I just picked up a pair of continental city ride II reflex tires in 700 x 42cc size. They'll be going on my trek xcaliber 6. I've read and reread bunches of information regarding the inner and outer diameter differences and the fact that as long as the tire is wider than the inside of the rim you should be fine, etc.

Right now my bike has a set of 29x2.2 in front and 29x2.0 for the rear. They're knobbies and I primarily ride my bike on the road to work and the bike path (paved) with my wife and 2 kids. The tires were fine but they have various places where the knobs are torn off down the middle and on the sides and in the wet they plain suck.

My question again is, will the tires I picked up fit? And are they a decent tire?

Thanks

700c is smaller than 29 inch for rim/tire size. They will not fit. 700c tires are something like 622 mm, 29 inchers are like 736 mm.

Time to return or sell those tires and get some 29ers.

- Andy

Good tyres and they should fit.

Wrong.
"29er" is marketing gibberish for 700c.
They are the same rims.

Really??? My sources need updating then!!!!

At least i was right 'bout the 700c= 622 mm part....

- Andy

Yup! 29er is just a fatter 700c tire. The rim sizing is the same. I've repeatedly swapped tires between my bikes,... I'm currently using the Schwalbe Big Ben's on my 29er. They're excellent for street & bike path usage.

They also kick butt as I've started using my 29er as my daily commuter.

Maybe. Check this chart to see how well those will fit on your rims:
Tire Dimensions | Schwalbe North America

Going from 2"+ to 42mm is a pretty big jump;if those wheels were intended for fat tires,you may have issues going that skinny. I mounted a set of 1.35" tires on some MTB rims once;they were so hard to mount I wondered if they were the right size. Def not something I'd want to deal with on the side of the road.

As the others have said,nope:
Tire Sizing Systems

"This is a marketing term for wide 622 mm ("700c") tires."

New question, do I need different tubes? Or will the old ones work just fine?

42 mm = 1.7 inches. the old ones will work fine.

I know. I read something incorrectly months ago at a bike shop......... Thank you.

- Andy

Tires are installed. Rode to work today and I immediately noticed a slight "bounce" to the tires. My front fork was locked out but as I pedaled I felt ad though the rear tire was bouncing... not sure what that's about... any ideas? Pressure too low? I don't have a gauge to check it with.

Doesn't sound like a tire size issue. Could be poor inflation, cruddy tires with uneven rubber, who knows? Fix the things that are fixable like tire pressure first.

Most bike shops have pumps in front of them or inside you can use. Check the sidewall to see what the pressure range is,and then check the gauge on the pump. If you just inflated the tires until they felt firm,they could be under inflated.

Not all tires seal with all rims . I would lift the rear up and slowly spin the wheel, look for a high spot and most likely the tire isn't seated in the wheel there. lower the pressure and squeeze the tire and push into the rim, re-inflate and recheck. Had that happen on my cousins Fuji when he went from 770 x 54 to 700 x 38