Tire width for commmuting

[idickers]

I am commuting on a mix of decent paved streets and the majority on a blacktop bike path, which has many places where the blacktop material has "folded" up during the year and then is ground down by maintanence. This results in a pretty jarring ride on an alumnum bike with 700x28C tires on aluminum rims. I'm currently running 28mm Continental GP5000 with inner tubes @ 80 psi front and rear. The ride is pretty harsh, but something I'm used to in the daytime. But zipping home at night with only a headlight, the bumps come up fast and can really disrupt my ride.

I might get some Continental Gatorskins for the commute, and wonder if it would help the ride to go with a wider tire and lower pressure. I'm a holdover from the days of 19 & 21 mm tubulars so I don't have a lot of expertise with wider tires and lower pressures. Some inflation charts suggest that with a 30mm wide tire I could run 70 psi, but that doesn't seem like much of a change from 80psi. If I want to stick with inner tubes, can I ride lower pressures (60 psi?) or is there a point where pinch-flats with tubes defeats the purpose?

Thanks for any suggestions.

[CampagYOLO]

Gatorskins aren't supple at all, I doubt a 30mm one will feel any less jarring than a 28mm GP5000.

Can you go wider than that? I'm commuting at night on 37mm tyres so can just roll through all the road imperfections.

[MichaelB]

I'm currently running the Conti GP Urban that are labelled 35mm but actually 33.

The grip is really good (as it has the Black Chilli), price is good, and even being a Clydesdale, I can run them at 60psi and similar cycle paths with tree root intrusion, and they are bloody good.

They tested really well on BRR, which is where I found out about them.

https://www.bicyclerollingresistance.co ... prix-urban

[wooger]

How much do you weigh? 80psi is probably too high unless you're ~100kg .Fix that and experiment first.

I've never found snakebite punctures a significant problem with road riding, and in fact I've only ever had them with a tubeless setup, after finding a massive pothole.

[MasterBean]

[idickers]

I'm about 80kg. What would you drop to, 70 psi?

Hmm. I"ll have to look inro the Cont GP Urban, I've not heard of them. I had been thinking of Gatorskins just because I used to use them for commuting, and don't want flats at night in the sleet.

[idickers]

Would another candidate for commuting be the 35mm Conti Grand Prix 5000 All Season? It seems to get good reviews, and seems to run well at lower pressures (50-60 ps).

[Mocs123]

It obviously depends on a lot of factors, but I think the 5000 All Seaosn is overall a better tire than the Gatorskin, perticularly as far as rolling resistance and wet traction.

[wooger]

Would another candidate for commuting be the 35mm Conti Grand Prix 5000 All Season? It seems to get good reviews, and seems to run well at lower pressures (50-60 ps).

Depends on your commute I guess, but these are very expensive, won't give incredible mileage and aren't nearly as puncture proof compared to most commuting tyres, which are armoured and a hard compound which wears more slowly.

They're bad weather race tyres. Bigger tyres can generally provide more comfort than smaller ones yes.

For your tyre pressure question, use this https://silca.cc/pages/sppc-form

[idickers]

Thanks, the Silca calculator was where I got my 80psi (okay, actuall 78/79.5)

[sevencyclist]

Gatorskin is great for durability and more puncture resistant, although not against pinch flat if pressure is too low. The downside is added weight and firm ride and less responsive feeling to the handling. But I think of commute is more about practicality than absolute plush ride with quick handling. So going to a wider Gatorskin like 32mm and dropping 60-65 psi should allow you to fly at night without sacrificing too much of daytime fun element to riding.

[CampagYOLO]

Gatorskin is great for durability and more puncture resistant, although not against pinch flat if pressure is too low. The downside is added weight and firm ride and less responsive feeling to the handling. But I think of commute is more about practicality than absolute plush ride with quick handling. So going to a wider Gatorskin like 32mm and dropping 60-65 psi should allow you to fly at night without sacrificing too much of daytime fun element to riding.

I'd say the biggest downside to a Gatorskin is the complete lack of wet grip. Something that's pretty important IMO for a commuting tyre. A Conti 4 season is a much better option than a Gatorskin.

[idickers]

I'd say the biggest downside to a Gatorskin is the complete lack of wet grip. Something that's pretty important IMO for a commuting tyre. A Conti 4 season is a much better option than a Gatorskin.

That's interesting that you found the Gatorskin to have such poor wet weather perfornmance, as the Gatorskin Hardshells look to have almost the same amount of wet grip as the Grand Prix 4 Season tires.

https://www.bicyclerollingresistance.co ... x-4-season

An updated tire compound, perhaps?

[idickers]

Another tire I keep hearing about is the Schwalbe Marathon GreenGuard. Would that be a decent tire for wet-weather commuting plus some puncture reisistance?

[satanas]

Anything Greenguard/Marathon is going to be slow, stiff and heavy. Very puncture resistant but not great otherwise, so depends on what's important to you.

If I had to commute in wet weather - fortunately I don't any more - I'd be looking at full-length mudguards with mudflaps, lighting, some puncture resistance (but not the most possible), and preferably 32+mm tyres with decent wet grip. YMMV.