grippy s40 (2020) tires

H

Howard Goldstein

New Member
I have been happily riding my (2020) s40 for two months until today when I took a spill on a slowish turn on a wet road. This is my first road bike/thin tired bike and I was very surprised that the tires did not keep their grip on what I expected to be an uneventful turn.

I looked for suggestions in this forum and saw some recommendations for tubeless tires, but, knowing nothing about this, I'd prefer to stick with tubed. Can anyone please recommend one or more grippy tires for the s40?

Thanks in advance...
 
DocS

DocS

Guru
I use Continental Grand Prix 5000 tubed tires on both my Vendetta and now my S40...
They are very fast and grippy, but I don't ride when it's raining or on wet roads. Partly because of how slippery they are for me, but more because of how slippery they are for the cars I share the road with...

Blessings,
DocS
 
Doug Kline

Doug Kline

Guru
Continental Grand Prix 4 Season tires are my favorite training tires. Not as fast as GP5000, but 70% more puncture proof and more grip. Continental Gatorskins have more flat protection than the 4 Seasons, but the 4 Seasons have more grip. They hit the sweet spot for training tires.

I do put up with the tubeless hassle on my V20 race tires, but most everything I do on my S40 is best done with training tires including stretches of gravel roads.
 
H

Howard Goldstein

New Member
Continental Grand Prix 4 Season tires seem to come in 700 X 32C or 700 X 28C, but not 700 X 30C. Sorry if this is obvious, but will one of these fit?
 
Doug Kline

Doug Kline

Guru
Howard Goldstein said:
Continental Grand Prix 4 Season tires seem to come in 700 X 32C or 700 X 28C, but not 700 X 30C. Sorry if this is obvious, but will one of these fit?
Click to expand...

Yes both. They will both fit your frame. If you have the stock wheels, which are spec'd at 25mm wide, they will both fit that wheel.

One consideration is the size of the spare tube. Tubes that fit a 32mm tire are much larger than for a 28mm tire. I continue riding on 28's for that reason. From time-to-time I've used wider gravel tires and had to carry the larger tube, but normally I'd rather not.

You might find the 32mm a more comfortable ride or a faster tire, depending on pressure. And 32mm might have more grip, depending on pressure. There was a nice write up last year that's worth looking over as you decide.
https://www.bicyclerollingresistance.com/specials/grand-prix-5000-comparison
 
dule0911

dule0911

Active Member
The 2020 S40 has a different front fork compared to older models, so the 32mm tire is not a guaranteed fit. 35mm Schwalbe Kojak don't fit, and by looking at my Conti gp5000 TL in 28mm on the same bike (on 27mm wide rims), I'm not sure a 32 would fit. Depends on the rim/tire combo.
 
velocio

velocio

Austrian roadside steckerlfisch (fish on a stick)
Howard Goldstein said:
I have been happily riding my (2020) s40 for two months until today when I took a spill on a slowish turn on a wet road. This is my first road bike/thin tired bike and I was very surprised that the tires did not keep their grip on what I expected to be an uneventful turn.

I looked for suggestions in this forum and saw some recommendations for tubeless tires, but, knowing nothing about this, I'd prefer to stick with tubed. Can anyone please recommend one or more grippy tires for the s40?

Thanks in advance...
Click to expand...
Hi Howard,

Sorry to hear about your spill, hopefully you and bike are doing OK ... What make/model/size of tires were you riding, pumped to what pressure?

-Jack K.
 
DavidCH

DavidCH

In thought; expanding the paradigm of traversity
Yep... sorry about your spill. I run continental grand prix 5000 tubeless and when it rains I find the road slippery as hell. My climate is dry days 98% of the time so roads have rubber oil layer so when it rains it's very slippery. Best to reduce the pressure in your tires when its wet. Make sure too that you spot the gravel on the turns as that will catch you out. I am always going fast on the vendetta so clinchers dont provide me enough protection. I did have a chance to feel the continental tubular gator skin tire and was very surprised how grippy the surface of the tire felt. It smelt premium too... I could sniff it for hours.
 
