ok, so i’m am not fortunate enough to actually own one of these fine machines, but i do have a friend who happens to absolutely kicks ass on one and is headed to long course world duathlon champs in a month and has a serious problem. she bought a 2003 dual earlier this year from a good bike shop (3-4months ago). about 2 weeks ago she had a rash of flats–about 5 in 2 weeks. we’re in athens, GA–the home of the jittery joe’s cycling team. the wrenches for that team put her tube/tires on, so we know that wasn’t the problem. turned out the tires that the bike came with (Kendra–red stripe, 700cc, max psi 110) were pretty worn thru and had some holes in them. my friend rides about 5 days a week, but that shouldn’t wear a tire like that, should it? anyway, after figuring out it was the tire, they replaced it with a set of maxxis detonators. the problem now is that these tires feel “squishy” and there is a visible low spot when she rides, but when you check the pressure it is fine. the squishiness makes most rides pretty bumpy and really causes problems when she hits hi speeds (which she does quite well). i should also mention she rides a set of ritchey deep section wheels. i am not sure what comes stock with the bike. do you guys have any suggestions for fixing this problem? Gerard: what tires do you recommend for that bike? thanks a bunch guys–sorry to do this secondhand, but my friend isn’t a slowtwitcher and i’m doing this as a favor.
yes whineyass the stock Kenda tires suck (although they are pretty damn LIGHT sucky tires) and they wear out in no time FLAT and emphasis on the flatS. The Ritchey rims sound like the stock wheels. You can put any tires you want on the bike, I’m guessing the new tires are just defective. I run Serfas tires, but you most brands are pretty good. Popular tires are Continental GP3000, or Continental Gatorskins for a little more durability.
I’ve said it elsewhere on the forum. . .Kenda tires suck ass. . .they shouldn’t be spec’d on bikes. . .unfortunately they’re usually found on bikes that tend to end up in relative cycling newbies’ hands. . .In fact, tires should be the LAST place to downspec on a bike, but often are the first place to find cheap-ass crap.
Analogy: What would you think if you decided to take up golf. . .bought a set of Ping clubs. . .and had the grips start splitting and come off in the first couple of months of use? “Fuck golf and fuck Ping. This is more hassle than its worth. . .” That’s what you’d think.
Gerard. . .PLEASE get your folks to spec a decent tire on your bikes. . . almost anything would be better than Kendas. Heavier and more durable is just fine. Conti Supersports. . .Hutchinsons. . .Vittorias Rubino Pros. . .anything. If the customer wants lightweight “race” oriented tires, let them swap them out for something decent. . .
I have a Dual that came with Kendas. I ran them through without any flats and now have Pro Race. Those and the Conti Attack/Force have been great. I am considering Tufo tubular-clinchers which seem to be the next big thing in clinchers.
Cervelo no longer specs Kendas. The new Duals are coming out with Rubinos.
I have always found this strange, but any time I ask a tire manufacturer how long they think their tire should last they say 2000km. That’s not a lot, my tires certainly last longer but that’s all they’ll promise. And like I said, this applies not just to Kenda but to any tire in the world that I am aware of.
so does this mean the bike shop swapped out the Vittoria’s to cut down on the cost of the bike or was it originally spec’d with Kenda’s? And i am in no way trying to blame Cervelo for this–the fact that this thing happened on a Cervelo bike was the strange part (it doesn’t at all fit your rep in the business). thanks for the responses guys. oh, Gerard, one last question. The Kenda tires had a max psi of 110; the maxxis detonators have a max of 125 (or 120, i can’t remember). anyway, would you recommend a certain psi limitation for that bike/cervelos in general? or is it just rider preference? (i’m a relative newbie, so please forgive me if that is a dumb question).
You say your friend bought a 2003 Dual, so that would have had Kendas. Right now Cervelo is a 100% Vittoria spec, but obviously that does not work retroactively to bikes that were sold to the dealer in 2003.
As for tire pressure, I am not sure I would run any clincher over 110psi, there simply is no need for it. You’re just sacrificing ride quality with nothing in return.
And i am in no way trying to blame Cervelo for this–the fact that this thing happened on a Cervelo bike was the strange part (it doesn’t at all fit your rep in the business).
Yeah, because it has nothing to do with Cervelo. It had more to do with your friend not inspecting tire condition and replacing them when they has worn through areas. Like I said, my Kendas were fine, but I replaced them early. My guess is that mfr.s don’t generally spec great tires because buyers will invariably have favorites that they will want to put on. That’s why bikes rarely come with expensive saddles.
No, probably not. We are now at 100% Vittoria spec, but obviously it takes some time to flow through the system. There may still be some bikes on the shelves here or at the dealer with other tires.
“My guess is that mfr.s don’t generally spec great tires because buyers will invariably have favorites that they will want to put on.”
I’m not sure I agree with that reasoning in this instance. Those types of folks who are specific about the tires they run probably already have a set of race wheels with those tires on them. They’ll be less inclined to swap out a set of tires on the stock wheelset since those are most likely deemed training wheels. . .rather run those tires out and then replace them with favorites at that time. . .but that assumes the stock tires are decent. . .Vittoria Rubino Pros are a decent tire that you can probably expect the stated 2000km out of before needing replacement. They aren’t going to set land speed records, but they are reliable. That’s all I ask of tires on my training wheels. . .and stock tires.
Don’t forget. . .many folks on the forum are the types that are not buying complete bikes. . .they like to spec out their own frames. But the majority of the bike buyers out there are going to be looking for complete bikes. They are expecting reliability and longevity out of the product. . .cheap parts will only piss them off, as they have in this guy’s case.
Conti Gran Prix Supersonics apparently handle up to 160 psi in a 19-20C size (this was discussed a bit yesterday in a thread called “Name that pump”…summary was that I don’t believe there’s much value in going above 120 psi for clinchers but there were differing opinions).
After my Kenda wore out, I switched to Vittoria Diamantes. They call out 145psi as a max. This is also the max printed on the rim tape of the Velomax Wheels. 120 seems plenty hard to me.
I’ve never ridden tires that gave me both a good road feel and confidence in performance along with durability. For a time I was getting a supply of Kenda Koncept tires from my LBS so cheaply I could swap them out every two weeks. They were great that way. I can’t stand the feel of Michelins, and the only other decent clincher tire brand sold around here is Continental, so I ride GP 3000s. Those wear quickly, too - just not as quickly as the Kendas.
Is there such thing as a top performing tire that is also durable? If so, I haven’t come across such an animal in my cycling days.