General Cycling Discussion - 26" rims and compatible tire sizes

okay, i have the ale rims ta19 rims with 26x38/32 which i am assuming is 26x1.5? anyway my question is could i fit a 650c road tire on it? its a marin muirwoods which i am trying to make faster on the road. the alex ta19 looks like a pretty slim rim and maybe could fit a 650c road tire. thank in advance for your help.

No 650C will not fit.

I have never seen a wheel size given as 26 X 38/32 and I thought first that maybe it was a 26 X 1-3/8 or 26 X 1-1/2, which are completely different sizes from most anything found on modern bikes. A Marin Muirwoods probably has a 26 X 2.XX standard mountain bike size wheel.

The important number for selecting tires is the ISO designation on the tire (and possibly somewhere on the rim) that should look something like 559-54. The first number (559 on most mountain bikes) is the rim bead seat diameter (BSD) in mm which determines which size of tire will fit. The second number is a nominal width.

Anyhoo, 650 and 26" are different sizes and tires from one are not compatible with rims from the other.

Here is an article on bike tire sizes generally recognized as one of the most complete:
SHELDON BROWN ARTICLE ON TIRE SIZES (http://sheldonbrown.com/tyre-sizing.html)

Although 650C road tires willl not fit, there are lots of decent road tires (although not too much in actual 'racing' models) available in the 559 BSD size.

No. Get a couple of 26x1.25-1.5" slicks (e.g. these for $8.99 each - http://www.performancebike.com/bikes/Product_10052_10551_1070102_-1_1500502_20000_1500506) and call it a day.


okay, i have the ale rims ta19 rims with 26x38/32 which i am assuming is 26x1.5? anyway my question is could i fit a 650c road tire on it? its a marin muirwoods which i am trying to make faster on the road. the alex ta19 looks like a pretty slim rim and maybe could fit a 650c road tire. thank in advance for your help.

the crazy number i gave you is what the tire size says. i read the rim it says 559x18. i am looking for a skinny tire close to what a road bike tire would be. i have road style TREAD tires on it now. but i want the speed of the skinnier tires. if you know of any please give me a link. if all else fails ima stick a 650c wheel set on it, do u think that will work?

the crazy number i gave you is what the tire size says. i read the rim it says 559x18. i am looking for a skinny tire close to what a road bike tire would be. i have road style TREAD tires on it now. but i want the speed of the skinnier tires. if you know of any please give me a link. if all else fails ima stick a 650c wheel set on it, do u think that will work?

Sticking a 650 wheelset on might work, but the tires and tubes can be hard to find.

If you really want a road bike, why half-ass this bike? Why not sell it on craigslist and buy an actual road bike instead?

the crazy number i gave you is what the tire size says. i read the rim it says 559x18. i am looking for a skinny tire close to what a road bike tire would be. i have road style TREAD tires on it now. but i want the speed of the skinnier tires. if you know of any please give me a link. if all else fails ima stick a 650c wheel set on it, do u think that will work?

There are dozens of road tires out there in 26-inch, maybe hundreds, in sizes down to at least 1.0 (I may have seen a 26x7/8 in a catalog once). My commuter is an old Bridgestone mountain bike, and I've ridden it at least 15,000 miles on a range of road rubber. IMO, there's no reason to go skinnier than 1.25, and I use 1.4s these days. 1.0s are just annoying--they ride hard, don't go any faster and you have to run them at high pressures, which I don't like.
Before you swap the wheels, be sure there's enough adjustment in your brakes to fit them. I don't remember exactly the size differential between 26 and 650, but if you have to buy new brakes to make them work, you could easily put $500 into a change that won't make a difference you can feel.

the crazy number i gave you is what the tire size says. i read the rim it says 559x18. i am looking for a skinny tire close to what a road bike tire would be. i have road style TREAD tires on it now. but i want the speed of the skinnier tires. if you know of any please give me a link. if all else fails ima stick a 650c wheel set on it, do u think that will work?

If you want to go faster, skinnier tires will only make a tiny difference. If you really want to go faster, work on your physical condition and/or making yourself more aerodynamic. A "real" road bike is waht you need, but "aero" clip-on bars can make a big difference on your existing bike.

I have never seen a wheel size given as 26 X 38/32 and I thought first that maybe it was a 26 X 1-3/8 or 26 X 1-1/2, which are completely different sizes from most anything found on modern bikes. A Marin Muirwoods probably has a 26 X 2.XX standard mountain bike size wheel.

That 26 x 38/32 is a real size and it has nothing to do with the bead seat diameter of 559 mm. The 38/32 is actually the width of the tire at its widest and at the tread, respectively, in millimeters. I seem to remember WTB starting this alternative measurement numbers in lieu of the older "26 x 2.00" designation.