Winter and Cyclocross tyres / tires

puncture protection is lousy?

You used the white ones instead of the black

I've just bought a pair of these for this season, did you use them for CX too

anyone used these before?

conti topcontact winter II

http://www.conti-tyres.co.uk/conticycle/ti%20topcontactwinter.shtml

Well you could certainly lean a lot with that tread setup. Looks pretty good and not too heavy assuming it is very puncture resistant.
Unfortunately as it is a Continental it will be nearer to 23c than it's claimed 37c...

that looks a lot like the tread found on car winter tires, good stuff.

just bought a pair of the above and waiting for 'em to be delivered...

been really wet here and keep slithering about on bloody stupid leaf covered granite paving stones and cobbles built into the cycle paths, and the greasy tram lines-one of which conspired to me doing a superman over the bars and skidding along on my elbows last week so hoping these bad boys sort me out ;(

kind of wondering whether I should have just gone for studded ones but hear a few folk say they wear out really quick and if you're riding on clear roads it does them in even faster.

just bought a pair of the above and waiting for 'em to be delivered...

been really wet here and keep slithering about on bloody stupid leaf covered granite paving stones and cobbles built into the cycle paths, and the greasy tram lines-one of which conspired to me doing a superman over the bars and skidding along on my elbows last week so hoping these bad boys sort me out ;(

kind of wondering whether I should have just gone for studded ones but hear a few folk say they wear out really quick and if you're riding on clear roads it does them in even faster.

Carbide studs last quite a while. They have serious downsides though.

They are fecking heavy,
they make for a horrible ride on bare tarmac, and
they will trash your clothes if you fall or slip.

My conti studded tyres have lost some studs now. But they still seem to work. Thats after years of service, in varible conditions.

This is a brilliant solution. Grip studs. You install them yourself. So you can fine tune your tyres to your needs. You can even remove them again after the worst of winter. Works out real expensive TBH. But I'm sold on the idea. I put a 100 in each of my fat tyres, and will test them to see if I want 50 more in each.

http://www.gripstuds.com/

Shit dude. Real expensive indeed! $150 minus shipping for 100 of the smallest ones? Makes for a pricey set of tyres! You must be able to ride up the side of buildings with those bad boys.

I came to realise that 32c (clincher) is too small for CX, damn I guess it'll make me a finer rider, but it's a bit sketchy at the moment. Just putting it out there.

Shit dude. Real expensive indeed! $150 minus shipping for 100 of the smallest ones? Makes for a pricey set of tyres! You must be able to ride up the side of buildings with those bad boys.

I used them for a special project. I wanted a studded 4.7" fat tyre. I knew a studded fat tyre was in the works at 45NRTH. But guessed (correctly) that would be 3.7". So the expense was worth it to me, to get exactly what I wanted.

Steel carbide is fecking abrasion resistant. So they will last, and reports so far is that they resist beng plled out far better than factory installed studs.

But yeah. They aint cheap.

Factory studded tyres are cheaper. Nokian, Conti, and Schwalb use carbide, and softer rubber. I would strongly recommend steering clear of cheap innova studded tyres. The steel is shite, as is the rubber. I caused more expense in bike damage, than I had saved by buying them within weeks of owning them. utter shite.

Just read this here last page, but what are the peoples top choices for winter tyres, as I've just had a very slow and steady keep to the main roads into work. I'm looking for something that'll come out when the weather gets snowy/wet, and that'll work with bikes with not much clearance so we're talking 25's, 28's max.
Should I be looking for slickish tyres with treads or some of the more cx orientated ones mentioned above?

Your knowledge in this enquiry is appreciated..

You could fit bigger slicks than knobblies, which would mean lower PSI, and therefore better ice performance. But for unstable UK conditions, something that works on slush, and snow. Is probably more useful. The Schwalbe CX pro is a clearance friendly knobbly option.

Just read this here last page, but what are the peoples top choices for winter tyres, as I've just had a very slow and steady keep to the main roads into work. I'm looking for something that'll come out when the weather gets snowy/wet, and that'll work with bikes with not much clearance so we're talking 25's, 28's max.
Should I be looking for slickish tyres with treads or some of the more cx orientated ones mentioned above?

Your knowledge in this enquiry is appreciated..

the conti top contacts are (as expected) pretty tiny '32's' - I've got them mounted on normal ambrosio rims with no fear of them popping off. You've got to run them at about 50 psi to feel comfortable, but I'm nipping about in Goteborg's average -6 degrees with lots of snow, slush and ice with no bother. Previous i was riding knobbly vittoria XG's and skitting about all over the granite paving.

Anyone used the Schwalbe CX Comp? Comes in 700x30c like the CX Pro, but wondering if the clearance is also good for a track frame?

May be too tight, just stick with your skinnies and be careful till the snow disappear in a couple days.

^ that.

Surly it's a bit late to start buying snow tyres now.

Might just go with some 25c Marathons. Or even the new 23c version that's just been released.
Looking for something more winter proof (rather than snow proof coz I've got and MTB) for general riding, rather than my 23c slicks.

New bike time.

^ This.

23c is pretty tiny for London either way.

Fuck 'new bike time'! Just playing with tyres for the beater.

Can easily fit anything upto 28/30c so it's all good.

Then just fit the biggest possible tyres you can on your bike, you'll get not only a lower rolling resistant but more comfort which is a bonus.

Then just fit the biggest possible tyres you can on your bike, you'll get not only a lower rolling resistant but more comfort which is a bonus.

Don't need comfort. Have a ti bike. Need something which would have given me the confidence to ride in the snow on Saturday. Went to local shop. Looks like the Continental Touring 32 fits on my spare Mavic MA2 rims. No Continental Top Contact in any shop in London; would that fit as well?

Fuck 'new bike time'!

"new bike time" = forum joke

Don't need comfort. Have a ti bike.

Relying on the titanium to absorb the road vibration instead of maintaining a correctly inflated tyres is a fail in my book.

Would go for 28c, 32c wouldn't feel that good on those narrow rims.