Singlespeed & Fixed Gear - Low cost tires

I am VERY new to biking. I decided to switch to bicycling as my main means of transportation due to gas prices. I recently bought a Windsor Timeline as my introductory bike which came with 700x32c tires. I am currently riding it seven miles a day, five days a week (not bad for just beginning in my opinion.) Herein lies my issue: I am a very large built man. I am 6'5'' 255 lb and have already flattened my back tire. I fear it is due to my large size and figure that I should invest in larger tires that could possibly support my size and weight better. Also, as obvious by my choice in a Windsor Timeline my wallet is a bit pinched and am hoping to stay under $200.

Now according to BD I can fit tires up to 700x42c on the bike and am hoping to find something near that size, perhaps not quite that extreme though. I was hoping there were other brickhouse men that could help me pick out a set of new tires that should fit my needs. And also, if I've been reading correctly the '700' of the 700x32c is the width, correct? So I should be able to buy new tires/tubes and place them on my current rims right? I apologize for being completely wrong if I am, as I said I'm a bike noob.

Any help or insight would be completely appreciated. If what I am asking is completely impossible or just plain ignorant please feel free to tell me.

I am a very large built man. I am 6'5'' 255 lb and have already flattened my back tire. I fear it is due to my large size

Are you sure the tire was inflated to the proper pressure, as written on the side of the tire? I doubt you're too heavy for a standard tire, especially 32c.

Besides flats happen to everybody from time to time, that's something you just have to accept as a cyclist. And 200$ is more than plenty, you can get good tires for 1/10 of that.

edited to add: if I were you, I would buy a decent floor pump with pressure gauge first, replace the tube or patch it up and continue for now. If flat tires happen frequently, I would then think about getting bigger tires.

Yep, I bought a nice floor pump with pressure gauge. I made sure the pressure was correct before riding to make sure I wouldnt get a pinch flat.. This also happened to the walmart cheapy that I had before it while waiting for delivery. And a year ago the same thing happened with a borrowed bike that I used for a day. The pattern seems to be too overwhelming for me to ignore.

Well, like I said, flats happen to everbody, so I still wouldn't necessarily blame your weight, but wider tires do lower the risk as far as I know. In regards to what tires fit on your rims, it depends on the width of the interior sides of the rims, and is a bit complicated; here's a chart that shows what fits (under "Width Considerations"), although you don't necessarily have to follow it religiously: http://sheldonbrown.com/tire-sizing.html

In general in regards to your question: the 700 is metric and refers to the diameter of the wheel in millimetres, the 32c is also metric and refers to the width of the tire (not the rim) in millimetres.

btw. there an extra forum dedicated to heavy cyclists here http://www.bikeforums.net/forumdisplay.php/248-Clydesdales-Athenas-%28200-lb-91-kg%29

Try getting wider tires with a lower PSI, that should really help; bikesdirect bikes tend to come with super narrow 23mm wide tires which are way too skinny for you. You should try Clydesdale and Athena subforum here; they should have some great insight for giants from giants.

http://www.biketiresdirect.com/product/vittoria-zaffiro-700c-road-tire

I have a friend whose just short of 6 foot and probably 225, and he runs 28s. I have the 25's of those, and I'm at 180, Ive never had a problem, I love them.

http://www.biketiresdirect.com/product/vittoria-randonneur-cross-700c-tire

If you really want to go bigger.

Try getting wider tires with a lower PSI, that should really help; bikesdirect bikes tend to come with super narrow 23mm wide tires which are way too skinny for you.

He's got a Windsor Timeline and is riding on 32c tires.

Where on the tube is the flat? Is it occuring on the outside of the tube, or on the inside where it meets the body of the rim? Is it happening near the valve stem? Does it look like a long slit or is it a pinhole? This information can help you narrow down how the flat occured.

I'm 245 lbs., and prior to building up my most recent commuter I was running on 23mm tires. Never got a flat because my tire pressure was always kept over 100psi and I purchased a puncture resistant tire. I moved up to larger tires because they're much more comfortable, but the original tubes are still going strong, nearly a year later.

Each time you have a flat ( had 61 flats) you have to determine the cause.

Remove the tube, pump it up, find the leak and match that area of the tube to the tire.
Mount tires and tubes with the valve at the lable on the tire's side wall..

