Is there really that much difference

OOtzen-Booty

Obviously Mountain Bikes and Road bikes are two totally different bits of kit,My question is if I did use a MB on a road run without getting to technikal what would actually be the difference?


my apologies for a stupid question,but I cannot find the answer.

Hell below zero !

Your Speed :!:

OOtzen-Booty

Hell below zero ! wrote:

Your Speed :!:

But how much? Is there that much difference then?

chuckcork

Slower and chunkier tyres, different and less aero geometry, possibly heavier weight, and a less rigid frame (unless you have a completely unsprung M-bike), yep, you'll go a lot slower.

OOtzen-Booty

chuckcork wrote:

Slower and chunkier tyres, different and less aero geometry, possibly heavier weight, and a less rigid frame (unless you have a completely unsprung M-bike), yep, you'll go a lot slower.

Thank you m8,you have answered my qestion,I salute you

OOtzen-Booty

chuckcork wrote:

Slower and chunkier tyres

Would it pay for me to chuck road tyres on a MB or is that not going to make that much of a difference?

ColinJ

There could be quite a few differences, but it's up to you to decide whether they are important to you..

(1) A typical mountain bike is likely to be heavier than a road bike in the same price bracket. If you were doing a lot of big hills, you'd have more weight to lug over each of them. (this is a 'minus')

(2) You might find the suspension on the MTB absorbed some of your pedalling effort if you stood up to climb. ('minus')

(3) You might find the suspension on the MTB more comfortable on rough roads. ('plus')

(4) The bigger tyres on the MTB would be more comfortable on rough roads. ('plus')

(5) The more upright position might be more comfortable for you ('plus').

(6) The more upright position is less aerodynamic ('minus').

(7) You'd probably have lower gears available for the hills which might come in handy ('plus')

(8 ) The single biggest drawback of the MTB on roads is that big knobbly tyres have a lot more rolling resistance than narrow, smooth, high-pressure tyres on a road bike. (big 'minus', but you can get narrower slick tyres for MTBs which would turn this into a small 'minus'. PS - they are a different size to road tyres you need MTB slicks, like these)

I don't mind riding my MTB on stretches of road between bridleways, but I'd always ride a road bike on the road if I had the choice. I've hired a MTB on holiday for road riding and I still enjoyed myself, but I'd have had a road bike if one had been available.

whyamihere

The tyres are what slow you down most. For £30, they're worth changing to see how it is.

OOtzen-Booty

whyamihere wrote:

The tyres are what slow you down most. For £30, they're worth changing to see how it is.

Right on that note when we start getting warmer weather I will time myself over lets say a 40 mile rolling 2 flat route with MTB tyres and then purchase some roadies and Hopefully the clock will tell me I,ve been a fool

Thanks W

Frank the tank

Before I had a road I fitted some slick 25mm tyres to my MTB and the difference in speed (riding on tarmac) was phenominal.

At the end of the day though if I was riding my best road bike a decent club cyclist would beat me on a butchers bike.

simmo3801

I've just put Spec All Condition Pros on my MTB they're 26 x 1.0 to commute 12.5 miles each way. I want to keep my road bike good for better weather. The MTB has lock out front forks so it won't soak up my pedalling effort. Huge difference in speed!!!

Try this simple test.

On MTB tyres on a flat surface pedal 1 revolution in a middle sized gear and note how far you travel
Fit slicks and do the same again.

On MTB tyres I have come to a stop whilst freewheeling on a gradual descent before due to the rolling resistance.

neeb

I commuted for years and years on a hardtail MTB with slicks before I got into proper road cycling. The biggest difference is the tyres, and you can change that, but there are still very big differences from a proper road bike. What I used to find was that I could go almost as fast on short urban journeys on the slick MTB, but as soon as I tried anything longer it was far more tiring to maintain the same speed, and I also got aches from not being able to change my hand position on the bars. I think this is down to the more upright, less aero position of the MTB and also the added weight on hills. Also, the more you ride a road bike the more you develop skills that just wouldn't be possible in the same way on an MTB. I can't imagine taking fast corners on a (road) descent on an MTB the way I do on a road bike and feeling remotely safe, for example (especially with a suspension fork!). In the end, long journeys on the slick MTB were exhausting and not fun, so I didn't do them very often, whereas a road bike is so much more of a pleasure to ride on the road. A MTB with slicks is the ideal urban commuting bike though.

dazzawazza

My MTB has Specialized All Condition Pro 1” slicks on it, which make it a reasonably fast commuter. They have good wet weather grip and pump up to 115 psi. However, I much prefer to commute on my road bike.
The MTB has its place though, because it has a rack and is kitted out with mudguards. I don’t mind leaving it locked up on public streets and it is good during bad winter weather, which has been the case lately (last week I was commuting on 2” knobbly tyres; the speed and handling was awful). It can also be loaded up quite heavily when supermarket shopping.
I do tend to neglect it a bit though, because I spend my time and money on maintaining and upgrading the road bikes. Soon I want to upgrade the MTB to a steel frame, which will change this.

