Are Kenda's really this bad?
 

I have a set of Kenda tires that came with my bike. they are labed as the Kontender Lite 700x23c.

Last wednesday before a ride i found that my tire was flat, and i asked some of the cycling club members to take a look since I don't know too much about the basic maintenance of my bike..heh. Anyways the tube was folded over (I'm guessing from skidding) inside of the tire, so one of the members gave me an innertube and we were on our way again for the remainder of the ride. :thumb:

Tonight the same thing happened with the tire! the inner tube wasn't folded over like last week, but there was a leak (last week they checked the inside of the tire before reinstalling it and pumping it up.)

Do you folks have any suggestions to checking whether the tire was installed right? I was told that the rim tape was fine, and last week the tire wasn't pinched so those most likely weren't the issue.

Are Kenda's really this bad? What are your guys' experience with these tires? And if they really are this bad, what tires would you suggest (I just ride from my apartment to class and for a weekly 20 mile ride with the club.)

Thanks!

If you skid frequently it's possible you've worn through the tire enough that the tire is no longer thick enough to protect the tube from sharp objects, and you're getting flats as a result.

Brake more, skid less, and your tires will last a lot longer.

Been riding stock 25c Kendas from my Motobecane Track with light skidding for more than a year, they are just starting to wear out. I've gotten a couple pinch flats and other flats from road debris, but nothing out of the ordinary.

Lady's been riding stock 23c Kendas (the same ones OP is riding, I think) for about a year with light skidding and she's never gotten a flat, but they're obviously not as durable for le skidz since they're marketed as "light" tubes.

If you like skidding, I recommend the cheapest rear tire you can find. I just picked up 2 lightly used (~50 miles) CST 25c tires for $5... perfect candidate for skidding.

Oh and I should also clarify that i just got this bike about three weeks ago. So everything is pretty much brand new....

Are you inflating your tires to the proper PSI?

Those kendas are horrible. Seriously, bottom of the barrel. They are as thin as a couple sheets of paper... seriously. They are so thin that they are tricky to mount aswell and often times the bead does not sit or remain in place; compounded by the less than acceptable kilo tt wheelset. And that supposed kevlar layer, if there even is one, is useless and puts dupont to shame. A close friend of mine had some that came with his old kilo and he was going through tubes by the bulk order; I got free tubes nonetheless to patch considering he was too lazy to patch pinholes. He finally got sick and tired and swapped them over for gatorskins and haven't had a flat in a long time afterward.

I still have them folded up back home but I do not anticipate to do anything with them.

Kenda makes great off road and hybrid tyres... their road tyres can be somewhat lacking.

I assume you're talking about the stock tires that come on a Kilo. They're pretty terrible.

65er is right though - Kenda does make some great tires but Kontenders definitely aren't among them.

Yeah they came stock on my khs actually, so yeah stock kilo tires. Do you guys have any suggestions for decent tires? I heard vittoria has some good products

Gatorskins

Here's where the thread turns into everyone rattling off which tires they like best and maybe (if we're lucky) a little healthy bickering.

1. Tire/Tube installed incorrectly. Skidding won't do that... Ever.

2. Learn how to identify and repair a puncture. Just puting a new tube on will likely lead to another flat unless you identify the cause. Example, you run over a little glass, it gets stuck in the tire and punctures the tube, you put new tube in, new tube gets hole from glass stuck in tire. Substitute glass for burr in rim, thorn in tire, sharp rock in tire, syringe, nail, staple, etc.

3. Never ride further than you would walk on a bad day without a pump and patch kit/spare tube.

I have two sets of Kenda's a pair of 700x25c that came on my Motobecane Track and they hold up good as a city tire but I can definently feel the difference when compared to my Michelin Pro Race 3s. The other pair I have are the 700x30c Kenda Kwicks on my cyclocross bike and I really like those, although I don't have much to compare them too, they're pretty light too! The ones that came on the Motobecane are super heavy feeling though.

I always thought Kenda's were decent tires.
I had a pair on me first FG and they lasted a good long time.
Kenda Kontender on a '08 Bowery.
Moderate to heavy skidding depending on mood and weather.

The tires I wouldn't suggest though would be zem crappy
Hutchinson Equinox's I picked up off chainlove.
worst tires ever.

for flat protection, it's going to be hard to beat specialized armadillo tires.

So today i headed to REI to get some new inner tubes and one of the employees checked my wheels and tires. He found that the puncture was on the inside and was probably due to the pressure being too low. Last wednesday on the ride the only pump that they had was a hand pump so im guessing that the tire pressure was too low. I picked up a decent foot pump (with a gauge) and a pair of inner tubes. Judging from your guys' responses these tires aren't terrible and there are other factors that probably led to the flats. Thanks for all your input guys.

The new Bontrager "All Weather" HardCase tires: Trek poached Specialized's tire engineer. But personally I like Panaracer, currently running RiBMos.

I'll run non-flat protection tires on my commute until the first flat. And then swap them out. Usually, that's less than a week...

Switching to wider tires will help with pinch flats, as will putting a thin layer of baby powder on your tubes. Glue-on patches last longer than quick patches and they're generally easier to apply because the quick patches will inevitably stick to themselves while you're trying to put them on the tube.

If you're having problems with punctures, there are also tire liners. I use Mr. Tuffys and they've worked very well, although I've heard Slime's liners have sharp edges that will eventually tear into the tire. If you're quickly skidding your way through tread, this may be a cheaper option than built-in protection.

I like Cheng Shin's road tires. Note that "Cheng Shin" tires are priced less than "CST" tires even though they're the same thing. They also make most house brand tires and tubes. I hit a new and very sharp-edged pot hole hard enough to bend the rim on my SS, but there was no damage to the tire and I was able to ride home.