Tires for commute on mountain bike?

abceire

I've a old mountain bike that works fine. I'm going to be cycling from Tallaght village into Trinity 5 days a week come Sept. What tires would you recommend. The bike will not be used ever off road. It's an 18 speed cheap enough no suspension bike. I was wanting tires that would make it easiest to bike in and out. And other ideas to make commute nicer? Beside get fitter lol. I'm playing alot of squash so I'm fit just not been on bike much at all. I'll get mud guards too. I like the idea of some colourful tires, slicks, they'd be funky on bike and help me be seen.

Surveyor11

Scwalbe Marathon Plus - slick and puncture resistant.

abceire

Any ones in general? Are they same to fit as a usual tire? Plus would it be worth buying decent break blocks? I think I just bought cheap ones last time and they're pretty bad.

stiofan85

Surveyor11 wrote: »

Scwalbe Marathon Plus - slick and puncture resistant.

I've had Schwalbe Marathon Plus on the front wheel for about 3 years now and I honestly can't remember the last time I had a puncture (if any). It's starting to wear out now, but I'll ride it until it goes out!

I replaced the rear one with the same model after it wore out about a year ago, and I believe I've only had one puncture on it. Only punctures I got on the old one were when it wore out.

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Models.aspx?ModelID=24542

I believe I have the 26x1.75 and cycle it every day through Dublin.

Lumen

abceire wrote: »

I like the idea of some colourful tires, slicks, they'd be funky on bike and help me be seen.

Black tyres have more grip.

Planet X

stiofan85 wrote: »

I've had Schwalbe Marathon Plus on the front wheel for about 3 years now and I honestly can't remember the last time I had a puncture (if any). It's starting to wear out now, but I'll ride it until it goes out!

I replaced the rear one with the same model after it wore out about a year ago, and I believe I've only had one puncture on it. Only punctures I got on the old one were when it wore out.

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Models.aspx?ModelID=24542

I believe I have the 26x1.75 and cycle it every day through Dublin.

Same here. Run 26 X 1.75's Marathon Originals and haven't had a flat since I put them on last approx October. Commute every day and the odd small "excursion" down the country.

abceire

and they same as any other tire to put on?

Jacovs

With regards to this: I have a mountain bike with offroad tyres, 26x2.1. I only really cycle on road to work 5 days a week. How much time would be saved (on a 30 minute cycle) by putting on slicker tyres? Want to know if its worth the money since theres nothing wrong with my current tyres.

manwithaplan

abceire wrote: »

and they same as any other tire to put on?

They have a reputation for being hard to get on but I suspect the wider ones for MTB wheels should be fine.

Lumen

manwithaplan wrote: »

They have a reputation for being hard to get on but I suspect the wider ones for MTB wheels should be fine.

Yes.

I have Marathon Winter in 700c and 26", and there's no comparison - 26" ones are much easier to fit.

MrScootch

Jacovs wrote: »

With regards to this: I have a mountain bike with offroad tyres, 26x2.1. I only really cycle on road to work 5 days a week. How much time would be saved (on a 30 minute cycle) by putting on slicker tyres? Want to know if its worth the money since theres nothing wrong with my current tyres.

Yes it's worth it. You'd be shocked at the difference.

Schwalbe CityJet's are my recommendation.
http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Models.aspx?ModelID=24629

Marathons are overkill IMHO, they're heavy, have a reputation for being hard to get on or off and a harsh ride. More money too.

Kool Stop brake pads are very good, and if you want colours have a search for Halo Twin Rail tyres.

Jacovs

Just one more question, and hope this helps the OP too.
Whats the thinnest tyre you can put on the "normal" rims you get with a mountain bike?

I notice there are 1.35 , 1.50 , 1.75 in the first link, and 1.50 and 1.95 in the second link. Which would be best/advisable?

Lumen

Jacovs wrote: »

Just one more question, and hope this helps the OP too.
Whats the thinnest tyre you can put on the "normal" rims you get with a mountain bike?

I notice there are 1.35 , 1.50 , 1.75 in the first link, and 1.50 and 1.95 in the second link. Which would be best/advisable?

I've put 1.1" tyres on my mountain bike with no problems.

They were Schwalbe Duranos.

Micilin Muc

Jacovs wrote: »

With regards to this: I have a mountain bike with offroad tyres, 26x2.1. I only really cycle on road to work 5 days a week. How much time would be saved (on a 30 minute cycle) by putting on slicker tyres? Want to know if its worth the money since theres nothing wrong with my current tyres.

