Need tire advice.
 

:twitchy:

Hello folks.

Ive had my Trek 7.2FX for a a few months now.

I was cleaning it with a rag yesterday, and while doing my rims i noticed the tread on my back tire had a green spot. I guess this is some type of warning build in saying hey....change me!

So im looking at my options for new tires.

I enjoy going fast, the tires i have are great, but something in me wants a thinner tire. I've googled and it seems like the smallest i can go is 700x28. So, my questions.

1.What are some good 700x28 tires that will let me enjoy the speed i love?
2.Do said tires have puncture resistance?
3.Should i get something that doesnt have puncture resistance and get Tuffy Tireliner ?

Read about Specialized Armadillo and Cont. Gatorskins, and the reviews for both seems almost the same, both are heavy, but does what it says.

Im still new to biking, so i don't know what to look for in tire specs.

Oh, and i DONT want to get new rims, not for now atleast, just want a smaller tire if my rim permits it :)


Thanks for any and all help :D

Are you just commuting? If so, try the panaracer T-serv. They feel fast and have decent puncture resistance.
Gatorskins are NOT heavy. Wider tires do not necessarily mean you'll go slower.

Maxxis Re-Fuse. Light, 120 PSI, folding tire, Aramid layer for puncture resistance,
Put 5,600 miles on Re-Fuse tires (tandem and single) in 2011 with one flat. Not a puncture but a loose patch!
We live in the desert in AZ so lots of
chipseal roads, cattleguards and yes (!) cactus thorns + usual road debris.

With that upright position, skinnier tires won't make you go faster, they'll just make bumps more painful.

OP say she is limited to >28c, re-fuse only get to 23 and 25.

Yes just commute here and there and ride around for workouts :)
Those sound heavy duty, i ride in glass all the time. Im surprised my tires have held up this well. Not one flat
How come they wont? i thought thinner tires decreased rolling resistance. Im not expecting to go 10 MPH faster, but any gain is better than nothing :)

I like the Continental Sport Contact. They are smooth, fast, and are decent on protection.

Do you use tire liners?

http://www.amazon.com/Continental-Sp.../dp/B000O0FPLU

And this says wirebead or reflective.

Wat is wirebead?

They might roll a little faster on smooth surfaces, but over 20 mph or so, your chief enemy is wind resistance. I can go as fast as I care to on Panaracer 700x28s. :thumb:

Can't disagree with this at all.

Ride around my apartments when i dont feel like going in traffic to ride, when i sprint the up right position gets my ass kicked by the wind

the Maxxis re-fuse are tough tires, unfortunately they don't come in 28 :(

I used to ride a fuji silhouette, it sucked when I put 23's on it. Also leaning into corners isn't fun, especially if your center of gravity is too high.

I have only used three different tires on my hybrid in my limited experience. The Michelin Pilot Sports are my fav http://www.amazon.com/Michelin-Pilot.../dp/B002Z7EE0I I've put a couple, maybe three thousand miles on them. They handle superbly. No flats, but I figure that's as much luck as anything. I picked up a flat on my first ride with a Bontrager hardcase which should have offered more flat protection than the Michelins, so... They're a sweet tire though. Two thumbs up.

There is a wire bead in the tire where it seats into the rim. Pricier tires often have a bead made of kevlar or some other lighter high tech material.

My hybridized MTB has Panaracer Paselas with a wire bead. Good all around street tires, reasonably light. They also make a more flat resistant version, the Pasela TG (Tour Guard), which is just a few grams heavier.

Thanks for the info, those are affordable :)

Yes! Wider tires are not necessarily slower, and I'll never buy anything skinnier than 32mm again.
But if you WANT skinnier tires, I don't understand why you say you can't have them. I've run tires from 19mm to 41mm on two different sets of wheels on my Atlantis and Rambouilletand never had any problems.

Lots of good tires on the market, problem is the big end of the year sales for road tires ended in early September. Shop Performance, Nashbar, Price Point etc and find the best percentage off deal you can find then read the reviews, if the reviews are good chances are the tire is good. Ripple in the UK has the best prices on Continental tires, but you'll need to spend at least $55 (I think that's the limit) to qualify for the huge cuts.

Panasonic Panaracer RibMO 28

http://www.amazon.com/Panaracer-RiBM.../dp/B001CNAOVY

The T-serv is way better, it has 1080p. The RibMo only have 720P!

[h=2]T-SERV PT[/h]
Comes in red!!!! me likes :)

There's a grain of truth in that statement but not enough to make it true. Once you get over about 15 MPH on a smooth flat road, the energy that's required to push your torso through the air exceeds all the other factors holding you back combined.

I can provide a (much) longer answer if you're really interested.

Well. On my last ride i managed to get 5 goathead thorns. 3 in front tire. 2 pebble sized ones in the back tire.

I ordered some Cont.Gatorskins. Didnt see any reviews about the T-Servs against goatheads. My choices were Marathons,Gatorskins and Armadillos. Reviews of the Aramadillos made me frown at it lol. Marathons were claimed to be bomb proof by a lot of folks. But were incredibly heavy. Gatorskins were durable, and lighter, so i went with a pair of those.

Hopefully they'll be good enough if i run across those thorns again. Got some thick tubes as well.

Now if only they came in red and black =\

+1 on not going too skinny.

There was just a big discussion about rolling resistance vs. tire width and an overwhelming amount of evidence and articles by respected authorities showed that a rider gains little or nothing by going to very narrow tires. The difference in rolling resistance between 23mm, 25mm and 28mm tires of the same make and model is negligible. There is a small weight penalty but the trade off is a less harsh ride, more secure cornering, and better handling on less than ideal surfaces. I rode 23mm tires on my road bike last summer and am switching back to 25mms which I find more comfortable and less "squirrely". The 23s didn't gain me a thing and the added security of a slightly wider tire gives me the confidence to push myself and my bike even harder. My distance/light touring bike is getting 28mms (up from 25mm last year). Even the pros have moved away from the super thin <20mm tires of years past to 23mm and even 25mm for many road events.

Here is the discussion I mentioned:
http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...ght=tire+width

Puncture resistant and fast is a difficult combination to come by. I'm riding Specialized All Condition Armadillo Elites and they are very puncture resistant and respectably fast. Since I ride a lot of solo longer distance rides out in the boonies, the peace of mind of the puncture resistance takes priority for me over speed.

Id be a bit paranoid riding on thin tires(20,23), especially in my city.

I hope I made a good decision with the gatorskins. Im not a fan of changing flats....found a nice 25piece patches on ebay....just in case i run into a bad day

Gatorskins finally got here. First thoughts. I expected them to be thicker. They seem to be thinner(not tire width) than my stock tires. So i don't see how these will last me long. Hopefully im completely wrong :)

My stock tubes dont work with them of course. i struggled for a few minutes trying to get one of them on, without a tube. Gonna be a hell of a lot harder when my tubes arrive...i just hope they fit.

Would probably get better responses in the hybrid forum.

If you really enjoy going fast, you would have thinner tires, a road bike or both. Try the gatorskins; very puncture resistant, I have some fixed gear friends who use them and they go fast. I think it's more the rider than tires that makes the bike fast.