i know i'm likely to get a few responses saying, "if you pay a little bit more, you'll be better off down the road," but that's just not an option for me right now. i just about need new tires on my darling fixie, and i'm wondering what the intersection of cheapness and goodness is in the tire market.

of course, anything supercheap, like those found at chucks bikes (http://www.chucksbikes.com/store/tires.htm), would be nice. what's the best tire there? 700c x 23 is what i'm a-lookin for.

thanks.


(edited that pesky url)

go with the decent name -- vittoria, vredstein, conti etc

http://www.performancebike.com/shop/...tegory_ID=5420
that isn't a bad deal. never used their "courier" tires though

http://www.performancebike.com/shop/...tegory_ID=5420
the ultra 2000 isn't bad either. lacks the sidewall protection of the gatorskin. You can also find the ultra in most bike shops for about 20 bones.

That link brings me to a very expensive set of "tires"......

ha. whoops, my url bar was lying to me. let's fix that, shall we?
http://www.chucksbikes.com/store/tires.htm

Looking at the tires available at Chuck's, I'd say the Maxxis Re-fuse would be a good bet. It's a folding training tire with a kevlar belt for puncture protection. If you want a really good tire, I'd spring for the Vittoria Tecno-pro. It's got a 220tpi casing (that's good) and a puncture resistant belt that goes bead to bead, not just in the center of the tread. I thought these were only available in a 700/20, but these are probably old stock or something.

What price is this intersection?

I love the Vredestein Fortezzas, swore by them until I started getting flats pretty regularly - I abuse my tires some by riding through industrial areas and exploring abandoned buildings from time to time so I wasn't surprised. Which is why I switched to Gatorskins.

Back to the point - Performance usually has these on sale for about $16 a piece sometimes and they're the best tires I've ever ridden on - they feel grippy and fast.

I've heard decent things about the Panaracer Pasela, on sale at Nashbar - do a search for them.
http://www.nashbar.com/profile.cfm?c...eid=&pagename=

Believe or not, you want super cheap but relatively flat resistant, try nashbar house brand with the kevlar, they usually cost about $8-$12 each, and they do pretty good actually, they arent as tough as armadillos but they work pretty darn well, they arent incredibly heavy and grip the road just fine, they arent racing tires.They will outlast pasela's and most touring tires.

Do not get the ones without kevlar unless you want a flat every 300miles.

http://www.nashbar.com/profile.cfm?c...eid=&pagename=

I agree on the cheap reccomendation. Just go to a LBS and look at the cheapest tires they have. Odds are that they will be of a heavier rubber compound, so they will last longer.

The tires that I have cost like $12.50, been using them for 2+ years, a fwe flats, still going strong from amny more miles. Actually only the rear is 2+ years old, I had to replace the front after a sidewall blowout.

My Panaracer T-serv's with Mr. Tuffy's never flated on me.
Yes, they weigh a ton; in fact, about as much as my Armadillos without Mr. Tuffy's.
I have now had two failures on my Armadillos, one catastrophic tire-destroying flat and one bad cut that caused me to lose confidence in the tire, both from really nasty road hazards.
I replaced them with another set of Armadillos for $48 for the pair.
I find myself wondering about cheap kevlar tires, such as the Nashbars pedex cited.


We have so much glass on the roads of Bend right now.
I see it as intentional vandalism.
I don't understand that kind of meanness.
My son says the people who do it hate everyone and not just me. :)

weight isn't much of an issue with me... just something with real low rolling resistance. the michelin axial carbons that are on there now have been nice, but the sidewalls are wearing thin.

as for price... definitely below 20 each, the further down, the better.

how does tpi count affect tire performance?

So the more threads per inch (tpi) in a tire's casing, the more supple the tire will be. This means the tire will conform better to irregularities in the road surface for better handling, and it also makes it slightly more puncture proof.

Nashbar has some continentals on crazy sale right now. they are too slick for me otherwise I woulda just got 'em.

http://www.nashbar.com/profile.cfm?c...eid=&pagename=

twenty bucks each, i guess that could qualify as expensive but it's cheap for contis.

Performance often has big fat sales. Also try biketiresdirect.com

i always buy continentals. they are expensive but they are super strong and last years and years, even with daily hard use. and they are more flat-resistant than many tires. although I can't compare that well since it's been 5+ yrs since I've used anything else.

but if you need good cheap tires now...get em on sale, or check craigslist. Someone in the Bay Area CL was offering a pair of Armadillos...free. I dunno why.

kinda like thread count in sheets, enit.

oop, sorry, just noted your preferred 23 width. well...maybe the grey tread will win you over.

Do you like them better than Armadillo's? I've worn through one now, and am wondering what to get next, as I am kind of concerned with the delaminating factor on the sidewalls.

Conti Ultra 2000 wire bead have always served me well for training.. Good reliable tire and usually can find for under 20.00 each..

http://www.performancebike.com/shop/...tegory_ID=5420

http://www.nashbar.com/profile.cfm?c...eid=&pagename=

I have been extremely impressed with my IRC Triathalons that I got for 12 bucks a pop at Nashbar. They have been extremely resistant to flats. My only complaint is the tan sidewall is ugly as all hell.

I've ridden a bunch of these and liked'em. but they're ugly.

Wow...$8.50 for bontrager race lite tires? I'm riding those now and they are fine. That price is hard to beat.

was browsing through the newest performancebike catalog... they have the conti ultra 3000 (700x20) wire bead tires listed on sale for 9.99. worth looking into.