Vittoria Open Corsa SC vs Continental GP4000s

[JdM]

Can people with experience on both of these tyres provide some advice regarding their experiences?

I'm currently on a pair of GP4000s (25mm), however looking at a new nicer set of wheels which I think I'll fit a 23mm set to and keep my current (stock) wheels for foul conditions. I don't have any tyre experience beyond the original slick Giant tyres that came on my TCR and the 25mm Continentals I replaced them with after slashing one with a broken beer bottle

They'd be for nice weather riding (but would like them to be able to handle the regular patches of wet ground you encounter) on Sydney roads, which aren't the best, nor are they the worst. My routes tend to be pretty good as far as debris, glass and hazards go. I don't race, but would just like some nice rubber to ride around on.

From my reading around, the Vittorias allegedly roll a little faster but are somewhat more fragile. The gum coloured sidewalls however look quite cool

Any thoughts appreciated!

[CXCommuter]

http://www.this link is broken.au/veloflex-corsa ... road-tyre/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Beautiful "open tubular" constructed tyre- fast and a nice ride. Much better than GP4000s. About as resilent as GP4000s and appear to wear well- The Veloflex's are my "good" clincher tyre

I cannot comment on the Vittorias sorry.

[Jesmol]

Gum walls dont stay Gum, they get dirty pretty quick. But I've found them to be more durable than Conti's, which I've had sidewall issues with. I would go either Open Corsa or Veloflex over GP4000s 2's

[CXCommuter]

Gum walls dont stay Gum, they get dirty pretty quick. But I've found them to be more durable than Conti's, which I've had sidewall issues with. I would go either Open Corsa or Veloflex over GP4000s 2's

Veloflex have the same tyre in a Gumwall or standard black sidewall, the Corsa is the non gum wall version.

[Jesmol]

Gum walls dont stay Gum, they get dirty pretty quick. But I've found them to be more durable than Conti's, which I've had sidewall issues with. I would go either Open Corsa or Veloflex over GP4000s 2's

Veloflex have the same tyre in a Gumwall or standard black sidewall, the Corsa is the non gum wall version.

Yep, I wouldn't buy gumwall again, they look great for a while, but when it rains they look like crap.

[JdM]

http://www.this link is broken.au/veloflex-corsa ... road-tyre/

Beautiful "open tubular" constructed tyre- fast and a nice ride. Much better than GP4000s. About as resilent as GP4000s and appear to wear well- The Veloflex's are my "good" clincher tyre

I cannot comment on the Vittorias sorry.

Mmmm yes I've been told they make good tyres too.

Gum walls dont stay Gum, they get dirty pretty quick. But I've found them to be more durable than Conti's, which I've had sidewall issues with. I would go either Open Corsa or Veloflex over GP4000s 2's

I did wonder about the gum walls getting dirty. I still think I'm tempted by them purely for the aesthetics and hey I can just not buy them again I suppose. Interesting re the GP4000s sidewalls, I've found mine to be pretty solid so far.

[Jesmol]

The biggest difference between Vittoria open Corsa and Veloflex is size, I had some 25mm Veloflexes that were significantly smaller than the Vittorias is 25mm, infact they were closer to a 23mm

[CXCommuter]

http://www.veloflex.it/products/corsa25.asp?lang=en

These are the Veloflex Corsa in 25's without the gumwalls

I am using these and the Masters in 23mm (bike is one that doesn't allow 25's to fit).

In 23mm I would say they have a better ride than 25mm GP4000s using my highly scientific method (basically my ass).

[macca33]

I run Veloflex Master 25mm on my race wheels and Conti GP4000s i & ii on my everyday wheels.

Without doubt the Veloflex is a higher performing tyre but make no mistake, they wear quickly and are more susceptible to punctures - they have literally no puncture protection ie Kevlar strip.

If you choose that type of tyre you have to be cognisant of the qualities and type of lifespan.

Cheers

[nickobec]

Loved riding on Vittoria Open Corsa SC, but losing two sets with less than a 1000km on then due to cuts. Tried a few different tyres, now both race and training wheels have Conti GP4000s II 25mm. Lost a couple to cuts, but getting a lot more than 1000km out of them, more like 4000km on a rear, 8000km on a front.

Ride feel, can really say as been years between the Corsa SC which was the first tyre I felt confident pushing into a corner on the front and GP4000s which I just trust cornering.

[KGB]

Id take the open corsa over gp 4000 any day of the week. Haven't tried velo flex yet to compare but am keen to.

[JdM]

Thanks for all the responses people. Must say I'm now very much leaning towards the Vittorias

[mmc22]

I've been riding Conti GP4000s for a few years now and only briefly tried some Gatroskins (which i quickly binned as they were more than dangerous in any moisture) and have always been more than happy with them in terms of durability, grip and puncture protection.

I recently purchased some second hand wheels and the seller included some very lightly worn Vittoria SC gumwalls. The roll of the new tyres was instantaneously more supple while still providing good grip in moist conditions (even at pace). Have done about 1500km on them so far and I'd be more than happy to purchase them again once they wear out.

[JdM]

^ Excellent. Thanks.

I originally steered clear of the Gatorskins due to their rep of being bad in the wet too.

[jcjordan]

Interesting how personal experience will taint views on tires. I personally love my GP4000 best clincher tire I have run. Vittoria on the other hand have been nothing be crap experiences. Found the CX to be sloppy in the wet and generally only good for about 100km before you get your first flat and about 300km before you bin the due to a cut that is to big.

