It’s Winter here, and both during the Fall as well as this Winter I haven’t made any big ticket bike purchases (outside of the Garmin Edge 540 already reviewed in the Fall) so I am going to lump a few short reviews altogether, with things at the beginning of this post that are some excellent items that I like, a little further down are others that are good additions to my biking, and one is a bit of a miss (at the end).
Last year – after many years of biking friends raving about their Continental Gatorskin puncture-resistant tires (regular logo/lettering) – I gave one a try, just on the rear.
Now I have to say that I don’t normally get flats, so my experience with how resistant it is to flats is going to be very relative and just observational for the most part. Except for one incident and a similar one by a Strava friend, that kind of has sold me on the tires.
But firstly about the tire in general; like all of Continental’s stuff they look and feel like quality. The logo is on one end of the tire, both sides of course, so there’s not a lot of superfluous logos and lettering. I got the so-called “Black Edition” of the Gatorskins, which is kind of funny since it’s not actually blacked out as I would guessed from the moniker “Black Edition”, but rather an off-white or light grey lettering. Over time the whitish lettering really faded so it blended into the tire more.
If you look closely there are more specs and info on raised lettering on the tire without any color, and with the regular Continental yellow lettering, this is the same.
Sure, some people say they are a bit heavier (which is relative when talking in grams) or have a slightly increased rolling resistance (again – when talking about normal riders probably not measurable). I noticed nothing myself, my speeds were the same mediocre averages with a sprint once in a while, hill climbs were the same – no notice of any difference for me.
Whether you get the tires with the regular logo/lettering or the “Black Edition” you are getting the same tire, a puncture-resistant slick with some tread on the sides for cornering, PolyX Breaker multi-layer protection on the tread and some extra sidewall protection in the form of their DuraSkin protection. I can’t really speak of the terms they use except parroting what they explain on their website; that the PolxY is a polyester weave of material to create a density to resist punctures without affecting rolling resistance and the DuraSkin is a polyamide fabric that protects the sidewalls.
What does that all mean? Well, they are more puncture-resistant than a regular tire.
Notice I keep saying ‘puncture-resistant’? You’re going to hear things like “puncture-proof” from some people, which is certainly not true of any conventional tire. A friend described them as “bulletproof” and ironically less than a month later had a flat.
So, what I am saying here isn’t anything to take away from their protection or to in any way discourage you from using these, just the opposite. But it’s just good to keep in mind that if a big nail gets pulled up from the road it’s going to go through anything no matter what and maybe a tubeless would resist that big nail, maybe not. I certainly won’t get into the tubeless versus clincher debate, for sure 😉
After nearly 5000 miles (500, can you believe it! More about this later.) the one I had on the rear was well-worn, it was Fall and I was still riding on it despite being past time to replace. But I didn’t want to get a new one for just a few more rides of the season.
On one ride I heard something clicking in the rear, thinking I had a flat or something I slowed down and stopped. But the tires were fine. I rode on and it continued so I pulled over and what did I find but a nail sticking slide through the tread at a right angle, that I believe the puncture-resistant tread had done its job to protect the tube.
I improvised and pulled it out with my bike tool and rode on, happy that the tire had done its job despite being pretty worn.
Unfortunately, a week later I had a flat. But as I said above – the tires were supremely worn out and in this case, a rusty old nail directly penetrated the tire and no amount of puncture resistance would have stopped that. So I am not holding this against the puncture-resistance of the tires.
I had pretty well decided that my next rear tire would be a Gatorskin but what probably really sold me on it was probably a month and a half when a a Strava friend posted an identical photo to the one above, showing a nail had been shunted off to the side and missed the tube!
I also wanted to mention something here that I did last summer and am going to continue.
Normally I would buy matching tires and rotate them halfway through the season. I’d get okay mileage out of the Continental Ultra III’s that I normally use, but by the end of the season it would be pretty iffy and sometimes I’d have to switch them out with new ones before the Winter.
