Shuffleman

I have been riding Vittoria Rubino Pros for years. On a new build I ordered them from Ribble with some other things. 4 weeks later they have not arrived. A buddy gave me one Vittoria Zaffiro that he had lying around. Thus, I went to Performance and bought another one. I pulled out the wrong tire and put it back before pulling out the Zaffiro. It was a Conti Grand Prix. I was amazed at the weight difference. Thus I went home and started looking at tire weight differences. My Rubino Pros weigh 360g and cost 2x's as much as the Zaffiro's, which weigh 350. The Contis were 230g and cost more than my Rubinos. I will stick with my Rubinos because they have been really good tires but it did get me thinking. What is the difference in relationship to tire weight and performance? It does not appear to follow the typical rules that the more that you pay the lower the weight.
I never pay any attention to tires because as I said the Rubino has always performed well so why change. I have always paid more attention to my components and frame than the tire. Am I missing something here?

RPK79

Weight is just one variable. There is also how fast they wear, how well they grip in various conditions, flat protection, etc...

redlude97

Tire price has to do with rubber compound, casing TPI, and suppleness in addition to weight.

wphamilton

I don't know that weight necessarily corresponds to performance other than flat protection seems to make tires heavier and more sluggish.

But I have Vittorio Rubino Pro Slicks tires in 23 and 25 and they weigh about 230 grams which is a big discrepancy with your 360 grams.

Shuffleman

I took the weight from here:
https://www.biketiresdirect.com/product/vittoria-rubino-road-tire

I have no idea if this is correct or not. It is just my point of reference.

cyclezen

many different varities that have 'rubino' in the name...

rubino pro (weights 225 to 254g) is way different from the rubino (320 to 360g) and from the slicks.
https://www.vittoria.com/tires/road-tire/
I do like the Pros and also used/use the Slicks - very nice tire. wear is middlin, grip while cornering a decent - confident, wet grip ? hasn't rained much here in the past few years... ;-(

wphamilton

Ah, that clears some things up maybe. The Rubino (without the "Pro") is heavier and, in my opinion, they felt rigid and sluggish compared to the Rubino Pro, but don't seem to wear out.

Wilfred Laurier

Weight is related to performance, but mostly because the same reason a tire is heavy is the same reason it is slow (usually).

Weight on your wheels is rotating weight, which means it matters more than static weight under acceleration and braking, and the same as static weight when cruising on the flats (~zero effect) and when climbing.
The main reasons a tire is heavier than another - thicker tread, flat protection, thicker casing - are generally also things that make a tire lose more energy to flex when rolling, ie. more 'rolling resistance'.

cyclezen

back to tahr weight...
not being a tahr engineer...
there is a very perceptible difference between the lower price point 320+g tires and the middle-upper & upper end tires which generally weight in the lower 200s g.
Subjective, prolly. But I also believe a reproducible difference in a TT.
worth it? also subjective, like DuraAce over Ultegra or 105.
for me tires make the biggest diff., then nice light tubes, then wheels. But since wheels are not as 'expendible' as tire/tubes, a wheelset you hold in high regard is worth the upfront.
all in the name of getting my sad, old ass down the road a little quicker... fun ;-)