Kenda Kwest

Price Paid:  $30.00 at Albrecht Cycle Shop

Bike Setup:
Vision R40 with short wheel base and over seat steering. Has 20" front wheel and 26" rear wheel.

Summary:
The Kenda Kwest tires suck!!! I had a set for my recumbent, 20" front and 26" rear. The side wall of both failed at differant times then each other but within a month of purchasing them. They were purchased at the same time.

Strengths:
None!

Weaknesses:
Crappy sidewall! There is nothing good to say about these tires. I switched to these thinking they would give the same performance as the Primo's. I learned my lesson that if it is not broke don't fix it. For the money I spent on the Kenda's they are not worth it. They are more expensive then the Primo's I use but not worth nearly half as much. They quality of Kenda tires is horrible.

Similar Products Used:
Primo Comet and Racer.

Price Paid:  $0.00 at OEM

Bike Setup:
Giant FCR2

Summary:
These came stock on my 2008 Giant FCR2. They rode well and had reasonable grip, but I had to abandon these after getting flats regularly every 100 miles or so. Three times with regularity on both tires, the last one being a twig, proved beyond a doubt that these tires have unacceptably bad puncture resistance.

Flat 1: Glass
Flat 2: Glass
Flat 3: A twig about 3mm in diameter and 3cm long. This completely destroyed the tube. The twig wasn't even sharp.

Strengths:
Decent ride
Very easy to mount
Good dry and wet traction

Weaknesses:
Appalling puncture resistance

Similar Products Used:
Panaracer Pasela Tourguard

Price Paid:  $1350.00 at Ernie's Bike Shop

Favorite Ride:
Specialized Sequoia

Bike Setup:
2005 Trek FX7500
Specialized Avatar saddle
Bontrager Super Stock rims
SpeedPlay Frog pedals

Summary:
Fantastic commuter tire. One flat (rear of course) over 2300 commuter miles in the last year. The construction staple that caused the only flat would have done a number of most tires. Looks like I'll get 3000 or so miles out of the rear before changing it out. Front tire looks almost brand new.

Strengths:
GREAT value for price paid vs. durability/wear.
No problems holding the road in wet weather.
At 70psi, very comfortable/forgiving ride (MUCH softer ride than the Bontrager Select Hardcase these replaced).

Weaknesses:
None encountered.

Similar Products Used:
Bontrager Select Hardcase

Price Paid:  $0.00

Favorite Ride:
17 Mile bridge

Bike Setup:
2007 Rocky Mountain Whistler 50
Shimano XTR Clipless pedals.
Terry Fly Saddle.

Summary:
These tires were on my Rocky mountain when I purchased it new. Have rode close to 4000 Kilometers on these tires and have had no problems not even one flat. Most of my riding is on paved roads with some trail riding. The rear tire is starting to show a green line around the center and it will be time to replace them shortly. I run 80 lbs pressure and the tires still feel flexible and absorb the bumps nicely.

Strengths:
Take the bumps well even at maximum pressure.
Very resistant to flat tires.

Weaknesses:
None

Similar Products Used:
Bontrager Invert Puncture Resistant 700x35c
on my Trek 7200. Many flats finally installed tire liners in them. Hard ride at maximum pressure.

Price Paid:  $12.00 at LBS

Bike Setup:
Giant Cypress DX

Summary:
Can't complain about these tires. I replaced the stock 40mm wide tires on my Giant Cypress DX with these tires about a year ago. Interestingly the original tires had the same tread pattern, but I am not sure that they are the same brand. I got these 35 mm wide. The shorter width coupled with the higher pressure seemed to decrease the rolling resistance slightly. I cut the side wall with something on the rear tire and had to replace it again in a hard stop to avoid an accident. However overall I am satisfied with the performance. I've had one flat in the past year of commuting 17 miles per day.

Strengths:
Tough construction

Similar Products Used:
Original tires on my bike