Hey guys! Thanks for the quick replies! I'm planning on removing the tube today and investigating what happened. I saw on the athenas that if I have two small holes next to each other then I had a pinch flat. Otherwise it was a blow out. I'm hoping it was just a bad tube; I'll keep you posted.

If I were you, (wanting wider tires) I'd leave the front tire alone and replace the back tire with something like a 35 or 38. That's where most of your weight is. No recommendations as I don't run anything in that size, just go to your local shop and see what they have. Just make sure you get a tire with a slick tread, not one of those stupid "hybrid" tread tires meant for offroad and onroad. They work poorly in both situations.

If only I had a LBS... I currently live in a horrible little town called Sterling, Colorado and the closest thing we have to a bike shop is Walmart... Really... But I took the tube out and inflated it and found the hole. I think it was just a bad tube, definitely not weight related. Today I'm going to get a walmart tube just so I can commute still, but I plan on buying two good tubes online. I'm hoping that will kind of stop this from happening in the future. Are there any tube brands that you guys recommend?

Did you look real good at the tire (inside and outside ) for wires, glass or rock chips.

Before getting larger tires, look all the way around the tire to make sure you have plenty of
room. My Trek has 700c-35's and believe it or not, the front derailleur just clears the front
of the rear tire when I am on the small chaining. It is a real short bike!

http://img35.imageshack.us/img35/8797/clearam.jpg

You don't realize how dirty your bike is till you take a picture!:lol::lol::lol:

BD bikes come with low end kenda tires. It's a good idea to get tires with better puncture protection,like the panaracer ribmo or t-serv protex.The hole in your tube is not caused by being bad(unless it's a long tear along a seam) but more likely by some debris(glass,thorn etc) making it's way through the tire.Before installing a new tube, line up the old tube with the tire and check the tires inside around the puncture area for anything poking through.

If only I had a LBS... I currently live in a horrible little town called Sterling, Colorado and the closest thing we have to a bike shop is Walmart... Really... But I took the tube out and inflated it and found the hole. I think it was just a bad tube, definitely not weight related. Today I'm going to get a walmart tube just so I can commute still, but I plan on buying two good tubes online. I'm hoping that will kind of stop this from happening in the future. Are there any tube brands that you guys recommend?

Might be worth it to make the drive to Greeley and talk to someone at an LBS there.

Ya I aligned the tube with the tire and used my fingers very diligently to find any shards of glass or anything. There weren't even any puncture holes, but I didn't expect to find any because, well, it's a tire and it's hard to find such things. I went ahead and bought a couple of tubes (one for a spare) and hope they will last untill I find some quality tubes online.

I don't know if there's much difference between random Walmart tubes and "quality tubes". Anything above 10$ per tube and you're probably getting ripped off imo.

If you are convinced that tubes are the answer,get some slime tubes.They're heavy, but they work.

I don't think a cheap set of tires is the way to go. Get a set with good puncture resistance, even if they're on the heavier side. If you can't afford two at once get one for the rear wheel first.

Cheap tubes are only for for the time being while I wait for some quality ones to come once I figure out which ones to order. Which tube brands seem to be the best. Most are only around $10 so there's no reason to skimp on em

From your description, it doesn't sound like your tire was defective, just bad luck.

I doubt it is a defective tube. Usually defective tubes fail at the valve or fail by splitting along a seam. If it wasn't a pinch flat, that basically necessitates that it was a puncture flat. The other possibility is something sharp inside your rim not covered by the rim tape. Common puncture sources are glass, wire, and thorns. The cause of a puncture doesn't always stick around, especially if your tires have a thin tread. Whatever it was may have just poked through the tire into the tube and then fallen out. Wire can be really difficult to find if it only sticks through the tread by a fraction of a millimeter. Usually though, you will find something pointy inside your tire.

Patching a tube is pretty easy, just follow the directions on a patch kit. The important thing is to wait a few minutes to let the "glue" dry before applying a patch. It saves you a lot of money over buying a new tube every time you get a flat.

Flat's happen to everybody, and the heavier you are, the more often they happen, regardless of what kind of tires you use.

