Would slick tyres make a difference?
 

I am new to road cycling and I am enjoying it immensely.

Below is the tread of my current tyres. Would I gain any benefit by going for slicks?

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/...IMAG0180-1.jpg

yes

the only time i use slicks is racing.

1) weigh savings
2) rolling resistance
2a) harder rubber compound makes for a less "sticky" tire dragging ya down.

other than that i run armadillos or Michelin pro race 'service course' (yes i know they are all slicks in a way).

but in your case those are cruising tires.... get a set of road tires

Unless you're riding on dirt, sandy or snow covered roads then yes. Slick tires will feel amazing compared to those. GL

I wouldn't go with true "slicks" (ie no tread pattern at all) unless racing on freshly paved tarmac, but some standard all-weather road tires would roll much nicer than those.

It's not so much the tread pattern, as the weight and materials of those tires.

Tread pattern is really pretty irrelevant on a road bike; i.e. it doesn't increase adhesion, and within limits, its not going to make much difference in rolling resistance.

The tires you've got are heavy, and have high rolling resistance. A good "racing" tire is going to be faster than those, regardless of whether it is one with a tread pattern, Vittorias for example, or slick, Michelin for example.

How is Michelin Pro Race anything but a slick?

the Pro 3 Race Service Course is a thicker compound that has a texture cast into it that makes it not a true slick and a bit more grippy. it is still a "slick" but not a true race slick either. its the grey area. its a dry weather tire tho, that is for sure. my specialized armadillos have a slicker surface on them then the Michelins do but the armadillos had side tread for cornering

Tread really has nothing to do with the handling of a bicycle tire.

Tire compound is going to affect the grip of the tire.

And on road, tread, or lack therof is not going to cause a tire to corner bettr or worse, or grip in the rain.

http://www.michelinbicycletire.com/m...oothtread.view

Uhm, are you sure about this? My understanding is that Michelin makes 3 Pro 3 tires: The Pro3 Race, The Pro3 Grip(with a grippier rubber compound and more puncture resistance, and the Pro3 Light.

http://www.michelinbicycletire.com/m...oadracing.view



As I understand it the "Service Course" bit is just marketing lahguage referencing that the specific tire has been used in the Pro Peleton.

http://forum.slowtwitch.com/Slowtwit...ight_P1878268/

That is what I was told anyways..... Thank you all for clearing that up. I just have them around because they used to be an old sponsor(get them at cost), and now they have been replaced with continental. i just run what looks good to me in all actuality on a road bike... as long as it is resilient to the roads i ride i am happy. on a MTB is where i am picky.

so thank you all for clearing up my misunderstanding on road tires :thumbsup:

My experience tells me that this is good advise.

I love slicks for general purpose road bike tires. I ride Vittoria Rubino Pro Slicks in a variety of conditions with great results. I rode a very cold, wet, and somewhat hilly century with them last week and they performed nicely. Give slicks a try - I think you'll like them.:thumb:

Brilliant response, everyone! I will definitely upgrade to slicks now. Thank you! :)

Slicks put more rubber on the road. Tread is more for the "elements" meaning rain and snow. Race cars use slicks. Road cars use tread because you can't change tires every time it rains, and tread pushes away liquid. Bike tires don't need tread in rain because bikes can not hydroplane like cars. Yes, slicks are slick in rain, but then so are treaded road tires. The object is to get as much rubber on the road within that tiny contact patch. Tread subtracts from that. I use the Rubino Pro Slicks as well and love them.

Here's a better explanation from Sheldon Brown:

Bicycle tires for on-road use have no need of any sort of tread features; in fact, the best road tires are perfectly smooth, with no tread at all!

Unfortunately, most people assume that a smooth tire will be slippery, so this type of tire is difficult to sell to unsophisticated cyclists. Most tire makers cater to this by putting a very fine pattern on their tires, mainly for cosmetic and marketing reasons. If you examine a section of asphalt or concrete, you'll see that the texture of the road itself is much "knobbier" than the tread features of a good quality road tire. Since the tire is flexible, even a slick tire deforms as it comes into contact with the pavement, acquiring the shape of the pavement texture, only while in contact with the road.

People ask, "But don't slick tires get slippery on wet roads, or worse yet, wet metal features such as expansion joints, paint stripes, or railroad tracks?" The answer is, yes, they do. So do tires with tread. All tires are slippery in these conditions. Tread features make no improvement in this. http://sheldonbrown.com/tires.html

The contact patch on that tire is essentially slick. Unless you ride in circles, going with 100% slick will only improve handling if the new slick uses a different case construction and rubber compound. My Michelin City has a contact patch similar to yours. Straight line handling is very similar to the Michelin Orium. High speed cornering is not as smooth as the Orium due to the thread pattern.