IRC Triathlon Clincher

Price Paid:  $10.00 at nashbar / bike show.

Favorite Ride:
Work commute

Bike Setup:
'87 schwinn prologue, ful Dura Ace 7400, Mavic 700C rims. Tire was bought for $1 at Ann Arbor/Saline.
Mid 70's Ganna, 27inch Weinneman rims, Iro hubs, Velocity VeloPlugs, Suntour XC Pro headset.

Summary:
Okay for a front tire use, but had nothing but problems on the rear. I'm not an agressive rider, but I do weigh a LOT. I've had the 700x23 on the front of my schwinn for a year and a half, and 27x1 on both whels of my ganna for a year until today. Like many I had the tires poping off the rims and the side walls burst out on the 27's after less than 500 miles. Over all, don't use the 27 inch tires.

Strengths:
cheap (Both price and quality) and availible in many sizes.

Weaknesses:
27 inch beads are not the proper size and come off easily, while ripping the belting. I've gone through two of these in less than 500 miles.

Similar Products Used:
Kenda Kontender, Panaracer Pasela, Conti Top Touring 2000…

Price Paid:  $0.00

Summary:
I bought these tires almost two years ago and put them on my wife's road bike. She weighs about 120 pounds and isn't an aggressive rider. So there wasn't a lot of stress on the tires. After about a thousand miles, the tread began to separate from the casing. There was quite a bit of tread mileage left, but the tires because unusable. Also, the rubber material around the wire bead began shredding. She also had lots of flats, but I'm not sure I can blame that on the tire; we ride on roads with lots of hazards.

I would not recommend these tires at all.

Strengths:
Cheap

Weaknesses:
Poor life. Maybe flat-prone.

Similar Products Used:
Bontrager, Vredestein, Continental

Price Paid:  $12.00 at bikenashbar.com

Bike Setup:
27x1 rims

Summary:
Tires seem fine if they stay on rim.
I got both 700x25 and 27x1 sizes.
Both 27x1s pop off the old Arraya rims on my Nishiki
Prestige. the 700C have no problem staying on the
Arraya rims on my Fuji. Not sure of the cause.
Tried smaller tube but only helped a little.
Got tires mailorder, but rolling up the tire didn't seem
to be the cause. Any Clues ? Tire just seems
a hair too big.

Weaknesses:
Don't stay on rim. After a couple months
and with pressure less than 100psi, problem
seems to have gone away.

Price Paid:  $30.00 at LBS

Favorite Ride:
Anyplace hilly

Bike Setup:
Mid-80's Bridgestone 500(a lugged, steel frame)-Suntour Cyclone 2 group (friction shift)-Strongligh

Summary:
Overall a good tire. They seem pretty durable and grip pretty well in the rain. I take mine up to 115psi (27x1). Good value for the money. I only ride my mid-80's road bike in the spring and when the trails are just to sloppy for a mountain bike.

Strengths:
Durable
Good grip when wet
Not too expensive
Offered in a wide range of sizes (27x1 for me).

Weaknesses:
Nothing that I can think of

Similar Products Used:
Performance GT and GT/K

Favorite Ride:
back roads in the California foothills

Bike Setup:
Old bike Cannondale R200. Mivac rims minche hubs,sugino cranks, shimano derailers, sake bars, dia comp brakes, suntour friction shifters. New bike, Mongoose rx10.9 titanium, ultegra triple group. profile brc threadless fork, ritchey pro stem and headset, litespeed seatpost spox wheels and conti. G.P. 3000 foldabel tires.

Summary:
These tires are an excellent value. They give good milage, good wet and dry performance but are subject to road hazards.

Strengths:
Value. It is a very reasonabally priced tire. You get good milage from it. It performs well in both wet and dry conditions. It has a relativly high pressure rating 115-125psi depending on the size,so that heavy riders can avoid pinch flats. I have never had a problem with sidewall cuts on this tire

Weaknesses:
Lack of the kevlar belt means that flats do occur on the backroads where the pavement tends to have small objects. That is not limited to this tire but to all non-kevlar belted tires. The tire has better than average resistance however

Similar Products Used:
Performance G.T.; Perfomance G.T.K; Contenetal Gran Prix 3000