I think you should do what I did. Leave those Bontragers (R3?) on the stock wheels as a backup, and buy a set of 25mm GP4000S II tires to go with the Vueltas. They're not cheap (pair is around $80 if you get a deal), but they're very durable, have excellent grip, and at 25mm you can run lower pressure so the ride quality is improved. Those Bontragers are hard as bricks. Enjoy the new wheels!

I too love my Continental 4000s II. definietly makes me feel more secure and connected to the road while offering a more supple less bone jarring ride.

They actually come with R1's. The wheels and tires are the one area I think they really cut costs on the Emonda ALR line. Still a great deal for what you get, but I'm excited to get some new stuff to roll on. :)

Have you heard anything about these? http://www.amazon.com/Continental-Ul.../dp/B00G8QGIOC

They're quite a bit cheaper than the 4000's and seem to have good reviews.

I don't think those are a real improvement over the R1 tires that are already on the bike, while the GP4000s are. Maybe run the R1s for a few months and save up for the Contis? Other than freak tales of sidewall failures, I've never heard anyone say anything bad about GP4000 tires, and seemingly half the field at my local races are on them.

That's how Trek rolls, pardon the pun. I have the Madone 3.1 and they really give you crap bars, stem, wheels, tires, saddle, FD, chain, and brakes so they can fit a pretty nice carbon frame at a given price point. All of those things have been replaced with the exception of the Tiagra FD, which does its job. Clearly their marketing works, because in hindsight it'd be easier to pay upfront for the frame and components you actually want, rather than a complete bike and $400 or whatever over time to replace each part in sequence.

If you have those same non-name brand black brakes (Tektro? They were unlabeled on mine), be careful. The return spring rusted and stopped working on my front and rear calipers after about a year and a half, so the brakes turned to mush. Replaced them with SRAM Apex and it's been fine since.

Luckily, no. The Emonda line comes with "full" gruppos, so I have 105 5800 chain, brakes, shifters, cassette, RD, FD, and crank. The 5800 brakes are spectacular. I actually really like the saddle on the ALR as well. I hated the saddle on my 1.1. The stem is pretty good, the bars are kinda meh, but I'm not looking to upgrade those any time soon.

Nice! Guess they're upping their game, that's good to see.

Is this a good deal for 2? 2 Continental Grand Prix 4000 s II 700x25mm Black Black Folding Tires | eBay

Nevermind, they're $88 shipped at Nashbar for two right now. Is that pretty good, or can you generally find better deals than that?

That's a good deal. People have stories about how they got a pair for $60 shipped from England or somesuch, but in my experience I've never been able to get a pair of them for less than about $90. Just make sure you're getting the 25s if you want a slightly better ride.

The price on the Contis has been higher for several months. Those $60 deals are a thing of the past I think.

Yeah, definitely getting 25s. I don't even know why bikes still come with 23s on them. I assume the tubes in the R1s will work with 25s?

Yup, but if I were you I'd order an extra set of tubes too. You'll need them eventually and that way both wheelsets have tires/tubes in case you need backups. They're probably $3-5 a piece. I think they're marked for 19-23mm but I'm pretty sure they'll work on anything up to 28 or so.

Ah, OK thanks. I always have 1 spare, but I guess I can afford another $10 if I'm spending $90 anyway.

Ha, I feel like I just talked you into spending $100 bucks you weren't planning to spend, sorry! When you feel the ride quality on the GP4s and the joy of not having to swap tires and tubes to use a spare wheelset you'll thank me :)

I would have spent it eventually anyway. It might be worth it to protect the new wheels too. :)

One last question, sorry. I'm seeing a LOT of great reviews about these tires, but also a lot of really bad ones with sidewall blowouts. Enough that they seem common. Is extra care needed to install these compared to a wire bead? Is there an optimal PSI that will prevent these blowouts? I commonly hit sharp turns at 20+ mph and descents at 40+ mph and I don't want to be afraid of a blowout in either of these scenarios.

I know of no tendency of the Conti GP4000S IIs to blow out. The fit of the foldable bead is very tight and secure. The only examples of blowouts that I know of personally are from tubes trapped under the bead during installation. They are very resistant to side wall cuts as well. I have been riding several sets of the Contis for years with no issues such as you are asking about.

That seems to be the common feeling about them, but check this out:

http://www.amazon.com/Continental-Gr.../dp/B00PUE4NKY (9% 1 star, interesting photos of sidewall blowouts)

These type of reviews are found all over the web on sites that sell the GP4000s II's. It's more so than other tires, but obviously one can argue that at this price point, people are more willing to get online and write a bad review about issues than a $25 tire.

What's a good PSI to run the 25s at?

^^ Same experience as Robert, no issues. I think the sidewall failures/rips are due to under inflated tires rolling in turns (like severely under inflated, 30-40 psi on a 23mm tire or whatever) or catching sharp objects and then later blowing out when the tubes are pumped up to a proper pressure. I'd imagine these things happen with every type of tire, the sidewalls on GP4000s aren't as durable as Gatorskins but they're much more durable than a $20 generic road tire.

I've used them for 3 years, 15,000+ miles (so probably 4 sets of rear tires and 2 fronts) and I've only flatted twice from road debris and had 0 sidewall issues. That includes a lot of races and rides in the mountains with 40-50 mph descents. I wouldn't worry.

Edit: I'm 180 lbs, I run mine 85 front/95 rear but I've run them as low as 65-70 if I forget to pump before a ride and haven't had any pinch flats.

Also, the picture in that Amazon review looks like he hit a very sharp metal object and it slashed the sidewall, which allowed the tube to eventually work its way out and pop. There aren't many tires that can really prevent that, you just have to try to avoid rolling over sharp metal or glass things on the road.

I seriously doubt those failures you allude to are true sidewall failures in which the wall simply gives way and explodes. Most likely they are due to sidewall cuts, which are rare with the Contis but nevertheless do occur. The cut slit pinches the tube and results in a blowout. All tires are prone to sidewall cuts to some extent.

How did a thread about wheels turn into a thread about tires?

Guess the OP should have started a 2nd thread to ask about tire opinions, he's probably very confused by the digression :rolleyes:

Tires go on wheels. :)