Tyre width advice

[nickyboy]

I started off about 8 years ago with 23mm width, then I changed to 25mm. I've recently moved to 28mm

Can't say I've noticed any difference in comfort

 

[HLaB]

I started off about 8 years ago with 23mm width, then I changed to 25mm. I've recently moved to 28mm

Can't say I've noticed any difference in comfort

That's because the roads are getting worse! Its all the fault of these non road tax paying cyclists apparently

 

[ColinJ]

I started off about 8 years ago with 23mm width, then I changed to 25mm. I've recently moved to 28mm

Can't say I've noticed any difference in comfort

Stop pumping them up to 120 PSI, then you just might!



As a matter of interest, what pressures did/do you use front and rear for the different tyre widths?

 

[CXRAndy]

I started out with 40mm tyres, ended up with 75mm tyres. I've not noticed any potholes

 

[Punkawallah]

Remember that the bigger the tyre, the wider your brake pads have to spread to get the wheel off. Or you’ll need to deflate the tyre to get it through the gap.

My Galaxy has 32mm tyres and centre pull brakes, so I have experience in this :-) Obviously ymmv.

 

[Alex321]

Remember that the bigger the tyre, the wider your brake pads have to spread to get the wheel off. Or you’ll need to deflate the tyre to get it through the gap.

My Galaxy has 32mm tyres and centre pull brakes, so I have experience in this :-) Obviously ymmv.

With disc brakes, tyre width makes no difference

 

[GuyBoden]

Stop pumping them up to 120 PSI, then you just might!

Has this old saying been debunked, "The harder the tyre, the faster the ride."

I have noticed that when the tyre pressures are a lot lower when using Training Rollers, the more difficult it is to pedal. (This can be used to an advantage, when wanting a more strenuous training exercise.)

But, I do agree that lower pressures seem to give a more comfy ride on the road.

 

[CXRAndy]

Has this old saying been debunked, "The harder the tyre, the faster the ride."

I have noticed that when the tyres pressures are a lot lower when using Training Rollers, the more difficult it is to pedal. (This can be used to an advantage, when wanting a more strenuous training exercise.)

But, I do agree that lower pressures seem to give a more comfy ride on the road.

There is two situations where on a super smooth surface, the narrower tyre pumped upto silly pressure will result in less rolling resistance

But, on the roads in certain countries, the surface is coarse with clippings etc. Running a bigger tyre (ideally tubeless ) at lower pressure will reduce the pneumatic forces resulting in far less drag compared to a narrow tyre pumped upto 120 or more psi.

There seems to be an upper size of tyre where the reduce pneumatic forces are outweighed by the size of the contact patch. Consensus suggests around 30mm wide tyres

I run 28mm on super smooth surfaces and 40mm on anything the UK has to offer. The 40mm tyres are not really that slow. I've done average 19-20mph 70 mile club outings. It's the type of tyre and tread pattern which has a big influence on rolling resistance

 

[Velochris]

Don't forget there is still no consistent measurement for tyre width. When fitted some size up smaller, the same or wider than the states width.

Things have improved but don't presume a 25mm tyre will actually measure 25mm when mounted.

 

[Alex321]

Has this old saying been debunked, "The harder the tyre, the faster the ride."

I have noticed that when the tyres pressures are a lot lower when using Training Rollers, the more difficult it is to pedal. (This can be used to an advantage, when wanting a more strenuous training exercise.)

But, I do agree that lower pressures seem to give a more comfy ride on the road.

For road riding, yes it has been debunked.

For lab tests, or a velodrome (or rollers), where the surface is near enough perfectly smooth, it is true.

But as soon as you get some imperfections in the surface (as is always the case on roads), a lower pressure helps because the imperfections can be absorbed rather than bounced.

As is so often the case, it is a compromise to determine the exact best pressure to absorb the bumps without increasing the "pure" rolling resistance too much.

 

[GuyBoden]

For road riding, yes it has been debunked.

For lab tests, or a velodrome (or rollers), where the surface is near enough perfectly smooth, it is true.

But as soon as you get some imperfections in the surface (as is always the case on roads), a lower pressure helps because the imperfections can be absorbed rather than bounced.

As is so often the case, it is a compromise to determine the exact best pressure to absorb the bumps without increasing the "pure" rolling resistance too much.

Thanks, yes, the higher pressure makes sense for smooth surfaces, currently at the Manchester Velodrome it's 8 bar (about 120psi) with a minimum width of 21mm.

Currently I use:
35mm at 80psi rear, 70psi front, Winter bike.
25mm at 100psi rear, 90 front, Summer bike.
23mm at 120psi or higher for the Training Rollers.

I'm about 16 stone, so very heavy.

 

[si_c]

Thanks, yes, the higher pressure makes sense for smooth surfaces, currently at the Manchester Velodrome it's 8 bar (about 120psi) with a minimum width of 21mm.

Currently I use:
35mm at 80psi rear, 70psi front, Winter bike.
25mm at 100psi rear, 90 front, Summer bike.
23mm at 120psi or higher for the Training Rollers.

I'm about 16 stone, so very heavy.

About the same weight as you currently, running 25mm on my Trek (max I can fit with mudguards) at 95psi rear, 90 front. Also running 32mm on the Racelight at 70/65 rear/front setup tubeless. The Racelight feels more sluggish than the Trek even though it rides faster, Jan Heine at BQ puts that down to the loss of vibration from the road making it feel slower and I'm inclined to agree that it's entirely perception.

There is a huge difference in comfort between the two bikes, with the wider tyres being much less fatiguing, it's even more noticeable when using them side by side. There is less of a difference dropping the 32s to 28s but it's still there, a little less road buzz and more comfort but it's harder to notice when not changing between the two regularly.

 

[GuyBoden]

About the same weight as you currently, running 25mm on my Trek (max I can fit with mudguards) at 95psi rear, 90 front. Also running 32mm on the Racelight at 70/65 rear/front setup tubeless. The Racelight feels more sluggish than the Trek even though it rides faster, Jan Heine at BQ puts that down to the loss of vibration from the road making it feel slower and I'm inclined to agree that it's entirely perception.

There is a huge difference in comfort between the two bikes, with the wider tyres being much less fatiguing, it's even more noticeable when using them side by side. There is less of a difference dropping the 32s to 28s but it's still there, a little less road buzz and more comfort but it's harder to notice when not changing between the two regularly.

I remember reading once that too much pressure can damage the side walls of the tyre and using a lower pressure can increase the life of the tyre. I don't really know if this is true, but it seems logical.

 

[Adam4868]

I've a bike with 28 and one with 25 I use for work.I recently put a pair of 23 on that were given to me nearly new.Cant say I notice a great deal of difference to be honest.Maybe if I "thought" the 28s were the comfiest ride...they probally would be.
I'm not convinced though...

 

[Alex321]

I've a bike with 28 and one with 25 I use for work.I recently put a pair of 23 on that were given to me nearly new.Cant say I notice a great deal of difference to be honest.Maybe if I "thought" the 28s were the comfiest ride...they probally would be.
I'm not convinced though...

Yes, I must admit I haven't noticed as much difference as I thought I might, going from the 38mm on my hybrid to the 28mm on my road bike.