Originally Posted by
Calsun
REI sells a city e-bike that comes with 27.5 x 1.95 tires which is the most common size used with mountain bikes and so one has more than a dozen tire manufactures and more than a hundred tire types and models from which to choose. If the 27.5 x 2 inch tires work for mountain bike riders on a wide variety of terrain and surfaces anything wider is not needed. The fat tire e-bikes provide far fewer tire options and require a much greater reliance on the bike's motor to go anywhere.
By road bike standards, 27.5x1.95, which we can write instead as 650Bx49, is a wide tire. Some call wide tires "fat". But please don't confuse them with
fatbike tires, which run between 3 1/2 to over 5 inches wide. A "wide vs narrow tire" discussion can't possibly be talking about fatbikes, but rather do you leave the 700Cx32mm tires your Trek ebike came with or do you replace them with 700x38s -- or, if you happen to have a set of 650B disc wheels in the house, do you replace the tires with 650Bx48s.
Originally Posted by
Calsun
Once a tire is wider than 3 inches a bike rack becomes a problem and ones that work cost much more. Even putting the bike tire into a standard bike stand is not going to work. While I appreciate the softer ride for people who like to throttle around town, for those who want to get some exercise and pedal their bikes and want motor assist primarily for headwinds and steep hills, these bikes are not a good choice.
Fatbikes are for snow and sand. Using them around town, unless you just had a big snowfall, is a gross mismatch with their capabilities.
Originally Posted by
Calsun
The comment about road bikes not being able to carry groceries shows remarkable ignorance. The Vietnamese defeated the French and U.S. miliitary by moving supplies along jungle trails on simple bicycles. All one needs is a sturdy rack and panniers regardless of the bike used. The city bikes are more likely to come with factory racks and fenders and even head and tail lights powered off the motor's battery but it is a trivial matter to add racks and lights to any bike.
In today's parlance, "road bike" means road racer or "sportif," with drop bars and no racks. The Vietnamese used roadsters on the Ho Chi Minh Trail, not road racers.
Originally Posted by
Calsun
I started out with two folding fat tire e-bikes and each weighed in at 70 lbs. and so I spent $1000 on a special hitch mounted bike rack and another $100 on a folding motor bike ramp. I needed to carry large wrenches to be able to remove a wheel if I had a flat and special motor bike tire levers. I was much more in the realm of the motorcycle riders than a bike rider. I sold these two bikes and replaced them with road e-bikes that each weigh less than 27 lbs and use 700x28 tires and my replacement tube, pump, multi tool, and tire levers fit neatly inside a Topeak F25 saddle bag that is 6.7” x 4.7” x 3.1” in size.
It is interesting that the much heavier fat tire e-bikes appeal to the least fit rider and as they require less effort by the rider they are providing far less in the way of any health benefit.
This is a fat tire road bike. The tires are 650Bx38.
