Road tyres for MTB ? ?

[iamAlegend]

I've started using my hardtail for biking to uni, the most difficult bit of terrain i come across are leaves and wet tarmac.
And I'm etting fed up of people of road bikes going faster than me
So which tyres should i get? Id like some tread (not slick) for wet surfaces and leaves, but something close to a road tyre would be nice.

have been looking at these

http://www.conti-tyres.co.uk/conticycle/ti%20touri...


What do you suggest?

[MadDad]

I have the 700c version of this on my Cross Bike, very quick rolling on tarmac and grippy on the soft stuff.

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Models.aspx?Mod...

[Fat Albert]

I use Kenda Kwests:
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2-x-Kenda-K193-Kwest-Sli...

Seem a good compromise and relatively cheap, I switched back to my Schwalbe Smart Sams now that I have finished training for the Palace to palace and boy did it feel hard yesterday after being on the slicks!! (but did come back off-road!)

[Pothole]

Fat Albert said:

I use Kenda Kwests:
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2-x-Kenda-K193-Kwest-Sli...

Seem a good compromise and relatively cheap, I switched back to my Schwalbe Smart Sams now that I have finished training for the Palace to palace and boy did it feel hard yesterday after being on the slicks!! (but did come back off-road!)

I've used these. Quite good grip even in the wet.

[paulshears]

How about CST Corporal City

I've had mine around 6 months now & really happy with them

Light & have a reflective sidewall ... I've not had any punctures since switching to these either

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/CST-Corporal-City-Trekki...

[balders118]

I used to use Halo Twin Rails on my mtb and DJ bike. They have to hard rails that run down the centre of the tyre so when you are crusing along on tarmac there is very little contact patch with the ground. When you're in softer stuff it digs in and you have some tread too. They were less than £20 each from wiggle a few years ago.

[iamAlegend]

Those CST's and Kendas look interesting, the sammy slicks look like they're gonna have a higher rolling resistance than I'm after.

These ones look like they will have brilliant wet weather grip, what do you think?

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Models.aspx?Mod...
I reckon its these or the csts up to now, but the conti's are still tempting

[iamAlegend]

balders118 said:

I used to use Halo Twin Rails on my mtb and DJ bike. They have to hard rails that run down the centre of the tyre so when you are crusing along on tarmac there is very little contact patch with the ground. When you're in softer stuff it digs in and you have some tread too. They were less than £20 each from wiggle a few years ago.

Are the Halos really as good as a semi-road tyre? They should be god in the snow which makes them attractive for this time of year

[p4cks]

I have Schwalbe City Jets on mine. Superb tyres.

http://www.google.co.uk/products/catalog?hl=en&amp...

[nammynake]

Schwalbe Marathon Racer. Got me from Blackpool to Paris. Only 1 puncture from a shard of flint. Very light but tough, reflective side walls, excellent grip in the wet (it rained every day of our journey) and work surprisingly well off road.

[Flawless Victory]

iamAlegend said:

I've started using my hardtail for biking to uni, the most difficult bit of terrain i come across are leaves and wet tarmac.
And I'm etting fed up of people of road bikes going faster than me
So which tyres should i get? Id like some tread (not slick) for wet surfaces and leaves, but something close to a road tyre would be nice.

have been looking at these

http://www.conti-tyres.co.uk/conticycle/ti%20touri...


What do you suggest?

I have that tyre on my Specialized hybrid and for exactly the same reason as you, for coping with leaves and wet surfaces. Only put them on last week but they seem better than the slicks that came with the bike.

They have a rather fetching reflective strip, (which kinda reminds me of the reflective strips used on a tron lightcycle ), which can be taken off if you don't like it.

[the_kato]

I use Specialized Fatboy's and they're completely slick, but I've never had any grip problems even in the wet

[balders118]

iamAlegend said:

Are the Halos really as good as a semi-road tyre? They should be god in the snow which makes them attractive for this time of year

I rate them very highly. I had them on all my MTBs all summer as they're great on road and great on compact dirt too.

[yellowjack]

My son runs these on his Giant Talon, he's at Uni in Portsmouth.

http://www.conti-tyres.co.uk/conticycle/ti%20city%...


My wife runs these on her all-year commute hybrid.

http://www.conti-tyres.co.uk/conticycle/ti%20tour%...



Good performance and durability from both types, and so far they have been extremely good at resisting punctures.
During winter, all the family's road going bikes are shod with Continental tyres. As you can probably tell, I'm a big fan of them.

[GSP]

You want these ;-)

http://www.conti-tyres.co.uk/conticycle/ti%20sport...

Got them on my carbon xc bike for messing on the road

[iamAlegend]

Thank you very much for all the suggestions guys!
I'm gonna have a good look over them in the next week to decode on a set, I will let you know my verdict soon!

edit: (you're not all that difficult to understand, so I will just stick to deciding for now)

GSP said:

You want these ;-)

http://www.conti-tyres.co.uk/conticycle/ti%20sport...

Got them on my carbon xc bike for messing on the road

I know they'll be awesome for dry tarmac, but they look like they'll kill me as soon as the weather turns British...

[mudshark]

Actually they're brilliant for 26" wheels and you don't need to worry about losing grip in the wet any more than with tyres that look more grippy - water displacement is irrelevant on bike tyres. A different issue is wear though so maybe use something tougher/heavier in winter for that reason.

[BaronVonVaderham]

If you want fast then go for Maxxis Xenith 1.5 slicks - fantastic grip, v light weight but puncture every 5 mins...

I've got Conti Travel contacts now, not as fast as the above but very rarely puncture and able to circumnavigate the globe!

http://www.conti-tyres.co.uk/conticycle/ti%20trave...

http://www.tilmann.com/en/article.php?id=1705&...

"CONTINENTAL TRAVEL CONTACT
This fantastic tyre I have developed...
with the german tyre Manufacturer Continental and have tested the product extensivley during my 30.000 Kilomter trip from Alaska to Patagonia. I have used one set of tyres from Denver Colorado all the way down to Lima in Peru and had only experienced one puncture. The second set of Travel Contacts I have used from Lima in Peru to the southern most tip of Argentina Ushuaia during the second part of the trip and only had one puncture as well. The Travel Contact is fast, very quiet, and exceptionally durable, puncture proof and is also available in a foldable version. Just the thing cyclists going on long or short trips should have on their rims. Ofcourse I`ll be using the product again during my long trip down to Australia.

tilmann-19-August-2004"

[metalsteve]

I use Schwalbe land cruisers on my bike, purchsed from the seller in the link.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2-x-Schwalbe-Land-Cruise...

Similar looking to the conti tour ride with a slightly more aggressive shoulder tread. They roll on the centre ridge on the road and have the outer tread for some off road grip if you want it. Not the lighest tyre out there but cheap as chips and durable.

they come in 1.75" and 1.9" widths