what tyres for winter

[tinfish]

I need to replace a rear tyre on my sons racing bike. Currently it has a 700* 23. I thought for the winter something with a bit more tread would be safer. Does anyone have any recommendations? Do I need to replace the front tyre also with one with a similar tread pattern.

 

[ianrauk]

23" Slicks will be fine for your son if he is using the bike on tarmac.
They will do for most of what the British weather will throw at them, except of course Ice and compacted snow.
Slicks will have more grip on the road then knobbly tyres.

 

[fossyant]

Bontrager Hard Cases come recommended and they are cheap £15 ish. Tyres like Conti GP 4 Seasons are like £30-£35 each though

As Ianrauk says, tread doesn't matter on a road tyre. Things like weight, tread compound (stickyness vs long life) come into play.

 

[HJ]

I used 28mm Conti GatorSkins throughout last winter, in fact then they are the only tyre I currently use, but then here is Scotland is a perpetual summer...

 

[longers]

If you're looking to replace one tyre only it might be worth putting the new one on the front and the part worn one on the rear. I think.

 

[e-rider]

23" Slicks will be fine for your son if he is using the bike on tarmac.
They will do for most of what the British weather will throw at them, except of course Ice and compacted snow.
Slicks will have more grip on the road then knobbly tyres.

I think you mean 23mm , not 23 inches

slicks only have more grip in dry conditions - slicks in the rain don't grip as well as a tyre with a tread pattern. Wider (25 or 28mm) also offer slighly more grip.

I'd say the quality of the tyre is more important than size though.

 

[peelywally]

i use 23mm vittoria rubinos all year amazing protection during the thorny season only had two punctures using them way better than heavier alternatives imho and really cheap if you shop around I got yellow ones very cheap but colour suits my bike

 

[ELL]

I have Gatorskins on my winter bike at the moment and I find in the wet they are pretty much useless. On my other bike i have specialized armadillos. They are a bit more money but a nice tyre and are "p******e resistant"

Another thing to take into consideration is clearance if you want to put mud guards on I can fit mud guards to mine with 23s but not 25s

 

[Alien8]

I was think about getting some Bontrager Race Lite Hardcases because they seem to get quite a few recommendations and then I saw the Race All Weather Hardcase and so I'm wondering about these. I'm not sure that the tread on the AW will actually make a significant difference, on a bike tyre. I'm also wondering whether the AWs will pick up bits from the road stuck in the tread. Do the AW's actually make sense over the Race Lite?

 

[zacklaws]

I was think about getting some Bontrager Race Lite Hardcases because they seem to get quite a few recommendations and then I saw the Race All Weather Hardcase and so I'm wondering about these. I'm not sure that the tread on the AW will actually make a significant difference, on a bike tyre. I'm also wondering whether the AWs will pick up bits from the road stuck in the tread. Do the AW's actually make sense over the Race Lite?

I've been using the Bontrager race all weather hardcase for a while and found no problems with them in dry or wet conditions. The tread in them is actually designed to remove water and is only on the sides of the tyre, otherwise they are slick down the centre. So far I have only had two punctures in them, one was a large steel fragment that was very pointed and would have penetrated any tyre, I believe it had come from a vehicle with dodgy brakes and it was metal on metal showering fragments all over, and the second puncture was a thorn, but the tyre itself was well worn and needed replacing. In fact they are the only tyres that I have had to replace from being worn out, just over 4000 miles per tyre, and the price is right too. When I bought a new road bike last year, they did come with Race lites on, not the hardcase version, but the tyres are virtually the same, especially the outer laminate, and I lost all grip one day in the wet and crashed, so I changed them promptly, but I do know someone who has never had a problem with them, but once bitten, twice shy.

Previous to this, I had been using Armadillo elite but I never got on with them, one tyre delaminated, another the beading came away, punctured frequently, on a lot of occasions I would return home and find gashes in them from quarter of an inch up to half an inch in them and quite deep, as a rule as well I would be lucky to get 700 miles out of one. But they were good in the dry and wet and did grip well and in all fairness I think the tyre's were not up to the country lanes that I normally ride on which can be strewwn with flints all year. I do have them on my commuter to just use up the ones I have on better roads and cycle paths and never had a problem so far but I do not do the same mileage on them as my other road bike but when they are worn out they too will be replaced with Bontrager all weather.

 

[Kestevan]

slicks only have more grip in dry conditions - slicks in the rain don't grip as well as a tyre with a tread pattern.

Not actually true, at least on tarmac. The tread pattern on wide(car) tyres is only of use to prevent water pooling under the tyre, causing a film of water between road and tyre (aquaplaning). Wide, low pressure tyres need the sipes to allow the water to escape.
Narrow high pressure bike tyres dont need the tread, as there isn't enough area in contact with the road to allow the water to collect.
In order to get a 23mm tyre to aquaplane you'd need to be doing 100mph +

Furthermore the "tread" on road style bike tyres would not be deep enough to allow water to escape anyway.

This obviously doesnt apply to MTB knobblies which use the tread pattern to add grip on loose or muddy surfaces.

 

[e-rider]

Not actually true, at least on tarmac. The tread pattern on wide(car) tyres is only of use to prevent water pooling under the tyre, causing a film of water between road and tyre (aquaplaning). Wide, low pressure tyres need the sipes to allow the water to escape.
Narrow high pressure bike tyres dont need the tread, as there isn't enough area in contact with the road to allow the water to collect.
In order to get a 23mm tyre to aquaplane you'd need to be doing 100mph +

Furthermore the "tread" on road style bike tyres would not be deep enough to allow water to escape anyway.

This obviously doesnt apply to MTB knobblies which use the tread pattern to add grip on loose or muddy surfaces.

thanks for correcting me

I think Schwalbe Laguno are great winter tyres - cheap as chips at £10 a pop.

 

[tinfish]

Thanks for all of the info. I am now much wiser than I was when I posted the question. Result is I gone for a Continental ultra sport.