Choice of Tyres??

Not on your list (but I think it should be) is Continental. GP4000S are excellent - light, grippy, they claim low rolling-resistance, and I haven't punctured one in around 5000km. If I'm feeling rash and the situation demands, I run Conti's Supersonics. They run like a dream - but you'd have to pick the conditions well. They are super lightweight and this means puncture resistance is low. Conti are open and honest about this themselves. I run them with latex tubes and haven't punctured in around 1500km - but they do wear out quicker than any other tyre I've seen.

I like the Vredestein TriComps and I find them pretty good at puncture resistance. Nice colors for tarts too

In Abu Dhabi we get a lot of debris on the roads from all the trucks and buses - they shred their radial tires and leave tiny pieces of metal that work into the rubber.

I've also had some pretty big gashes to the outer surface that haven't penetrated.

What we don't have is a lot of wet and slippery conditions so I can't comment on that.

What wheels are you getting ? I've recently moved over to tubeless and would recommend you consider that if you are still putting your build together and are looking at wheels in the range of 400 quid or above. Less likely to get pinch flats and a much better ride than clinchers.

Cheers guys, much appreciated, gives me something to think about anyway. I have plenty of time to research all my components as the build wont go ahead until New Year anyway.

As for the Wheels, I have some DT Swiss RR 1.1 Rims, Ambrosio Zenith Hubs and will be lacing them together with Sapim CX Ray spokes (which may shortly form another question on here).

I don't have a huge budget for this by any means so kind of balancing cost with quality where possible.

As its a first Roadie build, I',m happy to make and learn from my mistakes and amend over the first few Months of riding where necessary.

CHEERS!!

Vittoria Open Pave are good - but expensive