hepburn]

A happy Gatorskin owner here . After two punctures I swapped over to them and the local council has help me test them by cutting the hawthorn hedge on my local route and thrown it all over the road .

Thanks for the recommendation (and the wit!)

 

[themosquitoking]

I've done about 500 miles or so on gatorskins now with no problems, i back them up with slime inner tubes too for completely worry free cycling.

 

[Edge705]

check out the "find bargain do tell" thread there were gatorskins from evans for 16 quid 'ish 20 odd normaly but there was a 5 pound off code to bring them down to 16 quid or thereabouts

 

[Nigelnaturist]

I can better @themosquitoking in distance 1,500 mile since the 1st of Aug no punctures (hedge cutting included) though I did get a perculiur puncture on Thursday caught a stone and got a puncture on the wheel rim side of the tube, so there may have been something inside the wheel (never did find it).
Though I wouldn't personally use slime filled tubes, a mess to use can only fill the tube with the valve between 10 o'clock and 2 o'clock position, they also add weight where you really dont wont extra weight (not that my bike is light) but this is just a personal opinion.

 

[themosquitoking]

I can better @themosquitoking in distance 1,500 mile since the 1st of Aug no punctures (hedge cutting included) though I did get a perculiur puncture on Thursday caught a stone and got a puncture on the wheel rim side of the tube, so there may have been something inside the wheel (never did find it).
Though I wouldn't personally use slime filled tubes, a mess to use can only fill the tube with the valve between 10 o'clock and 2 o'clock position, they also add weight where you really dont wont extra weight (not that my bike is light) but this is just a personal opinion.

Bet you a tenner you wouldn't have had to deal that puncture with slime tubes.

 

[Hip Priest]

I've done about 1000 miles on my Gators with no punctures.

However, I've done almost 3000 puncture-free miles on the CST City Travellers that I've got on the commuter! They're heavy mind.

 

[Nigelnaturist]

Bet you a tenner you wouldn't have had to deal that puncture with slime tubes.

It only takes me 10 mins to change a tube and as I carry a spare it's not really a major issue, I have used them before so I do speak with experience, it's just a personal preference.