Recreational & Family - Looking for more modern alternative to an OLD SCHOOL tire.

Hey, I was wondering if there are any people out here that are knowledgeable about tires. I'm looking to find some modern replacements for the tires currently on my backup mountain bike: A 10 year old Mongoose 10 speed 26". The bike has been ridden for the past year, but because of the design of the tread (And where I ride it) It as lost only about 1/16th of an inch in 1 years use. The tires have large tread blocks suitable for decent offroad traction, and a wide center stripe that makes for smooth riding on a road surface.

Because they still have about an 1/8th inch tread, (Another YEAR in my estimation) I normally would keep riding. But the sides are starting to split from dry rot and taking the many bumps in the road. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Photo of tread is included below:
http://i44.photobucket.com/albums/f42/gr8fzy1/DSCF6855.jpg

What do you plan to do on the bike? Tires make a huge difference--i did my first metric century, 20 years ago, on a mountain bike with road tires, because that's what i had. i've also used my atlantis on dirt and gravel with 'cross tires, and it was surprisingly competent.
if you're happy with the performance of the tires you have, look for something that resembles them. if you do most of your mileage on pavement, you may be happier with less tread. why not go to a bike shop and look at what they have? by the time you factor in shipping, the price may come out close to the Internet, and you can ride the tires that day.
FWiW, I've probably had five or six different road tires on my 20-year-old Bridgestone mountain bike. They were all way better than knobbies, but none really stood out as better than the others.

What do you plan to do on the bike? Tires make a huge difference--i did my first metric century, 20 years ago, on a mountain bike with road tires, because that's what i had. i've also used my atlantis on dirt and gravel with 'cross tires, and it was surprisingly competent.
if you're happy with the performance of the tires you have, look for something that resembles them. if you do most of your mileage on pavement, you may be happier with less tread. why not go to a bike shop and look at what they have? by the time you factor in shipping, the price may come out close to the Internet, and you can ride the tires that day.
FWiW, I've probably had five or six different road tires on my 20-year-old Bridgestone mountain bike. They were all way better than knobbies, but none really stood out as better than the others.

I used my bicycle MAINLY on pavement, although I do occasionally get the urge to hit a trail or too. I like having knobby tires because not all pavement is clean, and having large tread blocks helps in sand and water. Also, the larger the tread blocks, the farther the main body of the tire is kept from road debris: making it more puncture resistant.

Trust me, I love the grip that the nice slicks on my roadbike give me, but when you factor in frequent puncture repairs (Almost always the back tire, which takes the most work to fix...), it's not really worth it to by a slick. That's why I like this tire's wide center tread. It's a nice compromise between traction and protection. it just rolls over most glass and metal pieces (That I'm not able to avoid) and the times that it DOES get in the tire, it's almost always gets stuck in a treadblock.

Get Schwalbe Big Apples or Fat Franks.

They will make a big difference in riding on asphalt.

Get Schwalbe Big Apples or Fat Franks.

They will make a big difference in riding on asphalt.

and they give reasonable displacement/flotation effect on sand/gravel, too

Also, the larger the tread blocks, the farther the main body of the tire is kept from road debris: making it more puncture resistant.

2+" mtn bikey slicks like the big apple have the protection built into the tread that is on the road, definitely don't worry about lifting the tire carcass away from pointy objects. (and you will notice that they weigh the same as a knobby because that material is still there, they just roll better)

gr8fzy1, I saw a similar tread pattern at Wal-Mart.

Brad

2+" mtn bikey slicks like the big apple have the protection built into the tread that is on the road, definitely don't worry about lifting the tire carcass away from pointy objects. (and you will notice that they weigh the same as a knobby because that material is still there, they just roll better)

I'll have to look into those, since you think so highly of them. Thanks Hardy.


gr8fzy1, I saw a similar tread pattern at Wal-Mart.

Brad

Time for another trip then, thanks for the tip.