
User submitted reviews
Review by truen
Although they are called Gravelkings I am riding them 80/20 road to gravel. They work great for both. Super smooth for the road, and tacky enough for gravel. I run them lower on the gravel and went tubeless for even less weight. They set up on tubeless really easily. I like the gum sidewall look but don't know about it's specs or longevity.
Review by flatfishfool
I previously reviewed this tire giving it low ratings. I have returned for an update and to echo others. When I rode this with tubes, after a few hundred miles it became unrideable. I would get 2-3 flats per ride, mostly in the rear but sometimes front also. After becoming a patching expert for awhile I took them off and threw them away. A friend also had them but ran them tubeless and he said they were fine. So I thought I might have had a bad batch. Since I otherwise love the slick and 38 width and couldn't find a good alternative, I bought them again to run tubeless. Tubeless they are great but only because the slime plugs the holes. I counted 24 punctures in my rear tire yesterday after 400 miles.
Review by Anonymous
I've put a few hundred miles on my set, on mixed terrain.... 90% road and 10% dirtlight gravel. Comfortable tires on the road but was very surprised to get a puncture flat so soon. Time will tell if this was just a fluke but these tires are known to be puncture-prone. If they hold up I may consider them again in the future.
Review by Dan the man
Ive put about 1000 miles on these tires so far and Ive been extremely pleased. These tires are not quite gravel tires, they are more like road tires with some grit. Ive been riding on ruff paved road on a fuji SL and having just a little extra grit tread over a slick has been amazing. Great tire awesome look I would definitely recommend and would definitely buy them again!
Review by RickF
This is my 3rd set of Panaracer tires. I do most of my riding on road with the occasional jaunt down a lonely gravel road. These tires are perfect for my purpose.
Review by Kevin M
The 28c tires run narrow. I mounted a 28c on a 24mm OD width rim, and they barely measure 27c with calipers. I was hoping for more width
Review by Anonymous
These may well be great tires, but I'll never know because I cannot mount them on my Neuvation R28 SL2 wheels without damaging the tube. I gave up after pinch flatting two tubes and realizing that even if I managed to successfully install them at home I would never be able to out on the road if I got a flat. These rims have a reputation for a tight fit, but I've never had this problem with them before.
Review by willymtb
The Gravel King tire was awesome on the mixed surface gravel event that I purchased them for. I felt super confident climbing in the muddy conditions, descending and picking lines on technical single track. I had to sacrifice some traction on the deep mud due to not having any lugs on the tires but this was a trade off. Great tire!!
Review by BranFlakes
I was able to ride these tires on most surfaces, gravel, pavement, hard-packed dirt, even some dicey technical rides where most would want 29 tires. The have lasted me around 800 miles and have more life ahead of them! Great all-around tire for mixing it up on the single track and gravel road, or cranking away miles on buttery asphalt. Would highly recommend
Review by Chris
Great tires, easy to setup tubeless, but not the most puncture resistant. I bought the 700x38c tires, they are awesome tires, the feel is fantastic, they ride really smooth, but I was disappointed with the puncture protection so far. I've gotten a lot of flats. Thankfully I was able to plug larger hole with Dynaplugs.
Review by John
This tire is very supple which is why I purchased it. I didn't know that it was so light and punctured so easily. I hope to solve the puncture problem with some tire liners.
Review by NP
Best all round tire I've used in terms of price weight and performance. Only thing I don't like is the name and logo, should be called allroad or something Gravel King kinda seems silly.
Review by HG
Put the 700x38C (622-40) on my Trek Crossrip 3 recently for some light gravel. These tires are really cushy and very fast. No noise on pavement at all. I did have a horrible time getting them to mount. Very tight.
Review by villa891
I bought these tire to replace a set of Compass Bon Jon tires (which I liked a lot) and have been pleased so far. Panaracer makes tires for Compass so I knew the quality of the tire and at a better price. I run these tires at 50psi when I ride the road and drop down to 40psi when riding gravel. I love how they respond on either surface.
Review by Anonymous
good value, but rides a big harsh. for slicks i prefer compass over gravel kings.
Review by AMH
Absolutely love these tires. I could just stop there, but they really are a game changer for me.
