Hi everyone, i hope to find any of the r/Velo geeks here as well.

I finally got myself a nice carbon Wheelset, Lun Winspace Hyper 23 SE 40mm, it has a 21 internal width and nearly 28mm outer width. Now i am undecided which tyres to fit the set. I have the choice out of two sets that i have laying around in fairly mint conditions. The first is the conti gp5000 S TR 28mm and the second the conti gp5000 AS TR 32mm. I got the latter to fit my winter configuration, and I have enjoyed it on the Aluminum DT Swiss P1850 wheels, internal width 19mm.

Winspace specifies the Hyper 23 SE is best matched with 25-28mm tires, following the transition from rim to tire is nearly flat, beyond the 28mm you can get a little bulp, potentially sacrificing aero benefits. Peak torque had made a very insightful video about this too where he concluded the airflow might not attached back to the rim using the wider tire. Now, i am not a racer, but i do enjoy optimising the configuration.

Another point of consideration is the weight, it seems the S TR 28mm weighs around 280 grams, and the AS TR 32mm a full 105 grams more. That is 210 grams for a set. Around me, the area is flat as a pancake, but next month I aim to cycle the Amstel Gold 150km, that will have a more fluent course where lower weight can help me getting up the hills faster for less power. Saving me energy to help avoid being slowest in our group of friends.

Bicyclerollingresistance has made analyses of both tires, but categorised the AS TR 32mm as a gravel tire, so i can’t make a head to head comparison on the site. They did have the AS TR 28mm in the road category to compare with the S TR 28mm. The 32mm and 35mm supposedly have a higher thread thickness compared to the smaller. Wet grip is also noted as a pro of the AS TR with a slight penalty on rolling resistance.

Many will say 32mm is simply more comfortable then 28mm due to lower pressure they allow. I am pretty lightweight, i think the system weight will tally up to 75 kg maybe, so i am not confidant i will get my best bang of comfort over mm when going from 28mm to 32mm.

Any opinions anyone has to share would be greatly appreciated

  • @good_hunterOPEnglish
    1•9 months ago

    Cheers, appreciate your input really. Like you, one spirals into the rabi thole of marginal gains (i hate that phrase) quite rapidly once you take the plunge.

    That was an interesting video, again mentioning the increased of comfort going higher. I tried spotting the wheel set they use in the video, they look like Roval CL 50 Disc Wheelset , that has internal width of 21mm and external of 30mm. Theoretically, it would mean a 30mm tire would still be flush with the rim. They also seem to be a tad heavier then me, so i am not surprised they felt the 32s gave them better comfort. I think they really should have mentioned those data points as the optimisation seems to be a function of all of those variables.

    I couldn’t help myself, and did crosspost on reddit. I did receive a valuable insight that I hadn’t noticed before. Many seem to stagger their tire width between the front and the rear, for example 28mm in the front and 30mm in the back. By doing that, one is trying to capture both aero gains in the front and comfort gains in the back. It is believed that the aero penalty of thicker tires is less significant in the rear as airflow has already been impacted by your bike, legs, and bottle cage. I think it is an interesting concept I will likely try it out.

    Sadly, I have the 28mm mounted already, with fresh sealant too. So I think I will first make a couple of rounds with those, and then switch the back to the 32mm. It will be a mismatch in tyre model, as the front is the more supple thinner S TR and the rear will be the sturdier AS TR. However, I think i am not that experienced to feel that difference anyway.