The Versatility Conundrum – One mans Battle with Wheels, Formats, and Tubeless Tyres. Part 2.
ContinuedMy Kenda Flintridge Pro tyres arrived a week later. These have to be the easiest tyres I have ever setup tubeless. Kenda say that the KSCT casing is designed to not only protect the tyres from cuts and abrasions but also aid in tubeless setup. It could be marketing spiel but like I said the setup was very, very easy. The Flints weighed in at 480g, and measured just under 36mm compared to the WTB which measured bang on the 42mm claimed and weighed 440g. Despite the 6mm difference in width, side by side its hard to see the difference in width between the two tyres, more on this later.Kenda Flintridge Pro - 35mmWTB Resolute - 42mm700c Test RideFor the test ride I tried to pick a route that would emulate the conditions that the Kenda tyres were designed for.
The Versatility Conundrum – One mans Battle with Wheels, Formats, and Tubeless Tyres.
Gravel bikes are some of, if not the most versatile bikes on the market. Fast and efficient enough for a road century, capable enough to tackle cross country mtb routes and muddy bridleways, and as you would expect fast and comfortable on gravel tracks and fire roads. The ultimate go anywhere bike, some would say.In an effort to maximise this versatility many will decide to run two wheelsets. This makes a lot of sense as most framesets now accommodate different wheel sizes with a wide range of the many tyre sizes available.So, what's the ultimate double wheelset setup? What are the advantages and the drawbacks of the many combinations available. I cannot answer these questions for you, as there are just two many variables and personal preference will play a large part. What I can do though is pull together