Singlespeed & Fixed Gear - Q about gator skins

i have one new gatorskin, should i put on the rear or front??

put the more puncture resistant of the two on the rear - so probably the rear

Put them on your feet

http://www.zappos.com/images/911/126911/64696-d.jpg

ok, will do! rear

plus they are pretty tough, so it will last good on the back

you should get two. cuz they are awesome. FWIW gatorskins last me about 4-5 months in the back, brakeless.

but they are a struggle to get on, really annoying infact.

true. i find if i get a friend to help and they hold it so the bead doesnt keep popping off on that last little bit, it helps.

on tough tires I use levers to hold the edges while I use my thumbs to roll over that last little bead.

i did as someone here suggested, just spit on the tire works nicely. oh i have the no wire bead type.

Gatorskins are easy compared to Bontragers hardcases.

Definitely get another Gatorskin. Great tire. They ride nice (compared to the aforementioned Bontragers) and I went 1800 miles without a flat.

They do wear a bit quick, but I'm still using one with 2000+ miles on it.

i hate gatorskins. i got 3 flats in less than an hour from the tinniest pieces of glass ever on brand new tires. worst part was, i was out in the middle of nowhere on a road ride.

plus, contis wear so fast it's not even funny. soft-as-hell compound that shreds so easily. i tried a GP3000 and after just 50 miles, it was unusable because i ran over one piece of glass that put a 1/4" gash in the tread. better off with some hutchinsons, panaracers, or specialized puncture-resistant tires, with folding beads. the new specialized folding armadillos ride reaaaallly nice.

that's unusual. conti 3000s do suck a lot, for sure, but gatorskins and duraskins have been nothing but reliable for me.

so since I'm drunk and feel like arguing, would you choose a conti gatorskin w/ 1500-2000 miles over a vittoria rubino pro with 2000-2500 miles and boot + mr tuffy liner for the back tire? eh?

that's unusual. conti 3000s do suck a lot, for sure, but gatorskins and duraskins have been nothing but reliable for me.

i thought it was a fluke, too. so i swtiched them to my commuter and i seriously got so many rear flats with that tire in such a short period of time that i've sworn off them. the soma new express that replaced it on my commuter had been flawless up until the time when i sold the frame and stopped riding the wheels, and the hutchinson quartz that i have on the rear of my other fixie has had one flat in about a year.

i was usuing the GP3000 on the rear of my road bike and really feel very poorly about it as a road tire. the soft compound made the tire feel too spongy, like it was soaking up my effort, and made me paranoid around corners. a co-worker of mine swears by them, except their tendency to shred. he likes the softer compound, i prefer to have a dual compound tire with the softer (but still harder than the 3000s) on the sides for cornering, and the harder down the center for climbing and cruising along on flat sections.

If you're only replacing one tire, I'd put it on the front and swap your front tire to your rear wheel. That's just me though.

m.

yeah, i would put it on the front, losing a back wheel is bad, but losing a front can be alot worse i think.