Would anyone be able to recommend the best of either of these tyre options? thanks

I'm not saying they're the best but Specialized Nimbus EX 1.5s are long lived, easy rolling and offer some grip.

Just got some Geax Street Runners from Wiggle - £20 a pair with tubes. Not done many miles yet but I read good reviews before I got them and quite impressed so far

One pair of Nimbuses has so far done over 5000km on a kiddiback tandem that is often loaded with camping gear - no puctures.

I've also used:

Hutchinson 1.5 slicks - the sidewalls failed at the bead.

Michelin wildgripper 1.5 slicks. Hard wearing but slow rolling. In use on an expedition tandem but soon to be replaced as they are simply worn out.

Nokian Roll? One blew out in the middle of the tread at low mileage - binned.

Continental Top Touring 2000. The taping at the bead came unglued. I'd probably overheated the rims to be fair but the Nimbuses have survived higher temperatures.

I have 3 types of tyres which I use to
commute to work.

Specialized Crossroads which I only use
when it snows as I find it too heavy just to use on the road.

Specialised Nimbus which I find hard wearing & grippy in wet & dry, but still very much on the heavy side for a slick.

Just started using Vredestein S-Licks which is much lighter & faster than the Nimbus but a bit slippery on wet
white or yellow lines on the road
I will be using the Vredestein S-Licks
the most as there is a huge difference performance wise between them & Nimbus.
On paper, the Nimbus is 1.5" the Vredestein S-Licks 1.3" but when you look at them after installation, the S-Licks appear to be a good 1/3 smaller in volume.
Just be wary of the lines on the road when
it's wet.

I use shwalbe marathons 1.35 slicks fast rolling very good in the wet and dry

They've discontinued the S-Licks, replaced it with sommat called a 'Perfect Moiree' when we tried to get some last week.

Thanks everyone. I'll look them up and get back to you.

I personally quite like the Continetal Travel Contact Semi Slick Tyre - it's a 1.75 and is a bit heavier than the 1.5 or 1.3 tyres but its increased air volume and side lugs make it more versatile and comfortable at the expense of a bit of speed. Very puncture proof too. Had some knocking around for the past few years (gone on various bikes including a ack bike for over a year) still going strong...

i'm running the streetrunners, fast, light enough for me

can't complain, they were free too :-)

Ollie C, i've used the conti's before and they were very good actually. Not a single puncture for over 6 months usage. I just had a look at reviews for the Nimbus and generally, people seems to be raving about its durability but alot seem to be complaining about the difficulty of fitting them to Mavic rims. I didnt realise it was that hard to fit a tyre??

marmike, who makes the free streetrunners?

Some of the smaller tyres can be a pain to fit (particularly if you have odd sized/shaped wheel rims). Makes sense I guess - as there is less rubber to play with when fitting...

What do you make of this?
http://www.conti-tyres.co.uk/conticycle/ti%20traffic.shtml

lol, given to me by a mate - who now tours and commutes on 2.5" knobblies...

i haven't had a problem fitting streetrunners, but any of the conti tyres...

Only trouble with: http://www.conti-tyres.co.uk/conticycle/ti%20traffic.shtml - is look how much they weigh! Over 800g - whereas the 1.5 nimbus is probably less that 500g and the travel contact is around 600-700g - rotating weight is evil on a bike...