Bicycle Mechanics - Cutting the knobs off a Knobby Tire?

Suppose Im really really cheap.
And I'm stuck with knobby mtb tires, but ride on pavement.
Suppose it's doable to cut the knobs off and turn it into a very ugly but functional road tire?

Suppose Im really really cheap.
And I'm stuck with knobby mtb tires, but ride on pavement.
Suppose it's doable to cut the knobs off and turn it into a very ugly but functional road tire?

Yeah. Let us know how long it takes.

What is your time worth? You can buy decent street tires for about $7 on the web. I got my last set on sale at Nashbar for less than $6 each. Or buy a donor bike at a garage sale or thrift store and swap out the tires. I've done that several times as well.

thrifty bill

keep riding them and the knobs will dissapear by themselves

Ohwell

Interestingly enough, google search reveals that some mtb-ers actually do cut some of the knobs off their tires for performance adjustments.
http://www.singletracks.com/blog/mtb-gear/mtb-tire-mods-the-quest-for-the-perfect-tire/

So I suppose there't nothing different in principal in cutting them All off, other than spending time...

Sounds like a good winter project.
A sharp utility knife and a steady hand. Be careful

Not a good idea. The thickness of the rubber between the knobs is far less than the thickness you'll find on the tread face of even a thin racing tire. So if you do this then you'll most likely suffer from more than the usual number of flats. Anything you save up front will be eaten up by the number of patches or new tubes you'll end up using over the life of this tire. Also since it's so thin a tread face after all this trimming the tire will wear out in 1/2 the time.

By the time, from start to finish, it will take you to carefully (?) sawing off the knobs on your knobby-tires - you could have gotten enough money to buy a new pair working at McDonald's.

If you follow through with this, may I make a suggestion? Do it with a friend with a digital-camcorder. Put it on u-tube and ask for people to send you donations for your next art project. You'll probably win an award from some art-college you never heard of before!

Keep The Faith!

Just make sure to keep the cut off knobs in order, as they need to be in their original position when you glue 'em back on to ride off road.

Seriously?

http://arikia.files.wordpress.com/2009/08/facepalm1.jpg

This guy beat Capt. Picard by light-years...

http://i424.photobucket.com/albums/pp323/nagognog/einsteincopy.jpg

It never ceases to amaze me - the lengths some will go to "save a buck" Look for a cheap donor bike or buy road tires at wally world. Work two extra hours at work and pay for the tires.

Ohwell

Interestingly enough, google search reveals that some mtb-ers actually do cut some of the knobs off their tires for performance adjustments.
http://www.singletracks.com/blog/mtb-gear/mtb-tire-mods-the-quest-for-the-perfect-tire/

So I suppose there't nothing different in principal in cutting them All off, other than spending time...


The mods you found are for cutting off "some" knobs for riders who could not find the tires in the pattern they wanted. Cutting them all off is a colossal waste of time and will dramatically shorten the tire life. In the end, you will need to buy new tires much sooner. This assumes you are not hurt if and when the front blows out.

I've cut knobs off, but it was to get the tires to fit on too narrow frames. It was time consuming-maybe 10-15 seconds per knob- 30 minutes per tire maybe. Be careful, once you start rushing it is easy to shave a bit too deep. A decent knife that you can resharpen (during the process) will help.Let the knife movement to the cutting, not your forcing it thru the knob.
It will take close to a hour-maybe more. Wear gloves-leather gloves.
Luck
Charlie

Could you send me the knobs?

I want to make a mountain bike tire, but all I have are road tires. I figure I could glue those knobs onto the road tire to make a mountain bike tire.

What do you all think of this? Would it work? What type of glue would you use?

What is your time worth?

How much is his Emergency room co-pay? I have a very nice v-shaped scar on my left index finger from a razor knife, a xc ski boot and an idea that I could turn it into a set of cheap winter bicycle shoes. Real winter shoes would have cost less than the co-pay...and worked better.

I'll bet you could walk out of Walmart with a set of road-worthy tires for under $20. Then save the knobbies for some time when you need them.

