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TPE16: Skinwalls are Back – Vee Tire Co and Panaracer add more to the mix

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vee tire co skin wall tire fat bike plus-3

We’ve been seeing a slow resurgence of the ‘skinwall’ tire recently, but by the looks of things in Taipei – they’re about to be back in a big way. We’ve already seen new tires with the brown treatment from Maxxis, WTB, and Onza but the same could be seen over at Vee Tire Co. as well as Panaracer. Whether you’re looking for plus, mountain, or gravel, if you dig the skinwall look there will be a lot more options in the near future…

vee tire co skin wall tire fat bike plus

vee tire co skin wall tire fat bike plus-2 vee tire co skin wall tire fat bike plus-4

For Vee Tire Co., the skinwall look is still in development but will be available soon. To be delivered to OEM customers first, aftermarket tires will follow but without an official date. All skinwall models are single ply and tubeless compatible and will be offered in various sizes including plus tires.

veetireco.com

panaracer skinwall gravel king sk

Not to be left out, Panaracer has a skinwall tire of their own with the Gravel King SK. Sold in 700 x 35 and 40mm casings, the tires are tubeless compatible though Panaracer points out that all Gravel Kings can be run tubeless even if it isn’t labeled. Built with 120tpi casings, the tires are available now in black or skinwall for $39.95. Panaracer will be offering the Gravel King Slick and SK in new 650b x 48mm and 700 x 52 sizes as well.

panaracer.com

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Allan
Allan
8 years ago

I’m starting to come around on the gumwall look. At first I thought these tires were reserved for Rivendells with full racks, fenders, and Acorn saddlebags. But even some of the latest carbon road bikes I’ve seen with these tires look ok. I guess as long as the sidwall doesn’t start to yellow and crack, it looks ok.

John Tornow
8 years ago

They look great, but let’s call them tan wall. Skin comes in many colors, though usually not that one.

JasonK
JasonK
8 years ago
Reply to  John Tornow

John, your heart is in the right place, but it’s not necessary here. You (and the editors) are mis-using the word “skinwall.”

It doesn’t refer to light-colored sidewalls, but rather thin, supple sidewalls. It’s used in contrast to “gumwalls,” which are cheap tires with tread-like rubber from bead to bead. Skinwalls have little but casing fabric in the sidewalls (with just enough rubber to bind everything together). The only part of a skinwall with a lot of rubber in it is the tread itself.

All high-quality bicycle tires are skinwalls by this definition, though you could argue that tubeless-ready tires, having extra rubber in the casing to hold air in the absence of a tube, are gumwalls too. But originally, gumwalls were cheap 27″ tires you’d get on a Huffy 10-speed. Skinwalls were the new breed of high-quality clincher that appeared in the early ’80s.

I posted the same comment this morning with a link (to Hutchinson’s web site, where they define gumwall and skinwall as I describe) but it’s been waiting for moderation all day…

Clarence
Clarence
8 years ago
Reply to  JasonK

I’ve always thought using the term “skinwall” sounded a bit Hannibal Lecter, but if that’s it then it makes sense. But then, that probably applies more to tyres like Veloflex, Dugast, and all that legendary goodness. My tan Luganos are probably gumwalls.

beingmalcolm
8 years ago

Any performance benefit to skinwall tires?

Aaron
Aaron
8 years ago
Reply to  beingmalcolm

They make you look way cooler and as we all know, when you feel like you look cool, you ride faster.

Mike D
8 years ago
Reply to  Aaron

Aaron’s comment rings true. You can believe me, I’m a scientist.

Skip
8 years ago

Back in the 50’s, this style of tire was called a gum wall. After awhile, they developed black streaks in the side wall, looked sort of like burn marks. Maybe the new compound will be batter and that will not happen. I myself like the all black tire.

JasonK
JasonK
8 years ago

John, your heart is in the right place, but it’s not necessary here. You (and the editors) are mis-using the word “skinwall.”

It doesn’t refer to light-colored sidewalls, but rather thin, supple sidewalls. It’s used in contrast to “gumwalls,” which are cheap tires with tread-like rubber from bead to bead. Skinwalls have little but casing fabric in the sidewalls (with just enough rubber to bind everything together). The only part of a skinwall with a lot of rubber in it is the tread itself.

