Tyre Question

scotty72

I'm coming back into cycling after a long lay-off

I was more into MTB ing and killing weeds, but I've decided I'm too grown up for that now. So, I wanna hit the road.

My question is?

Can anyone recommend some good quality semi slicks for road riding on my 26" MTB rims?

(still saving for the road bike)

one more,

With these tyres, is a higher pressure rating necessarily going to help all that much? Any recommendations?

Thanks,

scotty

robalert

i've had a few slicks....

my fave would have to be the Geax Roadrunner... reasonable priced and damn fast! but grippy enough too

gclark8

I have used Continental Sports Contact 26x1.3 at 90psi on my former MTB, it was faster than my road bike across town!!

My GF has Maxxis Detonator 26x1.25 @ 90psi on her Giant Sedona and keeps up with my road bike on our outings.

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Cheers,
George.

Marx SS

I started off riding heaps on the road on my MTB untill I discovered MTB racing.
In that time I did big rides (100kms+) as well as commute 20kms per day for 3-5 days a week.

I've used Continental Grand Prix:
Conti Grand Prix MTB tyre
They're OK but I didn't feel conforable with the skinny profile. Skidded a bit, & was alittle nervous about doing stairs & light grass/dirt going. Rolls really well but the low (small) 1.0 skinny tyre meant your gears were overall lower. Not my thing & replaced them before I wore them out.

Continental Town & Country.
Conti Twn & Cntry
Been around for ages. I loved these tyres. Used them everywhere, city, dirt you name it. Wore through 2x sets. Let alittle air out & you cna go dry-dirt no worries. Alittle rolling resistance, but at 80psi I did the 'Bay ride 3 time on them averaging 35kms/hr (MTB don't forget).


Specalized Hemisphere
Currently using them on my Apollo commuter. They're a big tyre 2.0, but I love 'em. Pump them to 75psi & I've done big road miles (150km+) no worries with them.
I like these tyres becasue they give a very feel of the road/trail, never slipped & I love to push them (ride like a yahoo over everything). Alittle rolling resistance (they hum too).

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'03 Specialised Stumpjumper 27spd hardtail MTB.
'90 Apollo MTB commuter rigid ss 44/18.
'02 Kinesis Crosslight cyclocross/roadie 27spd.

cycleski

I use the Serfas Drifters on my mtb, they have a neat inverted tread that gives plenty of grip on the track and are nice and smooth on the road.
26 * 1.5", 80 psi (90psi no prob) and not heavy, cost approx $30- 35 ea ; the Serfas web site would have the data on them. The more psi the easier they roll IMHO. If you bike has no suspension the front end buzz may be an issue but the front suspension eliminates this as a concern.
Hate those tyres with the smooth in the middle and knobs on the side, sold as dual purpose but are just too dangerous for the fast sweeping bends on the road, are heavy and more like an accident waiting to happen, this I know from experiance . The full slicks such as the speciallized fatboy are 1.25" and 100psi and are a bit lighter but dont stop as quick in the wet and dont work at all off road, and are more expensive . I basically worked thru a bunch of tyres I'm not that keen on anymore, thats life, take your pick.

AzzaC

It depends on what and where exactly you will be riding. For example, are you going to be taking shortcuts through the park, or down the stairs, or will you just be riding it on the road and bikepaths (as you would on a road bike)? Will you be riding when it is raining etc?

If you're just using it on the pavement, then most skinny slick tyres will be fine. My personal faves would be the Geax Roadrunner or the Ritchey Tom Slick. These are both as skinny as you can get for a MTB at 1.0-1.25" width. The Specialized Fatboy's are really fast, but don't expect them to perform as well when it is wet. They are completely slick, with no knobs/tread!

If you want a slick tyre that can do everything, then I really like the Maxxis Overdrive tyres. Cheap, 1.4" width, and has enough tread to ride on grass hills. Of course, it won't be as fast as the others, but that's where you have to decide.

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07 Giant Anthem 0 - lots of mods! XTR, Juicy Ultimates, Mavic Crossmax SLRs and more
05 Specialized Stumpjumper Marathon with Juicy 7's and X0
Surly 1x1 singlespeed
06 Giant TCR1

scotty72

Thanks for the tips guys.

Ended up going for a pair of 1.5" serfas drifters. Feel good to me. Not the best road tyres perhaps, but I do tend to cut across grass and dirt (old habits die hard).

Besides, that was what my LBS had in stock.

I figure that these tyres will make me work a little harder on the road too. As I'd gotten lazy and way out of shape this is no doubt a good thing.

Hopefully by mid next year I'll be reasonably fit again. That is my incentive as "she who must always be obeyed" says if I get fit she'll let me buy a good roadie

Once again, thanks guys.

BTW. I had a go on a bike with what I'll now refer to as suicide tyres (those with a slick centre and knobby sides). These are flat out dangerous. You can imagine what happened when I tried leaning into my first at speed corner.

Do people ever get used to these things?

Scotty

dgregory57

An interesting phenomenon I ran into with my Drifters...

If you go onto a VERY smooth surface like I used to hit occasionally and bank into a turn, you will hear a rapid series of suction cup sounds as each of the little tread sections act like little suction cup as it contacts the surface.

I have only experienced this on extremely smooth (almost glass) asphault... It was unnerving when I first heard it, then I quickly got to the point where I would try to make the sound any time I saw blacktop that looked smooth enough in a place where I could bank into a slow tight turn.

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robalert

"old habits"

yeah, i love riding down steps, bunnyhopping up gutters... etc

it adds that extra dimension to urban riding

on my old apollo hardtail, i run super fat maxxis hookworms (26x2.5) on the front and maxxis oriflamme (26x2.0)... obviously heavy but fine once you are going... the combo feels indestructible

AzzaC

You should try and avoid those tyres with knobs on the side, as they do nothing to help you corner on the road. The side knobs get squashed and move about as you lean the bike in the corner, so the grip is not constant.

Similar to a car cornering with 'sports' tyres and then with normal treaded tyres.

Much better to get a slick tyre with a rounded profile too.

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07 Giant Anthem 0 - lots of mods! XTR, Juicy Ultimates, Mavic Crossmax SLRs and more
05 Specialized Stumpjumper Marathon with Juicy 7's and X0
Surly 1x1 singlespeed
06 Giant TCR1

scotty72

True, but I needed a little bit of groove at least 'cause I'm still prone to cut across dirt a bit.

Drifters are good. Pretty good roll at 80 psi (little less at the front).

Haven't noticed the suction cup effect yet

Scotty

dgregory57

Don't sweat the suction cup effect, it doesn't seem to impact handling as far as I can tell, it is just a strange auditory effect. And perhaps even at that, it may only happen with a very large rider like me.

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scotty72

Don't worry I'm large enough. About 6'3.

More to the point, I'm showing the effects of a few years of sitting on my arse in a car.

Hopefully, in a few months, I'll start to get back at least halfway to my ideal weight.

Scotty

dgregory57

In a contest of largest cyclist, I have a distinct advantage... Only 6' but I make up for it in girth. 315 pounds... I started riding at 365 (after losing 55 pounds to get to that point).

When I lose another 105 pounds, I am looking forward to saying, "I am half the man I used to be."

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