OOtzen-Booty

dazzawazza wrote:

My MTB has Specialized All Condition Pro 1” slicks on it, which make it a reasonably fast commuter. They have good wet weather grip and pump up to 115 psi. .

My question with this would be,If I fitted slicks woulld i say be able to go off road?

What is a Hybrid? Is it both road speed and off road or is there more to it still or have i lost the pliot

I am a newbie so please be gentle

Frank the tank

OOtzen-Booty wrote:

dazzawazza wrote:

My MTB has Specialized All Condition Pro 1” slicks on it, which make it a reasonably fast commuter. They have good wet weather grip and pump up to 115 psi. .

My question with this would be,If I fitted slicks woulld i say be able to go off road?

What is a Hybrid? Is it both road speed and off road or is there more to it still or have i lost the pliot

I am a newbie so please be gentle

They are what the marketing men now call urban bikes though they're not single speed/fixies. They have double or triple chainsets.

OOtzen-Booty

Frank the tank wrote:

OOtzen-Booty wrote:

[

They are what the marketing men now call urban bikes though they're not single speed/fixies. They have double or triple chainsets.

Forgive my ignorance but they are quite expensive[some of them] so is just gears that are different?

Frank the tank

Hybrids, have a frame which is more akin to a road bike rather than an MTB. They have touring type tyres and have the capability for light off roar use (cycle tracks) etc, whilst maintaining a decent speed on tarmac.

Like all types of bike there is a great price range depending on the usual things, frame material, groupset, finishing kit etc.

Hope this clarifies things a bit mate.

"The Tank"

dazzawazza

I''m not so convinced about hybrids. I can’t see a huge performance increase over a MTB with a 48T chainring and slicks.
If you’re new to cycling I would suggest starting out on a full ridged MTB, and buy some 1-1.3" slick tyres. You can pick a good quality bike up second hand for +/- £100.
See how you go, and if you get in to it and buy a road bike; at least you have an XC (cross country) bike after a tyre change on the MTB. Ignore me if you have no storage space.

ARob

on the same route (20 odd miles, 1600 feet of climbing) done on my road bike and then on the mountain bike 1 week later, at similar tempreture and average heart rate i averaged 18.2 on the road bike and 14.2 on the mountain bike.

surprisingly the areas i lost time were mostly not the hills despite the moutain bike weighing about as much as the avereage tank.

conclusion, on about as like for like comparison as you'll probably get a mountain bike is 4 mph slower, (or i drank more beer the night before the second ride..?)

ARob

on the same route (20 odd miles, 1600 feet of climbing) done on my road bike and then on the mountain bike 1 week later, at similar tempreture and average heart rate i averaged 18.2 on the road bike and 14.2 on the mountain bike.

surprisingly the areas i lost time were mostly not the hills despite the moutain bike weighing about as much as the avereage tank.

conclusion, on about as like for like comparison as you'll probably get a mountain bike is 4 mph slower, (or i drank more beer the night before the second ride..?)

FSR_XC

For me the difference between my MTB & Road bike is around 8 mins over 10-11 miles.

That is a full sus with rear locked out and knobblies on a fairly hilly route (1200ft of climbing).

I have to say that I feel more stable on the MTB when the weather is wet & windy and also when riding in the dark. Maybe this is a personal thing?

MrChuck

dazzawazza wrote:

I''m not so convinced about hybrids. I can’t see a huge performance increase over a MTB with a 48T chainring and slicks.

Dunno about a slicked up MTB but I feel a huge difference between my hybrid and my MTB on the road, even though my MTB is about the same weight. Obviously there's the tires and fork (even locked out) to suck up some effort but the position seems to make a huge difference. If I need to ride my MTB on a road route I'd usually do on something else it feels like I'm towing a tractor tire behind me.

Mastineo

Hiya, I ride a FCR2 on my Sunday club rides which range from 50m - 60m. The FCR2 is a flat barred road bike.On the same rides a couple of riders use MTB with what look like MTB tyres. They boyh finish ahead of me!!!!A good club wont leave you and may adjust its pace to suit.
?Get out there,ride it you WILL improve.
John

Fat Kid

Mountain Bikes are often fitted with speed limiters which you ask your bike shop to remove. Not many people know this. They are usually attached to the back wheel or the chain and are very difficult to see and remove yourself.

