Different tyres front and back

[.stu]

For a while I've been running different tyre sizes front and back (25mm front, 23mm back - both Conti GP 4seasons) due to a lack of clearance under my PDW Full Metal Fenders. However, clearance was still a bit tight, especially when the roads are wet and/or dirty and I could often hear grit being dragged through the rear mudguard (sounds just like a knife being sharpened, or a sword being pulled from its scabard) which was quite annoying, especially if it got stuck to the tyre for a few revolutions...

A few weeks back, @fossyant posted a mini review of his michelin pro4 endurance in another thread, and mentioned that he felt that they were slightly narrower than conti gp 4seasons in the same size, so I thought I'd give them a go and got some 23s in red. Put one on the back earlier, and there is so much more clearance now - I would say a good 2-3 mm more than before. Moved the conti 23 to the front, so now I've got 2 completely different tyres front and back.

Apart from the aesthetic issue, does anyone know of any reasons why I shouldn't run this tyre combination? I could put another pro4 on the front, but I want to use up the contis, as they only have a few hundred miles on them. I've got a pair of 25mm conti gp 4 seasons, which I think I will put on my cx bike and use it for the full on wet weather days.

 

[fossyant]

Yeh, just looks orrible. Use the same tyres. Can't have mismatched tyres.

PS still liking the Pro4 Endurance, and they don't half corner well. Pushed them hard recently, within the limits of riding fixed round corners. They are a narrow 23, but someone on here said the 25 is quite wide.

 

[Pro Tour Punditry]

No reason at all - I'd be pushed to tell you what combinations I have on mine!

 

[User6179]

Performance wise 23 front and 25 rear makes more sense .

 

[gbs]

Performance wise 23 front and 25 rear makes more sense .

Interesting! Why do you think that?

 

[User6179]

Interesting! Why do you think that?

"3

23 front is more aero than 25 , weight distribution on most racing bike is 60/40ish so you would want a bigger tyre on the rear so you could have roughly the same psi in both tyres , a bit like why you should have more spokes in the back wheel than front also.

 

[TheDoctor]

Aesthetically - it's all wrong. Front and rear tyres should match.
Practically - I doubt anyone could tell the difference.
IIRC Conti used to sell a set of front/rear specific tyres. 24mm front, 25 mm rear or some such.
I have no idea if this made any difference to anything at all!

 

[User6179]

Aesthetically - it's all wrong. Front and rear tyres should match.
Practically - I doubt anyone could tell the difference.
IIRC Conti used to sell a set of front/rear specific tyres. 24mm front, 25 mm rear or some such.
I have no idea if this made any difference to anything at all!

Aesthetically- Agreed
Practically- Agreed
Performance wise- Disagree , whatever is the optimal size on the rear must be smaller on the front when you take the weight/rolling resistance and aero into the equation !

 

[User6179]

[QUOTE 3013444, member: 9609"]Avoid crossplys on the rear and you shouldn't have too much to worry about.[/QUOTE]

Miss whip lash would disagree but each to their own!

 

[gbs]

"3

23 front is more aero than 25 , weight distribution on most racing bike is 60/40ish so you would want a bigger tyre on the rear so you could have roughly the same psi in both tyres , a bit like why you should have more spokes in the back wheel than front also.

Thank you, seems like good common sense to me. BUT, I have never heard talk of the pro teams doing this.

 

[Cyclopathic]

As long as you don't mix radials and cross-ply on the same axle you'll be fine.

 

[mcshroom]

It's far more common on Mountain bikes (though usually with a wider/chunkier front and thinner faster rolling rear). Shouldn't cause any problems other than looking wrong

 

[mickle]

Why would anyone but a professional racer wear anything skinnier than a 28mm ?

 

[TheDoctor]

Because 25mm is as wide as I can get in my road bike?
(about 30 KG and 25 years the wrong side of being a pro cyclist)

 

[youngoldbloke]

Aesthetically - it's all wrong. Front and rear tyres should match.
Practically - I doubt anyone could tell the difference.
IIRC Conti used to sell a set of front/rear specific tyres. 24mm front, 25 mm rear or some such.
I have no idea if this made any difference to anything at all!

Yes, Conti Attack and Force - 22 and 24 mm. Mavic now have front and rear specific road tyres too