lbautista23

im currently riding on 700x32c armadillo tires on my giant roam 1. i was thinking about upgrading to either a 25c or a 28c conti gatorskins. my riding has gone from some trails and paths to more road riding. what are the pros and cons between the 2? will i feel the difference? what do you guys suggest?

jbchybridrider 

I don't think you'll notice much difference between 25 and 28 if anything but seeing as you have 32c already get the 25's and swap between the two depending on where you ride. Reason is there's minimal difference between 28 and 32c.

xoxoxoxoLive

I thought most Giant Roams came with 38's or larger ? If so your rims might be to wide to run 25's, but change those Armadillo's they ride like bricks.. I just switched to GATORHARDSHELLS 700 x 23 and could not believe the difference.

FrenchFit 

Those must be a pretty wide OEM rims, I'm not sure a thin tire would fit. Regardless, I ride both 25 and 28 Gatorskins and you'll feel the difference in the steering. The 28 will slow down a twitchy front end, which could be good or bad. For a bike like that I doubt I would try anything narrower than 28mm.

Bill Kapaun

What do you weigh? IF you are heavy, the 25 will be less "tolerant" of lower pressure.
The skinnier the tire, the harsher the ride. IF you have rough textured pavement, the wider tire will absorb "road buzz" better.

pursuance

might be of interest.
https://www.schwalbetires.com/tech_in...dimensions#rim

cderalow

this is the most useful information posted in this thread.

my GT came with Schwalbe Landcruisers in a substantial 700x40! I'm running 700x25 on my stock rims with no problem on the original 17c rims. ('m actually running 700x25 up front and 700x28 out back)

xoxoxoxoLive

https://www.bikeforums.net/archive/in.../t-801252.html 19c rims.

lbautista23

so from what it says on the chart my rim cant fit 700x25

pierce

you can run a 25mm wide tire on rims as wide as 25mm OD (which is about 19mm ID), but you'll need a heck of a high air pressure in it. the bigger question is, /why/ ? even the tour d'france racers were running 28c on the rougher stretches of the race. use a good high thread count tire, and the larger sizes stay very light and give you that excellent road feel, while not being nearly as harsh.

btw. 'armadillo' is a branding for the puncture protection that Specialized uses... there are many different tire models available in Armadillo, ranging from All Condition road touring tires to big fat 26" mountain bike tires. Almost all of them ride like a brick, they are heavy and leaden feeling. I had Nimbus Armadillo on my hybrid before my current Vitorria Randonneur Hypers, and it was like night and day. The Rando's also have decent flat protection but with 120 tpi per ply sidewalls, they ride like a racing tire compared with the Nimbus Armadillos that felt like solid rubber wheelchair tires

Six jours

Both of those tires are really slow. So you've got a choice between narrower and slow, and wider and slow. If those are really the only tires you are looking at, then it really doesn't matter much.

If you are looking to improve your rolling resistance and comfort, you'll need to expand your choices. Several companies offer supple and light 25mm tires. Vittoria Open Corsas, for instance, will transform your bike. I am partial to wider tires myself and prefer things like the 29mm Challenge Paris-Roubaix and 28mm Grand Bois Cerf Green Label. All of those tires are more expensive, less flat resistant, and shorter lifespan than the Gatorskins and Armadillos. If you want to feel a significant difference, you're going to have to put up with those trade-offs.

pierce

the Roam 1 is a lower-middle range hybrid that came with 40mm tires and a cheap Suntour suspension fork. I really don't see any point in putting racing tires on a bike like this.

xoxoxoxoLive

There is a huge difference in Gatorskins, and Gatorhardshells... Also in price. These are installed on the correct size rim 13c.

xoxoxoxoLive

https://www.amazon.com/Continental-Ha.../dp/B002Z3Z9YM these also come in 700 x 28c (but do not come in folding in those sizes). The Roam is a Very Cool Bike, but anything smaller than 32's would just be ridiculous, it is dual sport bike and leans closer to trail riding than road...

Millerad1651

I have a similar bike to the Roam, a Misceo Trail 1.0. I left the LBS with 38s on there, and could go even bigger when I buy a set of knobbier tires for it. I wouldn't see any fitment problems with going all the way up to that size. I'm a bigger guy, and don't plan on winning any races, so I just wanted something a little more substantial for comfort.

Six jours

You would if you tried it. Rolling resistance is most important at lower speeds. If the OP is trying to upgrade the performance and feel of his bicycle, tires are the single most cost-effective way to do it.

Six jours

I understand that. I just don't see the relevance, because the OP mentioned Gatorskins specifically, and Gatorskins are dog-slow.

lbautista23

i weigh about 170lbs

lbautista23

yea i know but my riding style is leaning more towards road rather than trails and i dont have the money to buy a road bike.

xoxoxoxoLive

Like I said, the Roam is a great bike. I would just put on fast rolling 32's, the rim is going to swallow 28's and will not perform much better.
Someone may call me on this, but from my experience the 32,s will have less tire on the road with max air pressure. the 28's will have to be stretched wider for the rim, while the others will have more of a balloon effect. The bike is already pretty heavy so weight is not really a factor here. In a nut shell, the quality of the tire is going to make rolling a little better, plus air pressure.

GeorgeBMac

I think a LOT depends on where you ride it. You say "more roads" -- which means there may be a fair amount of 'other stuff'.

I think it depends on what that other stuff is: I ride on limestone trails and my Cannondale road bike has 700x28's and it will do it -- but I do feel they are quite wide enough. And, I would feel very uncomfortable on 700x25's. But, on the road, either are great (although the 25's will, all other things being equal, be quicker.

Conversely, my Trek and Lemond both have 700x34's. And either does well on both the trail and the road -- but neither is as fast as the Cannondale on the road. But, actually I bought the Lemond Cyclocross because I wanted something more stable on the trails than the 700x28s that the Cannondale had.

One experience I had last summer: I went to a Trek Factory Demo and rode a Madonne (700x23) and a Cronus (700x34). When I got back I commented to the factory guy how much slower the Cronus was. His response was: "Switch tires and the Cronus will be just as fast".

So: do you want speed or stability? (Part of the answer is personal preference -- but part of it is where and how you ride).

nymtber

Not always true. My Sirrus came with 28c "all season sport" tires. I put 25c Mavic aksion tires on it, and the ride got a bit smoother, and much faster (both tires were inflated to 115 front/120 rear, I need them high for my 220lbs) Quality of tire makes a difference, as well.