tyres

I seem to be hoarding old bike tyres, I feel bad just for binning them and think they may be useful at some point. I know its not the same but car tyre disposal is paid for as I assume they are not just put them into landfill.

So, does anyone have any inventive uses for old tyres?

Shed roof waterproofing?
Child proofing sharp corners?
Bags/clothing?
Loops in garage to hang bikes from?
Sell 2nd hand to turbo training masochists?

Fast, light, grippy and impressively durable, Michelin's latest top-level Pro4 Service Course tyres are perfect for summer racing and training.

Michelin revamped its road clincher tyre range at the end of last year with the introduction of the new Pro4, a range which now encompasses tyres for a range of conditions. They save the best for the Service Course though, the lightest and fastest tyres.

Having made a mistake in choosing a flat barred Cannondale CX4 as my commuting bike last year, I've just finished converting it to dropped bars, and I reckon it improves it no end.

The one thing I feel could still be done to improve it is to fit a set of narrower/slicker tyres once the frosts have cleared. The bike is currently fitted with a set of Bontrager 35mm tyres with a heavy groove (the shop switched the cross style 37mm tyres that came as standard for me). The rims are Maddux 3.0 disc and there's precious little information about them on the web.

12 months of racing, training and commuting - that's the ultimate test of the Michelin Pro4 Endurance tyre, designed with longevity and puncture resistance in mind.

Michelin's new Pro4, the latest line of top-end performance tyres, was introduced in 2011. It's now available in six guises, Service Course, Comp, Comp Limited, Grip, Tubular and, tested here, Endurance. This is the tyre intended for going the distance and lasting a long time.

With all this snow I have been mostly riding a turbo in my garage. After each ride I have a pile of rubber particles (about 1mm in size) on the floor behind the bike. It's a TACX magnetic trainer (usual friction drive setup) - is this a sign of too much/too little tension, tyre pressure, worn turbo or just one of those things that happens with a turbo?

ta

Jimmo

Hi,

I've been using Conti GP4000s for most of this year for my daily commute of 11miles each way. Recently I've been hit with a spate of punctures and I'm thinking I need to get some more hard wearing tyres on as the rain and slush pushes all the grit/stones/twigs/glass/debris out into my riding path.

After doing some research the Vittoria Open Pave Evo CG seems to be a good choice (http://www.wiggle.co.uk/vittoria-open-pave-evo-cg-clincher-tyre/) and the reviews in general seem pretty good even with their hefty price tag. Does anyone have any experience with using them?

The Maxxis Raze is a cyclo-cross tyre billed by Maxxis as the "solution to the diverse terrain a cyclo-cross race requires". Weight-wise, the folding version sits in the middle between the Mud Wrestler and the Mimo CX, both of which are billed by Maxxis as more suitable for wet terrain, while the Raze's selling point, according to Maxxis, is its versatility.

The tread design features a central ridge of closely spaced square knobs for reduced rolling resistance on harder terrain, while the square side knobs are spaced wider apart.