Commuting - Vittoria Zaffiro Pro or Continental Ultra GatorSkin?

I mostly ride for commuting and my road bike is my primary transportation.
I am riding 700x25 Vittoria techno pro kevlar's now and need to replace them.
I am considering Vittoria Zaffiro Pro or Continental Ultra GatorSkin.
Any suggestions?

specialized armadillo all conditions road tires come in 700x25, i'm riding 700x28s right now, they're reasonably priced & have a great reputation, they're heavy as hell, but you stop noticing pretty quickly, they're used by RAAM (race across america) folks 'cuz even though they're heavy they figure they'll be faster if they don't have to change flats so often, i've heard of people going 3000mi & more w/ out flats on these things, picked them up myself 'cuz i two REALLY annoying flats one right after the other & decided to wage war against flats, they seemed to be the burliest tire out there, i've gone somewhere around 200mi since i got them & haven't had a flat despite running over some scary stuff that shot out from under my tire w/ a ping!, also they're what i'm going to use for my cross country trip i'm leaving on next week.

Although I'm running a narrower tire (700x23) I have been using the Continental Gatorskins for almost a year now, and have only just swapped the front and rear after noticing some wear on the rear tire. I commute about 100miles per week, plus use the bike at weekends. These tires have been the best I've used, and I have no problems in recommending them - keep the pressure up to the maximum rating and they run extremely well too.

Cheers,

Ed

I rode the Vittoria Zaffiro Pro's most of last year (700/25).....had abput 6 flats from pinch to just picking up road junk. Way to much fun for me. So I switched to the specialized armadillo's I have bothe the 700/25 and the 28. I use the 28's for my commutes and the 25's for training. the weight has not been an issue to me, they ride well and corner well and are good in the rain......plus no flats this year an I have aobut 1000k on the 28's.

ThanX ALL-
i just got a pair of Specialized Flak Jackets (700x23) on the cheap.
I assume they aren't as TOUGH as are the Armadillo's, but we'll see how they do.

The only guys that used Armadillos in the race across America was the team called Action Sports which was sponsored by Kerry Ryan of Bakersfield who owns Action Sports there and was one of the 4 riders. They never told the press what tires they used, so how did Enantiodromo find out that bit of information? How did I know that? hmm. Anyway, the most common tire used in the RAAM by almost everyone using clinchers (which most rode clinchers) was the Conti Grand Prix series. Action Sports thought process was that if they didn't have to stop to fix flats then that could save them time over the weight advantage of a lighter tire but at the risk of flats. I'm not, and their not sure if the Armadillo's played a role in them winning or not, but they did win their class.

If you want the best flat resistent tire on the market and not worry about fixing flats and having to explain to the boss why your late, or trying to fix a flat in the dark, then the Armadillo hands down is the best tire on the market for that. Yes, their heavy at about 375gms for a 700x23, and no they are not a racing tire, and yes they ride harsher then normal tires do due to the flat resistent sidewalls. You can compensate some of that harshness by not pumping the tires up to max sidewall labled pressure; I put in 95 in the rear and 85 in the front, but I weigh 163 so you may have to put in more or less depending on your weight. You can also help keep down some of the total weight by using an ultralight racing tube, I use the Specialize Turbo 65grm tubes in mine. The Armadillos cost $30 each and will last longer then most tires on the market. These tires saved me quite a bit of hassle when I lived in Bakersfield CA which is also known a Goathead City; between the goatheads, thistles and usual road trash I averaged 3 flats a week before the Armadillos, using the Armadillos I averaged 2 flats in 3 years. The first flat was from a faulty tube and the other was from a tire I let wear to the cords and a pebble made it's way through. And to show you how tough these tires are, I rode that worn out tire flat for 5 miles to see how long the tire would hold up before the sidewall would shred...it never did nor did riding it like that cause any rim damage-of course I was going slow and kept a close eye on the tire. I got tired of riding it slow so I patched the tube and rode the rest of the way home (4 miles) on the same tire!

If the weight of the Armadillo scares you a bit, then Conti makes a better tire then the Gatorskin called the 4 Seasons, which is the only Conti that has a mild flat protection belt in the sidewall. They are dramatically lighter at around 235grms, but these tires are expensive at over $40 each.

I mostly ride for commuting and my road bike is my primary transportation.
I am riding 700x25 Vittoria techno pro kevlar's now and need to replace them.
I am considering Vittoria Zaffiro Pro or Continental Ultra GatorSkin.
Any suggestions?