But with the Gatorskins I kept the one I had on the rear and the Ultra III on the front, never rotating them. As you probably know – most flats seem to be on the rear. So whether it was the case or not, this seemed to work out for me and amazingly the Gatorskins lasted a long long time and the Ultra III’s lasted nearly a long because of the lesser wear on them from having them only on the front. And if I did lose a tiny bit of performance from rolling resistance or weight from the Gatorskins it was maybe offset a bit by the lighter Ultra III’s on the front. Who knows, ha.
A quick side note – you might notice in the link I have here for the Continental Gatorskins that for some reason the description mentions them as Gatorskin “Ultra” – I’m not sure why that is as it is not labeled on the box or the tire in this way, nor on Continentals’s official website. Some Amazon descriptions have this for the Gatorskins, some don’t. They are all the same as far as model numbers.
Anyway, if you’re looking for a more puncture-resistant tire check out the Continental Gatorskin.
I bought the Aoimer Phone Mount Holder for the bike I use on my indoor smart trainer (the Saris S2, review here) for use with the training software that I use (MyWhoosh).
I don’t use something like this on my outdoor bikes as I just stick my phone in my jersey pocket or whatever, but I wanted something a little nicer for my indoor training that was stable and also maybe brought the phone a bit closer to my face.
Upon receiving the package that this is in I kind of knew right away that it would be pretty substantial just from the weightiness of it. Which was exactly what I was hoping for.
After opening it and putting it on I was immediately impressed with what a well-made and useful piece of equipment that this is.
I know the description says that it is for motorcycles but it works fine on a bike handlebar, in fact I think it would work on a range of handlebars and maybe even other things that it could be mounted to as there is a lot of leeway in the clamp adjustment. It clamps onto a handlebar from .79″ to 1.38″ (2 to 3.5 cm) and has a rubber protector for the handlebars. Not easily taken off if someone is trying to On the bike it is very tightly secure on the handlebars. I was afraid that the bike cables might be in the way of the clamp on the handlebar but they were not and I was able to mount this as close to the stem as I wanted to, exactly where I wanted it. With it mounted near the middle of the handlebar, I was able to position it via the articulated arm so that it was above the exactly middle of the handlebar and fairly high above it, halfway to my face so that if I was watching tv or whatever; I’d only need to glance down and the training software would be displayed right there on the phone. This is especially good as I sweat a lot on the trainer so I eventually have to take my glasses off and I usually need my glasses to read usually, so good that it is close!
As I said above the Aoimer Phone Mount Holder is very substantial and heavy-duty, and a good portion it is metal. The part that the phone is mounted to directly is heavy plastic and the outer parts that hold the phone are heavy plastic, with rubbery cushioned pieces but otherwise most of it is metal. It was so heavy that at first, I thought the latter pieces were also metal. Even the outer corners have silicone bumpers.
The mount comes with quick instructions, in a multitude of languages. But it’s pretty easy to mount, adjust, and clamp down.
It also comes with a nice long Allen (hexagon) wrench for the clamp mount.
I can’t say how well it will work on a motorcycle but I can imagine it’s as good of an addition to a motorcycle as it is to my indoor training bicycle, and fits as securely. One of the biggest things that is super nice about it, but which is something that I am never going to really use – is the very nice four-cornered spring and silicone dampening system for the phone. Wow, like everything else on this is is heavy-duty and well-made.
I wanted something stable, as well as something that I could reposition where I wanted it – angle as well as distance and location – and away from the handlebars where I might move my hand positions onto (the previous phone mount had no articulated arm or anything and the phone overlaid the right side of the inner part of the handlebar).
The articulated arm has two gimballing joints so it can be turned and angled any which way. A knob tightens the joint positions in place, and this too is very secure.
I have the mount in landscape mode (horizontal) but it can also be turned to portrait mode (vertical), at the upper joint.
The outer pieces or arms on the left and right pull out a long distance, long enough for any phone and once the phone is in the mount springs hold these in place. There is a clamp on the back that locks these into place. It’s not an issue with me as I am using the bike indoors on the trainer but for an outdoor bike or motorcycle, this is probably absolutely essential. This lock flips down via a lever so it’s quick and easy to lock it in and unlock it.
The arms themselves have nice ridges and edges that curve a little around the edge of the phone, but not enough to interfere with the display. I think these should fit any phone. They fit my Samsung S23 which has an armored case like a glove.
