User submitted reviews
Review by Anonymous
Bought a set for the Festive 500. Our route was a 500km ride on mostly tarmac and limited gravel. I was looking for something that rolled fast. These felt great and gripped well in all conditions they were put through. the only drawback was the front punctured at 11 miles into a pre-ride. It did seal after about 30 seconds of a sealant shower. During the second day, after about 350 miles of wear, the front punctured again spewing a geyser of sealant that wouldn't seal. Bacon strip to the rescue to get me home. At the same time, I noticed that rear tire was low on pressure as it had punctured, but sealed.
Good tires, but only if your using on debris clean roads. Buy the + rated tire if you want a better chance of avoiding punctures
Review by John
Using on the road in Northeast through the winter. Excellent grip and durability.
Review by Jay Eff
Only about 55 miles in this tire so far. Very good first impressions. Used for mixed terrain routes on my road bike. Supple, fast, and no punctures. Good control through the gravel and loose substrate. Fit inside my rim breaks.
Review by Anonymous
First time trying these on a road bike, in 28c. So far after around 500 miles of riding, I'm happy with the performance and durability. It works well on paved roads, rolls well, and are quite OK on some rougher surfaces as well. They look pretty good too!
Review by kj2169
I have these in the 32mm, and I've really enjoyed the nice ride on our post-apocalyptic roads here in Chicago as well as on gravel (crushed limestone). I have had one pinch-flat after hitting a massive pothole that would have crippled any tire running a tube.
I now have them set up tubeless on a pair of HED Ardennes Plus, and they are fantastic. They mounted quite easily, and they've held air nicely (used Stan's sealant with Stan's valves). I couldn't find much information on running these (the non-SK Gravel Kings) tubeless, but I've now put 850 miles on them tubeless, and they've been nothing but great.
Review by Clay
I decided to try the Gravel Kings after using Conti 4 Season, Panaracer Pasella, and a couple of others. Initially I loved them. They have a nice feel and I felt confident descending the hill from work on wet roads. I made the mistake of saying I haven't had a flat yet. Well, then there was the harsher than normal winter here in Portland and the city of Portland doing a piss poor job of keeping the streetspaths clean. I had 3 flats in a week. The tire is littered with cuts. It may be a Gravel King but not a Portland winter commuting King. That said, I will probably get another set for spring and summer commutingriding because I do love the way they ride.
Review by Adam
With a 127 TPI casing the Gravel King is a supple ride. Just a little wider so you can run a lower pressure and quite puncture resistant.
Review by Anonymous
These Gravel King tires are awesome. They ride more like a 23 mm tire as they are smooth and steady. I used them for training leading up to a recent gravelroad race as well as used them in the race. They took a good beating and they performed extremely well being puncture resistant after hitting a number of pot holes, gravel and rocks. Very pleased with their performance as well as the Western Bike Works price.
Review by BBrown
Use on my commuter. Like the handling of these tires. With 400 miles shows light wear in the rear from like new. I have had one puncture due to a small thorn.
Review by gravelgrinder
I did a 200 mile ride on the C&O trail from Cumberland MD to Washington DC. The tires held up very nicely. I was carrying about 30 pounds of gear in my bags. I have tried other tires in the past and I always had flats. Even with the Gatorskins.
I would buy them again, and I now have a pair on my wife's bike.
Review by medler
These tires have been a great addition to my Kona Libre. They roll fast, and although void of tread, at low pressure still work great on smooth gravel. Set up tubeless in a snap, got a screw through one the next day, patched the tire in two spots and it has been good ever since.
Review by Teresa
Love this tire!
Review by Mark12
This tire grips very well on the limestone trails around Naperville and DuPage County in IL and better then those knobby tires. On pavement, they are almost as fast as road tires. They wear well and dont flat often.
Review by Mark12
I have many miles of limestone trails within five to ten miles from home. These tires are perfect. They are light and fast on the pavement getting to the limestone trails and once there are very sure footed on the gravel. A great improvement on my gravel bike!
Review by Anonymous
Fast rolling, puncture resistant (so far)
Relatively easy to set up tubeless.
They wouldnt seat on my rims without a compressor, and wouldnt hold air without sealant, but thats not a problem for me.
On the road at 55-60psi theyre very comfortable.
Review by Anonymous
I got the 700x38 version with tanwalls. My first impression is that they ride harsh in comparison to the Compass tires in the same size. I dropped both front and rear by 5 psi (running 3540 & I weigh around 170) and they felt much better. I did pick up a piece of glass on my last ride. These have a tougher casing than the Compass tires, but a significantly thinner tread, hence the lighter weight. These would also be a better tubeless option than the Compass. But these arent as comfortable as the Compass and they dont have the same feel. Still a great option for a do it all tire.
Review by Rut Rider
I have these on two of my bikes and they are my favorite all around tire. I can turn an ordinary road ride to a trip through Forest Park without doubting my decision to do so. Ive ridden these through miles of gravel road and they grip exceedingly well and out many many road miles and they roll like any ordinary road tire. Ive never slipped in the rain and Ive only had one flat since Ive owned them. Its not a cross tire, but for those back road explorations you cant go wrong.
Review by jojo
I tried this tire as a fall, winter tire in 25 and 28, and had expected some durability, but lots of flats so i gave up on it. May be good on grave, and rides nicely with a supple ride, but not worth the hassle for me. Back to vreds senso extremes and vittoria paves again. Also like the conti 4 seasons. Those are all great that i have had good luck with. May try Schwalbe One as well next.
Review by Lonerider
Cornering on loose gravel or dirt get's a little sketchy at speed not much tread on tires but crushes on the straight aways! Worked great at the Old Man Winter Rally in Lyons Colorado.
Review by ddave12000
I put these on my CX bike for some winter training and gravel rides. So far, I'm very pleased with them. They look great, seem sturdy, and I feel confident riding on most terrain with these.