Don't get me started on their rubbish tubs.

[kb]

Interesting how personal experience will taint views on tires. I personally love my GP4000 best clincher tire I have run. Vittoria on the other hand have been nothing be crap experiences. Found the CX to be sloppy in the wet and generally only good for about 100km before you get your first flat and about 300km before you bin the due to a cut that is to big.

Don't get me started on their rubbish tubs.

Loved the feel of the open corsa CX but also found them a little sketchy in the wet. I've heard the SCs are better in that regard but haven't tried them. To me GPs in comparison feel a little dead but very secure. I use them for commuting as well as fun (including roads like the back of Donna) and go through about 2 sets a year (12-15k km) with around 5 punctures per year.

[Sharkey]

I have Open Corsas on my retro bike and not only do they look the part they also ride really well. However, they are more prone to punctures. I ended up putting a protective liner inside the tyre because some of the roads I ride have a lot of debris.

The tyres in the picture have done nearly 2,000km and even though they no longer look brand new they still look the part.



This bike is only a fair weather bike too.

[tomee]

has the tyre liner affected the performance in any way?

[Sharkey]

has the tyre liner affected the performance in any way?

No, not that I have noticed. They are a soft, felt-like fabric made from Kevlar fibers. I have had less punctures since I started using them. Normally I would have switched to a more durable tyre, but I really like the look of the Open Corsas on this bike.

Here are the liners I am using: Panaracer Flataway Tyre Liner

[JdM]

Thought I would res-erect this thread to share my post purchase experiences! I ended up going with with the Vittoria Open Corsa SC (23mm) which I fitted to some new wheels.

I tend to agree with all of the comments in this thread - they certainly feel like they roll better, although that might be my new wheels as well But nice tyres for sure and overall am enjoying the experience of having got them.

Having said that...

Gum walls dont stay Gum, they get dirty pretty quick.

This is so, so, so very true. 2 rides with some rain and they're not the same bright shade anymore and there is a grey build up where the edge of the tyre meets the rim. They still look fine, but certainly don't have that awesome sparkling appearance after only 3-4 weeks of use.

Loved riding on Vittoria Open Corsa SC, but losing two sets with less than a 1000km on then due to cuts.

This is actually the biggest thing I have found. I have spent the last 3 weeks pulling so many small bits of glass and stone out of the tyres after rides. I haven't punctured yet (no doubt I will if I hit something big enough), but was quite shocked at how fragile the rubber is compared to the GP4000s. Lots of little cuts now where as the Contis very rarely got anything lodged in there and the rear is already showing significant wear compared to the front (I've probably put about 600-700km or so on them so far).

Will I get another set? Hmmm... I certainly do not regret trying them out, but I do wonder about the more practical implications.

They're certainly great for posing at the cafe (they look fantastic), but for training? Probably not. I think I'll be going back to the GP4000s from a durability point of view. If/when I start racing and get a specific wheel set for that, very possibly, they certainly do roll very nicely.

[tomee]

i had open corsa Sc II's on my bike for a couple weeks before i took them off and swapped them for Schwalbe One's

had 2 punctures within the first week and small pieces of glass and bits would be embedded in the tyre as they were super soft.

They rolled nice and gripped well but the tyre just got shredded so easily so replaced them after only 600kms

After swapping for Schwalbe One's i wont go back as i think they are much better.

[softy]

The vittorias in the Perth region where just hopeless for punctures.

I believe it is something to do with the compound and our sharp grit sand here in the west. I tried so many vittoria corsa SC, only could get a few hundred clicks before a puncture. The other tyres with cotton sidewalls, eg: veloflex, challenge, etc are fine. So if you live in the west, litmus test these tyres first before buying to many.

Shame as they were great in every other as a way performance tyre.

[spider1974]

I run Veloflex Master 25mm on my race wheels and Conti GP4000s i & ii on my everyday wheels.

Without doubt the Veloflex is a higher performing tyre but make no mistake, they wear quickly and are more susceptible to punctures - they have literally no puncture protection ie Kevlar strip.

If you choose that type of tyre you have to be cognisant of the qualities and type of lifespan.

Cheers

completely agree, love Velos, they ride supurbly, but like everything in life, there are trade-offs....

Velo's feel like a great summer tyre...not because they get weird in the wet, I think the handling is great...but the punctures are worse in the wet!

good race tyre!

[softy]

I run Veloflex Master 25mm on my race wheels and Conti GP4000s i & ii on my everyday wheels.

Without doubt the Veloflex is a higher performing tyre but make no mistake, they wear quickly and are more susceptible to punctures - they have literally no puncture protection ie Kevlar strip.

If you choose that type of tyre you have to be cognisant of the qualities and type of lifespan.

Cheers

completely agree, love Velos, they ride supurbly, but like everything in life, there are trade-offs....

Velo's feel like a great summer tyre...not because they get weird in the wet, I think the handling is great...but the punctures are worse in the wet!

good race tyre!

Best tyre I have used so far!
Betrer than vittoria corsa sc, and more puncture resistant in west oz.

[scotto]

ive used them all.
veloflex master 25 ( really a 22/23) is the pick, then the vittoria open corsa 25 - both in gumwall.
fantastic tyres but pure race tyres. with limited milage
the conti is good too, and a better / tougher everyday tyre.
i wouldnt use any for training wheels unless youre a cafe racer.