Schwalbe city jet

Oh Marone

Hi, looking for some cheap road tyres for a 25 mile road ride at end of May. Its for charidee pop pickers. Will also be used for hard pack fire road type stuff as we have a few routes here in sunny Norfolk.

I have Alex rims EN24 with 26x2.25 nobby nics and find them pretty good off road, but really draggy on tarmac. Trying to build up my fitness at the moment and did a 30k ride other day which nearly killed me.

Been looking at the city jets as seen them mentioned a few times on here and are cheap. Currently £10.50 at halfords with another 20% off. My question really is what size to get, 1.5 or 1.9 ? Will the 1.5 even fit on my rims?

Is there much difference in comfort, rolling resistance between them? Also any other tyres I should look at?

cooldad

I would go fat, more comfortable and roll fine.

step83

cooldad wrote:

I would go fat, more comfortable and roll fine.

This, schwalbe big apples roll well an blow up to about 2.1 been using it on my commuter for a while wet an dry no issues.

snowster

I have used city jets for the last two years very reliable never let me down 4000+ miles no problems worth every penny, currently using 1.5 very fast rolling

Twelly

1.9" City jets have quite a pointed profile when blown up to 40-50psi so the actual contact patch isn't far off a 1.5" tyre, little bit heavier but roll well and more comfortable in the wider size.

The Rookie

As you'll hopefully be riding at circa 20mph on road, I'd take the 1.5" to lower the aero drag which at that speed exceeds all your other drags added together, CJs are lousy off road though!

gt-arrowhead

I have the 1.95 City Jets, and they are absolutely brilliant. Wont ever have to worry about a puncture. Rolling resistance is great. And they are really good at absorbing bumps.

Just watch out on fireroads if its quite loose, had a really unexpected moment when cornering and braking quite gently with the rear. It locked but didnt "unlock" when i released the brake like most tyres would.

The Rookie

Rolling resistance is good, not great, it's worse than any of the tyres I've had on my commuter and they feel a bit 'dead' by comparison as well, they are good tyres and excellent value for money, but not great.

Always worth keeping an eye out, I got my mate some Conti sport contacts for £15 delivered, used but as new.

gt-arrowhead

They have a pretty stiff construction compared to others, maybe thats the reason behind the deadness. I never found them to be dead myself.

Yeah they arent the best, nowhere near to my 1.4 michelins, but then again they are 1.4 There isnt actually a great deal of difference between CJs and Maxxis Aspens on the road. If i could get these michelins in 1.95 like the CJ or just bigger in general, id buy them in a heartbeat. http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/mich ... lsrc=aw.ds

Love them and i only use the standard wire bead ones at 420 grams. there are some "advanced" ones. Bloody 200 grams! http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/mich ... lsrc=aw.ds Id get these next if i ever need a road tyre again.

snowster

I guess its all about budget and for the money you pay for cj can't be beaten roll resistance or not just pedal harder and faster...

Long_Time_Lurker

Another vote for the Conti Sport Contact. Worth the extra money in my opinion.
I have used both and found the Conti a lot better rolling and stupidly tough.

The Rookie

I've run 26x1.5" as
Panaracer RiBMo, Continental Sport Contact, WTB Slickasurus and Specialized Nimbus on my Commuter and my daughter had the CJ's on her commuter so I have a reasonable basis for comparison of similar tyres, the CJ is the slowest rolling and the RiBMo the fastest, the Nimbus doesn't quite have the grip of the others in the wet which is why the set I have are now on my town hack bike which doesn't get used at higher speeds much nor in the wet as much. That said the CJ can be had for less than half the price of the others making it a winner on value unless you find a good deal. On my commuter I usually run 80psi rear and 70psi front (increasing pressure all the way to the max in steps I found it gave lowest rolling resistance when tested on a downhill roll from stationary to 20mph), the town hack bike uses about 65psi to get some grip back.

I used to have some wider slicks and above 15-16mph the lower aero drag of the narrower tyres is noticeable, the narrower tyres are also lighter and accelerate faster.

Oh Marone

Thanks for the advice. Just to throw a spanner in the works, the more I think about it I think I might be better going for a semi slick for more off road ability and a faster rolling summer tyre. So a mixture of road, fire road/dirt paths and off road. Nearest trail centre is Thetford so quite dry in the summer.

Schwalbe land cruisers seem to be a good budget option, get good reviews but heavy.
http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/schw ... nt=Default

Or seen some Continental travel contacts, more expensive but lighter. Don't mind spending a bit more for a good summer tyre that rolls easier on tarmac than my nobby nics(performance line)

gt-arrowhead

Maxxis Aspen. Great summer tyre. Fast but still grippy on dry trails. Works well on the road too. Ive used it on the road a fair bit actually.

The Rookie

Kenda small block 8 in one of the narrower widths is a good half way option.

