Gator Hardshell Road Bike Tire - Wire Bead, Non-Tubeless

I wrote a review for Continental Ultra Gatorskin 700x28c's in Feb. 2011. I had bought those tires for my old bike (Steel Performance - 21 speed). I was really pleased with their performance - over 2,500 miles, no flats. Well, I was recently able to upgrade to a new bike (Specialized Roubaix). It seems like there are usually two things that most bike companies do not invest any money in when it comes outfitting new bikes - Tubes/Tires & Seats. I got lucky with the seat, it is fairly comfortable but the tires were another matter. Within the first 200 miles I had already had two flats. I asked the bike shop where I bought the bike for advice. They said to try something called "Caffe Latex" (btw - Caffe is not misspelled, it is an Italian product). I found it to be pretty worthless, as I had another flat within a week. That is when I decided to "Go with What You Know". Having such good luck with the Ultra Gatorskins, I searched again for the same tire. That is when I happened on these Gator Hardshell tires. These were advertised to be Ultra Gatorskins taken to the next level of protection. I didn't hesitate, I bought a set of these and puncture resistant tubes (Michelin Airstop). SO glad I did, over 500 miles so far - NO flats! This is not a cheap way to go. But the peace of mind I have, that every time I walk out to get on my bike and knowing that my tires will still have air in them is next to priceless. 5/1/2013 - Quick update. Just changed out these tires. Managed to get 2,700 miles out of them with just two flats. First, was a really large nail. It wouldn't have mattered what the tire was made of, it wouldn't have stopped this nail. Second was a pinch flat, again not the tire's fault. I rotated the tires approximately ever 500 miles. They were still holding air but some of the thread was starting to show through. Great tire, still recommend them.

Best city road bike tires, hands down. Soft enough for a pleasant ride, yet hard enough to crush rocks. Worth the cost.

Hands down the best tire for horrible road conditions. It is lighter and less expensive than a Specialized Armadillo and has ok performance. I have put down a few hundred miles (250) so far on this tire without any flats or accidents in conditions I would get a flat every five miles using Continental Ultra Sports. 5 stars! After a few months of riding in New Orleans on Continental Ultra Sports I was desperate for a tire that wouldn't pop daily. Being an aggressive rider from the west coast, the road conditions (maybe better described as trail conditions?) would often leave me pulling off my tire, and fixing a flat at one point per long ride and usually 3-4 times per week. Many bike shops in NOLA sell the Ultra Sport and champion it for it's good ride quality and general durability but I found that it just couldn't handle rides off the levee, City/Audubon Park, or St Charles (maybe most people ride at these locations exclusively). I was talking to some friends about Armadillo's from specialized and my girlfriends father rides Gator Skins on his training bike. No shop in town had 27" tires so I couldn't patronize local business without waiting a few weeks to a month. I had this tire in 2 days after ordering (note that they are very stiff and take some pressure to mount). No more flats, no more, stopping, no more fixing tubes and losing hours of my life a week. I kept my front tire as a Ultra Sport for agility and weight, a great pair.

Great tires, durable.

I was having many issues with my former Continental Ultrasports getting flats. They may have just had too many miles on them to expect anything better. Since I've changed to the Gator Hardshells I have had no flats (about 1000 miles so far). The ride is good on dry pavement (haven't ridden in wet yet). I read in the reviews some had issues with fitting the tires on the rims. I had no such troubles with my DT Swiss rims. The new tires were firm and required a tool to install the last bit of the way, but I installed them most of the way by hand. I'd purchase them again.

