Originally Posted by
cukaracha
I'm a skinny dude at 150lbs, so I'm pretty sure I'm not straining any tires. Haha! As for the nature of the gravel, I've never really paid close attention to it, but I think the worst it gets is something like gravel that you find in a parking lot that isn't covered in tarmac.
Interesting. In that case, what are you thoughts on this:
I looked into the recommendations here and I really like the Vittoria Randonneur Pro. They're 1.5" and aren't knobby. However, they weigh 430g which is 40g heavier than my current tires. How do you think these will perform in comparison to my current tires?
Going to slicks will definitely improve your speed and ride.
Vittorias have a pretty good reputation, if you want something cheap. For relatively cheap tires I personally use Panaracer TServ tires (but not saying they're better, I haven't used both side by side).
If you want the ultimate in a tire that's both fast and comfortable (at that size), the Schwalbe Supreme is the best you can get -
http://www.schwalbetires.com/bike_ti...rathon_supreme
Obviously it's a expensive though.
"
I'll be cycling on sidewalks which are mostly tarmac and occasionally on gravel/grass."
If your gravel and grass is truly occassional - like a short strip here or there, I myself ride 23c and 25c on grass and a crushed limestone gravel trail. It works fine. I ride across a grass field on my commute, actually - it's not a great ride, but with some bike handling ability I'd rather tough it out for that small section than have a fatter tire. It doesn't work for the crushed limestone trail if it's been raining though - 23c or 25c is just to skinny then, and a 1.5" tire would be much better.
If you have a short strip of really wishy-washy gravel, what I do is - slow the heck down. :-)
A 23c/25c is really horrible on a gravel road as well, a 1.5" would be much better, maybe even a 2".
It just depends on how much of your route is actually like this, and whether you bike in all weather or only good weather.