I haven't heard of skinny tires getting more flats than wider tires, but I haven't tried many wide tires. Common sense would suggest that skinny tires get fewer flats because they have less surface area to pick up debris, although higher pressure might make them more susceptible to what they do pick up maybe. The other trade off of wider tires is a cushier ride at the cost of more effort.

Something else. The wheels on bd bikes have crappy plastic rim strips that often shift and expose the spoke holes that act like cookie cutters on the tube, causing flats. When you buy the new tubes, also get some Velox rim tape, which cost about $5 each, but are well worth the expense. Here is a good source >>> http://www.universalcycles.com/shopping/product_details.php?id=1207 You want the 17mm width.

Thanks for your advice guys. I am going to go ahead and order a new tire with a couple of tubes and tape. I'm gonna keep the stock 700x32 on the front and plan on getting a Michelin Pilot Sport (http://www.biketiresdirect.com/product/michelin-pilot-sport-700-x-35) 35c for the back. I'm gonna get some slime tubes and Velox Rim tape for both tires.

One of the reviews says that the tire actually runs 38.5mm mounted but that should be fine since my Timeline runs up to 42c tires. Everything should line correctly though for me, right? My stock rims should fit the 700x35/38.5c just fine right? I'm sorry for my ignorance, I'm learning as much as I can for my new love of biking.

BTW, after replacing the stock rear tube with a walmart cheapy I got ANOTHER rear flat. I put another tube on it and also readjusted the crappy plastic rimtape in hopes that this tube will last me till the high quality ones get in. Once again it was just a tiny puncture hole near the seam of the tube. But it wasn't a blowout.

Edit: The tire sizing chart at http://www.sheldonbrown.com/tire-sizing.html#width answered my question of the tire fitting. Looks like I'm in luck :)

One thing to look for,, any thing inside the tire, with the tube, the smallest gravel, or any thing will damage the
tube. It needs to be CLEAN. Bump the tire, unmounted on the ground and look in the bottom. ANY THING there
is BAD!

Hey I don't think it's necessarily your tires that's causing the flats.... Maybe it's the way your riding? I'm 265 and I've been running the same 23c's since winter and I love them.I used to ride wider tires because I thought wider would always be better since I'm heavy. But I've found I can run any sized tire with no problem if it's inflated to specs and I shift the weight on my bike so that all of it isn't on one tire. It can also depend on your riding style also do you jump off or curbs? Is the road uneven where you ride?

When you install the new tubes, put a little baby powder on them: This reduces friction between the tube, tire, and wheel, which can help prevent flats.

When you install the new tubes, put a little baby powder on them: This reduces friction between the tube, tire, and wheel, which can help prevent flats.

this would just create a mess.

this would just create a mess.

In mountain biking, this is the poor man's Stan's (tubeless system, allows lower pressures). Yeah, it's a little messy, but reduces the likelihood of pinch flats.

You probably just got a puncture. Most of the time the object doesn't stay stuck in the tire, that's why you didn't find anything.
By all means get some Velox rim strips. They come in different widths so measure the width of you rims before you order. A cheap alternative that works well is glass tape.
The best tubes are the cheap ones. The more expensive tubes are lighter and weaker. Walmart tubes should be fine.
I have found that Slime does not work well at 100psi.
Also, there are things called tire liners (Mr. Tuffy) that go between the tire and tube that don't let things poke through. They come in different sizes according to tire size.
The Vittoria Randonneur is the toughest tire that I've seen and will outlast ordinary tires 3:1.
Always buy 3 tires at a time. The front will outlast the rear 2:1.
Nashbar usually has good deals on 700x38 tires.

Well BikeTiresDirect forgot my velox... so I am still yet to be able to see if I continue getting the flats. Worst part is that I used 2nd day shipping on my actual order and now they are sending it economy... Ya for waiting another week to be able to ride... UGH

Got my velox today! finally... Man the difference between the velox and the cheap horrible plastic ring that came on my rims is phenomenal. I dig having the fattie (35c) in the back. I rode probably around 7 miles today. I even purposely took a harsh road to test out the new tubes/tire/rim tape. I am pleased to say that the tire held its pressure. I really think the Velox was the game changer, thank you so much for recommending it.

When you install the new tubes, put a little baby powder on them: This reduces friction between the tube, tire, and wheel, which can help prevent flats.

This is actually a very good idea. A little goes a long way.