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.
Makes a somewhat annoying task very easy.
Proper way to use it:
' Install the tire with the valve core out. Seat the tire bead with NO sealant, core still out.
' Remove the plunger and thread the injector on.
' With the valve stem pointing up, the hose pointing down, fill up and then inject. Do not try to fill by sucking up sealant, it just makes a mess.
' Unthread, install valve, and fill up with air.
' Rinse the injector out with warm water and leave it disassembled to dry.
I have used the same injector for 5 years and it has worked great. Also a great tool for when you need to add a little sealant as well.
Ive used these on all my bikes for many years and there is a way to properly install them told to me by a bike mechanic. Lets say tire rotates to the front of the bike...so one end of the liner needs to be on the outside, underneath the end thats rotating up. The end coming from the top of the tires needs to be underneath the end from the bottom of the tire. This way as you ride, or as the tire rotates you are always smoothing down the liner. The other way creates an edge that eventually bunches up with the rotation of the tire creating a place that rubs.
