Understanding tyres

[MattDB]

I've been cycling for a while and have a road and an MTB but still don't really understand tyres!

Am I right in thinking on dry roads slick tyres have the potential to give the best grip due to surface contact but on wetter roads you want some tread? I'm riding my MTB over the winter and currently using stock (knobbly) 27.5 tyres but wondering if I should be using something else.

 

[martint235]

I've been cycling for a while and have a road and an MTB but still don't really understand tyres!

Am I right in thinking on dry roads slick tyres have the potential to give the best grip due to surface contact but on wetter roads you want some tread? I'm riding my MTB over the winter and currently using stock (knobbly) 27.5 tyres but wondering if I should be using something else.

It's up to you really. If you're only riding your MTB on the road then it may be worth switching to slicks to lower rolling resistance. However if you're still taking it off road, leave the knobblies on, you're not losing that much on the road with them so long as they are near max pressure.

 

[adscrim]

I use schwalbe land cruisers on my MTB as when cycling with the kids I use it. These have a solid central piece of tread that the bike sits on when on tarmac, allowing it to roll along quite nicely. It also has enough tread to deal with all but the worst off road conditions. Reasonably cheap too.

 

[KneesUp]

It's not quite as simple as the tread pattern. It also depends on the rubber compound - some tyres will go hard at low temperatures and lose grip.You do lose a lot of rolling resistance of you swap to slicks so the ride will be easier and a lot quieter! I've considered getting a second set of wheels for my bike with knobblies on, but I'm not at heart an off roader and so my semi slicks are fine for gravel tracks and so on.
If you're happy with the way the bike rides then don't change it. If you're mainly on the road though I'd recommend semi slick road tyres. MTB tyres are not generally designed to expel water anyeay,but rather to grip on mud.

 

[John the Monkey]

Am I right in thinking on dry roads slick tyres have the potential to give the best grip due to surface contact but on wetter roads you want some tread?

Not really - Sheldon Brown has a good article on why;

http://sheldonbrown.com/tires.html#tread

 

[mjr]

Sheldon goes a bit extremist on this. Tread is also good for digging through mud on roads and warming up the tyre, but you probably don't need full knobbliness on roads.

 

[tyred]

I definitely feel some tread helps on dirty winter roads.

 

[Nibor]

+1 for Scwalbe landcruiser for an all around tyre I use 40mm ones on my hybrid they work well on trails and still roll very quickly on the road.

 

[Truth]

I was happy with the Land Cruisers on my Kona Hybrid to