Recreational & Family - How narrow can I go?

Another angle to the tire width question. My wife's 7300fx came with the 35mm 80psi tires. We rarely get off ashpalt. Once in awhile we ride the local rail trail (soon to be 2 blocks from our house), but it is fairly hard packed chat. I wanted to put narrow tires on to hopefully make it a bit faster. The wheels are slightly wider than the ones on my road bike. How narrow could I go? I'm tempted to order 28mm.

Another thought was to buy a cheap set of wheels and mount the 35mm on them. Then swap when we go trail riding. Or buy some decent road wheels and put 25mm on them, and keep the existing for trails. Am I crazy? :rolleyes:

No,
you're not crazy. Mostly this is a question of how much money you want to spend. At the top end, you could buy a faster bike that comes with skinnier tires. They make really fast hyrids these days, it
that's what you're into. You could get new wheels, but I don't see the point if you don't get lighter wheels. Which will run you a couple hundred.

So that prob leaves new tires. I run Rivendell Ruffy Tuffy tires; which is a good example of what you might get. http://www.rivendellbicycles.com/html/parts.html
These are 27c. That and a few of the 28c tires are a great compromise between
the extremes.
The thing to avoid is heavy if you want faster.

There's a chart available at www.sheldonbrown.com/tire_sizing.html that explains exactly how narrow you can go.

My Fuji hybrid came with 35mm tires. I had people at a couple bike shops tell me I could go down to a 28mm, so I did. I've put 250 miles on them so far, with not troubles. I say put 28's on it.

Assuming you have just normal old 700c wheels, you COULD go pretty much as small as you want--25s or even 23s. I've had tires from 20mm to 41mm on the same wheels, on an old Trek I converted to singlespeed, and haven't had any problems. Whether the ride would be acceptable would be another matter. I love my Rambouillet on 32s, but it's pretty uncomfortable and dodgy on 23mm tires.
For general use, I'll second the motion on the Ruffy Tuffys--I've had them on two bikes, and they're pretty nice.
You could also try Panaracer Paselas, which I'm using now on my Atlantis. Panaracer has just changed the size and design on those, though. I've bought them for years in 700x35 (I weigh 240, so I stay away from skinny tires), which actually measured about 30.5mm wide and worked great as an all-purpose tire for me--light, low rolling resistance and wide enough for stability and to handle my weight. The NEW Paselas, also labeled 700x35, are a true 35mm wide, and they feel a bit slower. Nice, cushy ride, though. I may order them in 32mm next time to get back to the previous size.
If it matters, the Panaracers are quite a bit cheaper than the Ruffy Tuffys. I just bought a set from Nashbar for $19.99 each, and I think Rivendell's asking $43 for the RTs now.

i use to have a rockhopper that i used for commute and recret. rides. it had 32mm knobbies on them.. so ended up swapping it out for some armadillos 28mm and commuting to work seems a whole lot faster.

just remember.. the skinner the tire you go with.. the faster the acceleration and less rolling resistance you'll have. however, the ride might tend to get a bit rougher.

Assuming you have just normal old 700c wheels, you COULD go pretty much as small as you want--25s or even 23s.

The Trek hybrids have a wheel just slightly wider than normal (3-5mm?), and are marked "dual duty". They are 700c though. I think 23c would look sort goofy on them, and may even be dangerous. Unless you meant buy a set, which is an option.


Thanks everyone for your great replies!!