Angus Young

The Rookie wrote:

I've run 26x1.5" as
Panaracer RiBMo, Continental Sport Contact, WTB Slickasurus and Specialized Nimbus on my Commuter and my daughter had the CJ's on her commuter so I have a reasonable basis for comparison of similar tyres, the CJ is the slowest rolling and the RiBMo the fastest, the Nimbus doesn't quite have the grip of the others in the wet...

So, do you rate the RiBMo the best out of that selection?

The Rookie

Of those, yes, the one I have left to try is a narrow Schwalbe Kojak but at circa 1000 miles a year it takes a while, even bought used the WTB's (a rebadged Maxxis) lasted over 3000miles on the rear and nearly 4000 on the front.

Long_Time_Lurker

I wouldn't go for Land Cruisers. Had them as my first semi-slicks on my first bike. Reasonably tough but stupidly heavy. Not much use in wet conditions and a bit too sticky on the road.
I gave them away after 3 months to a friend, who then gave them away after a further 2 months. No-one wanted them.

JodyP

Oh Marone wrote:

Currently £10.50 at halfords with another 20% off.?

Good spot. I have been mulling over what slicks to buy, but @ £16 a pair I am going to have a punt with City Jets and see what they are like.

Ouija

The Rookie wrote:

Of those, yes, the one I have left to try is a narrow Schwalbe Kojak but at circa 1000 miles a year it takes a while, even bought used the WTB's (a rebadged Maxxis) lasted over 3000miles on the rear and nearly 4000 on the front.

Don't bother. They are OK but lack any real puncture protection and, if you do any serious mileage, tend to square off very quickly (soft rubber) compared to Continental Sport Contacts. Been through three sets of Kojaks,. 5 Sport Contacts, 2 Slickasourus and a set of Schwalbe city jets (probably the worst of the bunch) as well a whole bunch of others.

The Conti Sport Contacts are the best of the bunch, the Kojaks are a little lighter and faster but not very long lasting (and puncture prone) and the City Jets are built like a tank but very, very draggy (that pointed, grooved apex folds under your body weight causing a wider contact patch on the ground which you can't seem to resolve, no matter how much pressure you pump them up to).

The Rookie

OK thanks, I do circa 1000-1250miles a year on the commuter, so I think you've ruled the Kojaks out for me.

The RiBMo are worth a try.

Ouija

The Rookie wrote:

OK thanks, I do circa 1000-1250miles a year on the commuter, so I think you've ruled the Kojaks out for me.

The RiBMo are worth a try.

I average around 750/1000 miles a month during the summer and the Kojaks would square off after just a few weeks. The Sport Contacts, on the other hand, tend to last me over a year (probably get a good 6000/7000 miles out of them). Bit of a harder ride though.

Oh Marone

Is there any difference between the small block 8 "John Tomac" series to the standard 8 ?
JT version seems to be an older model as not alot of places stock it.

Oh Marone

Anyone used Action Sports before?
Seem to be the cheapest I can find the 26x2.1 DCT folding 8's in normal tubes version. 60 euros delivered which is about £43. Plus a 5 euro discount code if I subscribe to their newsletter

http://www.actionsports.de/en/kenda-sma ... lding-5768

1.95 might be a tiny bit quicker but prefer comfort over outright speed, still be quicker than my nics

The Rookie

Not personally, but I know a few who have with no problems.

A bit cheaper but the JT edition - no I don't know the difference to the DTC.
http://www.bike-discount.de/en/buy/kend ... wg_id-2970 or they also do the 1.95 for less.

Used them a few time, excellent service, stereotypically Germanic dare I say!

Oh Marone

Bought my bike from BD and did see them as well. Think they must be the sealant ready tyres going by the weight. Standard tubes is 520g, KCST is about 600g and UST is 850g
http://www.kendatire.com/en/bicycle/mtb ... eight-pro/

Also from what I can find out I think they are all JT editions....or signature series. Newer model (or rebranded packaging, who knows) are either Tomac series or Pro depending on packaging. Look to be the same tyre.

Think i would prefer the 2.1 though for a bit more comfort, might be a bit grippier off road as well

Myster101

Just to let people know Halfords are currently doing the City Jet 26" x 1.5" for £7.19 each

Just bought a couple for my new commuter build, at that price even if they're not the best I'm not bothered

Oh Marone

Quick update
Just ordered 2 small block eights off nexdaytyres which had the correct part number (212511). Now showing as out of stock after I ordered so will see if they actually turn up and if they are infact the correct version.

Tried emailing 2 different shops (1 very well known) about which version they actually stock and getting no replys after 2 days. Not unheard of I know but bit the bullet now and fingers crossed they turn up.

Alot of places seem to be out of stock in various sizes so are either selling like hot cakes now weather has turned or everyone is awating stock

Oh Marone

Picked my tyres up from the post office today and just fitted them. Look a bit different to my nics and weigh about 175g less per tyre, nics were around 700g and sb8 about 525g.
Only had a short run up the road on them and seem to roll a bit easier, not sure if Ihave enough psi in them. Will start a new thread for that question though.