I can’t really give any negative about this except maybe to those who are riding a bicycle and are trying to save weight as this of course is a bit of extra heft compared to the purely plastic el cheapo versions.
So, if you are riding on a bike trainer like I am and need a display for the virtual training screen, or maybe ride casually or need directions through the city on your bike or something like that, or maybe have an e-bike, and of course a motorcycle – the Aoimer Phone Mount Holder is going to be the mount that you want! You will not be disappointed.
I am still learning about bike disc brake maintenance and such. Even after having some number of bikes now with hydraulic brakes, it still isn’t something I am 100% comfortable in the category of real good knowledge and experience. 
This Hyhjmisty Brake Bleed Kit for Shimano With Brake Oil was a good addition to my tools and for easing me into learning more and more.
For a few years I have had another kit (Chumxiny Brake Bleed Kit for Shimano, Tektro, etc) that fits any brake system, but while it has a lot of parts – they were pretty cheap and all plastic. It worked fine and still does, don’t get me wrong, and I needed the universal kit for my gravel bike which has Tektro brakes (which I would avoid, at least the older models).
But this kit, which is for Shimano and compatible brakes, has nice real brass fittings. I found with the other kit that the threads on the plastic fittings could easily begin to get damaged and you really have to be careful with it and this kit is heavier duty and less prone to cross-threading and such. And they are indeed precise and exact in the threading.
It comes with plenty of hydraulic fluid ( 180 ml of mineral oil brake fuild) and a couple of syringes as well as lots of extra tubes, and of course all of the rest of the parts you need like the piston stopper things; plenty of sizes for various brakes, a funnel, plugs, injectors, hose clamps/stoppers, wrench, and a couple of gloves.
This does say it is for Shimano but it also worked on my Tektro disc brakes.
There’s some simple instructions too but likely you either know what you are doing in the first place or you will need to watch a good YouTube video just to confirm that you are doing it right, though the instructions cover the basics. Or maybe learn form someone who does know.
And it all fits nicely back into the plastic box, with a little bit of common sense.
As a person pretty new to working on my own disc brakes it was just what I needed and works well with the other kid.
While I am not the most knowledgeable when it comes to this, I found the Hyhjmisty Brake Bleed Kit for Shimano With Brake Oil kit to be perfect for what I needed.
TPU (thermoplastic polyurethane elastomer material) bike tubes are something a bit new to me too, I’ve certainly been aware of them for some time but up until last year I hadn’t tried them. Not quite as different as working on hydraulic brakes versus rim brakes but still new to me, somewhat.
So I gave an economically priced Tingsing 2 Pack of TPU bike Inner Tubes a try, these are for 700C x 23-35C tires size with Bike Tube with the 65 mm Presta Valve. About 30 grams.
They also come with really cheapo transparent caps and a silicone ring to hold the valve in place when installing the tube. I didn’t use either.
Upon opening the package, they look real good. Visually, as far as I can tell; identical to more expensive brands and feel and texture seem to be the same – though it’s a bit subjective as I was just going by previous direct feel of more expensive brands in a store. Twisting and pulling at them a bit to check their material quality seems to feel the same as the expensive ones, but again I am going by feel here.
Certainly a good price for a two-pack of these. Very compact when folded, of course as a spare I took the plastic band off just in case it sits sit in my bike bag for a long time. The one I used went into the tire just fine, probably a little easier than a regular floppy Butyl rubber tube. No issues so far.
The only downside to these I suppose, is the valve is very prominently orange where it sticks out of the the wheel. Ugh.
So a tentative good mark on these so far, one is a spare but I have ridden a good number of miles on the other so I guess I can recommend these Tingsing 2 Pack of TPU Bike Inner Tubes so far.
I liked them so well that I decided to try out another pair. This time the Aceromt 2-Pack TPU Inner Tubes in the 700c x 18-32c size, again with the 65 mm valve. These are said to be 32g by the company, I weighed them in at 32 grams without the cap and valve nut. So right on the money. The 2 extra grams over the other tubes is probably because the value is metal instead of plastic.
These seem just as good as a previous set I got, nice quality and well-manufactured. Nothing to indicate they are not.