I just completed my first real ride on these tires, for a total of ~30 miles. These are the first tires I have ever bought - my bike is an old Raleigh ten speed that had Continental Ultras when I purchased it in July 2012. As one review for those tires stated, they have the puncture resistance of wet kleenex. Whatever the case may be, after thirty miles the little strip of rubber on the tread that is formed when the tires are molded has not even begun to show wear. Also, I ran over a stray piece of gravel, which normally would have caused a puncture. Instead, the gravel shot out from under the tire and broke a window pane in a condemned building I was passing (there are many of those where I live). I would argue on this evidence that these are less tires and more Mobile Ambient Death Systems (MADS). I imagine one day I am going to put a child's eye out or something. That's OK though, because I will be able to peddle quickly away on my fully-inflated tires! Joking about casual misanthropy aside, these tires are amazing, based on my limited experience at least. I cannot compare them to the non-HardShell Gator Skins, but given the extremely awful road conditions where I live, the $5 difference per tire is probably worth it (it's the cost of one inner tube, or thereabouts).

I commute in Seattle about 10 miles a day to work. Going through the city created lots and lots of flat tires. I had about 1 a week with my old tires. It got to the point where they were just destroyed to the point where I needed new tires. After much research I decided to invest in these tires in hopes that it would save me from having to change so many flats. After a few months of riding they work great. I keep them at a good 110 psi and they serve me well. I am not a professional biker, so I cannot attest to their longevity yet. What they do is keep your tubes from popping, and they do it well. There is almost no debris that gets stuck in the rubber, which gives me a lot more piece of mind. I ride through broken down branches, potholes, and most annoyingly lots of broken glass, and I have to say these tires hold up well. They are not flat-proof though, this should be known. Unfortunately I got a flat on my rear wheel the day after putting these on. Turns out luck still plays a big role, and I was unlucky and had a huge piece of glass stuck in the tire. Other than that one unlucky time, I have not had a flat since. So compare 1 flat a week with my old tires to 1 time in about 3 months. Now comes a bit of criticism. These tires are a pain to put on the wheel. The rubber is very tough to manipulate to get them installed. I used to do it weekly and it took me about 30 minutes to get one tire on, and took a bike repair worker about the same amount of time. It is no easy feat and there is high risk of pinching your tube while doing it (though I surprisingly have not had that problem yet). A recommendation to make it a tad easier would be to spray the rim with water or even better soapy water. Make sure to wipe it off afterwards. This makes it a lot easier to seat the tire on the rim, but makes it that much messier. I recommend spending the $5 and having a bike shop worker do it and not worry about it. You won't have to do it frequently at all so it should not be a deterrent from buying these tires. Overall, I would say these tires are great. I am very happy with my buy and they have basically paid for themselves already with the cost of tubes and have saved me tons of headaches from getting flats. I only give it 4 out of 5 stars because they are very pricey and are a huge pain to put on the bike, but once they are bought and put on they are amazing.

Best Tire out there for urban rider. I ride a fixie in Boston MA. I get about 2800 miles per year and endure some pretty brutal condition and roads. These are (mostly) bomb proof. Eventually they succumb to the city but I never second guess them. Worth the extra $. and Much cheaper than in store. NOTE: I ride Velocity Deep V rims and these are a perfect fit. But, they are such tough tires that they can be really hard to put on/take off the rims. Expect to work for it.

Reifen sind super ,fahre sie jetzt ein halbes Jahr jeden Tag und habe noch keine schnitte. Wirklich Gatorskin..Top!! Bis auf den Preis der ist eindeutig hoch.

0 pinchazos

Great Bike tire

Eigentlich ja nicht für das Rennrad gedacht. Ich war auch zunächst sehr skeptisch, schon allein wegen des Gewichts. Aber am Ende tip-top Conti-Qualität, noch ziemliche gute Laufeigenschaften und ab sofort im Winter und Frühjahr immer auf meinem Bike zu finden. Ratet, wer damit noch nie einen Platten hatte (im Gegensatz zu meinen Rennradfreunden ohne Gator-Skin)?

Been using these for a while. Very good road holding and hardly ever punctured. Make sure you look for the rotation direction arrow when fitting. It relieves resistance if you put them on right way round. Roll beautifully if you do them right.