a few questions about MTB slick tyres

jairaj

surreyxc wrote:

my two pence worth. Firstly do you really want to ride slicks, I ask because as your commute can be off road, then there is nothing better than riding off -road when there is frost on the ground,/quote]

Yeah I've thought about it for a bit and Im only going to be using the bike on-road for a while hense me trying to make it more road friendly. I have 2 bikes and the other one is only for off-road riding so I have the option to use that too.

The bike in question here is a purpose built rigid bike that would be a bit more commute friendly. Turns out im totally loving my commute by cycle now and am actually faster now than if I drove into work

surreyxc

Well if you have more than one bike, then go for it, slicks are great fun, a new experience, as for slipping I avoid the ice, but never had a problem with wet. Look at some of the puncture restistant tyres, nothing more yuk than fixing a flat by the side of a wet dark road.

jairaj

I don't think anything sticks to ice apart from studded tyres so Im happy to take it easy on ice. Although it will be interesting how much I notice the ice now im on the bike much more often. The roads seems pretty well used and I've never noticed any when in the car or on the odd winter commute I used to do.

As for the punctures Im hoping to run them tubeless with sealant. Its been working well for me off road, hoping it will fine on the road too.

The Rookie

I run my slicks on the muddy local towpath without any issues, yes they don't grip on there as well as knobblies, but they work fine.

I run 26x1.5 slicks, considered 26x1 too extreme and my frame won't take anything wider, I run a 46T front wheel so my gearing is fine, I can pull about 40mph at one part of my commute.

Simon

rich_sheffield

Not the most experienced of cyclists but for what its worth I`m very happily commuting on a MTB with full slick Hutchinson `top slick` tyres on the wonderful wet Sheffield roads. Fairly basic tyres but never had any concerns so far over lack of grip. That said, whilst there has been plenty of rain, we`ve not had anything worse than a mild morning frost so far this year.

Have to agree with an earlier comment about the look of skinny types on a fat MTB fork though. The increased speed and stability makes up for the strange looks, especially when cruising past big knobbly tyred riders.

re-cycles

Don't forget how much quieter it is when you use slicks! I went out with some knobblies on the other day and that buzzing from the tyres was so annoying!

supergunn

+1 for the Schwalbe city jets.

I've had them for approx a year with no punctures and find them very confidence inspiring when compared to my old knobbly tyres which slid all over the place on roads.

Very grippy wet or dry and look good on the bike.
I have the 1.5s on my MTB and I'm happy with them although some may prefer the 1.9s.

I've also done some offroad muddy bike tracks nothing too tecnical and they were fine.

Phate

supergunn wrote:

+1 for the Schwalbe city jets.

I've had them for approx a year with no punctures and find them very confidence inspiring when compared to my old knobbly tyres which slid all over the place on roads.

Very grippy wet or dry and look good on the bike.
I have the 1.5s on my MTB and I'm happy with them although some may prefer the 1.9s.

I've also done some offroad muddy bike tracks nothing too tecnical and they were fine.

And another for the City Jets! had I not switched from knobblys to the city jets then I don't know if I'd have got the cycling bug anywhere near as much! Since then I've moved onto a CX bike but would always go for the City Jets if I was taking a MTB on the road!

getting_on_a_bit

I've used Continental Sport Contacts for years on my 26" X717 rims commuter and they are great and I've only had a couple of punctures.
I've also used wider Scwable Hurricanes on the road for the last 7 years [same set] and they are also fast ,tend not to use in winter though but only due to lack of mudguards.
Recently I've also used Scwable LandCruisers on the strength of endless good reviews and cheapness....they have a slick raised section in the middle and knobblier sides...they roll fine but I do not feel as 'secure' going round bends in the wet and I will not be buying these again.
Subjective I know but I hope of some help.

simon_e

Phate wrote:

supergunn wrote:

+1 for the Schwalbe city jets.

And another for the City Jets!

And another one! Surprisingly good wet or dry

Currently using Specialized 26x1" but I don't think they're any faster or better, and the 1.5" tyre is better over potholes and rough surfaces. Will swap back in due course.

@snailracer - I'd also prefer them without the groove, but try to think of it as a wear indicator (though my pair wore very slowly).

juankerr

+1 City Jets. I have them on my MTB commuter or rather did until last week when my wife made me put the knobblies back on so she could go to Llandegla. Mind you, that was after me making her ride 12 miles off road on the City Jets, which coped pretty well considering.

I rode it last night with the knobblies and cried a little tear for my lovely smooth rolling City Jets.

boneyjoe

Not tried the Jets, but have commuted/trained on Schwalbe Marathon Racers for past 4 years and they are fab. I think its quite NB to compare the weight of different tyres, as the heavier ones can be a drag in stop-start city riding and also on the hilly bits. Would definitely go for 1.5s due to weight saving and lower rolling resistance than the 1.9s.

jonnyboy77

I just fitted some Schwalbe Big Apples (26x2.35) with Kevlar ... so far very happy, I did have some Spec Nimbus Armadillos on (26x1.5) and hated the smaller diameter and the 'crashy' ride they gave.

The tread on the Big Apple isn't going to be any good for mud plugging, but I reckon based on a couple of outings so far that it'll be capable on most other surfaces I'll encounter.



- Jon

simon_e

boneyjoe wrote:

I think its quite NB to compare the weight of different tyres, as the heavier ones can be a drag in stop-start city riding and also on the hilly bits. Would definitely go for 1.5s due to weight saving and lower rolling resistance than the 1.9s.

The benefit of weight saving is exaggerated by marketing bods, and narrower tyres don't necessarily have lower rolling resistance than wider ones:

http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/viewtop ... c&start=20
http://www.schwalbe.co.uk/shopdata/file ... fo2-GB.pdf
(pages 16 & 17)

I have commuted and time trialled on 350g 28mm Bontrager hardcase tyres. When I switched to narrower, 100g lighter Rubino Pro II tyres I didn't really go much quicker. For commuting, even on hills, I'd say the gain is insignificant. For me the lighter weight of the 1" Specialized (<300g v 600g) is outweighed by the harsher ride on poorly surfaced roads. I felt that the great surface area of the City Jets gave me more confidence when leaning it over, though I can't tell if either grip better. Wouldn't mind giving the Marathon Racers a try.