So far in the new tire I put it they are doing their job just fine. Easy to put in the tire, as easy as anything I suppose. I guess I would amend that and (as I mentioned above) say that they are a BIT easier than regular rubber/butyl tubes as they stay a bit more rigidly in place and don’t flop all around as much, with a bit of air before installing.
These are packaged well and other is a bit of extra TPU plastic around the valve stem to protect the tube.
If you are storing these I guess I’d recommend the same as with old-style tubes and take the rubber band off them for long-term storage, though I’d leave the protective bit of TPU around the valve on and maybe leave the cap on for good measure.
I’m not sure why I ordered these with threaded valves except that they were a real good price and had good ratings, and I guess maybe because the valves look like the ones on older tubes.
I don’t use the valve nut to hold it in place nor do I leave the cap on, but as I said above – good to leave the latter on during storage perhaps.
The valve length was perfect for my 44 mm carbon aero wheels as they protrude enough for any hand or electric pump hose to grab onto. As you can see in the photo.
The tire levers are actually quite nice too, really heavy-duty and thick. Even on the tight tires and wheel, they didn’t flex at all. They were just an added bonus when I bought the tube set but I may have to move them to my bike bench as a permanent addition, as they worked so well.
The patch kit look good, I don’t have any experience with the TPU patches either but the patches look as they are supposed to and there are abundant alcohol pads for cleaning the tire before applying. Not exactly rocket science but here’s hoping I won’t have to mess with it for awhile.
So I have to say, at least so far – these Tingsing 2 Pack of TPU Bike Inner Tubes are perfect for my purposes and seem to be working well. Just as with the other set, no complaints whatsoever.
I have wanted to give some carbon insoles a try for a number of years for both biking and running. I don’t have a significant foot issue that requires them for health issues, but I did want to try them for the performance aspect.
They are supposed to help performance by increasing output power and decreasing sports-related repetitive use injuries. Of course, as is common with things like this – the results seem to vary.
Anyway, I wanted a pair a try but unfortunately at this time I have only been able to try the pair I got on the treadmill and bike trainer and will have to wait until the Spring to try them outside.
The set I got are Ubarony Carbon Insoles, size 11 but at this time they are not available on Amazon, but there are many similar ones including some that look like exact clones.
These come in a nice package and you will be surprised at how light they are.
As soon as I opened these I could tell that they were of a nice quality. Not that I know a lot about carbon insoles. But these seem to be well-madeand a quality sort of thing.
For use, I tried them in a total of three shoes. I used them in my regular shoes I walk on hikes and walks with, my running shoes, and my biking shoes (with LOOK cleats).
The size is important here as you don’t want a pair that is too large or it won’t fit in your shoe, plus there is supposed to be a little space around the outside of them so they are not super tight against the edges of your shoe. So get the right size. Of course, you don’t want to get them too small either or the edges of your feet are going to be against the outsides of them.
I got size 11, which is around my foot size and they were pretty close but the only negative I would say is that if your shoe fit is pretty close to being tight then the hardness and lack of flexibility can make it a bit too tight.
In my running shoes they were perfect, and with my biking shoes they initially seemed to be correct but over the time of a few rides they got a bit too tight until I switched to a newer pair with more room.
I can’t say that I felt any real difference in performance for walking, hiking, running, or biking and since my biking shoes are on the tightest side of any of my shoes I did feel my feet were a bit tight in them with the carbon fiber insoles.
So I couldn’t tell any difference whatsoever, I just didn’t notice any performance difference, but this is not the fault of these insoles as they did exactly what they needed to do; I just didn’t see any increase in my own performance that I could tell.
Perhaps it requires a much longer term test and detailed power analysis than I did.
But really, I am waiting for a time when I can try them outside on a more real-world maybe longer test time period. So right now we are in the middle of Winter and this will have to wait.
But they are obviously well-manufactured, and are exactly as described. The size seemed right, except for one pair of biking shoes that are pretty tight as they are.
For others who need them for health and recovery reason, I can see where they would be perfect, and likely would be of a great help.
For power increase and such – I just don’t know at this point.
So if interested these are the Ubarony Carbon Insoles, size 11 and at this time they are not available on Amazon, but there are many similar ones including some that look like exact clones.
