Slick MTB tyres

[.Adam.]

I'm doing the London to Brighton this year with a mate, and not owning a road bike will have to put some road tyres on my Ragley MTB, but never having purchased a road tyre before I haven't got a clue what is best! Not discounting the fact that it might be wet, do you need tyres with some tread e.g Maxxis Detonator, or is completely slick okay, e.g Schwalbe Kojak?

Any recommendations, don't think I want to be spending too much, as this will most probably be the only time this year that they are on the bike!

[itsnotarace]

Get the narrowest your rims will take. 26 x 1.0 if poss - I like these http://www.jejamescycles.co.uk/specialized-all-con...

Slicks are fine in the wet

[Seight_Returns]

I think it's easy to obsess about choice of tyres - the main thing is that any slicks will be infinitely better than knobblies on the road.

I have Schwalbe Sport Contact 1.6" on my hardtail for commuting. Works well but a but slippery in the wet - due to the compound and the profile, not lack of tread - 1.6" good for a commuting tyre to soak up the bumps and hit the odd kerb - but as above if I was looking for the best performance for a road event I'd go for the thinest width that would fit.

I agree that slicks are fine in the wet - a bike tyre doesn't need tread to channel the water away to prevent aquaplaning the way a car tyre does - the high downforce distributed over a small contact patch squeezes the water out of the way.

[BalhamBadger]

I put 1.3" tyres on my mtb for the L2B and they made a huge difference. It will seem very slow when you go back to knobblies. I think these are the ones:

http://www.wiggle.co.uk/continental-sportcontact-c...

I didn't take them off for a year or so as all my riding was done in and around London. Never had a puncture.

[BOR]

I use 2" Kojaks to commute on. Fast, but be aware that they have no protection against punctures. I can't say I had too many, but if you are on a long distance event, it's worth bearing in mind.

[Roop]

Specialized Nimbus Armadillos - 1.5" IIRC. Armoured lining makes them incredibly puncture resistant (never had a puncture in over 2000 miles). I run them rock hard at at 80psi and on the flat, my Hardrock is damn near as efficient as my Ribble road-bike. Bloody impressive tyre.

http://www.specialized.com/us/en/bc/SBCEqProduct.j...

[anonymous-user]

The tires you need are the continential ultra gatorskin 26x1.20

http://www.evanscycles.com/products/continental/ul...

Don't forget you'll need the right sized tubes, get them up to 100psi+ and enjoy.

[.Adam.]

Thanks for the replies, I think I'm leaning towards a pair of Kojaks in 1.35 size, as they are on offer at On-One at £9.99 a tyre, will have to keep my fingers crossed that I don't pick up too many punctures!

[cjs]

I use these, they have enough tread for when it's wet, run really well and no punctures yet

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

[Simond S]

My guy wants to put these on my bike for L2B and training.

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/MICHELIN-WILD-RUNR-LIGHT-26-...

I'm thinking they are a bit hardcore. thoughts welcome.

[y2blade]

Roop said:

Specialized Nimbus Armadillos - 1.5" IIRC. Armoured lining makes them incredibly puncture resistant (never had a puncture in over 2000 miles). I run them rock hard at at 80psi and on the flat, my Hardrock is damn near as efficient as my Ribble road-bike. Bloody impressive tyre.

http://www.specialized.com/us/en/bc/SBCEqProduct.j...

I run the same tyres on my Hardrock Pro
the first time you run on them (or any road tyres on a MTB) it feels like you are cheating, the difference is truly staggering

[Steve UK]

I have these Specialized 'Fat Boy' puncture protection too and totally slick. Used them on dirt tracks too, a little interesting in the grip department but no punctures.

Fast too.

http://www.evanscycles.com/products/specialized/fa...

[james239]

Maybe a silly question, so please go easy on me!

I want to do some road riding, but having looked at road bikes and realising how expensive they can be I think I'll just get some road tyres for the mountain bike and use that instead.

But how do I know what the skinniest tyre is I can get on my wheels? Or should any width fit?

Also, would I need a new inner tube?

[BalhamBadger]

james239 said:

Maybe a silly question, so please go easy on me!

I want to do some road riding, but having looked at road bikes and realising how expensive they can be I think I'll just get some road tyres for the mountain bike and use that instead.

But how do I know what the skinniest tyre is I can get on my wheels? Or should any width fit?

Also, would I need a new inner tube?

You would definitely need new inner tubes for say, 1" tyres. What is the approximate width of your rims? I think most road tyres will be fine on modern rims unless they're especially wide.

[james239]

I'm not sure about the rim width. The tyres on it at the moment are 2.1 inch wide but the rim looks quite a bit slimmer than that. I'll try measure it in the morning 'cause it's out in the shed now.

[Sigmamark7]

I have used Tioga City Slickers on my MTB to do the London to Brighton. There were lots of bits where I could just roll where my mates on off road tyres were having to pedal. The City Slickers are cheap and on the road will keep you cheerful.

[mk1fan]

Specialized Fasttrack tyres. Can be pumped up to roll fast on the road and good off road for hardpack.

You'll have no issues using them for the L2B.

Edited by mk1fan on Sunday 17th April 12:09

[nammynake]

Not slicks really, but I just fitted some of these Schwalbe 2.0 inch tyres to my old Hardrock MTB.

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

I've been on the stock 2.2 inch nobbly tyres since I bought it. What a difference! I don't usually record my speed, but thought I would see what difference the tyres made. Managed 13.1 mph average around a 44 mile road route today (2100 ft ascent). I think my normal average is nearer 10 mph.

Certainly felt a lot quicker and riding on the flat sections felt almost effortless. Not the case on my old off-road tyres, and none of that constant hum!

One thing I noticed is that the tyres have less height (even though inner diameter is 26 inch - obviously) than my previous tyres. Seems this had an effect on gearing. Used my front outer ring for most of the route, and didn't use the granny ring once. This may also be down to the higher speeds, but seems the gearing was affected due to lower diameter tyres.

Doing a coast to coast (Way of the Roses) 170 mile ride in a few weeks and might fit some even thinner tyres in the hope of yet more performance gains!

[cjs]

good price on Specialized Nimbus here

http://www.edinburghbicycle.com/ebwPNLqrymode.a4p?...

[mk1fan]

Can't see the point in fitting slicks just for a short event like the L2B. The Fast Track will roll just fine on the road and see you through the Summer off road.