With Schwalbe committing the unfortunate sin of killing off
the incredible Durano HS399, it was time to try out that models direct replacement,
the HS464. Bear in mind, I am not too happy
with this. Product-wise, all-things-new
are usually an improvement, however, the progression of products does not
always produce a winner. Therefore, when
something which works magnificently, like the HS399, is replaced, a dose of
healthy skepticism is natural. Think
“New” Coke or Microsoft Windows (I drink Dr. Pepper, and Windows 2000 Server
was still my all-time favorite).
I have become a sworn disciple of 25C tires, as not only are
the running pressures lower, air-wise, and the ride much more comfortable than
23c’s, the true crowning glory of 25’s are massively increased puncture
protection due in part to the aforementioned lower tire pressures. The fact Durano’s possess a built in feature
known as “RaceGuard” (a belt under the dual-compound tread made for increased
puncture protection), is just the icing on the proverbial cake (I wonder if
28’s are better still???).
To date, I have a bit over 3000-miles, on two sets of
HS399’s, on two sets of wheels. The only
reason I am changing out the tires is due to some minor tread cracking, but the
tires are truly far from being worn-out.
In my opinion, if I had ridden them more, thus keeping the tires up to
proper pressure, versus sitting around as often as they did, the HS399’s would
definitely have gone a whole lot farther.
These are some serious-good tires, folks.
I’ll put some miles on the newer Durano’s and report back
with my initial, and long-term, findings.
If my hunch is correct, the HS464’s will be damn good rubber. The new kid on the Schwalbe block has some seriously BIG
shoes to fill.
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