tire size / tires for heavier teams (26")
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tire size / tires for heavier teams (26")
We recently bought a 1999 Santana Vision (26" wheels, enduro model, I think it is the previous model in the fusion line). It came with 1 " specialized all condition tires, which are rated at 115-125psi. Our team is 170 in the front and 200 in the back. I think that puts about 250lbs on the rear wheel. On ride two, we had the tire pumped to 125psi and had a blowout. It looked like a pinch on one side. The tire was damaged as well (now has a bulge). We have another all-condition tire, which we can put on and experiment with, but I'm wondering if we need a larger size tire. Our shop mechanic said to just pump up to 135 and go with that.
Does anyone in this weight category have experience with 26" road tires? Any experience with tires that could take some fire road riding as well?
Do people generally exceed the tire psi rating when riding on tandems? Another mechanic suggestion was to buy quality tires and pump them up to 125psi on the tandem regardless of manufacturers recommended maximum.
I did a search and thought that some more specific information for this type of situation would be nice. Thanks for the help.
Does anyone in this weight category have experience with 26" road tires? Any experience with tires that could take some fire road riding as well?
Do people generally exceed the tire psi rating when riding on tandems? Another mechanic suggestion was to buy quality tires and pump them up to 125psi on the tandem regardless of manufacturers recommended maximum.
I did a search and thought that some more specific information for this type of situation would be nice. Thanks for the help.
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yes:
My ATB tandem's spare (OEM) wheels are set up with 26 x 1.5" road tires - Tioga City Slickers. The team is slightly heavier than yours (for sure captain has 25 lbs on you). We run ~80psi in them which is about 15 more than they are rated. We have done lots of fireroads with them - although more of the fireroad riding is done with the primary wheels which have 26 x 2.35" DH tires on them - up the fireroad; down the singletrack. DH tires are filled to the max on the sidewall.
Manufacturers are required to ensure tires can take 50% more than rated pressure (can't find the web page...maybe it was in my SAE manuals)...so the mechanics suggestion to inflate to 125 no matter what the sidewall says is asking for a blow out.
Don
My ATB tandem's spare (OEM) wheels are set up with 26 x 1.5" road tires - Tioga City Slickers. The team is slightly heavier than yours (for sure captain has 25 lbs on you). We run ~80psi in them which is about 15 more than they are rated. We have done lots of fireroads with them - although more of the fireroad riding is done with the primary wheels which have 26 x 2.35" DH tires on them - up the fireroad; down the singletrack. DH tires are filled to the max on the sidewall.
Manufacturers are required to ensure tires can take 50% more than rated pressure (can't find the web page...maybe it was in my SAE manuals)...so the mechanics suggestion to inflate to 125 no matter what the sidewall says is asking for a blow out.
Don
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Thanks for the input.
I thought it very odd to suggest 125 for any tires size from 1 " to 2 ". I think that his worry was that the tire would roll off of the rim in a hard corner if it had too little pressure. Without thinking too hard about it, I would think that the bigger the tire, the more force pushing out on the bead at a given pressure. Thus, a bigger tire would hold just as firmly at a lower pressure (as long as the tire is appropriate for the rim).
I don't see much from the manufacturers about using tires for tandems.
I thought it very odd to suggest 125 for any tires size from 1 " to 2 ". I think that his worry was that the tire would roll off of the rim in a hard corner if it had too little pressure. Without thinking too hard about it, I would think that the bigger the tire, the more force pushing out on the bead at a given pressure. Thus, a bigger tire would hold just as firmly at a lower pressure (as long as the tire is appropriate for the rim).
I don't see much from the manufacturers about using tires for tandems.
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We are a lighter team, 310 lbs, and ran 25 mm Maxxies on our 700c wheel tandem for a while. As long as the roads were good we did fine, but we had a few pinch flats/blowouts when hitting a good pothole with speed. Potholes are unavoidable in our city, and went back to the original 38 mm Bontager tires which came with the bike.
On our new 26" tandem, we run 1.5" Shwalbe Marathons at 100 psi, great tire and zero problems.
I think you are asking for trouble with 1" tires with your team weight unless you are riding on the smoothest of pavement.
On our new 26" tandem, we run 1.5" Shwalbe Marathons at 100 psi, great tire and zero problems.
I think you are asking for trouble with 1" tires with your team weight unless you are riding on the smoothest of pavement.
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How do the 1.5 marathons roll? Those were one of the tires I was considering. My previous experience on a borrowed bike was that tandems handled the rolling resistance of bigger tires well. I don't remember what they were though.
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We are a lighter team, 310 lbs, and ran 25 mm Maxxies on our 700c wheel tandem for a while. As long as the roads were good we did fine, but we had a few pinch flats/blowouts when hitting a good pothole with speed. Potholes are unavoidable in our city, and went back to the original 38 mm Bontager tires which came with the bike.
On our new 26" tandem, we run 1.5" Shwalbe Marathons at 100 psi, great tire and zero problems.
I think you are asking for trouble with 1" tires with your team weight unless you are riding on the smoothest of pavement.
On our new 26" tandem, we run 1.5" Shwalbe Marathons at 100 psi, great tire and zero problems.
I think you are asking for trouble with 1" tires with your team weight unless you are riding on the smoothest of pavement.
Riding on road, a 370 pound team should be okay with 1" tires, as long as the pump them to a pretty good pressure, such as 115-120lbs.
If you want to run lower pressures, you probably need to go wider.
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You could get lost and die.
You could hit a tree and die.
OR YOU COULD STAY HOME AND FALL OFF THE COUCH AND DIE.