I am sure you have long since made your choice, but I thought it was interesting because I just switched away from Vittoria Zaffiro to Continental Ultra Gatorskins! All I can tell you about the gatorskins is that they give a slightly softer ride (which I don't care for, but I'll try playing with tire pressure a bit). The problem was the Vittoria tires would blow out very frequently. In about 1,500 miles, over the course of exactly one year, I had 5 flats in the front (two tubes) and more than I could count in the rear (three tubes, the last one I pulled out had six patches on it). All due to glass. I just looked up the Zaffiro, and I see that there is some difference between the Zaffiro and the Zaffiro pro, but even the plain Zaffiro is alleged to have puncture protection, which I frankly cannot believe.

So, I am hoping I can get happy with the feel of the gatorskins & really hoping I don't have to repair so many flats.

The only guys that used Armadillos in the race across America was the team called Action Sports which was sponsored by Kerry Ryan of Bakersfield who owns Action Sports there and was one of the 4 riders. They never told the press what tires they used, so how did Enantiodromo find out that bit of information? How did I know that? hmm. Anyway, the most common tire used in the RAAM by almost everyone using clinchers (which most rode clinchers) was the Conti Grand Prix series. Action Sports thought process was that if they didn't have to stop to fix flats then that could save them time over the weight advantage of a lighter tire but at the risk of flats. I'm not, and their not sure if the Armadillo's played a role in them winning or not, but they did win their class.

If you want the best flat resistent tire on the market and not worry about fixing flats and having to explain to the boss why your late, or trying to fix a flat in the dark, then the Armadillo hands down is the best tire on the market for that. Yes, their heavy at about 375gms for a 700x23, and no they are not a racing tire, and yes they ride harsher then normal tires do due to the flat resistent sidewalls. You can compensate some of that harshness by not pumping the tires up to max sidewall labled pressure; I put in 95 in the rear and 85 in the front, but I weigh 163 so you may have to put in more or less depending on your weight. You can also help keep down some of the total weight by using an ultralight racing tube, I use the Specialize Turbo 65grm tubes in mine. The Armadillos cost $30 each and will last longer then most tires on the market. These tires saved me quite a bit of hassle when I lived in Bakersfield CA which is also known a Goathead City; between the goatheads, thistles and usual road trash I averaged 3 flats a week before the Armadillos, using the Armadillos I averaged 2 flats in 3 years. The first flat was from a faulty tube and the other was from a tire I let wear to the cords and a pebble made it's way through. And to show you how tough these tires are, I rode that worn out tire flat for 5 miles to see how long the tire would hold up before the sidewall would shred...it never did nor did riding it like that cause any rim damage-of course I was going slow and kept a close eye on the tire. I got tired of riding it slow so I patched the tube and rode the rest of the way home (4 miles) on the same tire!

If the weight of the Armadillo scares you a bit, then Conti makes a better tire then the Gatorskin called the 4 Seasons, which is the only Conti that has a mild flat protection belt in the sidewall. They are dramatically lighter at around 235grms, but these tires are expensive at over $40 each.



When I had my Trek 1000, I put 700X25 Armadillos on it, and kept them at 90 in the front, and 105 in the back. I was 225 at the time, at it definitely made a difference.

The UK magazine "Cycling Plus" tests a lot of tires. There seems to be a wider selection of commuting tires available in the UK than in the US of A. Their favorite commuting tire is the Conti Gatorskins. CP says that it blends ride quality, durability, and flat resistance better than the competition (which often go to the "extremes" of favoring ride quality over flat resistance, or the other extreme of favoring flat resistance over ride quality).

Some tires seem to "mate" better with a given rim than another. And, your weight, your riding style, and the kinds of roads you are using will impact your results. Which means you gotta try 'em to find out how well they work for you.

I ride conti gatorskins exclusivly. Best tire for the money I have seen. However they weigh in at 280 grams (700 x 23). They now have a folding bead version of the Gatorskin. They are 230 grams (700 x 23). I have not tried the folding yet but am going to order some next week.

The Zaffiro is definitely not a commuting tire, too little puncture resistance.
Don't forget the Pasela, Pasela TG, and Vittoria Randonneur.
The latter is the toughest tire I have ridden. I have never flatted one in probably
9k miles.
Really, really heavy though. 490g 28c - 685g 40c the kevlar bead Randonneur Pro
is 430 g. Pasela TG is worth a look, Pasela standard is a good tire but not for city
roads with crud and glass. Gatorskins are great though, no doubt, definitely lighter than the Randonneur, they feel faster.

let me add conti toptourer 2000: two flats in just about a year... i destroyed many tires and used to average a flat or two a week before these!

when i go through my stock (bought 5 when they were on sale for 20 bucks a piece) i am gonna try some armadilos after hearing all the good reviews. that may be a while though, these are some tough long wearing muthas!...