I saved a few minutes on my journey when I fitted Schwalbe slicks (think they're marathon). Definitely worth it, but I haven't tried them on wet or icy roads yet :eek:

Jacovs

Micilin Muc wrote: »

I saved a few minutes on my journey when I fitted Schwalbe slicks (think they're marathon). Definitely worth it, but I haven't tried them on wet or icy roads yet :eek:

Now is probably good a time as any to try out new tyres then, get used to them before the proper rain starts. Can always go back to the offroads if needed for extra grip. Although, probably need a fall before realising you need to switch back. Have to get mudguards tomorrow anyways so might aswell have a look at some tyres too.

MrScootch

Lumen wrote: »

I've put 1.1" tyres on my mountain bike with no problems.

They were Schwalbe Duranos.

I've used 1.0 before, Specialized All Condition Pro II's but argh; like riding on rocks! I didn't find them that quick either. You'd think the thinnest tyre would be fastest because you see really thin ones on road bikes but apparently it's a flexible side-wall that makes a tyre have less rolling resistance.

These days I like a fat slick for soaking up the potholes.
I'd go for a medium or fatter size.

MrScootch

Jacovs wrote: »

Now is probably good a time as any to try out new tyres then, get used to them before the proper rain starts. Can always go back to the offroads if needed for extra grip. Although, probably need a fall before realising you need to switch back. Have to get mudguards tomorrow anyways so might aswell have a look at some tyres too.

Road tyres for the road, wet or dry.
Save the knobblies for the mud.
For ice; take the bus.

abceire

Interesting and helpful peeps, looking forward to spending a few pound on the bike to make it bit easier to use. Cheers.

mirv

Forget marathon pluses unless you're steering directly into potholes, thorns, glass, nails or road debris on purpose. They're painfully slow and heavy in 700x25, never mind in wide 26" sizes.

Marathons should be enough, but even lighter slicks combined with good riding habits and tyre cleaning (picking glass/stones out) habits will trump having a tougher tyre.

If you're commuting you should know which potholes to avoid already anyway, either that or you're a sucker for punishment.

abceire

So what about width? I looked at the off road tires on the bike they're 26 by 2.1 on the front and 26 by 2 on the back.
Will the wheel I have on now dictate what width of tire I put on? Meaning how narrow can I go ? Is narrow better for rolling but less nice for comfort? All so the valve I have on my tubes is the big old style that you can pump up with the air in a petrol station. Will this valve fit thru the tires you guys mentioned? Should I have front and back tires the same? Or would a more slick tire be for the back and something with threads for the front?

JMcL

abceire wrote: »

So what about width? I looked at the off road tires on the bike they're 26 by 2.1 on the front and 26 by 2 on the back.
Will the wheel I have on now dictate what width of tire I put on? Meaning how narrow can I go ? Is narrow better for rolling but less nice for comfort? All so the valve I have on my tubes is the big old style that you can pump up with the air in a petrol station. Will this valve fit thru the tires you guys mentioned? Should I have front and back tires the same? Or would a more slick tire be for the back and something with threads for the front?

The width will determine the pressure you need to put in - the wider the tire, the lower the pressure. For example 23mm road tires would be in the 110-120psi range give or take, 2.2in mountain bike tires are probably about 45psi of the top of my head.

Your rims will dictate the minimum width tire you can put on, but as others have said they've run 1" and 1.1" tires on MTB rims. I'd probably personally go wider than that for a bit of comfort though. I fitted a set of 1.5" slicks to an old MTB I knock around on with the kids seat fitted and it made a huge difference to rolling resistance, so I'd say 1.3 to 1.6" are a happy medium.

See here for probably more on the subject than you ever wanted to know.

The valve will have no bearing on tire choice - it only goes through the rim (you probably will need new tubes though for the narrower tires). For an on road commute, just dispense with the knobbly tires. They're only of benefit offroad, and are actually less grippy on hard surfaces (see here)

abceire

The valve will have no bearing on tire choice - it only goes through the rim. Now that I should have remembered.!

studiorat

Pumping them up to the proper pressure will make much more of a difference than if they are slicks or off-road tires.

Maxxis Crossmark at 60psi roll just as well the Schwalbe city tires, better even. I don't reckon the difference is worth changing over.

Get the saddle height and handlebars right and keep the chain and drivetrain well serviced. It'll make much more of a difference.

If you do bother getting tires get the narrowest possible. The narrower the tire generally them more pressure you can get in there.

robertxxx

I'm surprised nobody has tried to convince you to get a road bike.

abceire

Ah I'll be leaving it around town, so happy to have cheap bike no one will rob and if they do it's no great loss.

abceire

I pumped my old off road tires up to 50psi, what a difference! They were at 20psi though. It was great. I think a bell is needed yesterday, I cycled from Rathmines just to Trinity yesterday and nearly got in an accident 3 times, journey only took 10 mins.

oinkely

Schwalbe city jets - been using the 26 * 1.5 ones since 2003 on the commuter bike. very few punctures, long life and quick enough.

