I bought those cheapie Forte City ST tires for my new commuter build and am having a hell of a time with them. They mount fine and I'm using the right tube, but they are low on one side which creates a "hop" in the tire. Both tires are like this. I've mounted and remounted several times with the same result. Took them off and put my Armadillos on and they mount perfectly. Wanted to use the Forte one's because they are about 100 pounds lighter than the Armadillos. Any tips on getting these things on right? Never had this kind of trouble with tires before.

Sounds like you got some bad tires. Take them back to Performance and exchange for new ones or a different brand. That's one good thing about Performance -- they have very good return/exchange policies.

+1. I bought a Mars 3.0 taillight that did not work out of the box. It took me four months before I got around to return it. They replaced it without asking any questions.
Duppie

I've had horrible luck with Forte brand tires in the past and will not use them ever again. Two different 700x23c tires blew off the rim on me. Even the mechanic at the store where I bought them told me that they are not good tires. I've removed and mounted many many different tires through the years over tens of thousands of miles ridden and NEVER had this happen with any other tire...EVER. Is it coincidence that it happened on both the front and rear wheels on the same bike after replacing both tires with Forte brand tires? I think not. They are garbage...end of story.

I have never had a bad experience with Forte tires - rode the Versa-Tracs all the way to Dallas without one issue. Have also used the City ST's with slime gel inserts and loved them. No, I don't work for Performance

FYI...since I got 27" wheels on my ride, my selection was pretty limited.

I have over 2k miles on Forté GT2 Kevlars, they come in 27x1 1/4. For $10 a piece, I'm pretty happy with them.

YMMV.

So basically I'm probably dealing with two defective tires then? Seems odd. The tech on their site said that sometimes the bead gets damaged during shipping and causes this sort of thing. I'll just return them then. Think I should spend a little more (twice the cost) and just get something like the Richie Tom slicks?

Sorry about your luck with the tires. I am commuting with a Forte Kevlar Pro 700x23 on my front wheel that I bought as a replacement for a blown Bontrager RaceLite Hardcase. No problems so far, and it seems nice and grippy for general usage. I have about 400 miles on it so far with no flats. Admittedly it is a front tire, so it will see less wear and tear.

I'm running the Forte city S/T 26x1.25 and it seems like a great tire. I can't believe it, given how cheap they were. This is my first performance brand tire, but I agree with others...return it for a new set.

The S/T 26X1.5 tires worked very nice on my bikes.

I have the ST Kevlar 26x1.25 on our tandem and I am quite satisfied with them.

I'm having exactly the same problems with some Kenda gumwalls for my English 3-speed. Thought I was losing my mind ... kind of relieved to read that someone else is similarly burdened.

I had the same problems with Continental tires on one of my commuters. This is not a defect!

All this means is that the tires are too tight and can handle more psi than what is recommended. I remember reading in Sheldonbrown.com that all you have to do with this is to overinflate the tires until the bead pop into place. Once that happens then you can release some, not all, of the pressure to your desired psi setting.

Also if the wheel you are having a problem with is the rear then all you have to do is ride it. Since the rear tire gets more of the riders weight the tire's bead will eventually pop into place as you ride.

I run Forte's also, City ST 1.5's I think. No problem's at all, and nice and cheap. If what mtnwalker said doesn't help, Performance should also refund for your shipping costs to return to them, but only if the tires are in fact defective.

Awesome info. The tires say 60 psi, so I'll give 100 a shot tonight to see if that helps it. If it was one, I may think it's a bad tire, but two? I was a little confused about that. Hopefully that'll fix it. These tires seem to be the ticket.

The tires may still be defective. Just because one poster was able to get his tires to seat properly by over-inflating does not mean that you will, but it is worth a try.

It is worth noting that there is really no such beast as Forte tires, they are simply rebranded tires. Check the sidewall closely and you will likely find the original manufacturer. I know for sure that Forte Gotham is actually a Panaracer Crosstown.

Yeah, it may be the case, but 100psi doesn't cost me a thing. I didn't know that about the Forte tires being rebranded. I thought they were just come from a factory in China and got branded one brand or another depending on which belt they went down. I like Panaracer tires.

Loathe as I am to defend Performance's "Made-in-Thailand-by-eight-year-old-kids-who-should-be-in-school" budget bike parts, these tires aren't all that bad. I've been using Forte ST-K 700X35s on my commuters since the mid '90s. I get 8K miles easy out of the rear tire, but they're so cheap that I swap out both and save the used front one as an emergency spare.

One of the causes of your problem is the way the tires are stored before they get shipped out to you... They're twisted in half-sized loops and secured with wire ties. That kinks the wire bead. Lord knows how long they sit in the warehouse like that.

Next time you try a pair (if there's a next time) untie them, work any obvious kinks out of the bead, hang them up and let them un-twist for a week or so before you mount them.

I found out that it's best to put about 40psi in, then lift the wheel and spin it between your hands. Look to make sure that the bead is even all the way around on both sides... watch carefully for signs that a bead might not be tucked in... or the BANG will have your neighbors calling 9-1-1. Then bleed it down to allow the tube to adjust to the seated beads. Finally, run it up to 100psi, then bleed it down to operating pressure. I run mine at 80psi... good compromise between ride quality and handling.

I do this when swapping tires in the comfort of my sun room... but for flat repairs out on the road, I just give it holy hell with my hand pump and hope for the best.

As a past employee of Performance... I will NEVER, EVER buy anything Forte'... or anything from that store. Best of luck. You want the BEST price? Be my guest. I always figured that if something made by "forte'" works great... they don't ride their bike.

Example. Ever heard a tire spontaneously combust? I have with Forte'. The sidewall rips right out of the tire.... have fun with that if you're on the road. It happened on occassion at the shop. I'm talking 115 PSI, I wasn't jacking up the pressure on repairs. The things would just explode. Oooohhhh, but don't tell the customer that. If they don't die, they'll just bring 'em back for instore credit. BTW, are you a performance member? Because I get $5 if I sign you up.... er.... used to.

I had a specialized tire do that. I had just installed the tire and while I was putting my shoes on getting ready to ride it blew up. It sounded like a gunshot when it blew.

Your tire probably wasn't seated properly to begin with. I'm talking about bikes that hadn't been touched in weeks... just sitting on the bike racks on display and "BOOM!"

I've had problems with tire beads not seating properly many times. Using some soapy water as a lube on the bead along with the higher pressure will help. If you look very closely along the bead where it meets the rim edge it is easy to see if it is seated properly or not. If it is, and the tire is still out of round THEN it is a defective tire.

I have the Forte City 26x1.5, I wont tell you how many flats I have had in the last ~900 miles since I got them, because I heard that will be bad luck (but you get the picture) And I can barely see any wear on the rear tire starting.

My next pair will definatly be the 26x1.25 Fortes, what I should of gotten in the first place.

You got a bad set - i've had this happen on occasion. The tire is too small diameter. The $1/week Chinaman who made them got the settings on the machine wrong.

this is my durable, cheap, decently liteweight fave:
https://www.nashbar.com/profile.cfm?c...to%2026x1%2E75
1500+ miles with no flats. roll fast, stick well, good ride... better than some name brand $20tires i've had

cheers

The tire was installed correctly, the casing had about a 5" rip on the sidewall. LBS gave me a new tire at no charge.