Road Tyres/Slicks

pilsburypie

With my hardtail frame iminently about to be changed, I was thinking of having this as my commuter bike over winter. Been looking at some fast rolling road tyres and have seen the following. Any other suggestions? Winter is here, so wet and frost are predominent. What is a good middle ground for size? 1.5"? Already have some Hutchinson Piranah 1.9" tyres on the bike which are crap off road with their low profile tread.... will the road tyres be noticabley better than these on tarmac?

Pair of Kenda KWEST MTB 26 X1.5 - £18 incl p&p (1.5")
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/PAIR-26X1-50-P-PR ... 240%3A1307

Pair of Schwalbe City Jet Tyre and Tube Set - £36 (1.5")
http://www.wiggle.co.uk/p/Cycle/7/Schwa ... 300003751/

Pair of Continental Ultra Gatorskin MTB Tyre - £40 (1.125")
http://www.wiggle.co.uk/p/Cycle/7/Conti ... 360021704/


Cheers

Mark

.blitz

How about these: Specialized Fatboy

They're surprisingly grippy and durable. Pump 'em up and fly.

pilsburypie

Woooha.... they really are slicks!

My initial worries about them are what are they like in the cold and wet? I remember reading that tread is not as important on bike tyres as on car tyres as bikes won't aquaplane.... surely water must come in between the road and tyre reducing friction..... is this logical?

Some tread must be good though for winter?

.blitz

You're right, aquaplaning doesn't kick in on a car until about 55 mph and a bicycle+rider exerts so much pressure through its tiny contact patch that aquaplaning can't occur.

There are some great country lanes around Stafford and despite the best efforts of the local farmers to turn them into mud-slicked skating rinks, the Fatboys grip'n'go.

pilsburypie

cheers .blitz

They could be a worthy contender - plus they look quite striking being bald as Kojak! May enhance the look, plus those puppy's have got to roll......

scottyjohn

I use fatboys and the difference between my low profile mtb tyres was amazing. They really do fly, you will find yourself running out gears surprisingly early My previous tyres were Panaracer Mach SS

pilsburypie

My only worry with the fatboys is the frost/ice..... just a touch of the slippery stuff and I'd guess it's tarmac time!

Dunno if just a little tread may be the difference between a twitch or an off.... must say though they look good and I can't see much rolling faster....

johnsav

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