I have this image of a person standing over a giant sanding drum, holding the tire over the sander, a small pile of rubber on and around his feet. A stinking cloud of burning rubber envelops the whole scene.

call a temp agency and do a short term assignment on your day off. You should have enough for some tires, tubes, and fenders.

It worked for Burt Munro. Just Sayin'.

-Jeremy

Let us know if you do it.They are cheap, old MTB tires, right? Not newish worth something.Wear leather gloves, be careful you don't stab yourself in the leg, or the "groin area".You will be tempted to cut toward your body, like pealing an apple.Hold the wheel between your legs and just "saw" away from yourself-repeat,repeat,repeat-400X maybe

If you just slice them down with no particular interest in shaving them flush, or making tham all even, you could do it in 30 minutes total. You'll have to resharpen your knife a time or two probably. I like an actual knife rather than a carpet cutter because I want a fair length of blade to slide across rather than just brute forcing it thru(makes it more likely to slip and cut you when you use high effort).

Yes,I have done waaaay too many "not the best idea, but possible" mechanical things. This is maybe a mid range not great idea- it can work, but it is a lotta work with some danger potential. I just counted the knobs-just 1/4 of them-on one of my tires-50 or so per 1/4-so 200 per tire- 400 total- 4000 seconds- bit over 1 hour of constant work.

Charlie

Suppose Im really really cheap.
And I'm stuck with knobby mtb tires, but ride on pavement.
Suppose it's doable to cut the knobs off and turn it into a very ugly but functional road tire?

Get these they are only $9.99 each Forté Slick City ST MTB Tire (http://www.performancebike.com/bikes/Product_10052_10551_1035134_-1_1500502_20000_1500506) I have a set that are just about new if you really want them I will send them to you, you pay shipping.
Don't cut the off you tires, when I was racing motocross we did slit patterns in some tires for specific reasons but not always and that was several years ago.

If you lived nearby, I'd gladly give you a well-used, but with a lot of life left in it, Specialized Armadillo 26 x 1.5" tire. I only have one as the rear wore through to the belt after ~10,000 miles. The front tire never suffered a single puncture (neither did the rear) so is in very good condition aside from being covered in brake dust.

Please don't attempt to do what you proposed. You will definitely regret it.

somewhere out there is a guy with 26" slicks wishing he had some knobbs to glue on so he can ride off road LOL

A minimum of one hour of cutting-possibly stab yourself "near" the groin - or pay maybe $10 shipping to a generous forum member.
You can imagine how I know how easy it is to stab yourself when you are doing boring, repetitive, high effort cutting.

Let us know how it turns out-either way.

25 responses. Nice work!

25 responses. Nice work!

Uhh. I count 26 (now 27).

Uhh. I count 26 (now 27).No, no, you can't count post number one as a response! There's only 26...oh, wait, now there's 27. Never mind.

Go for it!

Try different tools to cut the knobs, and report on your findings of which tools are best for the job.
Maybe you could try a woodworking plane, a Gillette Mach3 razor, etc.

I love any job that involves the use of sharp blades.

What's used for removing is a hot knife you get a soldering iron with a wide tip grind it down so it's sharp and flat and go for it cuts nicely and takes them right off:D, for slits just use a razor blade ;)

Could you send me the knobs?

I want to make a mountain bike tire, but all I have are road tires. I figure I could glue those knobs onto the road tire to make a mountain bike tire.

What do you all think of this? Would it work? What type of glue would you use?

Rubber cement of course, silly!

But why send the knobs to you when the OP could glue 'em on worn out brake pads instead and save even more money by never having to buy new pads again?!!!

I used diagonal cutting pliers to trim the outside knobs on some tires that had a too square profile. It worked great and is safer than any sharp knife. While I can relate to frugal, IMO your proposal may be a bit over the top if it is even practical.

And my offer still stands post #22

Turn the bike upside down, get a mate to spin up the back wheel, and hit it with a belt sander. Change tyres, repeat.

Done in fifteen minutes.

And yeah, Burt Munro would approve.