Good cheap tires

Requests for good inexpensive tires show up here regularly. My personal
favorite for long wear and good flat resistance is the IRC Road Winner
in 700 x 28 (actually measures 25mm). I just saw that Nashbar has them
on sale for $9.95. With a 10 percent coupon code (SAVE10), that's
$8.95. And 1/2 price shipping! I couldn't resist adding a few to my
stash.

p.s. I don't have stock in Nashbar or IRC. Just passing along what
seems like a good deal.

Art Harris

Good deal! One question, IRC is the mfr of Avocet Road tires. How do
these tires compare to an Avocet? Further, the new Avocet "carbon 12"
all black tires are now made in Korea, as oppose to the old Avocet
black/tan tires being made in Japan. Do you know where these IRC tires
are made? Thanks!

On Fri, 16 Dec 2005 11:41:57 -0800, Art Harris wrote:

Requests for good inexpensive tires show up here regularly. My personal
favorite for long wear and good flat resistance is the IRC Road Winner in
700 x 28 (actually measures 25mm). I just saw that Nashbar has them on
sale for $9.95. With a 10 percent coupon code (SAVE10), that's $8.95. And
1/2 price shipping! I couldn't resist adding a few to my stash.

p.s. I don't have stock in Nashbar or IRC. Just passing along what seems
like a good deal.

That does look like a good deal -- 66tpi casings for 9 bucks.

I've been eyeing the Michelin Carbons on sale at Colorado Cyclist for $22.
CC is usually expensive, but their shipping is cheaper than average.

I'm not too worried about them selling out though. Michelin has
changed the model name again, so the old stock will be on sale everywhere.

Matt O.

bfd wrote:

Good deal! One question, IRC is the mfr of Avocet Road tires. How do these tires compare to an Avocet? Further, the new Avocet "carbon 12" all black tires are now made in Korea, as oppose to the old Avocet black/tan tires being made in Japan. Do you know where these IRC tires are made?

The Road Winner is made in Japan. All the ones I've gotten in the past
have had carbon black tread with a minimal inverted tread pattern and
tan sidewalls. That's what Nashbar is showing, although the IRC site
shows a new version with black sidewalls.

The casing seems to be identical to the old Avocets (66 tpi and a
little narrower than labeled). The "duro" version that Nashbar is
selling has a wire bead and kevlar belt. 275g.

tinyurl.com doesn't seem to working today, so:

http://www.nashbar.com/profile.cfm?c...eid=&pagename=

Art Harris

Art, & list:

That's a killer price. The Road Winner has been replaced by the Road
Winner II, again a wire bead, kevlar belt tire. The Road Winner II
wholesales for $10.99 if you buy 10 at a time.

good luck

jn

"Thursday"

On my city bike, I swore by MIchelin Idilis 700x37s, but seems they
don't exist anymore. It was a a 700c cxcross version of the Wildgripper
rock. Kick ass on packed snow. Ten bucks each at the Halsted
Performance shop. Rolled smooth when it was dry.

I'm on my third set of cheap Hutchinson Flash 700x28s from Nashbar.
$5/each.

One flat in over a year--from running over a bottle in the rain.

They're more skinny urban/utility tires vs. wide training tires--as the
sidewalls are nice and thick to keep the pointy stuff out.

Nothing surprising about these. Black, durable, easy to mount, minimal
tread, and don't seem to pick up glass or stones.

http://www.nashbar.com/profile.cfm?c...eid=&pagename=

On 16 Dec 2005 11:41:57 -0800, "Art Harris" wrote:

Requests for good inexpensive tires show up here regularly. My personal
favorite for long wear and good flat resistance is the IRC Road Winner
in 700 x 28 (actually measures 25mm). I just saw that Nashbar has them
on sale for $9.95. With a 10 percent coupon code (SAVE10), that's
$8.95. And 1/2 price shipping! I couldn't resist adding a few to my
stash.

p.s. I don't have stock in Nashbar or IRC. Just passing along what
seems like a good deal.

Art Harris

I have used IRC road winner for a few years. Bought a bunch on sale
from Nashbar awhile back. I find that they wear out real fast and the
rubber will start pulling from the casing quickly. last rear IRC
lasted me about 1200 miles before the threads were showing.
Also they not real round. They make my wheel look way out of true
when they are mounted.

I switched to the Flash tire by Hutchinson (thanks for the tip Maxo)
5 bucks woohoo!

I would also stay away from the IRC 25 Triathalon tire. I have had
more that a few wire bead failures with that tire.

My riding partner gets 4000 miles out of a rear tire so it might also
have something to do with my riding style.

Woohoo, indeed!

Actually they serve me well as there are many feral dogs on my route,
and I invariably double back as soon as I see them, locking my rear
brake (using both brakes, though) and making a flat spot. So I only get
2-3K out of the Flash rears--but it beats putting a flat spot on a $30
tire. :P

I really should switch my brake levers, as I can never get my right
hand to behave during a panic stop. LOL

Fritz wrote:

I find that they [IRC Road Winners] wear out real fast and the
rubber will start pulling from the casing quickly. last rear IRC
lasted me about 1200 miles before the threads were showing.

That's not my experience at all. I get at least three times that
mileage on the rear tire without the threads showing. No problems with
roundness, peeling, or bead failures either.

Art Harris

On Mon, 19 Dec 2005 04:45:19 -0800, Art Harris wrote:

Fritz wrote:

I find that they [IRC Road Winners] wear out real fast and the
rubber will start pulling from the casing quickly. last rear IRC lasted
me about 1200 miles before the threads were showing.

That's not my experience at all. I get at least three times that mileage
on the rear tire without the threads showing. No problems with
roundness, peeling, or bead failures either.

I suspect a lot of these tires offered by Nashbar, etc., on sale are
seconds or cheapo special editions.

Awhile back I ordered some Vredestein Fortezzas based on good reviews.
The price was good at under $20 for a top quality tire. But when I got
them, they didn't seem top quality at all. The casings were rather thick
and stiff, OK but definitely not top quality. The ride was definitely a
step down from what I had been using, and they didn't feel particularly
fast either. I noticed the sidewall said "Comp" after "Fortezza," which I
had never seen anywhere else, so I assume this was a cheapo special
edition. Sure enough, I came across a forum post later that confirmed the
Fortezza Comp was equivalent to one of Vredestein's cheaper tires, with an
MSRP of approximately the "sale" price I paid.

I'm wary of cheap junk and seconds too. I've seen plenty of tires with
wobbly treads, out of round, etc., that people got "on sale" somewhere.
If they can have these defects, who knows what other, more serious
problems are possible -- sidewall blowouts, etc. I'd rather not take the
risk of a blowout on a mountain descent, or being stranded in the middle
of nowhere.

Also, while some may have had great luck in the past with certain products
from certain suppliers, there's no telling what the current batch is like.
Return policies are usually pretty good, but the hassle still isn't worth
it.

Matt O.