I've been quite happy with the original Schwalbe Marathon Mondial 700 x 40c tires that came with my Kona Sutra. But last winter when I changed wheels to Mavic Allroads that were nicely tubeless ready and now that my wife bought a mountain bike I decided to go for new tires for a more comfy ride on gravel and singletrack.
Tires considered
- Basically the same style as Schwalbe Marathon Mondial but tubeless. I.e. touring tire, and not what I am looking for at the moment. But keeping in mind for when my Marathons wear out! But they need to come back with the slate sidewall, they look really nice compared to the all black ones.
- Large volume. Unsure if my fenders will fit it. And limited puncture resistance after reading reviews. Expensive
- Large volume, Unsure if my fenders will fit it. And limited puncture resistance after reading reviews. Expensive
- Larger volume than what I have today, but not quite at the WTB levels. Unsure if my fenders will fit it. Has puncture resistance built it, and cheaper then WTB tires...
I decided to go with Panaracer Gravel Kings. Worst case is that I have to remove my fenders, so be it. But what tipped me over was the extra puncture resistance that was missing on the WTB tires.
Installation
First time that I install tubeless tires, I've used Schwalbe Ones on my racer but with inner tubes and I know that they were a pain to get on the rims. So my plan for these was:
- Mavic Allroads are already taped from the factory, so no need to work on that. Just double check that it is smooth and in place.
- Install the valve that was included with the wheels. Turns out it did not have removable inner core. But no worries.
- Put on the tire, use soap water on the last bit to get it over the rim.
- Pump it up so that the bead sets
- Open up one side and pour in sealant, I used Muc-Off No Puncture Hassle 140ml Kit. 5 cups, so 2*140ml kits and some was left over.
- Rotate the sealant away from the opening so that it doesn't pour out.
- Close up. Rotate it again and make sure that the sealant goes everywhere.
- Pump up again so that it pops in place and then to your desired pressure.
First wheel, no problems.
Second wheel... A lot of problems but turned out that my pump broke so that was one clue as I tried the inner tube trick to get the bead to set the first time and the innertube did not inflate either.
So a new pump the next day, inner tube broke down. Tried with another inner tube, the valve on that one broke down. And then back to original plan with the tubeless setup and new pump and it just worked.
So note to self, if pump breaks down go back to original plan.
Fender fit Kona Sutra (2019) original fender
First impressions
First ride was 27 km exploring some new roads and trails. Managed to not record any video as my SD card was in the computer at home. Noticed that after a while...
Paved road impression
Rolled quite good, no noticeable difference to the Marathons. The road sound was OK, nothing too loud even though the Gravel Kings are quite a lot nobblier. Liked.
Gravel road impression
Packed dirt road with gravel on top
What I noticed directly compared to the Schwalbe Marathon Mondial was that small stones did not feel as much, the tires just swallowed them. Even as I ran them on 3 bar (~43 PSI).
First time cornering was a little bit of an unknown so I took it easy as the stones tend to roll on my old tires, but no issues here, felt that I had grip all the way and in the next corner I had more confidence and was able to keep a higher pace.
Larger sized gravel sections
A little bit bumpier but that was to be expected. But still rolled nicely over them.
Farm roads (2 track etc.)
My favorite type of roads as these tend to take you to places less visited and the real nice experiences. These are also not maintained that well.
No issues here, rolled nicely over the grass sections and had firm grip all the way. Cornering was nice as well.
The mud sections that I came across were quite simple and I just rolled through them, nothing too deep or long.
Wet sandy exercise track with roots and stones on climbs. This was a traction test, and I must say that the Gravel Kings were the right tyres that make it possible for me to get up. Tubeless with lesser pressure made many of the roots and rocks disappear and the nobbles held the grip even in wet sand. Wide enough to not dig too deep into the sand. Need to test same place on a dry day.
Advanced single track
I came by a quite advanced single track that I hadn't ridden before with a lot of gnarly roots and stones. But no issues here, the weather was quite dry so probably helped quite a lot. Had wheel spin once as I stopped on a uphill gradient and tried to restart, quite sandy. Always nice to know that the bike and tires will handle it even though I probably will not try that section again, a little too advanced for my taste these days.
Uncommented video with road sounds from Panaracer Gravel King SK, paved road, asphalt and some variations of gravel in the video.
Disclaimer
I bought these products myself and this is my opinion on them. I am in no way affiliated with the manufacturer of this product. I like to link to other sites and I am not paid for that. Feel free to share on social media if you found anything in this post helpful! That would mean a lot for me!
I bought these products myself and this is my opinion on them. I am in no way affiliated with the manufacturer of this product. I like to link to other sites and I am not paid for that. Feel free to share on social media if you found anything in this post helpful! That would mean a lot for me!
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