American Classic

[spoonrobot]

Originally Posted by Eli Bingham

At least in weight:

Compare: https://www.amclassic.com/collection...products/udden

Vs: https://www.wtb.com/products/venture

Seems very comparable in weight to the reinforced WTB versions which are very popular in this segment, but nearly twice the price.

The American Classic 650b slick and semi-slick are as heavy as the MTB-style WTB tire models, with SG2. The Lamplighter and Horizon are direct competitors with the former being 17% heavier than the SG2 Horizon and 30% heavier than the Road TCS version.

[Bici-Sonora]

Originally Posted by spoonrobot

The American Classic 650b slick and semi-slick are as heavy as the MTB-style WTB tire models, with SG2. The Lamplighter and Horizon are direct competitors with the former being 17% heavier than the SG2 Horizon and 30% heavier than the Road TCS version.

Whoa—that’s a great bar graph for us 650b x 47-48 fans. I didn’t know that WtB Road TCS Horizons were so light.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[charliedid]

Originally Posted by spoonrobot

I'm not seeing that for any of the brands I buy. WTB tires went up ~10% across the board a few months ago, Panaracer is up a few points for most models with some like the "plus" models being 15-20% more than last year. Rene Herse certainly isn't selling at a discount, nor Schwalbe, Teravail, Donnelly, or Maxxis. Tubeless GP5000 is still $75.

AFAIK every domestic tire brand is an Asian/American partnership? Jan Heine certainly wasn't/isn't getting a massive discount from market working with Panaracer if the info from Ultradynamico was any indication. These [gravel] tires may well be a great value, but their weight is significantly above most comparable offerings so I'm skeptical they have some secret sauce. Other than price and Amazon connection, that is.

I added all their 650b sizes to my big tire sheet and they don't shake out very well by weight, their 700c offerings would probably be the same.

Per many different tests, RR trends down with weight:


Interesting, but doesn't have enough info to clarify. I sent a question about one of their gravel tires and I'll post if I get a response.

Yes well, every brand has it's own strategy to sell their product. Clearly the initial goal for AC tires is to compete at a low price as a major selling point and strategy. Think of it as trying to sell tires to everyone and even maybe OEM at some point.

So I just typed Gravel Bike Tires into Google and this is what it served me. https://www.google.com/search?q=grav...&bih=709&dpr=1 I think it makes my point pretty clearly that you can pretty easily find tires well below $50 a piece. An let's remember thousands of people will buy tires and many don't want to spend all day looking a tests and reviews and data they just want tires when they need them at a price they can accept.

We shall see what the future brings for AC and who knows, maybe next year we see a lightweight casing tire retailing for $59.99 or so.

I still think it's an interesting play on their part.

[boywander]

The top is WTB and the bottom one is the AC. Besides the weight difference they look pretty much the same which got my attention because I have the WTB.
Looks like a good alternative for the price is almost less than half of WTB.
As slow as my riding is, the weight is negligible.

[prototoast]

Took the timekeeper tires out for 100 miles yesterday. Pavement ranged from very good to very bad. I was really happy with the tires. It's not like I can actually feel a few watts of rolling resistance, but they felt like they rolled fast, smooth ride, and felt great cornering

Too early to comment on durability, but I imagine I'll buy more of these. Vittorias were previously my go to. Initial impressions are these are at least as good as Rubinos. Maybe not as nice as Corsas, but at little more than half the price, these offer great value.

[charliedid]

Originally Posted by prototoast

Took the timekeeper tires out for 100 miles yesterday. Pavement ranged from very good to very bad. I was really happy with the tires. It's not like I can actually feel a few watts of rolling resistance, but they felt like they rolled fast, smooth ride, and felt great cornering

Too early to comment on durability, but I imagine I'll buy more of these. Vittorias were previously my go to. Initial impressions are these are at least as good as Rubinos. Maybe not as nice as Corsas, but at little more than half the price, these offer great value.

100 American shakedown miles....Classic.

[spoonrobot]

The packaging is nice:

[jtferraro]

Originally Posted by prototoast

Took the timekeeper tires out for 100 miles yesterday. Pavement ranged from very good to very bad. I was really happy with the tires. It's not like I can actually feel a few watts of rolling resistance, but they felt like they rolled fast, smooth ride, and felt great cornering

Too early to comment on durability, but I imagine I'll buy more of these. Vittorias were previously my go to. Initial impressions are these are at least as good as Rubinos. Maybe not as nice as Corsas, but at little more than half the price, these offer great value.

Thanks for the report. My Timekeepers (25c, tan sidewall) arrived Friday, but I haven't mounted them yet. The tread pattern also reminds me of the Conti GP series and they do seem high in quality and thick in sidewall. We'll see...

[old fat man]

One 40 mile ride on my tubeless timekeeper 25mm so far. They set up nicely and held air with a modest amount of sealant.

[dougefresh]

Anyone on any 40mm 700c versions? I’m looking for honest feedback on tubeless setup, ride quality, and true to life width (I realize this can vary greatly on rim brand but…). I’m looking at putting these on a frame/ fork with posted 40mm clearance and Shimano RS61 tubeless rim brake wheels.

[YesNdeed]

Originally Posted by dougefresh

Anyone on any 40mm 700c versions? I’m looking for honest feedback on tubeless setup, ride quality, and true to life width (I realize this can vary greatly on rim brand but…). I’m looking at putting these on a frame/ fork with posted 40mm clearance and Shimano RS61 tubeless rim brake wheels.

No long-term test yet, but I put in a couple of rides on Aggregates in the 40 size. I measured 39 mm actual width, running them on Hunt rims @ 24.5 internal width. Not as supple as the G-one gumballs I came from, but the ride quality is very decent and my impression overall is good. I have not thought once of switching them out since mounting them a few weeks ago. I honestly don’t remember if I had to use a compressor to mount them or not, but either way it was not an issue. Seated right up. I hope that helps.

[dougefresh]

Originally Posted by YesNdeed

No long-term test yet, but I put in a couple of rides on Aggregates in the 40 size. I measured 39 mm actual width, running them on Hunt rims @ 24.5 internal width. Not as supple as the G-one gumballs I came from, but the ride quality is very decent and my impression overall is good. I have not thought once of switching them out since mounting them a few weeks ago. I honestly don’t remember if I had to use a compressor to mount them or not, but either way it was not an issue. Seated right up. I hope that helps.

These are the droids I’m looking for. Thank you!