Wouldn't use anything else.

wobbles-grogan

The bike is super handy for getting around town alright!

Continental sport contacts, fastest tyre I tested by far. Pumped to 100 psi.

They are slick but I've never fallen once or got a puncture.

These tyres made my old tyres feel like I was pulling a load behind me.

jgreene83

Totally agree with Mad Lad, have sport contacts on my Scott Scale 80, very low rolling resistance and virtually bullet proof, cycled over glass, jagged gravel etc and no punctures. I've since gotten a racer and one of my friends easily kept up with me on the Scott at around 30 km/hr.

Stone Deaf 4evr

those schwalbe city jets from crc are a bargain at that price.

abceire

Boom finally ordered some from CRC Schwalbe City Jet 26" Bike Tyre 15.99 each. I'm excited! thanks peeps.

abceire

On another note, why is break cable so hard to snip?

AltAccount

It's not, to be honest, you just need better snips!

abceire

Yeah I think I'll bring them back, I did ask the guy in Halfords would they be good for cutting bike cable he said yes. Have receipt, didn't even take it out of packaging.
I ordered these http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/ie/en/schwalbe-city-jet-26-bike-tyre/rp-prod24629
What kinda PSI will they need?

Micilin Muc

abceire wrote: »

I ordered these http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/ie/en/schwalbe-city-jet-26-bike-tyre/rp-prod24629
What kinda PSI will they need?

85 PSI max. Great tyres!

abceire

85! and Slicks! I'll roll all the way to town!

abceire

So they look cool fitted. But I got a puncture after 10 mins.
My tubes are possibly 20 yrs old though, and while fine at 30 psi, they might not be so fine at 65 psi.
I had the tires at 65 psi as that's the max it says on the side of the tires. Is that ok? Also I was talking to the guy in the bike shop near me. He said there is a certain procedure to fitting a tube, I might of pinched the tube. I looked over the tire at the spot were the tube got a hole and I can't see any puncture in the tire. Is it worth getting bike shop to fit tubes? Or should I just look up how to do it online? I will be using the bike a lot so I want to do most the work it'll need doing myself.

abceire

Are there good and cheap bad tubes? Like will certain tubes lessen my chance of a puncture? I repaired the old tube but if it's 10 or 20 yrs old I'm thinking buy two new ones.

JMcL

abceire wrote: »

Are there good and cheap bad tubes? Like will certain tubes lessen my chance of a puncture? I repaired the old tube but if it's 10 or 20 yrs old I'm thinking buy two new ones.

If they're that age, buy new ones - they're not that expensive. To avoid pinch flats (getting the tube caught between tyre and rim), with the tube in place before you start to fit the tyre back on the rim inflate the tube very slightly - just enough to make it take shape and sit inside the tyre - then put the tyre back on taking care with the last bit especially if you need levers to finish it.

quozl

Buy some new tubes IMO - they're cheap enough that it's not worth struggling with a 10 year old, repaired one. 65 PSI is plenty - in fact depending on the width of the tyre and your weight you might be able to run it at a fair bit lower pressure if you so wished.

Tubes are easy enough to fit. The 'procedure' you mentioned to avoid pinching the tube is simply to check it's not caught under the edge of the tyre after seating it but before inflating. So rotate the wheel and wiggle the tyre back a bit so you can see it's resting on the rim and there's no tube in between. Do that on both sides before you fully inflate the tube. The tube should be inflated just enough to hold its shape when initially inserting it.

Lots of youtube videos on it out there.

abceire

Ok bike has new tubes, has pannier bag plus rack, has mud guards, has bell that looks like a speedo, has new brake cable, has new tires, has new bearings.
On the tire it says max psi 65 , so I've pumped them to 65 psi for max rolling. Is that ok to pump them to the max ?

abceire

Not one puncher in so long, doing 80 to 85 miles a week in and out of town. So thanks again for all the advice and help.

PeterMTB

I usually go for the middle psi settings.
If there were written 45-65 PSI I would go for 55 as it is a little more comfortable then...
If I were you I'd try different settings and once you find the one you are most comfortable with just leave it

beauf

I'd say getting a puncture is largely about the route. Some roads seem to always have glass on them, others almost never.

abceire

I go for the max rollage, 65 psi all the way, I went for fairly wide tires so they probably more comfortable anyway then most peoples.
85 miles last week no problem.
Any good sites for those without an iphone to map out how far they've cycled?