OOtzen-Booty

Fat Kid wrote:

Mountain Bikes are often fitted with speed limiters which you ask your bike shop to remove. Not many people know this. They are usually attached to the back wheel or the chain and are very difficult to see and remove yourself.

Are you taking the P@ss? or is this true?

redddraggon

OOtzen-Booty wrote:

Fat Kid wrote:

Mountain Bikes are often fitted with speed limiters which you ask your bike shop to remove. Not many people know this. They are usually attached to the back wheel or the chain and are very difficult to see and remove yourself.

Are you taking the P@ss? or is this true?

Totally true, they are fitted because most people who ride mountain bikes don't wear a helmet AND have no bike handling skills. The government implemented the speed limiter to lower accident statistics and cost to the NHS.....

OOtzen-Booty

redddraggon wrote:

OOtzen-Booty wrote:

Fat Kid wrote:

Mountain Bikes are often fitted with speed limiters which you ask your bike shop to remove. Not many people know this. They are usually attached to the back wheel or the chain and are very difficult to see and remove yourself.

Are you taking the P@ss? or is this true?

Totally true, they are fitted because most people who ride mountain bikes don't wear a helmet AND have no bike handling skills. The government implemented the speed limiter to lower accident statistics and cost to the NHS.....

Well im shocked is there a thread on the forum on how to remove them?

Chaz.Harding

Theres LOTS of reasons to invest in a road-bike / touring / hybrid over a full-on MTB if you are doing alot of miles on the road commuting.

For a start, mountain bikes will be higher to give clearance for off-road obstacles and you will sit in a more vertical posistion too, AND have a bike with little / no design for aerodynamic efficiency (IE, wider, MUCH larger head-on surface area).

Knobbly tires will MASSIVLEY increase drag (like you probably wouldn't believe until you try it) and if you have suspension too, that saps energy compressing suspension instead of propelling you forward. Even lockout on suspensions systems cannot be as rigid as a fully rigid bike.

If you must buy a MTB, at least get some slick tires (remember that MTB's have 26" tires!!) and if you have a fast route, possible a 9 / 8 / 7 speed road cassette.

Hope this helps!

Chaz.

Anonymous

OOtzen-Booty wrote:

redddraggon wrote:

OOtzen-Booty wrote:

Fat Kid wrote:

Mountain Bikes are often fitted with speed limiters which you ask your bike shop to remove. Not many people know this. They are usually attached to the back wheel or the chain and are very difficult to see and remove yourself.

Are you taking the P@ss? or is this true?

Totally true, they are fitted because most people who ride mountain bikes don't wear a helmet AND have no bike handling skills. The government implemented the speed limiter to lower accident statistics and cost to the NHS.....

Well im shocked is there a thread on the forum on how to remove them?

To remove the limiter you need a device known as a long stand.

MTB's are not massivly slower, I remember in Manchester there was this guy go past on a MTB, he was thrashing it, I reckon he was doing about 26-28mph, I overtook him at 32mph :P, he gave a good run to say I was on a road bike and he was on a MTB

mangizmo

I recently bought a 29er, its a ridgeback dual track, basically its a MTB with 700C wheels, hydro disc brakes and best of all a lock out suspension fork, I have always found 700c wheels to be faster on long runs (maybe my imagination, but they seem that way to me)
It has a big top gear (48T big ring with a 12T on the back), if I put slicks on that and lock out the forks, it is really pretty quick on the road and its very comfortable (with bar ends)
Because it is 700c wheels, I can fit even the skinny road tyres if I want to, and the design helps it absorb bumps very nicely
They dont seem to have caught on like I thought that they would have done, but worth a look if you want a dual purpose bike, I think its great.... there was a guy on yesterdays mega-hilly club run (Dartmoor) that was up with the fastest on an old MTB with slicks on...so it can be done, but I think he was working alot harder to stay on the pace, I just think he was fitter than me
I once bought a touring bike with drops and 26in wheels once (like a MTB with drops)....it was so slow compared to even a proper tourer with bigger wheels...so I really do think there is a difference

DV1

There is a huge difference between the 2 , road bikes are generally lighter and just plain built for speed ,

However i tend during the winter to ride my mountain bikes a lot more on the road as opposed to my road bike ( specialized tarmac elite),mainly because i dont want to screw up my pride and joy with all that horrible salt and muddy roads .

Also a MTB is generally stronger and will with stand the occasional "falling off " or two on the icy roads .
When you have done 50 mile + on a MTB you really know it as apposed to the road bike which is a piece of p*ss 8)