All high-quality bicycle tires are skinwalls by this definition, though you could argue that tubeless-ready tires, having extra rubber in the casing to hold air in the absence of a tube, are gumwalls too. But originally, gumwalls were cheap 27″ tires you’d get on a Huffy 10-speed. Skinwalls were the new breed of high-quality clincher that appeared in the early ’80s.

Here’s a Hutchinson web page where they make exactly this distinction:

http://www.hutchinsontires.com/en/informations-techniques

Bonk Bike
Bonk Bike
8 years ago

Not a fan of the tan sidewalls. They should to be careful not to make closeouts.

Matt
8 years ago

Yes!!! A 700×52 Panaracer slick – rejoice!

adam
adam
8 years ago

Long live the tan sidewall! Yay!

MotoPete
MotoPete
8 years ago

The white tire reminds me of how silly some things in the industry are. Before we get another BB or axle standard, how about we investigate why in 2016 the same tire can be marked 28 and 29.

caliente
caliente
8 years ago

Dang! I just purchased some black tires. I guess I’ll have to wait…

Johnny V
8 years ago

Panaracer, Any gum wall gravel king (non SK) coming out? 700×28?

dypeterc
8 years ago

Tubular poseurs.

Philip Williamson
8 years ago

I think the resurgence is down to two factors: disc brakes and Dugast tubulars. Disc brakes mean you won’t get ugly aluminum/dirt road/rim slurry staining your sidewalls, and the Dugast fat knobbies were the non plus ultra tire for years. So sexy.

Aaron
Aaron
8 years ago

Yaaaaaaaaassss

B-Rad
B-Rad
8 years ago

I’m all for tan walls, I love the look and have them on my race wheels, but only when they’re on tubulars or open tubulars where the tan colour is the natural colour of the very high TPI cotton casing used for the tires. Fully vulcanized tires like these where the rubber is coloured to imitate a proper tan wall tire looks horrible and cheap to me.

Larry Miller (@Laxon3)

Love my @panaracer gravel king 32’s. They even work tubeless! About 2000 miles on them now. Time for a new set!
Larry Miller

James G. Camp
8 years ago

Not all skinwalls are created the same either. I just swapped out a pair on my 1986 Fuji Allegro.

The OEM bike had higher quality skinwalls on it. They still had good tread life on the center strip of the tire as the bike was rarely ridden from 1992-2007. Most of what mileage it did get was 1987-1992 before I put it in storage. Anyway, I took it back with me from Jacksonville, FL to Miami, FL and started riding it more often from 2007 to present. 2007, I changed them over to Forte GT2 Kevlar tires. At that time the OEM skinwall tires had cracks in the sidewalls. They still were solid tires though, but being a nervous safety conscious cyclist, I figured I would try modern kevlar blackwalls rather than get stuck 40 miles from home with a tire that unraveled and fell apart. Last weekend the Forte kevlar tires wore out. Add that where someone had punched a hole for the retail plastic tags for pricing labels and the rear tire was compromised. Airing it up and it had a bulge. I rode it that way for years until the middle tread had worn in a few spots. A bulge does that, prematurely wears and it also wears elsewhere in spots because the tire is out of round and even more unbalanced.

Both sets of tires had a single flat from a shard of glass in the rear tire. The OEM skimwalls, that shard of glass actually cut the skinwall. I was able to duct tape it on the inside of that tire and it didn’t really bulge noticeably. The Forte took a direct hit from glass in the center of the tread. So I replaced the Forte’s with Kenda K36’s today. Since they are brand new, I have no complaints yet. I don’t like them as much as the Forte’s. Time will tell though. the Kenda’s were $ 26 for 2 delivered on Amazon. The Forte’s as I recall were inexpensive closeouts from Performance Bike too. I think I paid around $ 15-20 a tire back then. I wish I knew or could find the name of the OEM skinwalls. Just to see if they could be had somewhere for cheap ?

James G. Camp
8 years ago

Here’s the bike brochure, the OEM tires are SCCR 2000 skinwalls:

http://www.classicfuji.com/Allegro&AllegroMixte_1986_Page.htm

man of steel
man of steel
8 years ago

I have a set of standard Gravelkings (28mm black, sadly), not the SK version on the pictures above. Anyone knows if my tyres can be run tubeless too?

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