Road tires for my mountain bike

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  • March 18, 2012 at 4:39 pm #911097
    MCL1981
    Participant

    I’d like to ditch the 26×2 knobby mtn bike tires I have now for some road tires. Of these, does anyone have experience or recommendations? My riding is nearly all on roads or paved trails. Occasionally I venture onto the C&O.

    http://www.rei.com/search?cat=4500138&jxWheel size=26+inches&jxTread type=Slick+tread&jxTread type=Semi-slick+tread&jxTread+type=Inverted+tread&hist=cat%2C4500138%3ABike+Tires+and+Tubes^jxWheel+size%2C26+inches^jxTread+type%2CSlick+tread^jxTread+type%2CSemi-slick+tread^jxTread+type%2CInverted+tread

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Viewing 14 replies - 1 through 14 (of 14 total)
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  • March 18, 2012 at 6:35 pm #937923
    mstone
    Participant

    I use the continental contact, but in 700c. Dunno how different they’d be in 26″. I’ve been pretty happy with them.

    March 18, 2012 at 10:55 pm #937929
    MCL1981
    Participant

    Based on the web reviews, and that it was the narrowest of the ones available, I went with the Michelin City Trekking 26 x 1.4. The reviews were all great, no cons, and there is a reflective band around the sidewall. I put them on this evening. I’ve never ridden with road tire before. HOLY CRAP! It’s like a totally different bike.

    Any advice for someone new to road tires like this as far as handling, turns, braking, etc?

    IMAG0079.jpg

    March 19, 2012 at 12:08 am #937932
    KLizotte
    Participant

    Are those lights by the front wheel axis?
    [ATTACH=CONFIG]839[/ATTACH]

    March 19, 2012 at 12:27 am #937936
    MCL1981
    Participant

    Yep, those are the low beams :cool:. The giant 1,200 lumen death ray on the front of the handlebars is WAY too bright for oncoming bikes/peds on the trail. So the high/low switch on my control panel turns off the deer-buster and turns on those small LED’s on the forks

    http://bikearlingtonforum.com/showthread.php?1517-Anti-ninja-deer-buster-two-wheeled-sunrise-Phase-1-completed!

    March 19, 2012 at 1:35 am #937942
    DaveK
    Participant

    @MCL1981 16685 wrote:

    Any advice for someone new to road tires like this as far as handling, turns, braking, etc?

    https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-NqS8mT4CIc8/T2Zm-K5u5tI/AAAAAAAAArs/rYwYjWZVxJg/s640/IMAG0079.jpg

    Dunno if you ride motorcycles but don’t corner on a bicycle like you would a motorcycle. Keep your weight centered above the bike, don’t lean off. The tires need your weight pressing down to maintain a good contact patch. You shouldn’t lean it over too much. Put your outside pedal down through the corner. If you need to stick out your inside knee you can do that. In the corner, keep the pressure on the outside pedal.

    March 19, 2012 at 2:01 am #937948
    vvill
    Participant

    This might be obvious to you already, but if not – keep the tire pressure up. When I first put slick 26×1.25 tires on my MTB I got a couple of pinch flats before I realised the tire pressure was not what it should’ve been. With wider MTB tires you can really leave them for a while before needing re-inflation.

    March 19, 2012 at 2:16 am #937950
    MCL1981
    Participant

    It says something like 40 to 85 PSI. I have them at 60 and they’re solid. I can’t imagine going up to 85.

    [Posted with my Android mobile device using Tapatalk Pro]

    March 19, 2012 at 2:51 am #937953
    OneEighth
    Participant

    If you are riding on trails or roads, you may as well go to full pressure and enjoy the benefits of a non-knobby, higher pressure tire. 85 frankly isn’t that high and you’ve still got plenty of rolling resistance and squish in the corners, though it will feel like a big improvement over low-pressure knobbies on pavement.

    March 19, 2012 at 2:56 am #937954
    KLizotte
    Participant

    @MCL1981 16707 wrote:

    It says something like 40 to 85 PSI. I have them at 60 and they’re solid. I can’t imagine going up to 85.

    I would use a floor pump and pump them up till you feel a lot of push back (which should be right about 85). I would only lower the PSI if I were going on something like the C&O. The higher the pressure, the easier it is to ride on pavement. Anyway, that’s how I operate my tires and no pinch flats or problems.

    That’s an amazing light setup.

    March 19, 2012 at 4:13 am #937960
    off2ride
    Participant

    That’s a lot of lumens.

    March 19, 2012 at 2:15 pm #937972
    culimerc
    Participant

    That would make MCL1981 the “Lumennotti” (sorry had to do it)

    March 19, 2012 at 4:37 pm #937992
    MCL1981
    Participant

    You know how the trails are all old railroads? At night, I look like the train is back :p

    March 20, 2012 at 12:19 pm #938047
    5555624
    Participant

    @MCL1981 16707 wrote:

    It says something like 40 to 85 PSI. I have them at 60 and they’re solid. I can’t imagine going up to 85.

    Give ’em a try at 85. When I first swtiched from knobbies, I went with 60-65. Once I tried 85, though, I stayed with it. In the last ten years or so, I think the only time I ried ’em at 60 or so is if I’ve gotten a flat and 60 was quicker witht he hand pump.

    March 20, 2012 at 1:24 pm #938035
    MCL1981
    Participant

    Holy crap. What a difference. This is amazing. Why didn’t someone slap for not doing this sooner?

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