Bicycle Tires Online

Michelin Krylion Carbon Bike Tires

Even for avid mountain bikers it's nice to ride on the road once in a while. Usually our tire of choice is based on our mountain biking requirements, but a new tire from Michelin is certainly worth testing.
Michelin's Krylion Carbon bike tires are part of their top classification of competition racing tires. They are marketed for those riders looking for a premium racing, touring or training tire. They are considered to be an all-season road tire that handles well and feels great.

On turns, curves and downgrades, the Krylion's have good grip and roll as one would expect from a high quality racing tire. They have a casing of 127 threads per inch, which are the same as the Pro Race 2 tires with the difference being that Krylion's are heavier because they are made of carbon and have a special liner that is puncture resistant. Even with these factor's they are still not as heavy a tire as some with a weight of 235 grams and because of the materials and manufacturing, they wear longer than some lighter tires. Because the center part of the tread is carbon-reinforced, Michelin claims that mileage increases approximately 30%, or 3100 miles total. Even after a few months of riding on gravel and trails, the Krylion's are in perfect condition and no flats to speak of yet.

The Krylion's acceleration ability is something that really impressed me. When accelerating from a slow speed, or from a stop the Krylion's grabbed the road in both dry and wet road conditions. Michelin claims that these are an all-season tire, and from what I experienced, they certainly are.

Michelin Road Tires

GP4000S - Test Winner!

German magazine TOUR has recently featured a comprehensive road tyre test, covering many aspects of tyre performance, even including 'real time' wet grip where their human tester donned motorcycle leathers and pushed his specially adapted test bicycle to the limit on each different set of tyres.

The complete test can be downloaded here.The Continental GP4000 was a clear winner by performing well in all areas. There was a significant difference between the top models from each brand in terms of grip wit hsome clear winners and losers.
Test rider Fabian Kleiner courageously rode each tyre to its breakaway limit on the wet test circuit. Measuring maximal speeds in the curves, the test rider was able to gain the feel of each tyre prior to its breakaway point, pointing out that the better tyres coveyed a feel of 'full bodied rubber' and showed sensitivity through increasing drift which could be controlled by the rider.

Another finding was that the difference between the best and worst tyres is bigger than the aerodynamic difference between the best and worst wheels! Puncture resistance has generally improved also, with nine tyres passing TOURS puncture test, more than ever before.
Grand Prix 4000S was the most consistant tyre with a weight of 207 grams on the test sample. Its rolling resistance measured in at 34.3 watts, beating even the lighweight race only tyres from the competitors. The resistance was measured using a rig where each tyre was spun against a rolling drum at 35kph at a load of 50kg, conducted by independent TOUR engineers. The variable was the force, converted into a power output in watts needed to power each tyre at the given load & speed.

The speed at which the GP4000S reached on the wet corner was 33 km/h, almost the same as our wet specific GP4Season, and higher than its main competitors. The time it took a sharp screwdriver to penetrate the GP4000s through the tread at a load of 35 kg was three minutes. In fact the test was stopped prior to any penetration as three minutes was defined by the magazine as a 'pass'. Only two other brands also attained a pass grade here.

Whats the big deal about Black Chili?

Black Chili is the name for our latest tyre compound which hit the market in 2007 and has fast become a hit with cyclists across the world who have marvelled at its performance beneifits.

The fact is that Black Chili will improve our tyres performance in all areas. We can even make a tyre to last longer, yet also grip better and roll faster! The figures are astounding; 26% lower rolling resistance, 30% higher grip, and even 5% longer mileage.

Black Chili is only made at our factory in Korbach, Germany. No other tyre facility in the world has access to its secrets.

Black Chlli is a new tread mixture, the result of the latest research from our polymer and raw material laboratories in Hanover, Germany. Continental AG refined newly developed synthetic rubbers with proven natural rubber with powerful profile blends. These are 'nano' sized soot particles, who's surface properties are optimized for use in bicycle tyres. These smaller particles enable the tyre tread to deform around surface objects more quickly, improving grip. They also form a tighter bond with each other thus improving compound strength for improved tread life and less chance for lugs to rip and tear on our MTB tyres. The way in which these particles interact with each other also lowers rolling resistance.

These new polymers and carbon fillers make Continental racing and mountain bike tyres the quickest and safest tyres in competition!

Compared to the previous leading Continental tyre compound, the Activated Silica (ASC) tyres, Black Chilli offers a 26% lower rolling resistance, a 30% increase in adhesion quality, and a 5% increase in tread life. For road racers and MTB trail riders, the speed and handling advantage is clearly noticeable!

AND HERE IS THE MAN WHO MADE BLACK CHILI POSSIBLE: Mr. Black Chili W. A. () form Continental 2Wheel research and development department!

The following tyres in the Continental range all feature Black Chili :

• Grand Prix 4000 s
• Grand Prix 24mm
• Grand Prix 4000 (only black version)
• Grand Prix Attack and Force
• Grand Prix Triathlon
• Grand Prix Supersonic
• Competition
• GP 4000 Tubular
• Sprinter
• Podium
• Digga
• RubberQueen
• MountainKing
• Twister Supersonic
• SpeedKing Supersonic
• Kaiser
• Rain King
• Race King