Gator Hardshell vs Top CONTACT Winter II Premium review

In this entry we are going to compare and review Continental Gator Hardshell vs Continental Top CONTACT Winter II Premium tyres. Both manufactured by the same brand Continental, these tyres have been designed to be used for different purposes. Whilst Continental Gator Hardshell is better for Race Tires activities, Continental Top CONTACT Winter II Premium is a great choice if your needs are more aligned to Urban/Tour activities.

Gator Hardshell

Top CONTACT Winter II Premium

Ideal when it comes to extremely long service life, for the next tour or the commute.Made for for rough surfaces and rugged tarmac.

Full control on slippery, snowy roads and dank surfaces thanks to its grippy lamellar tread pattern. Riders of this tire benefit from our know-how as leading manufacturer of winter tires for cars and trucks.ECE-R75-certified: Recommended for e-bikes up to 50km/h.

Go Hardshell or go home

Premium tire for cold seasons

Ideal when it comes to extremely long service life, for the next tour or the commute.Made for for rough surfaces and rugged tarmac.

Full control on slippery, snowy roads and dank surfaces thanks to its grippy lamellar tread pattern. Riders of this tire benefit from our know-how as leading manufacturer of winter tires for cars and trucks.ECE-R75-certified: Recommended for e-bikes up to 50km/h.

Features

Hardshell
More is what you get
Puncture protection and mileage are the strengths of Hardshell-ProTection. A wider PolyX Breaker®, the specialist against punctures under the tread centre and shoulders provides for great reliability. The threeply – each layer with 60 TPI – carcass covers the entyre tire and makes it a real bastion against urban detritus. The outer sidewalls of the tire are reinforced with DuraSkin® fabric providing even more reliablility due to the casing being so well protected. Hardshell tires are the puncture-resistant flagship amongst racing tires – produced exclusively in Germany.

Features

Vectran
The benchmark in puncture protection
Vectran™ is a synthetically manufactured high-tech fibre from a natural model. Like spider silk, Vectran™ is a liquid-crystalline polymer (LCP). Vectran™ is spun from the melted liquid polymer Vectra and processed further to a multi-strand thread. Spider silk like Vectran™ has an enormous tear resistance at a very low weight: Exactly the right properties to process into a premium Continental bicycle tire as a puncture protection insert. A Vectran™ Breaker is lighter, more flexible and protects more effectively against cuts than the comparable nylon breaker. Vectran™ Breaker does not adversely affect the rolling resistance.
E50
Suitable for E-Bikes
For our E-Bike tire we fall back on over 100 years’ experience with moped and motorcycle tires. All of our city/trekking tires are rated to a standard speed of at least 25 km/h. Those tires marked e50 are also certified for S-Pedelecs. With their high quality structure, puncture protection is high and the rolling resistance is low offering protection from premature wear brought about by the additional driving force.

Usage

Technologies

Specifications

"27"

Article: 0100315
ETRTO: 32 - 630 Dimension: 27 X 1 1/4 Technology: Hardshell Color/Sidewall/Bead: black/black skin TPI: 3/180 g: 455 PSI: 102

"28"

Article: 0100640
ETRTO: 32 - 622 Dimension: 700 X 32C Technology: Hardshell Color/Sidewall/Bead: black/black skin foldable TPI: 3/180 g: 370 PSI: 102

Article: 0100435
ETRTO: 32 - 622 Dimension: 700 X 32C Technology: Hardshell Color/Sidewall/Bead: black/black skin TPI: 3/180 g: 445 PSI: 102

Article: 0100314
ETRTO: 28 - 622 Dimension: 700 X 28C Technology: Hardshell Color/Sidewall/Bead: black/black skin TPI: 3/180 g: 400 PSI: 116

Article: 0100639
ETRTO: 28 - 622 Dimension: 700 X 28C Technology: Hardshell Color/Sidewall/Bead: black/black skin foldable TPI: 3/180 g: 330 PSI: 116

Article: 0100312
ETRTO: 25 - 622 Dimension: 700 X 25C Technology: Hardshell Color/Sidewall/Bead: black/black skin TPI: 3/180 g: 340 PSI: 120

Article: 0100313
ETRTO: 25 - 622 Dimension: 700 X 25C Technology: Hardshell Color/Sidewall/Bead: black/black skin foldable TPI: 3/180 g: 270 PSI: 120

Article: 0100310
ETRTO: 23 - 622 Dimension: 700 X 23C Technology: Hardshell Color/Sidewall/Bead: black/black skin TPI: 3/180 g: 340 PSI: 120

Article: 0100311
ETRTO: 23 - 622 Dimension: 700 X 23C Technology: Hardshell Color/Sidewall/Bead: black/black skin foldable TPI: 3/180 g: 265 PSI: 120

Specifications

"28"

Article: 0100714
ETRTO: 42 - 622 Dimension: 28 X 1.60 Technology: Vectran Breaker Color/Sidewall/Bead: black/black foldable Reflex TPI: 3/180 g: 685 PSI: 87

Article: 0100713
ETRTO: 37 - 622 Dimension: 28 X 1 3/8 X 1 5/8 Technology: Vectran Breaker Color/Sidewall/Bead: black/black foldable Reflex TPI: 3/180 g: 470 PSI: 85

"27.5"

Article: 0101281
ETRTO: 50 - 584 Dimension: 27.5 X 2.00 Technology: Vectran Breaker Color/Sidewall/Bead: black/black foldable Reflex TPI: 3/180 g: 640 PSI: 65

"26"

Article: 0101734
ETRTO: 55 - 559 Dimension: 26 X 2.20 Technology: Vectran Breaker Color/Sidewall/Bead: black/black foldable Reflex TPI: 3/180 g: 745 PSI: 58

Article: 0100712
ETRTO: 50 - 559 Dimension: 26 X 1.90 Technology: Vectran Breaker Color/Sidewall/Bead: black/black foldable Reflex TPI: 3/180 g: 610 PSI: 58

Gator Hardshell vs Top CONTACT Winter II Premium review

Features

Hardshell

Features

Vectran

E50

Usage

Usage

Technologies

Technologies

Specifications

"27"

"28"

Specifications

"28"

"27.5"

"26"