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Mountain Biking - Knobby's to "Slicks"????

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View Full Version : Knobby's to "Slicks"????

mellikesbikes

07-17-05, 12:47 PM

I own a Trek 3700 Mountain bike and I got a dilemna. I want to do a mini triathlon at the beginning of september. My bike has the knobby tires. I was wondering if I can put skinnier tires( i think the term is "slicks" on my mountain bike? What is a good size to get? I want to be able to change wheels when i'm training for my triathlon and then change them when i'm ready to hit the trails again. I would buy a road bike if I can afford it but i can't until next summer. Are wheelset expensive?

cheath

07-17-05, 02:36 PM

I would wait until next summer and train on your new road bike, right now work on your MTB skills, just by putting knobbieless tires on you bike now, will not turn it into a roadie bikey.

mrchristian

07-17-05, 03:51 PM

I say buy some slicks. They're cheap and will improve the performance of your mountain bike greatly when your on roads. I'm running some cheap kenda slicks on mine since I crashed my road bike. They are easy to switch for when I want to go offroad (just like changing any other tire). You could buy new wheels, but thats kind of expensive and it doesn't take much time to stick on your existing wheelset. They make a great deal of difference, and I can still keep up with my friend on his road bike.

chis51hd

07-17-05, 06:17 PM

Get road slicks. Mine are 26 x 1.5", they're light and very quiet on pavement.

phantomcow2

07-17-05, 07:02 PM

Im runing Ritchey TOm slicks, thats 26 x 1.4. On pavement they are great, on very mild trails they do alright as well.

Joe Dog

07-17-05, 09:44 PM

Tom Slicks all the way. I like them tons more than my old IRC metros.

chairmandave

07-17-05, 10:12 PM

I use 26x1.25 Panaracer T-Servs slicks on my singlespeed and 26x1.30 Vredstein S-Licks on my 'road' bike. They make you go waaay faster than knobbies. My 1997 Klein Pulse II was converted into a road machine (slicks, 12-23 rear cassette, front 39 ring) and it can hang with the roadies on group rides (not so much in the sprints- I run out of gearing). If a road bike isn't feasible, slicks are the way to go. If you look on the web, you can get an extra wheelset for cheap. Supergo offers XT hubs and Mavic 717 rims for 200 bucks. Even less if you go for a lower-end spec.