City Riding Help
 

I have a old mountain bike that I want to convert into a commuter bike. It currently has knobby tire on it so I want to change it out for this one: Forté Gotham ST Road and Mountain Tires, 700 x 32, 700 x 35, 26 x 1.75

Is this tire good?
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It says "26x1.75" but my bike's current tires say "26x1.90", it won't fit?

Those tires will fit, and will transform the way your bike feels and rides, compared to the knobby tires. Performance Bikes offers good products and competitive pricing. Get the tires and report back on how much you like 'em.

The "26" is a reference to the diameter of the wheel the tire is meant for. It's not the actual diameter of the wheel itself but roughly the diameter of the wheel with a tire mounted on it.

The "1.75" is the width of tire. So the tire you're looking at will be narrower than the tire that's on the bike now. Getting a narrower tire is almost always OK unless you're going from a fairly wide tire to a narrow one (which is not the case here). More often it's trying put a wider tire on that causes problems.

That seems like a good basic all around tire, just be sure to keep them properly inflated. :)

- Andy

Get either Big Ben or Big Apple - on a 26" - a balloon tire is best for riding comfort.

Very narrow road style tires are harsh and unpleasant.

I find that bigger is better also translates to less rolling resistance.

I have specialized slicks running 1.95 wide. They are awesome for the urban landscape and dirt roads.

I tend to agree with this, though I don't think 1.75" is *too* bad on the narrow side. Keeping it in the 2" and more side with some nice, smooth rolling tires is definitely an experience though. Thinner ain't always faster, fatter is almost always more comfortable and capable on rough terrain. The hard part is most bike shops (mine included) have bought into the thinner=faster mindset and only stock 26" tires that are on the skinny side for a nice pavement tire.

I use Performance Forte Metro K 26x1.25 tires on one of my bikes and am satisfied. 32mm is by no means a skinny tire.

The Gotham tires look to be beefier and heavier. Should roll much better than a knobby tire, in spite of the heft.

Update: I run Specialized Hemispheres on my Univega. Pumped to 60 psi. Also, bike shops have no problem ordering you some tires if they don't have something in stock.
Specialized Bicycle Components

I think the grey looks cool on my bike.

http://i1372.photobucket.com/albums/...ps7byjsmsc.jpg