What can I say about GravelKing SK's that hasn't already been said about any trusted price of equipment that come through time and time again? Tons of grip off-road from gravel roads to dirt trails. Fast rolling on tarmac. Easy to set up, and don't require an ocean of sealant operate across a reasonable range of tire pressures. What they lack in cache and sexiness they make up in almost every other way one could imagine.
All in all, a great gravel tire and tremendous value for the money.
These Archetypes weigh in at 271g per tire, while a regular GP5000 S TR 30mm weighs in at 308g, thus you save 74g over the already light S TR version. The rolling resistance is great and the tire has this nice supple feel which is probably due to the tire not including a dedicated puncture protection layer like the S TR, which would explain why these are not only lighter but also pretty delicate when it comes to punctures. I found that the tire felt like riding on latex tubes even when setup tubeless. The tire uses the Black Chili compound but to me the tire felt a tad tackier to the touch. These are basically are maybe a slightly revised Grand Prix 5000 TT TR but with Tour de France branding. Speaking of the branding, looks wise the faded yellow/gold Archetype logos are not going to be everyone's taste nor look good on every bike. At $115 per tire I would save these for race days or special events because I don't have a lot of faith these will last all season.
I've had a couple different iteration of Pirelli tires - some XC MTB tires that I loved, and another set of Cinturatos, but these were solidly meh. When they arrived, they felt somewhat heavy and thick compared to my usual Pirellis, but they set up easily on my not-officially-tubeless rims and looked decent.
Riding them, I found I had no flat issues, and they rode OK - good traction in wet and dry, varied conditions from pavement to singletrack, but they didn't feel as plush or resilient as other Cinturato tires I've owned. I put it down to being a different bike and a little down sizing from what I was used to, and rode them for a few hundred miles, so they obviously weren't that bad.
Then, after a big trip (Italy) I was looking to upsize my tires, and figured if I had 700x45, 700x50 should be an easy fit given the space I had - so I ordered and installed the bigger tires only to find they were MUCH bigger on the same rims and didn't actually fit for safe riding. Perplexed, I decided to measure them out and found that the Adventure tires, marked as 700x45, actually were 700x40 when I measured. 40 vs 45 is kinda big. The new Cinturato's I got, the 700x50's, measured at 51, so it was a total difference of 11mm width and, of course, a taller tire, too.
So, that definitely explains the ride quality - I was expecting a 45mm width ride, but on 40mm tires, so yeah, it'll feel a bit rough. They did great as 40's for sure, but I expected 45's. If they were true to size, I'd likely still have them. rather than sizing up.
After using these tires on my gravel bike for several months now, I'm updating my initial review. They have worn well for me and the traction has been fine on gravel. Rolling resistance is minimal on pavement. But...in combination with DT Swiss or Easton rims the bead is just about impossible to get off the tire. You would not want to have to change these out on a ride. Even in my garage, using the block of wood technique, these tires take 20 minutes to get off a rim because the bead is seated so tight. I'm using them with tubes. Even if you can get one side unseated, getting the other one off takes just as much time. Maybe it's just the combination of my rim with this tire's bead, but I have never, ever struggled with another tire like this.