On a Niner RLT Steel, with Next 28XM wheels. The wheels are pretty wide internally, and spread the tire nicely. I'm riding on typical IndianaMidwest chip and seal, gravel, and dirt roads. They soak up all the buzz, all the noise, roll like race tires (setup tubeless 40psi), and corner nicely. I've got no reservations cornering with them on all but the roughest, loosest gravel.
They set up tubeless reasonably well, with a bit of fidgeting, but no real issues. I've got around 750 miles on them, and they're starting to wear a little, though nothing frightening. I'd highly recommend these.
Review by Anonymous
What I was shopping for in a bike tire tubeless ready, 36 mm, smooth road tire. My wife purchased a set of Compass tires last year and loves them. I later learned her Compass tires are manufactured by Panaracer.
Installation and tubeless set up was not the easiest experience. I mounted the tires to 25mm WTB rims. Mounting to those rims was the challenge as the design is unique to WTB. They have been outstanding however and very much worth effort need to set them up.
I have just passed the 500 mile point with the set. I believe I could get 2,000 additional miles out of the set. They are comfortable and confident on the road. I have not attempted to ride through greasy mud or thick loose soil. The tread is not aggressive nor designed for those conditions. I have enjoyed some singly track and not very technical off-road riding. The tires handled everything flawlessly.
So if your looking for a tire that is tubeless, capable through multiple terrains, durable, and good looking - Pick up a set!
Review by Anonymous
If your looking for a great dual purpose tarmac , gravel tire this is it. Well, for very smooth gravel and Hardpack. Very fast on regular roads with higher pressure. Even in the 38-40 size. Great tire!
Review by celilo
I have a couple of hundred miles on these tires, so this is really just a first impressions review.
Even though these are tubeless ready, I intended to run them with tubes. I moved from New Mexico to Florida and no longer fight goat-heads on every ride.
I had been running Hutchinson Sector 28's on a ghetto tubeless setup and they were great tires while they lasted, both the initial and warranty replacement Sectors had the sidewall separate from the bead. I thought that the Sectors were the most difficult tire to mount, but the Gravel Kings gave edged them out.
I ended up removing the tubes and mounting tubeless to give me the bit more space needed to get the Gravel Kings mounted. It was still a struggle even with a Tire Bead Jack. I imagine that these are generally a tight mounting tire, but they would probably go on much easier with a true tubeless rim. I'm on a budget)
While not as fast as my Sectors, moving to a 38 Gravel King makes my Cross Bike ride extraordinarily comfortable. I can keep my butt on the seat over terrain, like uneven sidewalks, that would previously have forced me to either stand off of my seat or visit the proctologist. The ride is acceptably fast for a tire with the comfort and traction offered by the Gravel King with acceptably low rolling resistance.
In Florida I deal with a lot of blown sand and I comfortable attack my ride through such obstacles. That said, this will not work, nor did I expect such, in deeper sand.
Durability is still out, but I've run over a bunch of stuff strewn into the bike lane and steered off road to avoid oncoming bikes and pedestrians without issue in the brief period that I've been running these tires. I've yet to get sprayed with Stan's tire sealant, not even small punctures to this point. That's OK, I had a virtual Stan's shower on the last few miles of my Sectors.
Early verdict is that I would highly recommend these for someone seeking a comfortable and secure ride for road and light off-road riding. Mounting is the only downside and that issue is likely less of a problem for other rims. I'm never going back to 28s or smaller unless I have a second dedicated road bike.
Review by The Dude
So far this is a great winter road tire in the PNW where we routinely have tree, sand, gravel and other debris from winter storms all over the B-roads.
Seems grippy on wet and damp roads, not deterred by left over road sanding from snow storms.
Confident wet and dirty asphalt corners, paint stripes don't seem too scary. Comfortable ride.
While the clothing-cafe types are busy dodging pellets and ruining their carbon rims in February you can pretty comfortably hold the line and roll right over whatever.
32s seem a bit squirmy at high speeds when at medium pressures, but that shouldn't surprise anyone. A race tire this is not.
Time will tell how they hold up to our urban debris (read glass) and horrible roads. I've found some Panaracers to be more delicate than other brands, so I'll be keeping a close eye out for shredding or cuts.
So far on track for 5 stars, but too soon and trajectory could always change.
So far, so good.

















