Bialy

I thought I better restart the thread since the other drifted a bit and my post was buried.
Is a 700 tire good enough for road and light trail use?
I noticed that most hybrid bikes (for road and trail) have narrower 700 tires, while comfort ones have fatter 26.
I conclude that the fatter 26 are more comfy on bumps and also good for trails but slower than the narrower 700. I also conclude that the 700s being on hybrid bikes are quite sufficient for the trail and a bit speedier on the road.
Did I get this right???
So I want 700 and hybrid for more flexible needs.

masiman

Yes, a 700c tire is good enough for road and light trail use. You would not want to regularly take a pair of narrow light weight racing rims on light trails. You can do it but I would not expect the wheelset to last as long as they should. There are plenty of touring/cyclocross type wheelsets that would be better suited to light trail use.

The 26" rims are typically wider and stouter than 700c rims. The low pressure, wide, tall tires that you can mount on the wide rims will absorb more shock and not roll as easily as high pressure, narrow, low profile tires.

You did get it right. In your analysis. You can ride with either tire. If you plan on doing more rough trails than road riding, I'd recommend the 26". If you think you will be mostly on bike paths and the occasional trail, with the trails being mostly relatively smooth hard pack the 700c will be fine.

tdister

I put some Bell comfort tires on my marin...they handle much better than the knobbies that were on it, but are still not anywhere near as efficient as my Trek's 700-32c tires. It doesn't take long to notice either.

That Guy

Before you start fussing over wheel size, I'd ask what is it that you want to do with your bike? I have a 'cross bike that works (and has held up) great on rail-trails and beat up old fire roads. Yet my single speed has two-inch tires on a rigid steel frame and it's super smooth.