calstar

Any difference in tire composition when Panracer makes Compass tires?

thanks, Brian

Barrettscv 

Which Panaracer tire? I have both the Panaracer Gravelking and the Compass Stampede Pass. Both tires are built by Panaracer in Japan.

The Gravelking has better flat protection built into the construction. Both tires are relatively supple and lightweight while providing sufficient durability for moderately maintained gravel routes.

mstateglfr 

Compass claims there is.
...they kinda have to or else it becomes even more difficult to justify the prices.

Compass Extralight tires use a Panaracer casing which is used for Panaracer's racing tubulars. Panaracer doesnt use this casing for their own clincher tires. This is per Compass.

Spoonrobot 

I didn't mention this in my earlier post but I looked into this when I noticed the difference in flats between Compass tires of various age. There didn't seem to be any solid info available, just general hand-wavieness from the Off The Beaten Path blog posts and Bicycle Quarterly articles about visiting Panaracer and how Compass tires are made. There was mention that the Grand Bois tires used the same rubber as Paselas but I did not see any substantiation and the info was from 2011.

I've used four different Panaracer 650b tires made in the past two years and the Compass tires smelled, felt, appeared to the eye and wore differently than the others. So I think so but don't have anything to back it up.

Metieval

seems to me Compass to Gravelking is like
Continental Grand Prix TT to a conti GP4000sII.

One is expensive supple and fast, and prone to punctures, the other is less expensive with more rubber and less flatting with way more useful life.

Speed cost money at the Expense of durability. oh and speed cost more $$$$$ too.

cobra_kai

The compass tires actually don't test as well as you would expect. Tom Anheult (his blog here: Blather 'bout Bikes) has started testing some gravel tires and the compass tires are a little disappointing IMO.

fietsbob

He Chose different specifications from the manufacturer ,

you could ask him? may have written about it in his vintage bike quarterly.

Spoonrobot 

I think it's clear you are not reading the chart correctly.

NWrighteous

Compass doesn't make a tire anyone should waste their money on. Strada Bianca or Gravelkings are more durable with comparable performance for your money.

MPE

I bought the Compass Extra Light Barlow Pass a few months ago because I could not find the 700x38 Gravel Kings. I like the Compass tires on pavement and smooth gravel/limestone. They are smooth and fast. Of course, now I have found the Gravel Kings in 700x38. I ordered the GKs and they just arrived. I have not set them up yet. Two Gravel Kings (on sale), with shipping, are a little less in price than one Compass. The Compass Barlow Pass feel a little more supple to the touch and I have been happy with them. I forgot about the price once I rode them!

Andy_K 

I'd take those numbers with a grain of salt. His methodology is maybe a little closer to real world conditions than the standard drum tests that have always favored skinny, high pressure tires but not much. Obviously Jan Heine has significant skin in the game, so his test results should also be given careful scrutiny, but given that his methodology involves people actually riding a bike on the road I'm inclined to view it as superior data. I would like to see it independently verified.

I haven't used a Compass tires. I have used 650x38 Panaracer Pari Motos which are apparently even thinner than the similarly sized Compass tires. I like them a lot for mixed surface riding, but on pavement I wouldn't say they're as good as 700x28 Conti GP 4000S IIs. On gravel or dirt, I think they are better but perhaps that's mostly because I can run the pressure a lot lower.

Metieval

I wonder how many more compass tires are being ridden than other tires, for Compass to have as many complaints. I won't argue that the compass tires are not more supple/faster/easier to ride. That is a truth with the loosely woven casing and the lack of rubber.

The problem with compass comes from exactly that. shorter life, sealant seepage, puncture prone, all at a higher cost.

I think it is normal for people to want to know how much they are gaining, for how much they are sacrificing. From reading 100's of comments on blogs and reviews, there are a lot of unhappy people that pulled an $80 tire experiment.

Until a compass tire wins the DK or other gravel races... I personally won't trust them.

kingston 

The OP's question doesn't make any sense. There are at least five different compass tires and dozens of different panaracer tires and none of them are the same. I personally run compass extralight on my randonneuring bikes and think they are worth the premium for that, but I don't have either compass or panaracer tires on my gravel bike right now.

TimothyH

Tire tests invariable focus exclusively on watts/resistance and tell us so little about a tire as to be almost useless.

There are many other characteristics of tires such as harshness, predictability at or near the limit of adhesion and wet/dry grip. Much of this is subjective and can only be determined by riding a tire.

A supple, predictable and high grip tire is a joy to ride and I really couldn't care less about a few watts difference in resistance on some machine.


-Tim-

Metieval

If suppleness = grip and speed, you do care about watts. You're just not seeing it as watts