Doug Kline

Doug Kline

Guru
dule0911 said:
The 2020 S40 has a different front fork compared to older models, so the 32mm tire is not a guaranteed fit. 35mm Schwalbe Kojak don't fit
Click to expand...

Well, I didn't see that coming. I've run 38mm Specialized Pathfinder Pro 2Bliss tires on my 2017 S40 with no problem.
 
H

Howard Goldstein

New Member
velocio said:
Hi Howard,

Sorry to hear about your spill, hopefully you and bike are doing OK ... What make/model/size of tires were you riding, pumped to what pressure?

-Jack K.
Click to expand...
Hi, Jack. Nothing broken/sprained, thankfully - i'm back to riding (but feeling leery of wet roads). I was on whatever tires are standard on the 2020 s40 (Kenda Kriterium Endurance 700x30c, i think). I think pressure was close to 100...
 
super slim

super slim

Zen MBB Master
Robert Holler

Robert Holler

Administrator
Staff member
MrSteve said:
Some roads are, when wet, unrideable.
With experience, you'll identify the slippery spots first!
Click to expand...

I will agree with this statement and it should be taken as just a fact - some roads will do in just about any two wheel recumbent if they are too slippery and it won't matter what tires you are using.

Where I live about this time of year there are so many leaves - that once they rot a bit and even wash off the road - leave a constant thin veneer of slime on the road. It can be navigated with care, but I have watched uprights slam down in front of me as if they just his a patch of black ice. Often times here I need to take the entire lane to avoid going down when the wet slimy sections come into view.
 
E

ed72

Zen MBB Master
Lennard Zinn asks the big tire mfg that exact question in the attached.

As a formerly foolish one who spent many a night bombing down dark, previously unknown mountain roads in the rain, I have tested lots and lots of tires. Aside from the compound and casing suppleness, wider combined with lower pressure helps the most as does latex tubes. At 250 lbs with bike, I ride at 89 psi on 25 mm tires (GP 5000) and have had one flat since August (2019). I'll prolly get a flat today with my big mouth. With 28 mm tires, I run 74 psi. 35 mm tires on a road bike and I am down in the 40-50 psi range. High pressure is not necessarily fast and more than likely slower. Tires are a tradeoff of cost, durability, puncture resistance, rolling resistance, wet adhesion, comfort, and other factors. Continental black chili compounded tires are hard to beat considering all parameters overall. There are a couple tires that might be a little better in the wet by my reckoning but I would not put them on a bent.

100 psi in wide tires like that is kinda asking for trouble.

https://www.velonews.com/gear/technical-faq-tire-grip-wet-conditions/
 
Robert Holler

Robert Holler

Administrator
Staff member
Most people run WAY too much pressure - in whatever tires they have. I have seen many where I was shocked they hadn't blown off the rims already. More is not better.
 
paco1961

paco1961

Zen MBB Master
When I first switched from running to DF cycling I was all about 120 lbs on 23s. After a few years of experience I dropped to 100 lbs. a few more years I switched to 85 lbs on 25s. Some of us learn slowly.

And just this weekend, 2 DF young punks blew past me on a tight turn with their glue ups likely at max pressure. They got half way through the turn when Roberts’s leaf slime did it’s worst. First rider went down and wished the second into the ditch.
 
DocS

DocS

Guru
Ordered some new Conti GP5000 in 700x32 for my S40 yesterday... Should be in this afternoon...
I have Conti GP5000 700x25 on it now..

These are great tires!

Blessings,
DocS
 
M

mpayne

Member
DocS said:
Ordered some new Conti GP5000 in 700x32 for my S40 yesterday... Should be in this afternoon...
I have Conti GP5000 700x25 on it now..

These are great tires!

Blessings,
DocS
Click to expand...
I’ll be curious to see how you like them, and as importantly, whether they’ll fit. On my new S40, there’s so little clearance with the stock tires (700 x 30) that I’ve wondered if any larger tire may result in too large a diameter to fit in the fork.
 
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